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R E V I E W S  F R O M  " T H E  M A D M A N  I N S I D E "

Metal Observer (www.metal-observer.com)
    Ok, young band from Sweden, which style? Come on, have a guess! Power Metal? Nope! Death Metal! Eh-eh. Black Metal? Neither that! Traditional Heavy Metal mixed with Hard Rock it is that VII GATES from Halmstad offer us on their third demo, titled "The Madman Inside".
    As influences they state bands like IRON MAIDEN, SAVATAGE or RAINBOW and the latter one I can definitely agree with, MAIDEN to some certain extent, SAVATAGE, well, I'm still searching for that influence… But they combine it all to a very nice and good sounding mix that gives me hope for their future.
    The opener "The Saviour" is a bit up tempo, with a good melody, good guitars, excellent vocals by Christer Elmgren, not climbing the highest highs, and - an accordion! Yes, you have heard correctly, I do not know, if it is a real one or just keyboards, but the sound at least is an accordion! It seems that ever since I have officially declared it a Metal instrument in my review of MOONLYGHT, bands seem to take it up into their sound, which is cool!   
    Anyways, VII GATES nicely vary heaviness and intensity of their compositions, at times completely crossing over into Rock, then mixing Rock and Metal, everything with a very nice flow and borne by the vocals of Christer Elmgren, who manages to bring in his own touch into the songs, making them more distinct, like on "So Far Away", an excellent, calmer tune, which I like a lot. The following "Tormented" also more than convinces with its good use of guitars, well placed breaks and the excellent melodylines and vocals, I need more of this! And "The Madman Inside" (the song, I mean) does so!   
    I must say that this sextet shows a LOT of potential on this six tracker, because they also manage to elude the usual traps of newcomer bands, i.e. looking too closely to their role models and colleagues, here you won't find any HELLOWEEN, HAMMERFALL, IN FLAMES, AT THE GATES or the likes, but something pretty original in itself, very well executed and written, so keep an eye open for VII GATES! 8/10 -Alex

Metal-Rules.com (www.metal-rules.com)
    Sweden serves up another great traditional metal band in the form of VII Gates. The band was formed in 1999 by Jonas Arvidsson: guitars and David Agnsviks: bass. By 2000 they have a solid lineup and set to work remodeling a rehearsal room. Late that year the band received a set back when bass plyer David was killed in a car crash. The band soldiered on and added bass player Magnus Jacobsson. In 2001 the lineup was completed and consists of Arvidsson, Jaconsson, Ingemar Erlandsson: drums, Christer Elgren: vocals, mats Andreasson: keys and Robert Makek on guitars. 2001 saw the release of 2 demos: WHEN GATES ARE OPENING and A DARK ROOM OF MY MIND. VII Gates went back into the studio in the summer of 2002 to record this 6 song demo.
    VII Gates play traditional metal in the vein of Iron Maiden, Savatage, Dio and, by their own reckoning, Rainbow. This last bands influence is evident on the opening track “The Saviour”. This is the closet to powermetal that VII Gates gets. The Rainbowish keyboard passages add to this an added retro feel without making the song sound old. The most interesting section is the accordion solo that starts at 1:34. It blends into the song with great effect and sets up the excellent guitar solo that follows. “So Far Away” slows things down and gives vocalist Elmgren a chance to shine. The title track closes out the demo with the longest song on the CD clocking in at a little over 7 minutes.
    I was a little surprised when I popped this disc on for the first time. I was expecting something a little more power metal oriented. What VII Gates delivered was a traditional metal experience that very few bands today do. The drumming though fast and furious at times was varied and didn’t fall into the pitfall of one-dimensional double bass pummeling. VII Gates have created a solid demo and I am sure it will only be a matter time before a label snaps up this up and coming band. 4/5

