Phantom Elite – “Wasteland” | Progressive Rock Central.com

Phantom Elite’s 2021 album Titanium was a monster metal wonder. I loved every minute of that album. Now, I finally have their first album, Wasteland, and I plan to give it, it’s due.

Wasteland was released in December of 2017. The band lineup was very different back in 2017. The band included: Sander Gommans, (After Forever, HDK), the writer and inspiration for the band and many of the songs on this album; Marina La Torraca, (Exit Eden, Avantasia live), lead vocals; Goof Veelen, on guitars; Ted Wouters, on guitars; and Eelco van der Meer, (Stream of Passion live, ExLibris), on drums.

This band truly captured magic in a bottle on this debut. Every track is a winner. My hope in completing this review so many years after its release, is hopefully to introduce you to this album. If like me, you joined the fun last year with Titanium, and enjoyed Titanium as much as I did, please give this album full of complex imagery, a spin, and I think you will agree that this album belongs in your record collection.

So, let’s begin with “Siren’s Call”. “All alone, I hear your voice in the wind”. Yes, we do and we like it. Marina is one of the best female lead singers in rock and metal. She has been involved in so many European metal bands and projects she knows her way around a studio. Her dynamic vocals are great here, but they get even better as the album continues. She grabs your ears early and never lets go. The lyrics are great, as always. But the music is very good on Wasteland, as well. Maybe even more expansive than Titanium, with more guitarists playing. Just listen to the layers of sound this band produces. Wait…it gets even better!

“Rise with the Dawn”, opens like a rampage building and then finally released. Power drums blast like thunder with keyboards and electric guitars roaring. Then, Marina, stops the action to sing, “I stop and breathe”. Nice, but I love that drum thunder. Marina sings, “Stones ahead will try to stop me from getting there”. Her destination. No, not Marina. Yes, rise with the dawn. Try it sometime. It can be beautiful. Power on full, on this song. Must have been a monster to play and listen to as a fan, live. They need to keep this baby in their live set list. Marina, “No we’re not alone. No fear of the unknown. We’ll keep marching on. And rise with the dawn”. That Titanium spirit will dominate the next album. One of the album’s best tracks, for sure.

But, so is “Another Day”. A cool keyboard intro gives way to those thunder drums again. I remember Eelco van der Meer, from Stream of Passion. I have their collection and Marcela Bovio always picked thunder drummers. Marina’s vocals are so crisp and clear. When they pause and allow her to command the stage with quiet security, it is awesome. Marina sings, “I see you walk away. It’s getting darker and the night is coming for you”. Then she sings so sweetly, “Wash away and scare away the darkness, the loneliness”. Then a thunderous melody, full of drums ensues just after 2:40 minutes, and is just dynamite! Marina sings, “And the truth that lies. Beneath the tides of time. Holds us ransom in pain. And the lies we tell. ourselves. Our lives are not here to be saved”. She closes so perfectly with, “How we long for another day. A brighter sky. Another way!”

The title track is enormous! Watch the video for “Wasteland”, before you listen to this song. Amazing, huh? I thought so. The beat and guitar riff that follows is memorable. Those thunder drums at 2:21, are one of the best parts of the album. Took me right back to “Pull Me Under”, from the legendary, Mike Portnoy. The keyboards that follow are not bad either. Then, Marina sings, “The hell you’ve created has no way out. All the hope has vanished. Just look around and try. It gets closer. All land is dry. Thunder, no rain. Storming these darkest skies”. Then she pleads, “You cannot say we didn’t try. You cannot say we didn’t try to fight it”. The beat and rhythm on this song is some of the best on the album. A global warming shout out. Although Marina has some powerful vocals, I think she is best when she is delivering her warm soft vocal on the refrain, near the end. Remember Thunderdome; she re-kindles the spirit here.

