The number of times I have heard the tiresome arguments about band x or y “not being metal” I have always countered with the same answer. Metal, in the non-material sense, is not just a style of music. It is far, far bigger than that. It is a mind-set, a belief system and a set of values that we hold dear and makes us what we are. It’s a passion and it runs deep within every fibre of our being. Twilight of the Gods are a band that have come together to provide as pure an example as you will find of what being metal is really about. Comprised of some of the finest metal performers in existence, they came together initially to pay tribute to the works of Bathory, gaining excellent reviews for their performances. As you would expect, new ideas formed over time and over a mutual love of all the bands they grew up influenced by new material took shape, but now the music pays homage not just to Bathory but to the metal heavyweights who have shaped our musical landscape over the years. As someone who grew up in the same era listening to the same bands this strikes a particular chord with me, and as much as I love Bathory, this is now about so much more than that.
Opening in emphatically defiant style, ‘Destiny Forged In Blood’ is a metal song in the traditional vein with its classic twin guitar attack courtesy of Patrik Lindgren and Rune Eriksen and a pounding rhythm section with Frode Glesnes providing a very chunky bassline and the indefatigable Nick Barker on drums, the whole ensemble comes together to create the freshest of retro metal. Of course a star studded line up deserves a mighty voice and Primordial’s Alan Averill is the perfect voice for this style of music. Classic heavy metal has always had an inherent rebelliousness and defiance about it, and Averill’s rabble rousing vocals calling for you to raise your voice and write your destiny in blood will raise the spirit, determination and fist of any metaller with any sense of pride in his heritage. The spirit of Manowar and Iron Maiden is rich in songs like ‘Children of Cain’ and ‘Preacher Man’, but the closest comparison is to Judas Priest, with riffs and solos that Tipton and Downing would be proud to have in their repertoire, and the soaring vocals of Alan Averill which may not reach the same dizzying heights of Halford at his peak, but they have the same impact.
I expected to enjoy this album, but I was quite frankly stunned by just how much I loved it. The truth is that will split opinion massively. Firstly there will be those who are surprised/disappointed/angered that this is not a ‘Bathory’ album. Then there is the wave of metal fans who have decided that anything not sufficiently brootal is not metal. Once you remove the ignorant and the annoying though, anyone who has a wide reaching appreciation of metal in all its forms will find something to appreciate here. As someone who grew up in the 80s, the classic and traditional metal style of this album invokes some wonderful memories and a realisation that very few bands manage to raise this kind of feeling of excitement, determination and pride in me any longer. This is exactly the sort of music that brought me to the metal fold in the first place, and by Satan’s balls I have missed it! The forthcoming live shows with Rotting Christ are clearly going to be exceptional. For all those who live, breathe and love heavy metal, this is a perfect reminder of who, why and what we are. This is a heathen metal call to arms…
(9/10 Lee Kimber)
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