Hi friends, I'll try to keep this short.

So I've always been a fan of PM, but my love for music goes way beyond it and, as it happens, there's multiple time periods where I'm not really paying attention to PM because I'm enjoying and exploring other genres.

That being said, when my love for this genre kicks back in, I find myself going back to my favorite bands and era of the genre. This means mid 90s to mid 2000s PM (Sonata Arctica, Edguy, Angra, etc...)

I've also has difficulties getting into some modern bands like Beast in Black, Powerwolf or Battle Beast as I find their sound a bit pastiche and too poppy, if that makes any sense (personal preference).

So I'm turning to you in hopes that you can show me some good modern bands that you think are worthy of being in the conversation of, say, the best of this era.

I would VERY much appreciate if the recommendation came along with an album you feel is the best work from the band, or the one you enjoy the most.

Thank you so much in advance, I'm eager to listen to some sick new music!