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La banda de power metal japonesa Galneryus debutará en Chile | vía #iRock

https://www.irock.cl/la-banda-de-power-metal-japonesa-galneryus-debutara-en-chile/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=la-banda-de-power-metal-japonesa-galneryus-debutara-en-chile

#conciertos #galneryus #internacional #metal

Dragonknight – Legions Review

By Eldritch Elitist

A not-insignificant number of my favorite power metal acts are “noun noun” bands. Power Quest. Twilight Force. Fellow Ship. There’s something about smashing two overwrought people, places, and/or things together that perfectly fits power metal’s prerequisite for excess, and Dragonknight is one of my favorite band names to come out of the genre in recent memory. I’m a little less enthused that their identities are hidden behind their confusingly uniform, copy-paste Slipknot masks1, but between their ludicrously opulent logo and Legions’ hilariously literal cover art, Dragonknight is one of the more immediately striking power metal acts to debut on Scarlet Records. Of course, with Frozen Crown and Fellowship being alums from the same label, the bar is set in the stratosphere; as Legions shows, that bar is not easily reached.

Explaining what DragonKnight sounds like would be markedly less expeditious than describing who they sound like, as Legions sees the band feasting upon a veritable buffet of inspirations. A bespoke influence seemingly accompanies each track; Gloryhammer (“Dead Kings in the Grave”), Beast in Black (“Sword of the Northern Lights”), and mercifully not Alestorm but rather Running Wild (“Pirates, Bloody Pirates!”) serve as some of Legions’ more obvious sources of inspiration. While DragonKnight’s aesthetic varies widely across this album, it’s all tied together with an overarching symphonic flair that keeps the proceedings from sounding overly disjointed. Moreover, Legions sounds technically competent and professional, traits which should be a given but are too often scarce in the genre. For many power metal fans, the level of execution alone may be satisfying.

Dragonknight may presently be more concerned with emulating the successes of modern power metal than innovating the game. Still, I also get the sense that the band had a ton of fun making Legions, so it manages not to tip my cynicism meter to the red. I do, however, find myself increasingly annoyed with this album for a potentially more damning reason: It’s just kinda bland. There are certainly highlights between “The Imperator”‘s Dream Evil-goes-symphonic march and “The Revelation2“‘s condensed galloping rush, but much of Legions lacks urgency and excitement. Instrumental flair is absent outside of the frequently excellent guitar solos, and while the melodies are generally pleasant, Dragonknight fails to capitalize on their solid foundation with the giant melodic swings that define the genre. Legions isn’t forgettable, per se, but it fails to make an impression where it matters most.

Legions hits me with all the force of a lukewarm bucket of water at least in part due to its production choices. The album sounds quite nice from a technical perspective, carrying a meatier low-end presence than most power metal records allow which effectively balances the symphonic bombast. The instruments themselves, however, lack tonal character, their generic metallic edge failing to cut through the swaths of synths. Singer and sole named member Lord Salo Khan (Mikael Salo, Everfrost3) also lacks power in many scenarios, with his voice failing to deliver a convincing presence of power in Legions’ most melodic tracks, namely “Storm Bringer.” At other times, however, he excels; the conviction with which he delivers the lyric “Sailing ships with great dexterity!” goes a long way in making “Pirates Bloody Pirates!” another early highlight of Dragonknight’s career.

I reference Dragonknight in context with a hypothetical future as it’s one that I hope comes to fruition. Their debut left me with a stronger first impression than this review and its score implies, but I ultimately found Legions lacking in staying power, my mind struggling not to wander towards the dozens of better records it reminds me of as I ventured past my first couple of spins. Dragonknight has the talent and songwriting chops to excel on future outings, but they need to work on identifying and honing their strengths rather than spreading themselves thin with an overly ambitious scope. If Dragonknight can succeed in this regard, they may well find themselves on equal footing with their peers. As it stands today, they are a decent imitation of their influences, but sincere flattery can only carry them so far.

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: scarletrecords.bandcamp.com/album/legions | dragonknightband.com | facebook.com/dragonknightband
Releases Worldwide: January 17th, 2025

#25 #2025 #Alestorm #BeastInBlack #Dragonknight #DreamEvil #Everfrost #Fellowship #FinnishMetal #FrozenCrown #Galneryus #Gloryhammer #Jan25 #Legions #PowerMetal #PowerQuest #Review #Reviews #RunningWild #ScarletRecords #Slipknot #TwilightForce

El Cuervo’s, GardensTale’s, and Eldritch Elitist’s Top Ten(ish) of 2024

By El Cuervo

El Cuervo

After more than a decade in this job, the years start to blur. While there may be an almost imperceptible feeling that some years are musically stronger than others, I’ve started to reach the realization that they’re all basically the same. 99% of heavy metal spawned into the world is destined to be forgotten or disparaged.

That’s not to say I’m bored of this state of affairs. The metal community, and in particular its underground, remains in a robust position to peddle the best non-mainstream music in the world, boasting a wide array of sub-genres from all over the globe. Just look at my list below: nine of the selections are from the atypical regions of Northern Europe and North America, hitherto unknown for their metal output.

Nonetheless, it’s the year-to-year consistency that highlights the importance of gathering our thoughts at annual intervals to assemble a list of real quality. This process reminds me why I still spend hundreds of hours each year consuming and reviewing new music. These stand-outs justify my decision and I deeply enjoy commemorating them in this ranking extravaganza. Revel in the albums that most excited me in 2024.

#10. A Burial at Sea // Close to Home – As much as music may impress you with its technical chops or hook you with its bold melodies, it’s music that makes you feel something that endures. The idiosyncratic brand of post-rock heard on Close to Home, dipping into brassy jazz and techy math rock as much as it does shoegaze, always prioritizes its emotive impact above all else. I love the gentle lilt, the crashing apices, the shimmering walls of noise, the orchestral edges. A Burial at Sea ebbs with slow rhythms and delicate chords, but flows with heavy drums and tremolo-picked melodies. The natural cadence across tracks makes the album feel complete. Each year yields one or two ‘mood’ releases for me to savor in a dark room with my headphones and my thoughts; 2024’s is Close to Home.

#9. Kanonenfieber // Die Urkatastrophe – As much as I initially enjoyed Die Urkatastrophe as a studio album, it took the Kanonenfieber live experience to really get its hooks into me. This isn’t just blackened death metal. It’s theatrical, energetic, and catchy, without devolving into something as simple as ‘meloblack’. The shout-along choruses and grooving leads were accentuated in a live setting, and I was incentivized to dig back through the Kanonenfieber back catalog. But the gig wouldn’t have been as entertaining as it was without the underlying music being of high quality. I’ve been to plenty of shows which have encouraged me to revisit an artist – but where the studio release is far less potent. Die Urkatastrophe has the chops and power to excel in both formats.

#8. Aquilus// Bellum II – Lots of black metal adopts the adjective of ‘atmospheric’ but few come as close to this as Aquilus. Horace Rosenqvist forges music that harmonizes but transcends classical and black metal, beguiling and terrifying in equal measure. Bellum II may be marginally the lesser of Bellum I, but it’s still among the best music released this year. Its compositions are extraordinary, as they subtly and satisfyingly transition from delicate piano and strings to towering black metal blasts. This is the prime example of the album’s devastating dichotomies that I previously described (“elegance and savagery; serenity and chaos; airiness and crunch”). Rosenqvist is a singularly mesmerizing instrumentalist and composer, able to pull contrasting music into a brutal but beautiful whole.

