Grave Digger has been around for almost 30 year now, and they have been marked by their inconsistency between releases. “Ballads Of A Hangman” is one of those in between releases. While the band’s sound is more of an old school Heavy metal they also have some Speed metal influences here and there. The best part of their sound is that the stay away from many of the current Power metal clichés.
This album is an overall good release with some very good moments, but at some points I was lost thinking that I’ve been listening to the same song for 10 minutes or so. Most songs are very similar and they can get boring eventually. The vocals I have to say are one of the things I like the most about this band, the raspy style of Heavy metal vocals makes them a perfect fit for the music, and don’t annoy the listener too much (like, in my opinion, many Heavy metal bands).
The music of Hollenthon is what happens when you give a synthesizer to the demented Grandmaster Flesh (A.K.A Martin Schirenc) from Pungent Stench fame. The band’s sound can be defined as an epic symphony of madness, the music I would probably hear in my head if I was confined to a mental institution. This release was in the making for 7 years, and it was well worth the wait.
The Last Alliance is Battlelore’s latest addition to their impressive musical catalog. This Finish band has been improving and refining their music since they where conceived almost achieving perfection in this last release.
This album contains 11 carefully crafted battle hymns that will surely please any Battlelore fan. The album opens up with Third Immortal, an instant Battlelore classic of the caliber of House of Heroes, and it keeps this level all the way through the album.
This Swedish band was known as Forlon until 2005 when they switched names and apparently their luck changed since they released their first full length under this name in 2005. While I’m not a big fan of epic doom metal, this release packs 54 minutes of pretty solid music. Sometimes it reminds me of Solstice or even Candlemass, yes the band is this good, and this release better than their 2008 effort.
After their self released Burning Winds demo, I was anxiously expecting their full length album. This band formed in 2007, and they got a deal right after their previously mentioned demo and there is big reason why, their music is a perfectly constructed blend of symphonic, viking, folk and progressive metal.
The band members come from different bands in the musical scene and have an ample background in making music over the years. No wonder Napalm Records snatched them so quickly and gave them a recording contract.
I’ve been following this Swiss band since their 2001 debut Atlantis, and while they have been taking almost 3 years in between releases, they are worth the wait. This band’s latest album is a new stepping stone in their musical evolution.
New Shores marks the bands entrance into more commercial sound since most of the songs here are typical power metal ballads, while they are not bad musically they are just something that I would not imagine Lunatica doing in 2001.