There are two things that seem to irk music fans more than anything whenever their favorite band puts out a new record: when the band tries to do something new, and when the band doesn’t change their style or sound at all. HammerFall has definitely seen both kinds in their days throughout their lengthy and legendary career. They’ve become one of the giants of power metal, and metal in general, in modern times, and after nine albums with a little bit of experimentation going into a few of those pieces just for some fun, it has all come full circle with their upcoming album. “Built to Last” isn’t by any means anywhere a “fresh, new, and unexplored territory” for HammerFall. On the contrary, they sound like they’re going back to the basics after taking a pretty short hiatus to refuel their creative drives, and I am certainly not f**king complaining. The ten hymns (they’re not literal hymns) of “Built to Last” show that even after doing a similar formula for well over five albums for definitely over, HammerFall has not lost a single iota of their magnificence that they initially set out with as a band. It’s the hypnotic melodies thrown together with masterful vocals and an undeniable presence that help tie “Built to Last“ together. And let’s be honest here, that’s the basic math for just about every single record that HammerFall has ever done, and you’d really think that would drain fans out after time and again of what equates to the same thing. But like how many Slayer fans adore everything that their saviors do no matter what, we who’ve known HammerFall for quite some time, and has stuck with them for many years, will agree with me irrefutably that you don’t really need to think forward, be progressive, or try all new fancy bulls**t to sound good, but instead you just gotta tackle the album making process head on and just do what you do best. You can definitely feel that with “Built to Last”. And even though this album is a fair distance from being my personal favorite or the best HammerFall record in my eyes, there’s no dispute in saying that “Built to Last” is a kick ass addition to a fabulous catalog that continues to show that these Swedes aren’t anywhere near done.
“Built to Last” releases on November 4th! You can pre-order the album via iTunes here.
Track Listing:
- Bring It!
- Hammer High
- The Sacred Vow
- Dethrone and Defy
- Twilight Princess
- Stormbreaker
- Built To Last
- The Star of Home
- New Breed
- Second To None
Just a metal head who loves just about all metal. I want to spread the word about the REALLY great bands out there, well known and underground. I do this for fun and don’t want any sort of money from doing reviews. It’s its own reward. I also do daily reviews for my own review site, Head-Banger Reviews, where the reviews are longer and daily as mentioned. No bullshit, just here to have some fun, listen to cool music and meet cool people.