#7. Hamferð // Men Guðs hond er sterk – It’s hard to conceive of a more metal homeland than the Faroe Islands. Cold? Dark? Remote? Check, check, check. This results in Hamferð’s frigid, towering block of death-inflected doom metal that owes as much to its isolated island roots as it does to any other metal band. Men Guðs hond er sterk is a crushingly heavy album, but one gilded with a hopeful edge derived from its concept wherein a survivor of a whaling accident emphasizes the miracle of his life. While prioritizing the sheer weight of mass and exquisitely despondent leads, the album also benefits from one of metal’s most talented vocalists in Jón Aldará, who runs the gamut from bellowing growls to melancholic croons. Though it runs out of steam by the gentle acoustic conclusion, the preceding thirty-nine minutes are monumental.

#6. Blood Incantation // Absolute Elsewhere – Blood Incantation is plainly an excellent band. But I’m struggling to explain why Absolute Elsewhere became the underground cross-over metal album of the year, favored by big and small publications alike. Perhaps it’s the savage but technical riffs that make you mosh and think simultaneously. Perhaps it’s the Floydian approach to song structures. Perhaps it’s the penchant for meandering, Tangerine Dreamy interludes. Perhaps it’s the sophisticated fusion of something heavy so listeners feel edgy, with something chill so listeners feel safe. Perhaps it’s the conspiratorial orientation around our alien overlords building the pyramids. Perhaps it’s all of these and more. Hmm. On reflection, I think I do understand why everyone loves Absolute Elsewhere as much as they do.

#5. Crypt Sermon // The Stygian Rose – We all know that doom is the worst core metal sub-genre. To my abject horror, 2024 saw not one but two excellent examples of it. Crypt Sermon stormed the top five of my list, folding excellent leads and engaging solos into some of the most captivating metal of the year. While the front half is good, it’s the back half where things hit another level. “Heavy Is the Crown of Bone” until the title track exemplifies the best of the sub-genre through their epic proportions, memorable melodies and fat, crunchy guitar tones. While the riffs have immediate impact, the detailed compositions give the songs real staying power. Layers of guitars, a tempo that eschews dirge speeds, varied vocals and progressive song constructions march the album to a conclusion that comes too quickly.

#4. Syst3m Glitch // The Brave Ones – The remainder of this list documents my love for heavy metal and all things progressive. But synthwave is the third pillar of my music library and the most joyous. The best of the year comes from Florida’s Syst3m Glitch. He’s not always been my first pick for synths, but The Brave Ones dramatically outperformed his prior output and muscled its way into my favorite albums from 2024. It’s stuffed full of catchy, memorable tunes that traverse the synthwave soundscape, from the pop-laced sweetness of “California,” to the pulsing rhythms of “Thrill Ride,” to the darksynth pastiche of “Tommy Danger,” and finally to the smooth retrowave of “Raining in Tokyo.” It’s rare for one release to cover this much territory, and rarer still that it’s so successful in doing so.

#3. Dissimulator // Lower Form Resistance – February is early in the year but I knew then that Lower Form Resistance would be high on my list. Dissimulator inherits death metal traits from the members’ other bands (including Beyond Creation and First Fragment) but builds these into uber-tight, technical thrash metal. The excellence of the riffs here is fucking relentlessness; no other 2024 release can boast such a fine repertoire. From the ridiculously good “Neural Hack” until the closer, the album generates such entertainment value that it feels half as long as it is. The exemplary instrumentation, chaotic energy and technological feel make Lower Form Resistance sound like Voivod reinvented for the 2020s. In a sub-genre so preoccupied with rehashing old ideas – I do not accept that thrash metal must sound like 1986 – Dissimulator thrives by looking forward.

#2. In Vain // Solemn – It’s no secret that I’m a prog nerd. While In Vain has always been plenty progressive through varied and unpredictable songwriting, what I envy most is the knack for incorporating myriad styles into one cohesive sound. Solemn follows two prior records demarcated by their fusions of melodic death metal, black metal, progressive rock, and Nordic folk music. This fusion has never been more seamless than it is in 2024. The expansive songs feel like they should be extremely long and complex but in reality, they hardly exceed seven minutes and utilize powerful melodic anchors. As if all this wasn’t enough, the quintessential In Vain guitar and vocal harmonies, and orchestral pomp, elevate the songs into metal magic. Solemn is pure Cuervo catnip.

#1. Opeth // The Last Will and Testament – It feels like I’ve spent much of the last few months describing just how much I admire Opeth. This year-end list is no exception as I properly rank The Last Will and Testament as 2024’s best release. With the Opeth ranking articles so recent, I think it would fall into the upper half of their work. In a discography littered with records revered by both metalheads and prog nerds, this demarcates a record of rare quality. Though – yes – Åkerfeldt returns to growled vocals here, this is just a small piece of what makes The Last Will and Testament so good. From the sophisticated compositions to the entertaining story, and the exemplary instrumentation to the immaculate production, its knotty harmonization of death metal with progressive rock has the aura of perfection. No other record from 2024 can make such a claim.

Honorable Mentions

Beardfish // Songs for Beating Hearts – The unheralded return of these Swedes yields a shockingly vital slice of prog rock, boasting tidy riffs, folksy warmth, and engaging song-writing.
At 1980 // Forget to Remember – While predictable, At 1980 remains an interminably satisfying retrowave artist through their smooth synths, melodic guitar solos, and easy vocals.
Morgul Blade // Heavy Metal Wraiths – Morgul Blade forms a destructive harmony between three of my favorite things: razor-sharp classic metal leads, harsh vocal,s and Tolkien nerdery.
Kalax // Lost – While bloated and meandering – lost, perhaps – the return of Liverpool’s premier retro synth act finds a delicate dichotomy between frigidity and comfort.

Songs o’ the Year

Unto Others – “Never, Neverland”
Syst3m Glitch – “Raining in Tokyo”
Iotunn – “Iridescent Way”
Opeth – “A Story Never Told”
Lebrock – “Goliath”
At 1980 – “Your Secret”
Nestor – “Caroline”
Crypt Sermon – “The Stygian Rose”
Dissimulator – “Neural Hack”
Winterun – “Silver Leaves”

GardensTale

Fucking hell, what a year. Ordinarily, I’d try and wax poetically on the passing of time or some shit here. Looking back with melancholy and whatnot seems to be the intention for opening paragraphs to arbitrary lists of what music this one rando that I happen to be got the most enjoyment from this year. But I think this time, I’ll try some brutal honesty instead. It’s not been a great year overall. I won’t bore you with a tedious list, numbering my shades of the various common mental issues people my age and disposition face, but suffice it to say I’ve closed out most prior years in better spirits. But I’m getting help, I’m fighting it, and I’m learning. Learning to give myself grace, to step back when I need to. And if that sometimes means slowing down on a review, well, it’s a small price to pay.

One consequence is that I have spent less time listening to music I wasn’t reviewing. That shows below because this list will look like the most self-congratulatory thing I ever wrote. The vast majority of entries I penned myself, be it as a full article, a TYMHM or even a filter entry. But the funny part is, I thought it was a really strong year! I had quite a sizeable shortlist to whittle down. But then I was done whittling and discovered I’d almost exclusively cut albums I did not review, like APES, Crypt Sermon and Hamferð for instance. Additionally, I find I’ve added less to the list in the second half of the year, and my sullied brain has questioned myself many times: was autumn weaker than usual, or is my growing ennui obstructing my ability to like things as much as they deserve?

I don’t know, to tell the truth. And I’m unlikely to find out, because time marches on and new releases darken the horizon of January even now. There are only so many hours in the day, so much music hitting the virtual marketplaces and streaming colossi. To give each year its proper due would take 5 years, or having no job or other hobbies. So I can’t give you a fair, balanced and complete list of the best records of the year, because I do have a job and other hobbies, and no time machine. I can only give you the records that made me feel good. I hope they made or will make you feel good, too.