Metal Gospel (www.metalgospel.com)
Swedish band that doesn´t sound like HAMMERFALL at all which is a good thing in my eyes at least. Instead I´d compare them to the spanish sound of TIERRA SANTA. They are pretty cool but a bit too clean in the vocal department for my taste. However, it´s in no way the usual HELLOWEEN fagparade so give them a try. :-) -Hartmuth

hooy! (www.hooy.net)
    Från den södra delen av Sverige kommer Seven Gates. Detta är deras tredje demo och jag har personligen följt dem lite halvdant - mp3-vägen - sedan första demon. Och jag kan gladeligen säga att dessa herrar har utvecklats något enormt sedan de första låtarna. Stilmässigt har de gått från att låta som ett relativt ordinärt heavy/powermetal-band. Till att idag sneglat längre bakåt i tiden för att blanda det bästa från 70 och 80-talet. De nämner i det medföljande informationsbladet banden Iron Maiden, Savatage och Rainbow som några av de stora influenserna och det är någonstans där de ligger också. Slutligen blir det hela hyfsat tungt och lagom lättlyssnat. Men kvalitén ligger inte i stilen, utan i melodierna som svänger något otroligt!
    Skivan innehåller ett varierat låtmaterial där höjdpunkterna är den bluesrockiga "Love Bullet" som suttit i min hjärna ett bra tag nu. Den känslosamma powerballaden "So Far Away" och som en imponerande avslutning den schizofrena "The Madman Inside" som faktiskt skulle kunna bli ett rent jävla mästerverk om produktionen hade varit lite tyngre.
    Men i slutändan kan jag faktiskt inte nämna någon låt som inte håller hög kvalité, inga utfyllare här inte. Bandet i sig är även duktiga, det enda man kan ifrågasätta är sången. Den kan kännas lite klen för den här typen av musiken. Men jag tycker ändå han väger upp sin avsaknad i kraft med melodi. Det är nämligen en väldigt melodiös stämma han har. Sången är nog en av dem sakerna som gör musiken lättillgänglig.
    Efter sången så brukar det vara en annan sak som ofta har en tendens att dra ned demoskivor och det är produktionen, och som jag nämnde innan så lider "The Madman Inside" lite av produktionen. Men för att vara en demo har de faktiskt lyckats relativt bra. Den är väldigt ren. Ibland nästan lite för ren, hade personligen inte haft något emot lite mer "LP knaster" i det hela om man uttrycker sig så.
4.5/5

Metal Reviews (www.metalreviews.com)
    Releases like this are the reason I love hearing demos and self financed albums. The Madman Inside is the third Demo recorded by this six piece band from Sweden. Let me stop right there for a moment. Why is this band still recording demos? This is a damn good band that has distinct influences, yet also has its own unique sound. The band plays melodic heavy metal with mature song writing and excellent musicianship. I fully expect this band to sign a record deal with a major (in terms of the metal genre) label and for me to be reviewing a full length debut in the coming year or so.
    There is a lot to like with this band. First of all, the vocalist reminds me of a cross between the vocalist for Heavens Gate and the vocalist for Crystal Ball. Christer Elmgren is nothing less than a perfect fit for this band. He colors the songs very well with his emotional and melodic voice, reaching and sustaining the high notes with ease. His voice also helps direct the chorus lines directly into your mind, destined to stay there for quite a long time. Guitarists Jonas Arvidsson and Robert Makek make a great team on guitars. These two seem to know exactly what the other is thinking and remain perfectly synchronized throughout the album. The riffs and rhythms are very strong, and the solos are exciting and memorable, but not over indulgent. The keyboards help the band achieve a big sound on this CD, a sound all their own. The first track, The Saviour even features an accordion, giving the song an instantly recognizable melody and atmosphere. So Far Away, Tormented, and the title track feature the tasteful use of piano parts, ala Edge of Thorns by Savatage. I can tire pretty easily of excessive piano and keyboard parts in my music, but VII Gates are masters of songwriting in that each musical element meshes together like a jigsaw puzzle to deliver a fantastic listening experience. Balance and variety seem to come naturally for these guys. Each of these songs is packed with power, emotion, and melody, which come together in grand fashion to form the perfect "grand finale" for this CD. The CD closes with the epic title track: The Madman Inside. What a brilliant song! This variation of this track is testimony to the fact that these guys are top notch songwriters. Tempo changes, rich melodies, and dynamic keyboard/piano textures make this song the standout of the disc although there are no weak tracks to be found. There is simply not a boring, nor a predictable moment on this CD to speak of.
    For a demo, The Madman Inside has exceptional production. I'm sure the final output sounds exactly as the band intended for it to sound. All instruments are at the proper level, and the sound is very crisp and professional. I am quite impressed by the band's ability to pull some of the best traits from their many influences and produce a sound all their own. You simply cannot accuse this band of being a copy cat. Creative and thoughtful songwriting combined with above average musicianship and professional production make this surprising demo an easy recommendation. Fans of quality melodic metal should absolutely give this band a chance. In the promo package I received for this release, the band stated that they have been having problems with their homepage (linked above). At the moment I cannot access it. However, I was able to find <this site> which will give you some information about this band and will allow you to download some of the tracks from this very promising demo.
    Killing Songs : All, but The Madman Inside is amazing!

