Metal-wise, I feel like Norway has always been known for the wrong bands. Mention the country to any metalhead and the extreme metal scene is usually the first thing that comes to mind, while there is a fairly healthy progressive metal scene in Norway as well. Tomorrow’s Outlook also has some proggy leanings, but appears to be mainly influenced by traditional heavy metal and US power metal. Their sophomore album ‘A Voice Unheard’ is at risk of drawing attention solely for the presence of Primal Fear singer Ralf Scheepers, but the music here is too good to rely on just that.

Stylistically, ‘A Voice Unheard’ strongly reminds me of ‘The Warning’ era Queensrÿche, though Tomorrow’s Outlook is rooted in traditional metal even more. It is the combination of classy melodies, the subdued tempos and the overall dystopian atmosphere that brings this comparison to mind. In addition, once second main singer Tony Johannessen hits his higher registers, he has a very Geoff Tate-ish delivery, though his lower registers are quite unique and characteristic. Overall, ‘A Voice Unheard’ is a pleasant listening experience that is neither too modern nor so old school that it appears to appeal solely by nostalgia.

Opening the album is ‘Within The World Of Dreams’, which does a great job of easing you into Tomorrow’s Outlook’s proggy power metal style even if you hear it for the first time. The song is melodic and extremely catchy. Another thing that stands out in this track and the others Scheepers appears on – dark power ballad ‘The Enemy’ most prominently – is how much more variation there is in his voice than he is allowed to display in Primal Fear. Employing different singers is often a recipe for inconsistency, but ‘A Voice Unheard’ is so stylistically consistent, that it almost doesn’t matter if Scheepers, Johannessen or Scott Oliva (on ‘Outlaw’) sings any given track.

This stylistic consistency also means the album flies by before you notice it. ‘One Final Prayer’ and the somewhat more melancholic ‘Fly Away’ will be a blast for everyone who enjoyed the title track, while ‘Times Of War’ has a darker, slightly more progressive vibe and convinces with its semi-oriental riffing. The epic ‘Nothing Shall Remain’ feels like a slower, more measured version of Queensrÿche’s ‘En Force’. The Johannessen-lead songs appear to be the more proggy ones, such as the dynamic ‘Descent’. Longtime readers will probably not be surprised that I thoroughly enjoyed ‘Slave To The Evil Force’, an English-language cover of Aria’s masterpiece ‘Na Sluzhbe Sily Zla’. It even features Aria drummer Maxim Udalov, who also appears (alongside Aria bassist and main songwriter Vitaly Dubinin) on a cover of Bruce Dickinson’s ‘Darkside Of Aquarius’.

If there is anything to complain about on ‘A Voice Unheard’, it would be that I think it could benefit from a little more variation in tempos. The songwriting is good enough for it to not bother me, but it sticks pretty safely to midtempo terrain. It’s not much of a dealbreaker, however, as ‘A Voice Unheard’ is a great slab of progressive power metal that should at least have some appeal to fans of every band mentioned in this review. Currently, the band is working on their third album. ‘A Voice Unheard’ definitely is good enough to be looking forward to that one.

Recommended tracks: ‘Times Of War’, ‘A Voice Unheard’, ‘Within The World Of Dreams’