(ish). Dool // The Shape of Fluidity — I’ve been aware of Dool for a while now, even before vocalist Raven van Dorst became a national television personality. But it wasn’t until I caught “Venus in Flames” on the metal radio station in the car that I became interested in their music. The Shape of Fluidity crystallizes Van Dorst’s lifelong struggle with identity into a fierce, defiant, and intensely personal album. The androgynous vocals sizzle with raw emotion, and the instrumentation is likewise fluid in its presentation, swaying from almost post-punk energy to Anathema-adjacent prog and dipping into epic doom. An excellent album that really puts Dool on the map.

10. Alcest // Les Chants de l’Aurore — Here’s a fun fact: I always thought Souvenirs d’un Autre Monde wasn’t Alcest’s first album. It was the first album of theirs I heard, but since about 97 out of 100 bands that evolve their sound go softer rather than harder, I assumed there was something more extreme preceding it. Alcest tends to do things differently, though, changing things up rather radically from album to album. Les Chants de l’Aurore has elements from many of its older siblings, but the mood it sets is such a beautiful warm summer melancholy, it sets it apart in a very special way. And seeing it performed live a few weeks ago was a very special experience that seared the album in my mind.

9. Madder Mortem // Old Eyes, New Heart — No, I’ll never stop proselytizing Madder Mortem, why do you ask? Old Eyes, New Heart wasn’t what I expected, yet in many ways was just what I needed, and was strangely prophetic at times. It’s the most intensely personal album from the Norwegians (which is saying something) and through the healing power of shared misery, sitting down with it is like a good session with a therapist.

8. 40 Watt Sun // Little Weight — Patrick Walker could sing me The Cat In The Hat and I’d still feel like weeping. I’m not sure the man could earn anything below a 4.0 from me if he tried. That being said, Little Weight still takes a spot by the sunny window that 40 Watt Sun hasn’t explored before. Where Perfect Light and Wider Than the Sky were steeped in sadness, Little Weight expels it. It might be the most hopeful album I’ve heard this year, a return to the light from the deepest darkest places. It’s been a comforting hug on bad days, a warm blanket to fight the cold.

7. Walg // IV — The second year in a row I get to feature this duo. Walg is quickly becoming one of my favorite black metal bands. IV fits any mood, really. It’s got anger, it’s got despair, but it also has enough catchy tunes and energy for when you’re in a good mood. You can play the whole thing start to finish, and you can pick out your favorites and stick ‘em in a playlist. As such, it’s been this year’s ol’ reliable, the album to return to when nothing else sparks joy.

6. Kanonenfieber // Die Urkatastrophe — If I had a nickel for every time an acclaimed blackened death metal band exclusively used historically accurate World War I accounts and even performed in uniform, I’d have two nickels. It’s kind of difficult for me to mentally separate Kanonenfieber and 1914 for obvious reasons. Luckily there is space for both in the trenches because Noise’s project has become a mean Menschen mühling machine. “Der Maulwurf” grabbed me by the throat from the first spin, and everything else followed over and over again. Epic, bludgeoning and harrowing.

5. Labyrinthus Stellarum // Vortex of the Worlds — I can’t stop playing this album. It is stuck in my algorithm. The bleeps and bloops that summon Hastur from the depths of space and time live in my head and they do not pay rent. How did two kids1 from a war-torn country manage this? Labyrinthus Stellarum is so goddamn good at composing addictive melodies in 4 dimensions it should be considered unfair. The only reason it’s not higher is because at this point the competition becomes even more unfair.

4. Iotunn // Kinship — A lot of people told me in the comments that the closing track on Kinship is a great song and shouldn’t have affected my rating of the album as a whole. They are wrong on both counts. This is a shame because up to that point, this is the album of the year. Earning what amounts to a 4.495 despite a disappointing closer is an incredible feat, but the songwriting on the best couple of tracks here is simply unparalleled. “Mistland,” “The Coming End” and especially “Earth to Sky” are just massive in a way few bands ever achieve, and Iotunn make it seem effortless.

3. Vredehammer // God Slayer — One improvement to my life is that I am returning semi-regularly to the gym these days. I’ve struggled with working out consistently, but I can usually get a session a week in these days. And my number one companion for these outings has been God Slayer. The bridge in the title track alone gives me enough energy to break whatever personal record I’ll be working on at the time. Just looking at the album art gives me an extra pound of gains for the week.

2. Meer // Wheels Within Wheels — Yeah, it’s not really metal, but it’s proggy and it’s fucking gorgeous so up yours, elitists! I’ve come to the opinion that Norway is simply the best country for prog in general, and Meer is just another notch in that belt. Whereas Playing House didn’t really grab me at the time, I couldn’t stop spinning Wheels Within Wheels. I had to start every day with “Come to Light” for a while, and the climax of that track is so uniquely empowering it’d help beat down whatever funk I found myself in at the time. The symphonic composition and multi-vocal approach are just beautiful and it truly does not get old. Meer has outdone itself.

1. Huntsmen // The Dry Land — I’ve had multiple comeback stories this year. Outside of metal, both Elbow and That Handsome Devil returned with fantastic albums after the last was simply disappointing. The biggest comeback and biggest surprise was, without a doubt, Huntsmen. Mandala of Fear was such a slog, I could never have expected the perfect tight flow of The Dry Land. Every track is a journey in and of itself, and the diversity is immense. The Dry Land has become one of those albums where I can’t put it on without finishing it entirely; I’ll just keep going ‘Oh yes the next song has these awesome mournful vocals’ or ‘Ah here comes that mindblowing transition.’ It’s been a great year for metal and music in general, but the way Huntsmen returned from the grave and far surpassed even their vaunted debut was the absolute peak for me, and it has not since been surpassed by any other release.

Honorable Mentions

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum // of the Last Human Being — Considering how thrilled I was to get a new SGM album I expected this to wind up higher, but it’s still a great and unsettling resurrection for one of the true premier avant-garde collectives.
Selbst // Despondency Chord Progressions — There’s been plenty of emotionally grabbing black metal of various sorts this year, but Selbst had the coolest take out of them all, with a melodic sense that felt almost trad metal without losing edge or impact.
Monkey3 // Welcome to the Machine — Easily the best instrumental album of the year. Tasteful nods to Pink Floyd wrapped in a massive maelstrom of heavy psych that gets the balancing act of repetition and evolution precisely right.
The Vision Bleak // Weird Tales — An even tighter and more cohesive album than its excellent predecessor. Weird Tales is like an amazing haunted house ride.
Sidewinder // Talons — I really wanted to have this in the main list, because you don’t get stoner this great very often. Alas, the competition was too strong. But listen to it anyway if you haven’t!

Non-Metal Albums

This is a metal blog, despite our occasional forays into tangential material like Meer. But several of my favorite non-metal artists all released some excellent albums, and considering the year I’ve had and the state of the world, I’d rather end with some positivity for the open-minded among you, who are secure enough in their trveness to partake in some decidedly vntrve yet excellent releases.

Man Man // Carrot on Strings — The quirky and rambunctious Zappa-in-the-Bayou outfit led by the enigmatic Honus Honus kills it with this eclectic and introspective release. Everything from pulsing club EDM to mellow country and various mixtures further off the musical maps, it’s a wild and engaging odyssey.
That Handsome Devil // Exploitopia — After the disappointing Your Parents Are Sellouts, these weirdos blew off the barn doors with this comeback. Best described as alternative gypsy surf jazz rock hip-hop, Exploitopia gushes anti-consumerism and anti-capitalism with sardonic humor and biting sarcasm.
Elbow // Audio Vertigo — The most commercially successful band on this list, but I still feel like many metalheads aren’t aware of how good these Brits are. And Audio Vertigo is one of their best albums to date: versatile, infectious, with a warm melancholy and wry camaraderie. Beautiful.
Future Islands // People Who Aren’t There Anymore — A breakup album, filled with aching loneliness and longing, yet a strange sense of hope winds through the pulsing synth-pop. Frontman Samuel Herring is an absolute king of emotive, raspy crooning, and his performance brings a ton of personality to the album.