Metal Coven (www.metalprovider.com/metalcoven)
This Swedish band had the ususal line-up changes before they recorded their first demo “When Gates Are Opening” in 2001.A few months later they already recorded their second demo “A Dark Room Of My Mind”.A German record company offered them a deal but they refused it.Copies of their second demo were also distributed in Japan and the demo was also reviewed well in several magazines and online-magazines.On their new demo “The Madman Inside” are 6 songs.Songwise they have a lot of variety .Some songs remind me of bands like At Vance, Narnia and Nocturnal Rites ; great melodic (power) metal compositions with excellent guitar parts/solo’s.But some other songs of them are influenced by bands like Rainbow, Savatage and even White Lion.So you can see that they are not the next typical Swedish melodic metal band, but they are certainly a band with a lot of potential.Only the future will tell if they will have an international breakthrough...let’s hope so for them.


Tombstone (www.tombstone.gr)
Some months ago we reviewed the first two demos of the band. Now the swedes have released their third demo and it's time for another review. This time the demo is better recorded and the production is much better, while the songs are in the same style. Classic power metal, only this time a bit heavier and with some more influences from classic 80:s metal. The songs are better than in their earlier demos and the band has progressed. The songwriting is more mature and the songs are better structured. Overall
it sounds like a more complete recording, than their earlier demos and certainly better. I would love to hear the guys go for a bit more technical direction, without loosing their melodic and classic metal roots, plus acquire a more personal sound. A good band, with lots of talent that can make it with a few minor improvements. 7/10

Metalstorm (www.metalstorm.ee)
I love reviewing demos and self-released CD’s, is a hard job because most of the time you get promos from bands that… uh… suck, but you also have the pleasure to discover new and original bands that break the parameters in Heavy Metal, and who knows, you’re maybe reviewing the demo of the next big name in Metal!
So, as you have guessed this a Demo CD, third one form these 6 Swedes, and is truly a surprise, I hate to use the phrase “a breath of fresh air in the genre” but these guys are! Combining different elements with classic Heavy Metal, VII Gates show us that you can play good stuff without recurring to the most used technique of most of the newcomers : copycatting.
From the opener track you’re up to a roller coaster of melodies, 'The Saviour', an excellent up tempo song, with a catchy chorus and… an accordion! I love when bands use accordion and all sorts of “non-metal” instruments in their compositions [the only bands I’ve heard that use accordion are Dark Lunacy and Moonlyght], anyway, the accordion fits perfect in the song, and gives to the composition a very unique personality.
'So Far Away' is another great track, a beautiful ballad, and again, very catchy, the singer, Christer Elmgren does an excellent job, and so does the two guitarists, in general, the musicianship in this Demo is top-notch!
So the Demo goes on and two more great tracks are up 'Tormented' [great song!] and 'Like A Rock' but all this songs are just a prelude to the title track 'The Madman Inside', a 7 minute epic track, and by far the best song in the Demo, this track has it all, tempo changes, beautiful melodies and great atmosphere, if you want to know what VII Gates is all about, listen this song, and you can thank me later.
One of the most impressive Demos I’ve ever reviewed, and is also very well produced, the only thing that let me down was the cover art, that is kinda poor [it looks like something I would draw in a very boring class at college], but the music is great, a must-have for all Heavy Metal fans! 8/10

