Ray Dorsey / CHAOS REALM June 2001
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TEMPEST - "Balance" CD '01 (Magna Carta, US) - 
I have to say, at the outset, that I am not a lover of a lot of things on the Magna Carta label. 
There seems to be a myriad bands that fit the "prog-lite" category, such as Tiles, Magellan, etc., 
not exactly my cup of tea. At the same time, one member of their stable, TEMPEST, is a band I really 
like a lot. You know well of my affinity for Celtic rock, and these guys have been a damn strong 
generator of that for a long time. Way back to private releases like "Serrated Edge," (my first experience 
with the band, bought on a whim at a Wiccan craft store in Rehoboth, Delaware!) they've combined 
the unique blend of Leif Sorbye's Norwegian heritage with Celtic traditional songs and a fairly heavy 
rock base to produce one kicking album after another. "Balance" is the latest effort from the West 
Coast band, and while there are no huge surprises, the quality here seems even higher than ususal 
for TEMPEST. This ranges from the fresh-sounding covers of trad numbers to killer originals like 
"Wicked Spring" and "Between Us." When it comes to the Celtic rock sweepstakes, I still place 7N in 
the winner's circle, but you can't go wrong with any TEMPEST release, "Balance" especially!