Fortress is the sophomore album released by Protest the Hero three years after they launched their debut album entitled Kezia. The official release date of Fortress was on January 29, 2008, but leaks were already out on the net a week before (and yes, i got my album copy from one of the leaks through torrent download). I could've bought an original cd though, but for sure the album wont reach the market here in the philippines. Unlike their first album (Kezia) which genre is mathcore, Fortress is labeled progressive metal and metalcore. Its louder, the lead vocal screeches then the other vocal growls (ahhh music to my ears). The band has stated that the sound is similar to Kezia but with a "less poppy and more technical metal" influence. Fortress does not revolve around a single concept, unlike their previous album. According to their bassist and lyricist Arif Mirabdolbaghi:


"It has to do with goddess worship, and how there has been this degendering of the Lord and Savior, and the suppressed feminine. A lot of it is based in Genghis Khan and old Irish Mythology, about the rise and fall of the Goddess of the forest. [The theme] can be more appreciated by more people. If I had to reduce it to its simplest form, the concept is about the re-emerging of goddess worship and the erosion of faith in scientific process."


Their former album (Kezia) is also somewhat feministic.The concept of the album was based on a thearter play,its about Kezia's imprisonment and death. Its kinda weird that in this kind of genre some messages of the songs has a feministic view.


The album cover was designed by Sons of Nero, a graphic design and illustration company that creates artwork for many music albums. The cover is a depiction of the Irish goddess Flidais (who is mentioned in the track "Limb from Limb").
Heres the tracklist of Fortress:


1. "Bloodmeat" - 3:55
2. "The Dissentience" - 4:23
3. "Bone Marrow" - 4:35
4. "Sequoia Throne" - 3:11
5. "Palms Read" - 3:44
6. "Limb From Limb" - 4:22
7. "Spoils" - 2:59
8. "Wretch" - 4:11
9. "Goddess Bound" - 3:36
10. "Goddess Gagged" - 3:14


My favorite songs are Bloodmeat, the lyrics describes and illustrates the war in the time of Genghis Khan that causes deaths of the fathers who joined the war, the virgin daugthers being raped and children being sent away to safety on their own; and Sequioa Throne which warns us that we will cause our own destruction, not aliens or monsters of some sort.