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Who
were to know that HammerFall's debut album "Glory to the
Brave" would be the cornerstone for a new genre in heavy metal
called True Metal? A genre where it was mandatory to have songs
filled with one cliché after another, and where you are proud to state
your influences...
HammerFall
have always stayed truthful to their beliefs and stood by them and in their
own words: "The Fire Burns Forever"! - and "Threshold"
proves that perhaps more than ever!
This
new album holds everything you'd expect from a HammerFall album, from
the mandatory warrior on the cover, to the lyrics filled with clichés
to the obvious influences in the music, but isn't that really what any
HammerFall fan would expect? You f**king better believe it - because
this is the essence of true metal - and HammerFall are the kings of the
genre, and with this new album they are able to raise the bar one small
notch higher.
From
the word Go! we get one brilliant true metal song after another,
starting with the dynamic title track followed by one great true metal
song after another until we reach the end and the album is closed by my
favorite song on the album: "Titans", which is bound to be a
live highlight in the future. No fillers at all, which I thought was the
case on some their previous albums.
The
album leaves nothing to be desired for as a fan of the band, the sound
is crystal clear - produced once more by Charlie Bauerfeind, the guitar
riffs are razor sharp, the choirs are huge, the guitar leads are the
best ones from HammerFall ever, and Joacim Cans' performance leaves
everything he has done in the past behind him in the dust.
This is in my humble opinion the best true metal album
in a very, very long time, and I am sure true HammerFall fans will love
this album almost as much as their debut album. I actually think it's a
bit better and suggest everyone, who likes this kind of metal to put
"Threshold" at the top of their shopping list now!
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