“Revelation”, is a cover song, gifted from Sander Gommans; from his HDK project. But Marina and the band make it theirs. The track opens with the sounds of Armageddon! Let the hammers fall. The track opens with a choir. They’ll be back often in this song. A Jim Steinman-like opera in a song. They sing, “Synergy, vanity, apathy, revelate, detonate, deviate!” Then Marina sings “Yeah, you failed to take your responsibility. And your mind and your thoughts. Were overshadowed by your greed. Oh, you chose wrong”. (Remember Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? Yeah, like that…wrong choice). She continues to dish it out, “I gave you love. I gave you peace. I gave you every opportunity. But you chose war and you chose fear. Now it’s time to face the wrath of me”. Hello, give her the prize already. But then she sings, “You turned your back on me. I need the angels now to lead me in. (We all want them to swoop in to help). “And I see it’s up to you to come and change the end. I’m just a pawn in your selfish game. You created this scheme of pain. You have no shame…” Were you expecting anything less. Perfect cover. I think they made it theirs. They will do it again…later in the album.

“Astray”, is the most beautiful break-up song you may ever hear. The guitar work and atmospherics are perfect in support. Marina sings, “Screaming out, crushing me. Maybe I’m not as good as she is. Just let it go, leave it be. It’s done”. Sad, but the guitar and atmospherics are perfect. Raise up another great song on this greatest hits level album.

“Every Man for Himself”, is another of my favorite songs on this album. A powerful and direct story of how we all end up protecting our own interest as an innate behavior. Marina punches early, “Can’t you see me? We’re all here. We share the air we breathe, and the cold that freezes our hearts”. This is a great story. Marina lays out the full lecture, then, they stop the thunder and allow for a soft acoustic guitar finish. It gives everyone a chance to ponder the words and meaning that Marina just sang. Poetic.

“Spectrum of Fear”, is yet another stick of dynamite. It opens with a cool, bluesy lead electric guitar, before the band is off and running again. Marina sings about how we fear so much daily and keep ourselves from making the most of our lives. So many actions are overlooked over fear of what someone else thinks. But Marina knows the answer, “You can live your life in chains, or resist and fight the restraints!” Yes indeed. There is some great electric guitar riffing here. But those dark, ominous drums play well with that dark keyboard background. A beauty for sure.

Remember Gordon Gekko, from the movie Wall Street? He makes a guest appearance with his “Greed is good speech on “With the Gods”. Well, he takes the show here. But not before the band builds a mountain of dynamite and powerful orchestration, including guitars and drums. They needed a pause after all the explosions on this track. Marina sings, “You know that you need this. You’re blinded to your own humanity”. The drum closing, with heavy electric guitar, is absolutely killer.

“Above the Crowd”, is yet another outstanding story and song. Marina sings deep lyrics, “When there’s no reason left to see. No light to shine upon your deeds. It crawls inside your shell. You’re doomed to haunt this Earth left between death and birth”. Wow. Some great organ music in the background provides variety amongst those machine gun drum pounds. Probably an instant crowd pleaser at shows.

“Lockdown”, is my favorite song on this album. Ingenious. Yes, Marina was prophetic, as she said in the interview I did with the band recently. Yeah, she creates the scenario we are all living under, two years before it becomes reality. The drums are off the charts on this one. One of the many reasons this is the best song on the album. Watch the video and you will get some of the flavor of how this one was received by fans. Eelco van der Meer handles the kit like he is the second coming of John Bonham. The guitar work is excellent, and Marina is always present. But this is drummer’s paradise!

“Serenades of the Netherworld”, is the second cover off Sander Gommans’ HDK project. And like I said earlier, Phantom Elite makes it their own. Beautiful acoustic guitar, and Marina’s voice. There should be more songs like this on future albums. Not the whole album, but one or two moments where you can appreciate her intricate vocals. After all the metal melded throughout this album, this is a chance to sit back and listen quietly to Marina tell a story. Enjoy.

What more can I say? This is a spectacular beginning for Phantom Elite. What a wonderful introduction. Please go back and get this powerful album, before they release the next album. Take their break, and make this album yours. Take the time to appreciate this album before the next chapter begins…

Track List