Roadrunner "Inhuman Rampage" - DragonForce

This was the one that separated Dragonforce from the pack. "Inhuman Rampage" was the record that drew the power-metal line-of-demarcation somewhere at the border of Germany and anywhere where Helloween were still superstars. Us metal paleontologists call that parsec of Western Europe "fossil land".
"Inhuman" was simply the record that got it right. Dragonforce dusted off the old clichés of a zillion Gamma Ray and Stradivarius records and made it all seem fresh again. And audacious in approach. They called it "Extreme Power Metal". The world never quite knew what hit 'em.
Freshly a known quantity in the UK where they busted ass from small club to club on their two earlier albums, "Valley of the Damned" and "Sonic Firestorm", The Force were the right band in the right place in the right time when it came to us Yanks.
You heard of this thing called YouTube? Dragonforce was one of the first big deal bands that kids, adults, hipsters, Hessians, the cool, the uncool, the seriously uncool, your mom, your dad and probably the family pet -- large fish included -- were instantly all about.
The Force literally blitzed the US. 9 dates sold out club tour. Opening main stage slot on Ozzfest. A US tour with Killswitch Engage....
...and then...
GUITAR HERO II!!! DRAGONFORCE: THE CULTURAL PHENOM!!!
Nobody had the slightest thought that "Through The Fire and The Flames" would become a Game-Stop mini-hit when you could walk in the mall and see a 12 year old wailing away at the song on a Wii kiosk then something had gone severely tits-up. The Ellen Degeneres Show?
OK, back to the record...
It's pretty fucking exhilarating; a rich and glorious workout for the ears. As much as shred-lord Herman Li can be the focus in the DF equation, it's our man and ex-Bal Sagoth-er Dave Macinktosh who is the secret weapon here. His drumming is unrelenting to put it mildly. Even when strontium shellac-ed Steve Perry sound-alike ZP Theart makes you think the 'Forcers are slowing into some Euro Song Competition groove with the likes "Operation Ground and Pound", the pace is near black metal.
"Inhuman Rampage" is an assault -- but one replete with those unforgettable Sam Totman hooks that kick through the likes of "Body Breakdown" or "Revolution Deathsquad". Toss in Vadim Pruzhanov's keyboard, keytar and sundry Pee Wee's Playhouse noise abuse and it's an avalanche of extremities and melodies. Even "The Spirit of Youth", one of the album's lesser tracks is jam-packed with the glory that is Dragonforce.
Of course you get the requisite power Nerf-metal balladry in "Trail of Broken Hearts" -- the hoisted lighter Dragonforce love/hate standby.
The question remains: without the mainstream hoopla, the videogames, the "My First Extreme Power Metal Album" mushroom-cloud excitement around this record, would "Inhuman Rampage" be a completely audacious and explosive metal classic?
C'mon, do I even need to ask?