On paper, this looks like a killer project ex-King Diamond guitarist Pete Blakk, along with Danish compatriot Hal Patino backing former Crimson Glory/Seven Witches voice, Wade Black. At least they didn’t call it Blakk On Black, or something similarly nonsensical, given the two Florida natives founded the band.

First and foremost, this is a showcase for Blakk, but not a solo album. Within a band context there’s lots of screaming guitar (‘S&M’, where the chorus sees Black straying into Ripper Owens territory!) with plenty of headbanging potential. The riffing on the heavy ‘Judas Witch’ could be a Priest Painkiller outtake, the other Black hitting vintage Halfordesque high notes. Blistering fretwork on ‘Hallowed Death’ too, leads courtesy of another King Diamond alum, Andy La Roque. ‘Purgatorio’ is a 50 second soundscape. While Black took some criticism for the forceful highs of his international debut (Crimson’s “Astronomica”), his repertoire here is more varied, including lows and a heretofore-unheard Beatlesque (not by lyrical content) mainstream voice for a short, almost acoustic ‘Don’t Come Back’.

The d-tuned, staccato Led Zep cover (‘Immigrant Song’) fails to ignite the senses (and not just because I’m no fan), easily the worst track on the platter.

Old school King fans will want to check out Blakk’s soloing on ‘The Gaoler’, one of the few moments he delves into his past. ‘Inferno’ is a slow, bluesy instrumental, with just a wisp of keyboards. Would have been a ballad if words accompanied it, so they were wisely left out. The disc ends with ‘Kill Em/Love Em’ a full out thrasher, made all the more intense by its pedestrian lead-in. Strangely, it is basically the second voiceless cut in a row. As the title is the only muttered phrase, repeated so often and quickly that it becomes another instrument, indistinguishable as coherent wording. While this album sounds nothing like any of the participants’ former outfits, Disaster Peace remains a masterstroke.