Steel Prophet: The God Machine (Rock of Angels, 2019)

Long running US power metal band Steel Prophet are back after a five-year absence with a new studio album titled The God Machine. It’s the band’s ninth full-length album, and even more notably, it’s their first album not to feature vocalist Rick Mythasian. He’s replaced here by none other than Mystic Prophecy frontman R.D. Liapakis, who also played a key role in songwriting and production on The God Machine.

It’s always a big deal when a band replaces a vocalist, especially when that vocalist has played such a distinct role in the band’s sound for so long. And Liapakis’ raspier vocal style is quite different from Mythasian’s high pitched wail, so there’s even more focus on the vocals here. The musical approach on The God Machine is a bit different as well. At its heart there is still plenty of that old school heavy/power metal sound that Steel Prophet is known for, but there is more of a hard rock vibe than we’re used to. It actually works pretty well, especially on hard driving songs like “Buried and Broken” and “Damnation Calling,” which end up sounding like metalized Whitesnake tunes. For the most part it’s the relentless heavy metal of “The God Machine,” “Crucify” and “Soulhunter” that dominate the album, and that’s a good thing.

This Jag Panzer meets Voodoo Circle sounding album is probably not what most Steel Prophet fans expected, but it ends up working really well. And it definitely makes a statement about the band’s new era. If you keep and open mind (and enjoy some hard rock mixed in with your heavy metal), you may be pleasantly surprised by The God Machine. Steel Prophet fans will obviously need to hear this, but it’s also well worth checking out if you’re a fan of bands like Jag Panzer, Mystic Prophecy, Jaded Heart, Voodoo Circle and Brainstorm.