Songs o’ the Year

Huntsmen – “Rain”
Meer – “Come to Light”
Iotunn – “Earth to Sky”
Tom Cardy – “Transcendental Cha Cha Cha”
Walg – “Als een Korrel Zand”
Vredehammer – “God Slayer”
Tribulation – “The Reaping Song”
Madder Mortem – “Towers”
Kanonenfieber – “Der Maulwurf”
Iotunn – “The Coming End”
Selbst – “Chant of Self Confrontation”

Eldritch Elitist

Huh. It’s apparently been four fucking years since I last penned a proper 2 Records o’ the Year list for Angry Metal Guy. This time last year, I wasn’t sure whether I’d be contributing such a list ever again. I still love this blog and the music we celebrate, but making regular contributions to AMG requires a not-insignificant time investment, and I’ve found myself spread ever-thinner over the years. And then January happened, in which a startling number of fantastic releases in that month alone resulted in the crystallization of a single goal: To make 2024 my most complete year of musical indulgence to date. If there was an album released that even slightly piqued my interest in a given week, I was going to find time to listen to it, ideally to completion. This resolve resulted in so many discoveries that I could have penned Top Ten Records o’ the Month articles for multiple months of 2024.

When I say “multiple months,” I really mean “January through March”, as my momentum dwindled when mid-April rolled around. Compounding factors between life and work suddenly left me with much less time in which to indulge in new music. Once I fell behind, I quickly realized that it would be virtually impossible to keep up the listening schedule I had set for myself, and subsequently gave up the ghost. As badly as I wanted to contribute the most confidently comprehensive year-end list possible, this list might as well be titled “Eldritch Elitist’s Top 10 Records o’ Q1 2024 & Friends”. Lopsided though it may be, that’s no excuse to not take a legitimate stab at a list at all, especially not when comments like this keep rolling in… Wait, why the hell has that guy been hanging around the AMG break room? Christ, I really need to work on staying in the loop around here. Anyway, here’s some albums I like; no -ishs, HMs, or butts about it.

#10. Cruce Signatus // Cruce Signatus – While Cruce Signatus sits at the bottom of my top 10, I have listened to it more than any other record this year outside of my number 1 pick. It’s become a go-to record to throw on thanks to its instrumental nature and soundtrack-like ebb and flow. More than that, Cruce Signatus’ unique blend of metal and synthwave is legitimately compelling, feeling distinct from similar acts as an actual soundtrack to an in-progress animation project. The downside is that this record feels partially complete because it literally is. The upside is that the experience of listening to this record will surely evolve retroactively as this project continues, and in the meantime, I’ll remain content to absorb one of the most ambitious cross-media offerings of 2024.

#9. Myrath // Karma – The release of Karma marked my first prolonged exposure to Myrath, and while I don’t adore it as heavily as some of my AMG colleagues, it remained in heavy rotation throughout 2024 all the same. Karma is an uncommonly proficient slab of pop metal, one that smartly leverages its latent progressive and folk metal leanings in sublimely bombastic fashion. It lacks variety, but Myrath navigates Karma’s narrow aesthetic with such precision as to maximize its scope, resulting in an album that compels through efficiency. Ultimately, the most important quality of any pop record is its ability to lodge its hooks into my brain, and I have had every single one of these songs stuck in my head many times throughout the year. If that kind of recurring impact isn’t worthy of a spot on this list, I don’t know what is.

#8. Soulmass // Principality of Mechanical Violence – Despite Soulmass’ previous LP basing its concept on my favorite video game, Principality of Mechanical Violence hit me way harder despite unfamiliarity with its source material. My knowledge of Gundam may only go so far as that handsome blonde fellow in red who apparently did nothing wrong, but I do know that this Gundam concept album rocks unlike any other Soulmass record. It largely culls the band’s moodier death/doom passages in favor of concise riffage, yet is also densely melodic, neatly slotting melancholic guitar leads alongside meaty riffs that echo Bolt Thrower and Cannibal Corpse. The resulting listening experience is equally absorbing and exhilarating, enticing me to get in the robot time and time again.

#7. Mega Colossus // Showdown – Mega Colossus just gets it. Not once in my years of listening to this band have I gotten a sense that they are trying to recapture the heyday of traditional metal, or otherwise be anything in the moment other than themselves. Showdown further cements my impression, as it sees Mega Colossus reaching ever further into their bottomless bag of nerd fixations. The resulting songs cover topical ground ranging from Porco Rosso to Mad Max: Fury Road, but more importantly, they masterfully weave inspirations as far-reaching as Kansas and Megadeth into their core aesthetic of Iron Maiden-inspired trad metal. Combine the playfully loose hold on genre convention with Mega Colossus’ ever-effusive lyrics, and you have one of the most purely entertaining records of the year from one of the best modern bands in the genre.

#6. Black Curse // Burning in Celestial Poison – Unlike other albums on this list, I have not returned to Burning in Celestial Poison to reconfirm its standing. Call me irresponsible, but I must emphasize that my memory and impression of this record – one formed after multiple days of consecutive spins – remains fully crystalized in my mind. Black Curse’s sophomore outing is one that continues to linger in the darker corners of my mind, a wholly unique vision of blackened death metal that, while not as traditionally thrilling as the band’s debut, is more than the sum of its parts. That “more” manifests as an incorporeal malefic entity seemingly possessing motives independent of the artists who spawned it. Burning in Celestial Poison feels like a living, breathing work, one which unsettles as much as it entices.

#5. Oak, Ash & Thorn // Our Grief is Thus – Our Grief is Thus is one of those albums that feels made specifically for me, with power metal vocals and melodeath riffage wrapped in an overarching aesthetic of black metal, folk metal, and crust punk. Beyond gifting me the forbidden knowledge that power metal with d-beats can and does work, it’s also a generally excellent example of effective genre splicing, feeling as though it belongs in both all and none of the styles from which it cleverly pulls inspiration. What Oak, Ash & Thorn has accomplished with this sophomore outing is an explosively energetic yet cohesive record, and one so melodically effervescent as to be compulsively replayable. Our Grief is Thus is the most surprising record of 2024, and I am firmly seated on the OAT boat for whatever comes next.

#4. Madder Mortem // Old Eyes, New Heart – Madder Mortem is a name I’ve heard tossed around since 2009, and who I never bothered to check out because I thought they were some sorta high falutin’, artsy fartsy doom metal band. That may have been the case once upon a time, but at some point they evolved into the accessible sort of dark progressive metal showcased on Old Eyes, New Heart. Immediately gripping and heavy yet disarmingly vulnerable, this record converted me to Madder Mortem fandom almost instantly. Its songs wormed their way under my skin with atomic precision and never left; as early as my third listen, they felt like old friends, albeit ones prone to trauma dumping. There may be records I liked more in 2024, but none moved or shook me quite like Old Eyes, New Heart.

#3. Galneryus // The Stars Will Light the Way – I’ve read dozens of comments all parroting a mildly irksome take: The Stars Will Light the Way feels like Galneryus on cruise control. While this has mostly been opined through a positive lens, it still feels unfairly reductive when considering the sheer quality and consistency of this album. Sure, Sho’s voice is notably strained at this point, but he excels at utilizing his current strengths in the strongest collection of Galneryus tracks since 2014’s Vetelgyus. It’s also the most straightforward record Galneryus has released since Vetelgyus, nixing much of the experimentation and darker leanings of recent offerings (“In Water’s Gaze” notwithstanding) in favor of unbridled jubilance. So yeah, sure, The Stars Will Light the Way is a “safe” record if you want to call it that. It’s still one of the best records from the best power metal band in the world.

