After three albums in a row with Napalm, Hammerfall return to their…home, to the label that brought them to prominence, Nuclear Blast. And it may have been 27 long years since “Glory To The Brave” rocked the stagnant waters of traditional heavy metal but trust me when I am saying that Hammerfall maintains the same vitality and energy! “Avenge The Fallen” is the 13th record of the Swedes who once again deliver a power metal masterpiece worthy of its history and name. Of course, I have to emphasize in every possible way, that those who expect to listen to something that is close to the atmosphere of the first couple of albums, better forget about it, since we are dealing with Hammerfall as we know them since “(r)Evolution” and afterwards.
The title track continues that informal tradition that Hammerfall tends to write real anthems with the songs that bear the name of the album. “Avenge The Fallen” is no exception and is one of the highlights of the album. The same goes for the album’s second single, “The End Justifies” as well as “Time Immemorial” which closes the album. Once again Hammerfall bring out all their Accept influences (a favorite band of both Joacim and Oscar) and we would be remiss if we didn’t mention that Joacim Cans is consistently in excellent form (as are, by the way, all the other members of Hammerfall).
In my eyes, “Avenge The Fallen” is another noteworthy album in Hammerfall’s extensive back catalogue which should be compared to the band’s recent works to be properly valued. It won’t change your musical world but it will make you have a good time for about 45 minutes. That in itself is very important. Don’t you agree?
Highlight: Yet another excellent cover with the iconic figure of Hector…avenging the fallen!
