Chained is Crystal Eyes 6th album and a natural follower to Dead City Dreaming. Its the second and last album with Danish singer Nico Adamsen before Mikael Dahl returned to the lead singer position. The ending ballad Guardian features Mikael on vocals and the song is now one of the all-time fan favorites. Chained is also the second album that was being mixed by Fredrik Nordstrm at Studio Fredman and production-wise its really strong. Influences from Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Accept, Dio, Manowar, Running Wild etc. May be obvious but since the bands aim is to write music as it was in the good old Eighties, theyre just proud that people mention these bands when they listen to Crystal Eyes. The opening track Ride The Rainbow has a strong Manowar vibe and the lyrics are about believing in yourself and that anything is possible. The two big epic tracks The Fire Of Hades and Dying In The Rain are good examples of influences from Ronnie James Dio - whether its from Black Sabbath, Rainbow or DIO, hes always been one of Mikaels biggest heroes. Another of Mikaels favorite bands is Accept, with his all-time favorite guitarist Wolf Hoffmann, which is pretty obvious when you listen to The Devil Inside. Waves Of War continues the tradition of Running Wild, which has followed Mikaels songwriting since the bands first album. The lyrics to this one were inspired by the movie The Pirates Of The Caribbean. Fighting is an up-tempo Judas Priest-style song while Shadow Rider and Lonely Ball Of Fate show big influences from Iron Maiden. The ending ballad Guardian is probably something you usually would hear on a Blind Guardian album. Even though you hear traces of all those bands mixed together, youll never hear any rip-off because it sounds like Crystal Eyes with their very unique sense for melodies and guitar work. The main theme of the title Chained comes from the lyrics which are reflections of life and situations youre stuck in and cant do anything about. But the main meaning is of course that we are Chained to Metal. Track List: Disc: 1 1. Ride the Rainbow 2. The Fire of Hades 3. The Devil Inside 4. Waves of War 5. Dying in the Rain 6. Fighting 7. Shadow Rider 8. Lonely Ball of Fate 9. Guardian