#2. Nemedian Chronicles // The Savage Sword – I can hardly believe that Nemedian Chronicles is not a Greek band. They sound so in step with acts like Sacred Outcry that I can practically feel the lamb and tzatziki sauce falling out of an overloaded gyro and onto my lap. Yet the appeal of Nemedian Chronicles is singular. There is a lot of love for Blind Guardian and Sacred Outcry on The Savage Sword, but there is also a distinctly epic, cinematic quality that hearkens back to Bal-Sagoth’s overwrought storytelling. Between the propulsive riffs and sweeping melodies, I’m immediately absorbed into the experience with every listen, and that’s to say nothing of the engaging and often unpredictable songwriting. In most years, The Savage Sword would handily take the crown for best power metal release. However…

#1. Fellowship // The Skies Above Eternity – You know that little bit of text under my review of The Skies Above Eternity that says “Rating: 4.0/5.0?” That number is technically correct per the AMG style guide, but what that number can’t account for is the fact that The Skies Above Eternity is a record I’ll be listening to for the rest of my life. 2022’s The Saberlight Chronicles is a true 5.0/5.0 by any objective or subjective metric, and while The Skies Above Eternity is not as good from a technical standpoint, it fully recaptures the strengths that made its predecessor a modern power metal icon. Fellowship’s debut may have had higher and more frequent peaks, but The Skies Above Eternity excels through consistency and conciseness. The band’s trademark earnestness, vulnerability, and impeccable sense of melodic craft can be felt in every second of the experience. It doesn’t matter whether this record is the best material Fellowship is capable of producing because it warms me in the exact same way they’ve been doing since their first EP, making The Skies Above Eternity one of my most treasured records by default. This album may be a 4.0 in my brain, but it’s a 4.5 in my heart and a 5.0 in my soul.

Song o’ the Year

Fellowship’s “Hold Up Your Hearts (Again)” – I was present in the audience when Fellowship debuted this song live, and everyone was so on board with the silliness of its title that we enthusiastically welcomed it into the Fellowship canon with a communal sea of heart hands. It doesn’t top “Glint” as my favorite Fellowship song, but its concentrated formula of speedy Euro-power metal and the lyrics’ pitch-perfect shonen anime energy handily clear second place status.

Disappointment o’ the Year

Various “Artists” – The Continued Proliferation of Crappy AI Album “Art” – This blog has not adopted a formal stance on albums featuring generative AI artwork, nor do I feel it needs to. But this is my list, and I’m taking the opportunity to say that if I get so much as a whiff of AI coming off of an album going into 2025, I won’t be giving it the time of day, much less a review. It is unfathomable to think some musicians can devote so much time and creative energy into creating an album, only to hold zero value in the image that is supposed to be introducing that album to the world. In fact, if an album features an AI-generated cover, I automatically assume that the devaluation of art permeates the music itself in some form. Either pay a fucking artist to create an album cover for you, or go outside to take a picture of a cool tree or something and slap a Photoshop filter on it. If that proves too difficult, the public domain is your friend. If it’s good enough for Bolt Thrower, it’s sure as hell good enough for your shitty bedroom black metal project.

#2024 #40WattSun #ABurialAtSea #Alcest #andEldritchElitistSTopTenIshOf2024 #Aquilus #At1980 #Beardfish #BlackCurse #BloodIncantation #CruceSignatus #CryptSermon #Dissimulator #Dool #ElCuervoS #Fellowship #Galneryus #GardensTaleS #Hamferð #Huntsmen #InVain #Iotunn #Kalax #Kanonenfieber #LabyrinthusStellarum #Lists #Listurnalia #MadderMortem #Meer #MegaColossus #Monkey3 #MorgulBlade #Myrath #NemedianChronicles #OakAshThorn #Opeth #Selbst #Sidewinder #SleepytimeGorillaMuseum #Soulmass #Syst3mGlitch #TheVisionBleak #Vredehammer #Walg

The Stars Will Light The Way. The recently released album by GALNERYUS for @Kitty's #MittwochMetalMix ✨

Links to the album, on album.link here:
https://album.link/i/1761358586

Fav tracks: Lost in the Darkness, In Water's Gaze

#Music #Metal #PowerMetal #GALNERYUS #ガルネリウス

We zijn alweer halverwege september. Er is deze maand nieuwe muziek uitgekomen van o.a. Boston Manor, God Is An Astronaut en Stryper. Er komen nog albums uit van Kublai Khan TX, Galneryus, Daughtry en veel meer. Check hier ons albumoverzicht! https://buff.ly/3v6gFe2

#BostonManor #GodIsAnAstronaut #Stryper #KublaiKhaiTX #Galneryus #Daughtry #Rock #Metal

#TheMetalDogArticleList #BraveWords GALNERYUS – New Single “In Water’s Gaze” Streaming bravewords.com/news/galnery... #Galneryus #Japan #PowerMetal

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#BraveWords
GALNERYUS – New Single “In Water’s Gaze” Streaming

https://bravewords.com/news/galneryus-new-single-in-waters-gaze-streaming

#Galneryus #Japan #PowerMetal

Listening to The Flag Of Punishment by GALNERYUS now, their debut album released in 2003. Here it is for @Kitty's #MittwochMetalMix 🤘

Links to the album here on album.link:
https://album.link/i/475977376

Their new album ‘The Stars Will Light The Way’ will be released on 25 September.

#Music #Metal #PowerMetal #GALNERYUS #ガルネリウス

#TheMetalDogArticleList #BraveWords GALNERYUS Release New Single "The Reason We Fight" bravewords.com/news/galnery... #Galneryus

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#BraveWords
GALNERYUS Release New Single "The Reason We Fight"

https://bravewords.com/news/galneryus-release-new-single-the-reason-we-fight

#Galneryus

AMG Goes Ranking – DragonForce

By Eldritch Elitist

The life of the unpaid, overworked metal reviewer is not an easy one. The reviewing collective at AMG lurches from one new release to the next, errors and n00bs strewn in our wake. But what if, once in a while, the collective paused to take stock and consider the discography of those bands that shaped many a taste? What if multiple aspects of the AMG collective personality shared with the slavering masses their personal rankings of that discography, and what if the rest of the personality used ~~a Google sheet~~ some kind of dark magic to produce an official guide to, and an all-around definitive aggregated ranking of, that band’s entire discography? Well, if that happened, we imagine it would look something like this…

If you’re a regular around these parts, you might have seen this article’s title and thought to yourself: how the hell could something like this come from the fortress of snobbery that is AMG? You might have then seen the author of said article and thought to yourself: Oh, THAT’S how. My involvement in this endeavor might be a given for those who know my musical diet, but should there really be any surprise that I managed to wrangle two extra participants through mild coercion and weaponized nostalgia? For a certain generation of metal fans, whether they loved or hated them, DragonForce was a big deal. Thanks to the popularity of “Through the Fire and Flames” in the then-phenomenon that was Guitar Hero, guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman were practically household names. For me, DragonForce was so much more than a one-hit-wonder. Inhuman Rampage (which I discovered months before “Through the Fire and Flames” debuted in Guitar Hero 3, thank you very much) marked my very first exposure to power metal, an instant obsession that blew open the gates to the underground in pursuit of more music that could make me feel like that. It is by no means hyperbolic to state that without DragonForce, I might have never had enough interest to write about metal music at all.

My initial obsession waned, along with my interest in metal in general, as I moved on to college life. When I emerged four years later, I found myself with a revitalized passion for metal, which led me to apply at my favorite metal blog, but it took a while for that ol’ love for DragonForce to re-emerge. The band had long since parted ways with original singer ZP Theart, and their new material with Marc Hudson on mic duties lacked that undiluted rush of sugar bomb pyromania. It wasn’t until a couple of years ago that I delved into the Hudson era in earnest. Blame it on many of my musical pretenses falling away with age, but by god, DragonForce can still kill it when they really set their minds to it. They never have (and likely never will) recapture the thrills of their “glory” days, but a desire to highlight that disparity was not what prompted this ranking. Rather, it’s to shine a light on how the majority of DragonForce’s modern material is still really, truly good, and deserving of wider discussion than most fans and critics have afforded them in the last decade.

