Atreyu, 'Congregation of the Damned'

Release date: October 27, 2009
Record label: Hollywood
Official Web site: http://www.atreyurock.com/

The buzz: Despite two Top 10 albums and tours with Linkin Park, Avenged Sevenfold and Hawthorne Heights, there’s a bit of an anonymous feel to Atreyu, the California metal-hardcore group—it's probably not helped by the fact that one of the band’s two singers is also the drummer. “Congregation” is their fifth album…and not likely to improve the “Who’s that?” situation.

The verdict: Look, Atreyu (yes, named after a character from "The Neverending Story") write some great, melodic hard rock songs, full of the proper angst, scream/sing vocals and a multitude of '80s metal guitar solos. But so do a lot of bands, most noticeably their peers in Avenged Sevenfold (who have just a bit more range). If originality isn’t a problem, then go ahead, get in the pit (“Stop! Before It’s Too Late and We’ve Destroyed It All”), sing along (the title track, featuring a great Def Lep-like vocal assault), play air guitar (“Insatiable”), or wave your lighter/phone in the air (“Wait for You,” which desperately wants to be “November Rain Part 2,” and almost succeeds). Unnecessary, but fun.

Did you know? It’s also not original, but there’s a good 15 minutes of “Doom”-like fun to be had on the band’s MySpace page, where the group hosts a first-person video game shooter entitled “Metalhead Zombies” (featuring the band’s music).

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