5. Hey Lord (Better Than Raw) (Deris)I feel like you guys might be surprised by this pick, but I love this song. I love the instrumental melodic part of the chorus. Great solo by Weiki too. Minimal, but really strong. I can't place what it reminds me of. Anyway, This song gets stuck in my head, and I've been known to scream the chorus in my car.
4. Dreambound (Gambling With The Devil) (Gerstner/Weikath)I must say that Sasha and Weiki make a great team. With so many great tunes to choose from, it's hard to explain how this one stands out to me. The chorus gives me goosebumps. The "You'll change my dream" part gets me going. The guitar solo section fucking rips. This song has the steady verse, fantastic chorus, and a beastly solo section. I could listen to this song all day.
3. King For 1000 Years (Keeper: The Legacy) (All)Right after I bought this shortly after its release, I can remember listening to King with the lyrics out while waiting outside my sons' school. This song never really clicked. I felt it was such a bloated attempt at an epic, stealing the Keepers theme. This song has so many great parts. Tons of great rhythms and a very nice gallop throughout. Great instrumental section showing their versatility. This song stays so consistently strong, and the last minute is amazing.
2. Power (The Time Of the Oath) (Weikath)This has always been the most recognizable song of the Deris Era for me, even when everything else failed to register. This is just a fantastic song all the way through. When they played it on the Pumpkins United tour, I went out of my mind. The joy in Andi's voice was so evident. I think this is one of their most perfect and succinctly written songs.
1. Occasion Avenue (Keeper: The Legacy) (Deris)I wish I could remember what my original thoughts were when I first heard this years ago. I know I would've thought the title was stupid, and that Kiske samples were lame and cheap. But during this exercise, this song has stood out above them all. I've been particularly enjoying the Live On Three Continents DVD version. The shot of Markus on the riser during the intro is so epic. He's amazing by the way, which obviously is not a new revelation. I really like the effects of the ghostly background vocals. Another track where Dani shines. Great songwriting by Andi. A very well conceived and constructed track. Just pure goodness throughout. The "I pray for all us people" part is eargasmic. I proudly proclaim Occasion Avenue as my favorite Deris Era song!
And finally the last two albums..
2. Gambling With The Devil
This is a great album. Probably their heaviest of the Deris Era after 7 Sinners. So many great songs. I think it placed four songs in the Top 25 and many more made the original cut. It has an absolutely brutal production, but that's not something I ever hold against the tunes.
1. Keeper: The Legacy
I've said before, but calling the album after Keeper Of The Seven Keys was always weak to me. I guess I always thumbed my nose at it. I thought King Of 1000 Years was a fake epic to me.
Well, I couldn't have been more wrong. There's not a weak track on the entire double album. An absolutely tremendous effort.