In short: With the impending landfall of their ninth LP Warp Speed Warriors, I’m here to report that rumors of DragonForce’s death have been greatly exaggerated. The fire still burns, proud and so glorious. Their soul and their spirit will go on, for all of eternity.

– Eldritch Elitist

Eldritch Elitist

#8. Extreme Power Metal (2019). I was more optimistic for Extreme Power Metal than I’d been for any DragonForce album since The Power Within. “Highway to Oblivion” was an excellent lead single that heralded the return of the dynamic songwriting and production panache that defined records like Ultra Beatdown. Turns out, this was just the result of DragonForce putting their best foot forward. “Troopers of the Stars” is a blast as a one-off novelty, and “Strangers” is a neat little slice of glam-power metal in the vein of Power Quest, but for me, the fun stops there. “In a Skyforged Dream” is DragonForce at their most phoned-in, “The Last Dragonborn” aims for bombast yet ultimately bores, and “Razorblade Meltdown” kills its momentum with a shockingly weak chorus melody. Extreme Power Metal’s choruses are disappointing in general, really, a chronic condition of their Marc Hudson era that comes to a head with this record. I’ll give credit where it’s due to DragonForce’s other albums, but for me, this one is strictly fodder for playlist harvesting.

#7. Maximum Overload (2014). The first half of Maximum Overload is the best A-side of DragonForce’s Marc Hudson era. “The Game” in particular is an experiment in modern melodeath that I’ve always felt worked brilliantly for the band, but “Tomorrow’s Kings” thrills as a driving force of no-frills power metal, and “Symphony of the Night” excels through a blistering, neo-baroque homage to Castlevania. Yet aside from the thrash-coded fun of “Defenders,” Maximum Overload’s back half disappoints. “The Sun is Dead” and “Extraction Zone” have great instrumentals yet totally uninspired vocal execution, “City of Gold” is a thoroughly lame closer, and the cover of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” is a half-baked realization of its full potential. At final tabulation, Maximum Overload is still a record of mostly great material, but its whiffs signposted the end of DragonForce albums featuring wall-to-wall quality.

#6. Reaching Into Infinity (2017). I was pretty harsh on Reaching Into Infinity upon release. I immediately felt that it failed to match the peaks of Maximum Overload, and for me, DragonForce just didn’t sound much like DragonForce anymore. Seven years on, I’ve come to the revelation that the distinct non-DragonForce-ness of Reaching Into Infinity makes it fresh. It’s still fast, furious fun, without overtly trying to ape the band’s fan-favorite material, the sole exception being the fantastic “Midnight Madness” in all its Sonic Firestorming goodness. The record’s sporadic experimental swings don’t always hit paydirt, as both “Silence” and “The Edge of the World” are divisive momentum killers, but the pure thrash thrills of “War!” and the Running Wild-on-stimulants rush of “Hatred and Revenge” proves that DragonForce can still find great success through large departures. Out of the band’s post The Power Within material, this is the album I’ve returned to the most, and I’d bump my review score up by a full point if I were to review it today.

#5. The Power Within (2012). “It is with great regret that DragonForce announce a parting of the ways with singer ZP Theart […] due to insurmountable differences of musical opinion.” These words hit seventeen-year-old Eldritch like a freight train. A foundational pillar of my musical tastes was now down one of power metal’s greatest vocalists, their musical direction uncertain. Enter Marc Hudson and The Power Within, something of a departure for DragonForce that lacks none of their signature spirit. The fantastic “Wings of Liberty” is the only cut that retains the lengthy structures of DragonForce’s earlier works; the remaining tracks are lean cuts of pure power metal, forming what is easily the band’s most riff-centric album. For all the gripes I have with Marc Hudson and his nowadays paper-thin delivery, he sounded pretty great on his first go around, with his intense delivery on tracks like “Heart of the Storm” being such a great fit that I can’t imagine ZP ever having sung it. The Power Within doesn’t quite live up to the records that preceded it in terms of sheer catchiness, but it’s very nearly as good and is easily recommendable to non-fans who just want a great slab of power metal.

#4. Inhuman Rampage (2006). If you’re one of those people who think DragonForce only knows how to write one song, Inhuman Rampage is probably the reason why. You would be correct to think so based on this album alone, which is exactly what makes it essential in power metal canon. Nothing else on Earth sounds like Inhuman Rampage, and it sounds like that for its entire runtime (closing ballad notwithstanding). Inhuman Rampage’s near-constant tempo of 200 bpm, layered with countless solos and electronic flourishes, is absolutely fucking bonkers. It’s the sound of the world ending via a joyous sugar bomb of metallic hellfire, and DragonForce is laughing their asses off the whole way through. The band clearly had the time of their lives coming up with this insanity, never once considering that they might have to play “Through the Fire and Flames” every night for the rest of their lives. It’s an entirely exhausting listening experience that borders on monotony, but Inhuman Rampage is so singular that I truly believe every metal fan should hear it at least once. If it clicks with you, good luck ever putting it down.

#3. Valley of the Damned (2003). If Inhuman Rampage is your sole exposure to DragonForce, and if you have even a casual appreciation for power metal, then you should be aware that their debut is mandatory listening. Valley of the Damned’s title track is as classic of a power metal song as has ever graced the genre, and between “Valley of the Damned,” “Revelations,” and “Heart of a Dragon,” the album sports three of my all-time favorite power metal tracks. Its standing in this ranking is only dragged down by a handful of relative weak points, namely “Evening Star,” and yet there are plenty of people out there who will swear that it is one of the best DragonForce songs. The magic of Valley of the Damned is that, as a debut, it’s less streamlined than other records from the ZP Theart era, meaning there are loveable oddities like “Evening Star” or “Disciples of Babylon” that could only feel at home on this album. But make no mistake; DragonForce still sounds righteously confident with their sound on this record, coming shockingly close to realizing their full potential at the starting line.

#2. Sonic Firestorm (2004). “Fury of the Storm” is probably the second DragonForce song people know if they know anything beyond “Through the Fire and Flames,” and for good reason, as it has one of the most iconic intros and choruses in all of power metal. And yet Sonic Firestorm is so incredible that I couldn’t justify ranking it in my top five tracks from the album. In a way, this sophomore offering represents DragonForce at their purest, an early career crystallization of their signature sound that isn’t distorted by the glossy production of their later efforts. As such, its songs feel straightforward, yet brilliant. “My Spirit Will Go On” and “Soldiers of the Wasteland” deserve extra special commendations, with the former acting as one of the best album openings in its genre and also my favorite DragonForce song, period. “Prepare for War” is the only weak link here (why this song didn’t swap places with the phenomenal bonus track “Cry of the Brave” will forever elude me), but otherwise, Sonic Firestorm is a virtually untouchable power metal powerhouse.

#1. Ultra Beatdown (2008). Valley of the Damned and Sonic Firestorm may have higher peaks than the band’s final album with ZP Theart on the mic, but in terms of consistency and sheer melodic quality, nothing beats Ultra Beatdown. This record offers uplifting major key excellence from its first second to its last, so much so that even its most predictable songs (“The Fire Still Burns,” “Heartbreak Armageddon”) feel downright monumental. But what really makes Ultra Beatdown DragonForce’s finest showing is that it’s an idealized version of their sound, combining the harmonic bliss of Sonic Firestorm with a tastefully reserved take on Inhuman Rampage’s massively bombastic production. It accomplishes this while also delving into the proggiest material of the ZP Theart era (“Reasons to Live,” “The Last Journey Home”), spawning DragonForce’s best and most underrated ballad (“A Flame for Freedom”), and still finding time to deliver the two best examples of the “stereotypical” DragonForce formula (“Heroes of Our Time”, “Inside the Winter Storm”). In short, this is the DragonForce album that truly feels like the best of all worlds, a collection of universally great songs that represent everything I have ever loved about the band and then some.

