Two years have passed since I
heard anything new (studio work) from
the war metal heroes from Borlänge,
Sweden. Sabaton's 'Carolus Rex' was a
magnificent theme album and this time
they have named their album 'Heroes'.
(Sabaton released a live album in 2013
called 'Swedish Empire Live'). 'Heroes'
is once again a concept based album on
different historical happenings from
20th century wars and battles, telling
fascinating stories about heroic men and
women on their dangerous missions on
the battlefields and other belligerent
locations.
Well, talking about real heroes - the song
'Inmate 4859' is about the brave Polish soldier Witold Pilecki,
who voluntarily entered as an inmate in
concentration camp Auschwitz when he
wanted to get evidences of the horrors
and mass murders that were taking place
inside the district of doom! I feel that Sabaton
has gone back to the old classic Sabaton sound.
Sharp guitars and even more power in the
sound. Jocke Brodén is the given front
man in Sabaton with his strong vocals
and machine gun voice. 'Night Witches'
was the German's name of the Soviet female
pilots during WW2. Same lyrical
theme as always, same war and same glory
power metal. Brodén, Sundström and co.
have done it again. A stiff war metal
album with three new members Chris Rörland, Thobbe Englund and Hannes Van
Dahl.
I was little worried that Sabaton could
loose their powerful wall of sound and
that their machine efficiency when 3 of 5
members decide to start 'Civil War', but
after my first listening of 'Heroes', I
am prepared to say that this is probably
the best album they have released and it is
comparable with the great 'Art of War'
from 2008. Fewer big hits but more depth
and heavier power metal. The guitars are
razor sharp and the drumming is
excellent. They remain faithful to their
own war inspired genre and lyrically,
they find new angles and stories from
WW2. Even the unusual low-keyed song
'The Ballad Of Bull' keeps my interest
to the end.
'Resist and Bite' and 'Far from the
Fame' are two top-notch tracks with
classic Sabaton groove and magic
guitars. The closing song 'Hearts Of
Iron' is a worthy end of this metal
knock-out.
Jocke is the captain, who roars the
orders and drives this musical battle
tank further out on the war field. If
you are a Sabaton fan, you don't have to
hesitate about this investment.
My camouflage pants will be on and my
military boots will be plastered to the
next live gig with Sabaton!
Sabaton Lineup:
Hannes Van Dahl – Drums
Joakim Brodén – Lead Vocals
Pär Sundström – Bass
Thobbe Englund – Lead Guitar
Chris Rörland – Lead Guitar
