Though Bleed makes more of an initial bang and is an outstanding album in its own right, Angel Dust's best effort is actually the lesser known Border of Reality from 1998. A comeback album after a ten year hiatus, Border of Reality marked a change for the band as they abandoned the thrash and turned towards power metal. To this date, no other band sounds quite like Angel Dust, which holds true for Border of Reality especially. It's unique even for Angel Dust - primarily known for being a full on power metal band - because the band borrows freely from the power-progressive realm and have never sounded as epic and ambitious, before or after. Later albums showed the band abandoning some of the ideas present here, to focus more on a straightforward brand of power metal. Great albums have a tendency to inspire and touch on a host of feelings in the listener. Border of Reality succeeds in that regard. When people talk about great comebacks, this expertly written album in the power-progressive mold, should be high up on people's lists. Truly monumental and a must have.