Strutter magazine
We're heading into Sweden again with VII Gates, and without a doubt, this band can easily be labelled as yet another sensational band from the country that brough you so many other fantastic bands. VII Gates come out of the city of Halmstad, and their demo CDR contains 6 wonderful tracks. They play
excellent melodic prog/power metal with a clear Scanner approach, ending up sounding like a cross between Dream Evil, Hammerfall and the first Europe classic. This CDR is very promising and I can easily predict they will get signed soon to one of the prog/power labels in Europe, as their music is on a very high level. If we have a look at the 6 included songs, I must mention as highlights the tracks "The saviour" (high quality uptempo melodic power metal ala Hammerfall, Dream Evil), "So far away" (great melodic prog metal with a lovely melodic chorus) and "The madman inside" (great semi melodic rocker combining 80:s Europe and today's prog metal, with a strong chorus after 6.5 minutes). Basically, VII Gates is another sensational band from Sweden. Highly recommended to fans of mentioned bands. 8.5/10

Metalcentral (www.metalcentral.net)
Från Halmstad hörs klassisk 80-tals metal! Stundtals trallvänligt utan att för den sakens skull tappa attityd. Låtmaterialet är väl genomtänkt och produktionen näst intill fläckfri. Gitarrerna känns totalt samspelta, och det hela ger ifrån sig ett komplett kraftfullt intryck. Det lilla som kan finnas att anmärka på skulle vara sångarens dessvärre mindre varierande sång. Visst låter det bra, men med alla röstresurser påkopplade skulle det definitivt sitta till 100 %. Mindre ansträngt och mer variation är mitt tips.
8/10

Metalmessage (www.metalmessage.de)
Knackiger und vor sprühendem Ideenreichtum strotzender (ist ernst gemeint) Melodic Power Metal aus Schweden, und gar nicht mal so schlechter liegt mit dieser Demo-CDR vor, einem hochmelodisch strukturierten Album voller Überraschungen, mit denen man oftmals überhaupt nicht rechnet. Gleich die erste eröffnet sich im kraftvoll gespielten midtempo-lastigen Opener `The Saviour`, bei dem VII GATES nach einem hervorragend dargebrachten Soli mit einem Akkordeon (!) für dortig einheimisches Lokalkolorit sorgen, ein toller Einfall – kannte man bisher lediglich näher von Windir. Das sichert dem Halmstädter Sextett auf „The Madman Inside” gleich zu Anfang wichtige Punkte, denen die weiteren Songs mühelos noch einige hinzuzufügen imstande sind. Balladeske Anklänge offenbart `Love Bullet`, ein hymnenhaft daherkommender Stampfer in bester Kraftstahlmanier. Sänger Christer Elmgren verfügt über die labende Gabe, mittels seines einnehmenden Organs die sich bietende Gefühlsklaviatur menschlichen Empfindungsreichtums unverkrampft und natürlich zu vermitteln – paßt einfach hervorragend in die restlos ausgefeilt wirkenden Emotionssongs der talentierten Schwedentruppe, deren Haupteinflüsse mit Savatage, Iron Maiden und sogar Rainbow gelistet werden können. Wirklich Eigenständigkeit hoch zehn, was die beiden Gitarristen Jonas und Robert, Drummer Ingemar, Sänger Christer, Tieftöner Magnus und Tastenmann Mats hier bieten, traditionell veranlagte Schwermetallfans sowie alle Anhänger der zuvor aufgezählten Acts und auch von Yngwie Malmsteen, Stratovarius und Axel Rudi Pell sollten die Band unbedingt mal anchecken. Wie betiteln VII GATES ihren Stil im Info: „Heavy Metal for all situations“ – kann man getrost so stehen lassen. Markus Eck