Kenstrosity

DragonForce was a force to be reckoned with for young Ken. As you’d expect for young teens like me who were just getting into metal, “Through the Fire and Flames” had my jaw on the floor faster than Herman Li could complete a full chromatic scale. Needless to say, I had to hear more, and one thing led to another and suddenly I was listening to all manner of fast, shreddy, cheesy stuff. To my great surprise, much of DragonForce’s discography held up quite nicely over the years. With greater knowledge of metal at large, both historical and current, I found only a deeper appreciation of what DragonForce do and how they do it. You might expect the opposite to be true, as I did when I embarked on ranking close to nine hours of supersonic wankery. Yet, here I am, ready as ever to sing the praises of one band who helped shape my music tastes and who still informs it to this day.

THROUGH THE FIRE AND THE FLAMES WE CARRY ON!!!

The Ranking:

#8: Extreme Power Metal (2019). No album on Earth makes me miss ZP Theart’s vocals as much as Extreme Power Metal. Admirable though his efforts are, Marc Hudson just doesn’t fit this material, and somehow his voice just continues to degrade with time. On this, his falsetto sounds reedy, and his midrange nasal beyond belief. This only exacerbates my issues with an album chock full of lackluster tunes and gutless guitar showmanship (with the exceptions of the awesome “Heart Demolition” and “Razorblade Meltdown”), the two things that make DragonForce albums so much fun. Without those two core characteristics, Extreme Power Metal brings nothing to the table.

#7: Reaching into Infinity (2017). Despite the fact that I strongly dislike the way Hudson sounds on this late-stage DragonForce record, Reaching into Infinity still charms me. Unlike Extreme Power Metal, the immense hooks and the striking musicianship here more closely align with what I expect and enjoy most from the band. Killer tunes like “Ashes of the Dawn,” “Midnight Madness,” and “The Edge of the World” ensure that I do, indeed, enjoy this record back to front in the moment. Sadly, uneven songwriting (“Silence,” oof) and Hudson’s irritatingly nasal delivery don’t entice me to return down the line.

#6: Maximum Overload (2014). Maximum Overload is an interesting album. Hudson’s voice isn’t quite as buttoned down or powerful as on The Power Within, and I quickly realize that he’s no replacement for the awesome ZP Theart. Musically, Maximum Overload finds a happy medium between the straightforward power metal of The Power Within and the breakneck velocity of Inhuman Rampage. However, something’s missing here. There’s a lack of soul and passion in some of these tracks (“Tomorrow’s Kings,” “Three Hammers”) that undermine its highlights (“The Game,” “Symphony of the Night,” “The Sun is Dead,” “Extraction Zone”) such that the whole fails to live up to expectations. A band going through the motions.

#5: Ultra Beatdown (2008). DragonForce’s most explorative and experimental record, Ultra Beatdown quite simply rocks my socks, for the most part. Exploring various non-metal genres while also featuring more metallic extremity outside of the usual hyperspeed technicality, standouts like “Reasons to Live,” “Heartbreak Armageddon,” “Inside the Winter Storm,” and “Scars of Yesterday” inject a rather impressive variety of approaches to break up the band’s trademark style. An unfortunate consequence of that adventurous songwriting, for every awesome moment, there’s another that just doesn’t quite fit (“A Flame for Freedom,” “Strike of the Ninja”). Truly, that’s the only thing keeping it from a higher rank.

#4: The Power Within (2012). The first record to feature Marc Hudson instead of ZP Theart, The Power Within is immediately recognizable as an outlier in DragonForce’s discography. Still fast as fuck and rife with ample wankery, these tunes are much more direct fare. With only one song surpassing six minutes, this is also among the band’s tightest outings. Massively hooky and immensely fun, killer tunes like “Fallen World,” “Cry Thunder,” “Wings of Liberty,” “Heart of the Storm,” and “Die By the Sword” perfectly suit Hudson’s voice while still offering tons of album variety. More importantly, I keep coming back to it. It’s got its claws in me and simply won’t let go.

#3: Valley of the Damned (2003). Possessor of one of the most useless intro tracks of all time (fifteen seconds of atmospheric crescendo does not deserve its own track), DragonForce’s debut is one of those records that sounds like something a far more established, seasoned band crafts. Hyperspeed rippers like “Valley of the Damned,” “Black Winter Night,” “Black Fire,” “Disciples of Babylon” and “Heart of a Dragon” launch a project of great passion, insanely catchy lines, and a million WHOOAAHs. A wide array of tones and textures built into that supersonic wank blueprint allow these fifty-eight minutes of extreme wank to feel justified and immensely satisfying. And yet, it was only the beginning for the fledgling band!

#2: Sonic Firestorm (2004). The three-album streak between the debut and Inhuman Rampage constitutes an unstoppable hot streak of triumphant, epic, shreddy power metal. Arguably the thrashiest record of the bunch, Sonic Firestorm deftly balances the riff/solo quotient, with an obvious but largely justified bias towards solos, and brings in a tasteful amount of blasts and keys to round out the palette. With massive hits like “Fury of the Storm,” “Fields of Despair,” “Above the Winter Moonlight,” “Soldiers of the Wastelands,” and “Once in a Lifetime,” I find it hard not to be totally enamored and enraptured. And of course, ZP Theart is in fine form, soaring above everything else to deliver only the catchiest, most infectious lines and choruses. Sonic Firestorm is the classic DragonForce formula, stripped down to its purest form and delivered straight to the cranium with a meteor impact.

#1: Inhuman Rampage (2006) – Okay, I know I probably spoiled this result in my intro, but even after an exhaustive run through their discography, Inhuman Rampage still stands proudly as my favorite DragonForce record. Side-by-side comparisons to equally strong albums like Sonic Firestorm cannot dull the sharp memories I have of whiplashing my neck to “Storming the Burning Fields,” belting my little heart out to “Cry for Eternity,” and stomping my feet to “Operation Ground and Pound.” Nostalgia only holds so much sway over this result, however. Much more power belongs to the strength of this record’s immense songwriting successes, its ridiculous technicality balanced by uncanny memorability, and ZP Theart’s uniquely passionate voice. Inhuman Rampage is an unstoppable record that not only formed core memories for me as a budding metalhead who loved so much more than just the still awesome “Through the Fire and Flames,” but also remains a regular standby for my power metal fix. Lambast this decision if you must, but it matters not. I will always love this record above the rest, and nobody else can do a damn thing about it!

Dragon Whisperer

Did you expect to see me here too? Yes, I know, you don’t necessarily associate your guy Dolph with the likes of these full-lactose weenies. But you may not know that a young Dolph broke his metal concert cherry by seeing DragonForce on their first US tour for their breakout album Inhuman Rampage. And that DragonForce, along with many 00s wanky power metal acts like Galneryus, At Vance, and Rhapsody—yes, before all the name change bullshit—made up a huge chunk of my teenage musical development. I used to be cool, and I hope that through my eyes you can relive the glory days of when DragonForce was cool. You know, before Herman Li got big on Twitch1 and then subsequently banned from there for supposedly stupid reasons. Or maybe DragonForce is still cool? Who knows. All their albums are too long, too full of solos, and histrionic as all get out. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The Ranking:

#8. Reaching into Infinity (2017). Dragonforce was never not a Europower band at heart, but increasingly so in the Hudson universe, Europower presented as the default expression for chorus builds and general song flow. Tracks like “Judgement Day” and the ballad “Silence” feel like they could be any chipmunk-speed flower-power band with a little extra chirp in the extended solo runs. Only for the run from “War!” to the powerful eleven-minute opus “The Edge of the World” does DragonForce put any real effort into being their epic selves while showcasing some of the melodeath influence that makes their later era interesting. Oh, and this one has an absolutely pointless intro—no need to tack extra time onto an album that’s already too long.

