I've always had a soft spot for Spanish sung Power Metal, so when I first heard of Dünedain I thought this is a band I'm gonna like. And the first minute of guitar crunching opening this album definitely gave me a vibe that I would appreciate this album.

The band plays what can be called traditional Power Metal, a little on the easy side somehow, as the songs themselves tend to be a little generic, but the vocals and most importantly the vocal melodies, as well as sometimes exceptional guitar work are what could distinguish them from the ocean of simple Power Metal out there. But the moments where those vocal & guitar melodies aren't strong enough to create a spark that will light a fire throughout the album. The guitars are good to excellent, with some nice riffs, good soloing and great melodies spicing things up. However there is little exceptional to be found on Magica. Don't get me wrong it's an album I enjoy and I have already listened to it about ten time now, but I don't find the genius I hear on bands like Dragonfly. Still, there enough good songs, like the opener, Corazon De Invierno, or the second track Valor (which is my favorite on the album) with both great melodic riff and excellent vocal melodies. Now if the entire album contained songs of this caliber, the album would shine more than it does in its entirety. The galloping riffs work also helps the song gets ahead and while I could totally put this song in a best off, I can't say as much for most songs. Some fillers (near the end) and too many formulaic songs. Valor, fortunately is a great Power Metal hymn, done right from beginning to end. Another example of great vocal melodies can be found on the third track, El Ano De La Rabia, which is a more heavier song, with stronger riffing and less emphasis on melody. While the album always tries to deliver mostly nice songs and some really grand melodies sometimes, it does seem to loose steam a little near the end (most of the great songs are found in the first half of the album).

So to sum up, the second part of the album is a bit of a letdown, with the exception of Jugando A Ser Dios, you can feel the band is struggling to keep up and delivers some filler material. While these songs still contains some redeeming qualities, they still come up short if compared to the first five songs. In the end the band delivers a good album, and if you like great guitar work (the album is full of wonderful guitar melodies), some great vocal melodies and usually predictable (but still good) choruses, then you will probably find enough to like about Magica. Just don't expect them to be on par with previously mentioned band Dragonfly. While there are similarities, Dünedain needs a little more panache and few more killer songs to reach that level in my opinion. But this Magica is definitely a good Power Metal release; it just isn't an amazing one. Still, the band definitely sparked my interest with this album and I shall follow what's to come with great interest.