Vampster (www.vampster.com)
    Mit "The Madman Inside" veröffentlichen die Schweden VII GATES inzwischen ihr drittes Demo. Dementsprechend agieren die fünf Musiker und der Basser äußerst souverän, und auch die Produktion ist erste Sahne. Die Band beschreibt ihren Stil selbst als "Heavy Metal für alle Gelegenheiten", was ich nur bedingt teilen kann. Denn zum Dampfablassen eignet sich der Silberling nicht sonderlich gut. Zu verhalten und harmlos ist das Songmaterial ausgefallen.
    Zu den Haupteinflüssen der Band gehören auf alle Fälle RAINBOW. Schon der schwungvolle Opener "The Saviour" erinnert besonders im Gitarrenbereich an Ritchie Blackmores Schaffen gegen Ende 70er. Dank des sauberen Gesangs und des folkloristisch angehauchten Mittelteils, handelt es sich aber nicht um ein reines Plagiat.
    Bei dem stampfenden "Love Bullet" wird das Tempo leicht gedrosselt. Sänger Christer Elmgren steht dabei im Mittelpunkt, wobei mich seine Stimme bisweilen an die von Urban Breed (TAD MOROSE) erinnert. Im Gegensatz zu ihren Landsmännern aus Böllnäs sind VII GATES allerdings klar dem Hard Rock-Genre zuzurechnen. Leider geizen sie dabei mit eingängigen Hooklines, so dass man sich die Stücke einige Male anhören muss, bis etwas hängen bleibt. Das balladeske "So Far Away" ist ein gutes Beispiel dafür, weil es trotz der schönen Atmosphäre keine Spuren im Langzeitgedächtnis hinterlässt. Einzig das gefühlvolle Gitarrensolo sticht hier heraus.
    "Tormented" ist ein ziemlich halbgarer Rocker, dem es eindeutig an Drive und Energie fehlt. Und an zündenden Riffs und Melodien. "Like A Rock" klingt im Vergleich dazu schon wieder etwas metallischer und besser. Allerdings läuft die Band erst in der zweiten Hälfte des abschließenden Titeltracks wieder zu Hochform auf. Auf einmal wippt mein Fuß wieder, plötzlich ertappe ich mich beim Mitsummen. So muss das sein! Dann ist die CD leider schon zu Ende.
    Gegen Ende weist "The Madman Inside" also Schwächen auf, während die ersten Stücke ordentlichen, zeitlosen Hard Rock mit Metal-Schlagseite (bzw. Melodic Metal mit Hard Rock-Einflüssen) bieten. Der zum großen Durchbruch notwendige Hit fehlt allerdings noch.

EUTK (www.eutk.net)
Da non confondersi con i "nostri" SevenGates, gli autori di "The Madman Inside" arrivano da Halmstad, Svezia. E' un ritorno da queste parti per I VII Gates dopo un paio di demo recensiti a suo tempo su Metalit, rispetto ai quali si scrollano dalle spalle l'etichetta della Power Metal band from Sweden! I VII Gates mostrano infatti maggiori attinenze ad un robusto Heavy Metal ottantiano spesso marcato da sonorità tipicamente alla Savatage, come rivela chiaramente la conclusiva "The Madman Inside". Se proprio devo citare un gruppo Power mi vengono in mente sopratutto gli Heaven's Gate, altro gruppo che ha sempre cercato di non finire intrappolato nel genere. Ho la netta impressione che il ruolo di Mats Andreasson abbia acquistato un maggior peso nell'economia del gruppo, e dato un taglio più hardeggiante ai VII Gates. Le sue tastiere hanno rafforzato la componente melodica ma anche la fantasia, ed ad esempio non mi aspettavo certo la fisarmonica sull'opener "The Saviour", eppure cade proprio a pennello. Una caratteristica rimasta invece inalterata dei VII Gates è la voce di Christer Elmgren, che continua a ricordarmi qualcosa di Pasi Humppi dei Freternia (vedasi "Love Bullet"). Christer è efficace sia sulle parti più melodiche di "So Far Away" (una ballad pianistica), sia sui toni più rockeggianti di "Tormented", dove è la sezione ritmica a lasciare il segno. "Like a Rock" ci propone i VII Gates in un contesto più Hard che Heavy ma non mi fa impazzire, al contrario di quanto accade per la già citata "The Madman Inside". La titletrack è infatti la canzone più varia ed articolata del demo, una prima parte cadenzata e teatrale, almeno sino a quando si alzano i ritmi, con delle interessanti fughe di chitarra e tastiera. Si sprecano davvero i paragoni con il gruppo formato quasi 20 anni fa da John Oliva! D'altra parte sono evidenti i miglioramenti compositivi del gruppo ed anche una maggior convinzione nell'esecuzione, il tutto con una produzione migliore rispetto a quella riscontrata sui precedenti demo, "When Gates Are Opening" e "A Dark Room Of My Mind. L'impressione è quindi quella di trovarsi di fronte ad un gruppo già pronto per un contratto discografico. Vedremo.