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Hammerfall - Crimson Thunder
(Nuclear Blast) |
After Swedish power metal act Hammerfall’s less than impressive 2000 release Renegade (Not to mention the ridicule and bad reviews the album generated), the band have rethought their game plan of attack and come up with their fourth release Crimson Thunder. While the formula has hardly changed, there is a slight change of pace within Hammerfall’s traditional power metal roots.
The pounding metal stomp of ‘Riders Of The Storm’ is a clearly indicative of where Hammerfall are heading these days. The song is definitely heavier sounding, and the actual tempo of the song in general is slowed down to allow the band to emphasis the riffs rather than show the speeds the band is capable of.
‘Hearts On Fire’ is up next, and is the first single lifted from the album. In truth though, this is possibly the worst representation of the album. The song is not so much awful, but it falls way below par in comparison the rest of the album. The blame lies clearly on the derivative and lack lustre chorus.
‘On The Edge Of Honour’ is a faster number that works well, while the title track ‘Crimson Thunder’ is an epic number that isn’t as over the top as you would come to expect from Hammerfall.
The pick of the album has to be the mighty ‘Trailblazers’. The chorus is well thought out, and clearly shows that Hammerfall can come up with something original when they put their minds to it. The big ballad of the album, ‘Dreams Come True’ is well done, if a little dramatic. The first of two cover versions is (David T.) Chastain’s ‘Angel Of Mercy’ (Lifted from his 1986 album ‘Ruler Of The Wasteland’). Hammerfall do the track justice, and show that Chastain’s songs stand well in the face of passing trends.
‘The Unforgiving Blade’ and ‘Hero’s Return’ are Hammerfall ‘call to arms’ standards, while the instrumental ‘In Memoriam’ never loses the interest of the listener. The second cover on the album, Yngwie J. Malmsteen’s ‘Rising Force’ (From 1988’s ‘Odyssey’) closes the album on a high point. Again, they perform the number like it was their own, and pull it off well.
Crimson Thunder lacks any real kind of innovation from Hammerfall, but is made up by pure melodic catchiness will meet fans high expectations.
By: Justin Donnelly
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