If you’re going to call your new album “Metal Gods,” then it had best start with a fists-in-the-air anthem, paying homage to—and name-checking along the way—Maiden, Priest, and Manowar.
It tells more of a tale than that here, though, because here it’s a reintroduction, a “hi, we’re back,” if you will. After all, Dream Evil has been MIA in terms of studio action for seven years.
Back in the late ’90s and early 2000s, you couldn’t move for bands claiming that “metal was dead.” Into that realm popped Dream Evil, emerging from Sweden with their denim and leather intact (and Gus G as a six-stringer), and they set about proving that to be hogwash of the highest order. It is, of course, and metal is stronger now than it has been in decades.
That said, it could always do with pomp, ceremony, and bombast, and that’s what the likes of “Chosen Force” provide.
There are swords, of course—there are swords—and they’re drawn for “The Tyrant Dies At Dawn,” and whatever you think it sounds like, it does. A simply wonderful slice of (it has to be said) slightly ludicrous power metal. The sort of thing that views the word “sparse” with total disdain.
“Lightning Strikes” makes things a bit more 1983, and Brian Tatler would be perfectly happy if this were Diamond Head.
These boys—G left 20-odd years ago—but the enduring lineup of Niklas Isfeldt, Frederick Nordström, bassist Peter Stålfors, and lead guitarist Markus Fristedt, plus the latest recruit, drummer Sören Fardvik, have mostly been together for years, and they keep it simple. “Fight In The Night,” the more Saxon-tinged “Master Of Arms,” or the slashing quasi-thrash of “Born In Hell” are never meant to win any prizes for originality, but they are exquisitely done.
To that end, try and keep your fists out of the sky when “Insane” hits. You won’t. And it’s one of several you can say that about.
“Night Stalker” (and even the title and the subject matter have been done before) is a prime example. On one hand, you’ve heard it; on the other, you won’t resist it.
That goes for the last one here too. The ballad “Y.A.N.A.” slows things down a little, but it still soars and sounds as huge as anything ever has.
Ultimately, these five mates play the music they love. Nordström jokes about it. He describes the band as a “hobby” and reckons, “If we were full-time musicians, we’d hate each other by now,” before adding, “We’re here for the music. We’re here for the metal!”
And that comes across. Nobody is taking “Metal Gods” too seriously; it’s just a celebration of heavy metal—and that’s never been a bad thing.
Rating: 8.5/10