#7. The Power Within (2012). As a guy who grew up with ZP being the voice of DragonForce, this first outing with Hudson was destined to present a challenge to my younger self. In the modern day, that feeling persists in the thought that many of the better tunes on this album feel like off-cuts from Ultra Beatdown with an increased 80s montage feel to many synth lines. The biggest issue with these choices is that the songs don’t feel entirely constructed around some of Hudson’s strengths, which he displays better on most later albums. For his first outing, he feels plain and safe save for the kick-in-the-teeth of “Give Me the Night” and “Seasons” and, well, the tail-end of the album… again. At least until the whiff of a closer that “Last Man Stands” offers. Such a shame that this fairly trim album lacks in impact.

#6. Extreme Power Metal (2019). This is the first album without longtime keys and weird noise maestro Vadim Pruzhanov, with Coen Janssen (Epica) providing guest arrangements, backings, and other keys sounds. In the present day, I can say this reminds me of the twinklecore that Fellowship presents on many occasions, but still DragonForce has a little more weight in tone. Please, understand, though, that this album is pretty much anything but the extreme in its own name, with a hefty, anthemic, Europe pounce striking through the sticky-sweet cuts “Heart Demolition” and “Strangers.” DragonForce plays with true restraint, and Hudson sounds great on these kinds of tracks—for better or worse—and it’s no surprise to hear that his solo work leans even into this kind of high glycemic power pop with guitar noises, frighteningly similar to Japanese Idol rock. Whatever the case, it works here, even if I don’t want to admit it out loud all the time. “My Heart Will Go On” is a good cover too.

#5. Inhuman Rampage (2006). I went through a ten-year period or so where I never wanted to hear “Through the Fire and the Flames” again, and anytime I revisited this album after its first year or so of existence, I just started at “Revolution Deathsquad,” which is a monster banger anyway. Witnessing DragonForce, of all the dorky bands I loved at the time, blow up because of Guitar Hero blew me away—still does. But with DragonForce dipping their toes into weirder guitar sounds (“Body Breakdown” in particular), more aggressive rhythm structures, and even a growl or two in the background from old friend of the band Lindsay Dawson (Demoniac), it’s hard to put Inhuman Rampage down once it gets going, especially since ZP is just about at the top of his game.

#4. Valley of the Damned (2003). For the most authentic experience in this discog run experience and ranking, I pulled up some old shitty mp3s I had of this debut outing rather than hit the remastered version on stream. You see, my first experience with DragonForce came from a seedy copy of “Black Fire” and a corrupted version of “Disciples of Babylon” from LimeWire. And wouldn’t you know, when I finally heard the full, unclipped, unsqueaking version of the latter, it grew to be one of my favorite songs from this early incarnation of hyper-speed power metal. And though those two cuts leaned a little more on the sound of Blind Guardian at the time—you could even envision ZP as a budget Hansi Kürsch with extra warbling character—the prance and play inherent in the DragonForce sound still lived free in the spirit of “Valley of the Damned,” “Black Winter Night,” and “Heart of a Dragon.” The ballad isn’t particularly enjoyable, but Valley of the Damned remains a rollicking good time in all its youth and flaws.

#3. Maximum Overload (2014). It’s very simple: Maximum Overload wears Hudson better than any of his other outings with DragonForce. True to the album’s namesake, Hudson pushes his ventures into falsetto more recklessly, and DragonForce as a band finds that smart balance of fun, video game inspires noises and forward-moving riff-work. The heft of the Gothenberg-ripped guitar tone plays well against the smattering of video game noises and resplendent choruses, and many of the song choices ring true to a more classic and warm power metal sound than this band had ever displayed before. “The Sun Is Dead” reminds me of the gritty swagger of a band like Thunderstone more than DragonForce. Couple that with bassist Fredric Leclerq’s extreme metal influences that sharpen the steel of “The Game” and “Three Hammers,” a scorching cover of “Ring of Fire,” and NO BALLADS, Maximum Overload tears front to back all in under fifty minutes.

#2. Sonic Firestorm (2004) – Both a major step up in recording quality from the debut and a further diversification of attack, Sonic Firestorm hosts some of the best cuts that this discography has to offer. Yes, the continuing trend of DragonForce having overwrought ballads—very pretty piano on this one though—remains true on this piece, but its placement between the unyielding “Fields of Despair” and iconic synth warble of “Above the Winter Moonlight” ensures that this album never loses its course. Every track has bombastic intros, brain-staining choruses, dopamine-spiking solos, and sugar rush power that even twenty years removed from my first encounter still causes the flow. Yes, all of these songs are too long and have solo sections that extend well beyond what one might consider good taste, but that’s kind of the point isn’t it? And though this track has no bearing on this record’s standing, “Cry of the Brave” should have been on the album proper, damnit.

#1. Ultra Beatdown (2008). Around when Ultra Beatdown landed in the world, my love affair with DragonForce and frolicking power metal was waning in favor of things equally noodly but more progressive—I am a refined individual, after all. However, despite my own musical journey, this massive album just couldn’t let me go. No song is less than five minutes. Most are over seven. In these very halls, recently even, I’ve rallied against the over-soloization of music to diminishing effects. But every tone-exploring keys break, every hot-handed guitar squeal, every ZP led anthem, fills me with joy, with the urge to scream and air guitar and smash a keytar that I wouldn’t even know how to turn on. Context matters, and the story here is that no matter what level of excess this band poured into the making of Ultra Beatdown, it seared a near hour-long corridor in my mind built specifically for this album. “Reasons to Live,” “Heartbreak Armageddon,” “The Last Journey Home”—I could really just name all the songs including the bonus tracks “Strike of the Ninja” and “Scars of Yesterday”—represent the fullest vision of the first era of DragonForce and to this day remains their best work. And most importantly, Ultra Beatdown is one of my favorite power metal albums of all time.2

Official Ranking

The writers’ votes have been cast and counted. As the contributors to this ranking were also the only ones to have any strong feelings about DragonForce one way or the other, a poll was not conducted to obtain a tally from AMG staff. The below is an aggregate of the Rankings above. Here, to be scrawled on the sparkliest of unicorn hide with a can of Cheez Whiz, is the definitive AMG Ranking for DragonForce:

#7. Extreme Power Metal (2019), with 5 points out of a possible 24.

#6. Reaching Into Infinity (2017), with 6 points out of a possible 24.

#5. (tied) Maximum Overload (2014), with 11 points out of a possible 24.

#5. (tied) The Power Within (2012), with 11 points out of a possible 24.

#4. Valley of the Damned (2003), with 14 points out of a possible 24.

#3. Inhuman Rampage (2006), with 17 points out of a possible 24.

#2. Ultra Beatdown (2008), with 20 points out of a possible 24.

#1. Sonic Firestorm (2004), with 21 points out of a possible 24.

If you don’t know DragonForce, you’ve probably saved yourself from a considerable heap of shame and embarrassment, but it’s never too late to shamelessly indulge with this playlist assembled by Eldritch Elitist, Kenstrosity, and Dolphin Whisperer:

#AtVance #BlindGuardian #BritishMetal #DragonForce #EarMusic #Epica #Europe #ExtremePowerMetal #Fellowship #Galneryus #InhumanRampage #JohnnyCash #MaximumOverload #PowerMetal #PowerQuest #ReachingIntoInfinity #Rhapsody #RoadrunnerRecords #RunningWild #SanctuaryRecords #SonicFirestorm #ThePowerWithin #Thunderstone #UltraBeatdown #ValleyOfTheDamned

one of my sons has been getting into prog-rock, so i'm back to listening to #fripp and #parsons. love it.

and now my other son has introduced by to #galneryus

interesting times