┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │■ ■│ │ .-/ .-. │ │ _.-~ / ___ | ~-._ │ │ \:/ -~| / __/| .\:/ │ │ / || (:/:| \ │ │ / /\/| |:\___\| |\ \ │ │ / /:::|.::/:::/:.|:\ \ │ │ / /:::/ \\/:::/::/:::\ \ │ │ / .::\ \-~~~~-/\/:.. \ │ │ /..:::::\ /:::::..\ │ │ /::::::::- -::::::::\ │ │ \:::::-~ ~-:::::/ │ │ \:-~ ~-:/ │ │ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ P R E S E N T S │ │ │ │ │ │ + Brothers of Metal - Emblas Saga + │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Information ║ │ │╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Rls Date..2020-04-27 Encoder......LAME 3.100 ║ │ │║ Genre.....Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │ │║ Year......2020 Khz/Bitrate..44.1 / VBR kbps ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Ripper....Anthem Songs........13 ║ │ │║ Source....CD Covers.......Yes ║ │ │║ Url.. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Notes ║ │ │╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Artist : Brothers of Metal ║ │ │║ Album : Emblas Saga ║ │ │║ Label : King Records ║ │ │║ Cat.No : KICP 4009 ║ │ │╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Description : ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Apparently, I missed quite the event when Brothers Of Metal ║ │ │║ released their debut album Prophecy Of Ragnarok back in ║ │ │║ 2017. I was unsure of the efficacy of an eight-piece (!?!) ║ │ │║ power metal outfit and, as expected, their numbers are ║ │ │║ pretty much audibly undetectable. Funnier still, the CD ║ │ │║ booklet lists the singers and drummer as "Voice Of The ║ │ │║ Valkyries, Battle Cries, Tongue Of The Gods" and "Anvil & ║ │ │║ War Drums" but the rest are simply labelled "Guitars" and ║ │ │║ "Bass". My expectations comfortably lowered, I bought this ║ │ │║ CD based on the incredible artwork by Sallai PΘter, hoping ║ │ │║ for at least one or two good tunes. Needless to say, I ║ │ │║ thoroughly enjoyed this hour of mythological power metal ║ │ │║ and couldn't wait to hear it all again, to grasp all the ║ │ │║ little interesting nuances. This is truly anthemic power ║ │ │║ metal based on Norse legends - nothing new there - but ║ │ │║ Emblas Saga gives a little tongue-in-cheek twist on the ║ │ │║ tried-and-tested tales, backing it up with some truly ║ │ │║ hymnal refrains and brilliant performances. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ Firstly - no, this did not need three guitarists and three ║ │ │║ vocalists. Main singer Ylva Eriksson has a superb voice, ║ │ │║ more than capable of carrying this album by herself - ║ │ │║ possibly backed up with some shouts from the ║ │ │║ instrumentalists. The harsh vocals are a nice addition, but ║ │ │║ they're not frequent enough to warrant two extra members. ║ │ │║ And I have never witnessed a band justify having three ║ │ │║ guitarists; not Brothers Of Metal, not Heidevolk and no, ║ │ │║ not even Iron Maiden. Overlooking this, the Swedes are ║ │ │║ among the best at crafting an album that flows, dips and ║ │ │║ peaks, with a proper beginning and ending. This begs to be ║ │ │║ listened to front-to-back. The intro, "Brood Of The ║ │ │║ Trickster", is both captivating and delightfully cheesy, ║ │ │║ and by the time "To The Skies And Beyond" triumphantly ║ │ │║ crashes to a close, you would've been taken on an epic ║ │ │║ journey (a 'saga', if you will!). ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ What crafts the storytelling aspect of this record so well ║ │ │║ is the variety of moods and tempos created within a ║ │ │║ defiantly power metal framework. There's the martial ║ │ │║ anthems which beg to be chanted in a live setting ("Njord", ║ │ │║ "Brothers Unite", "One"); the glorious, soaring euro-power ║ │ │║ refrains ("Kaunaz Dagaz", "To The Skies And Beyond"); the ║ │ │║ hard-hitting speed metal gallops ("Theft Of The Hammer", ║ │ │║ "Chain Breaker", "Ride Of The Valkyries") and of course the ║ │ │║ token ballad ("Weaver Of Fate"). Outside of these tracks - ║ │ │║ all of which range from good to fantastic - there's the ║ │ │║ numbers that stick out because of their intriguing nature. ║ │ │║ The title-track is a 7+ minute epic covering a whole story ║ │ │║ by itself, but still containing one hell of a chorus and ║ │ │║ some gritty, dramatic riffage. "Hel" takes us to the deep ║ │ │║ and dark depths of the band's catalogue, whilst ║ │ │║ "Powersnake" is a song called "Powersnake" - what the hell ║ │ │║ did you think it was going to sound like? ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ The absolute highlights of Emblas Saga are short, standout ║ │ │║ segments, rather than full songs. Usually, these are the ║ │ │║ choruses. "Brothers Unite" is the most anthemic thing I've ║ │ │║ heard this year; when the chorus is repeated in a capella ║ │ │║ Swedish, it's a truly irresistible moment. The victorious ║ │ │║ refrain to the finale, "To The Skies And Beyond", is also ║ │ │║ totally bombastically brilliant. "One" is the only track ║ │ │║ that seems to actually disappoint. The melodies are sweet ║ │ │║ and it seems to aim for an emotional reaction rather than a ║ │ │║ physical punch - but the gruff vocal approach completely ║ │ │║ misses the target. The all-round greatest cut here is ║ │ │║ "Theft Of The Hammer". With a cheeky approach to Norse ║ │ │║ mythology, a rock-solid rhythm, amazing chorus and general ║ │ │║ aura of cinematic excellence, it's bound to be one of my ║ │ │║ favourite tracks of 2020. Any negative points I make here ║ │ │║ are insignificant when one stands back and sees the whole ║ │ │║ picture. Bottom line: Emblas Saga is a great power metal ║ │ │║ record and Brothers Of Metal are now on my watchlist. ║ │ │║ ║ │ │║ ║ │ │╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │╔═════════════════════╗ │ │║ Release Tracklist ║ │ │╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │ │ │ │ 1. Brood Of The Trickster 1:56 │ │ 2. POWERSNAKE 3:43 │ │ 3. Hel 4:40 │ │ 4. Chain Breaker 3:53 │ │ 5. Kaunaz Dagaz (Dawn Of Fire) 4:13 │ │ 6. Theft Of The Hammer 4:10 │ │ 7. Weaver Of Fate 4:45 │ │ 8. Njord 3:50 │ │ 9. Emblas Saga 7:14 │ │ 10. Brothers Unite 4:07 │ │ 11. One 4:17 │ │ 12. Ride Of The Valkyries 3:26 │ │ 13. To The Skies And Beyond 4:54 │ │ │ │ │ │ Total Length : 00:55:08 │ │ │ │ │ │ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ╔═════════════════════╗ │ │ ║ Greetings To: ║ │ │ ╚═════════════════════╝ │ │ │ │ Too all people who contributes to make this │ │ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │■ ■│ └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