Artist: Dream Evil
Label: Century Media
Release: 2002
Yet another batch of debutants with a first album on the scene. But anyone who knows King Diamond or Mercyful Fate has surely heard the name Snowie Shaw, a seasoned, battle-hardened old fox. When an artist like that sits down behind a band’s drum kit, it means only one thing: something really interesting is brewing on the horizon. And finally, here are Swedes who aren’t sugar-coated, as you’d usually expect from a million modern-day power metal copycats led by the “hammerfallers”. What’s especially striking is the production, which is atypical for Scandinavians: it’s incredibly “German”, so it’s alive and hasn’t been through any special polishing. And that’s why I can say without mincing words that these Dream Evil really do slam out the real power metal energy.
The drums are definitely one of the most impressive parts of Dream Evil’s music. Colorful in the transitions and played with full force. The vocals are angry and expressive, and with their full-throated shouting they bring just the right amount of edge and aggression to the music, something rarely heard among the whole phalanx of northern “clean” castrati. The songs are compact and fluid, with expressive motifs and carefully added layered back vocal lines that blend beautifully with Niklas’s lead (e.g. “Chasing The Dragon” or “Kingdom Of The Damned”), plus tasteful keyboards that keep the atmosphere high in the songs (e.g. the mid-tempo metal anthem “The Chosen Ones” or “Losing You”). Tremendous energy is captured through the aggressive, speed-fueled riffing, with which the guys come close to Primal Fear both in sound and in style, thanks to the main riff in “The 7th Day”. The intense riffing keeps the dynamics at a terrific level throughout. The solos and transitions are strikingly fast, and despite their untamed rush they still sound clean and played with incredible ease (“In Flames You Burn”). The bravura solo spots carefully round out the overall picture of Dream Evil’s music and don’t break the band’s passionate charge at a single point. The guitars also turn to pinch harmonics in the riffs (“The Prophecy”), which adds even more variety to the songs.
Even if what Dream Evil offer is frankly out in the open, Dragonslayer is an incredibly convincing record in terms of production and, despite the clichés, still sounds fresh enough and alive, with red-hot riffs.
Lineup
Niklas Isfeldt – vocals
Fredrik Nordström – guitar, keyboards
Gus G. – guitar
Peter Stålfors – bass guitar
Snowy Shaw – drums
Production
Fredrik Nordström & Dream Evil
Track list
1. Chasing The Dragon
2. In Flames You Burn
3. Save Us
4. Kingdom Of The Damned
5. The Prophecy
6. The Chosen Ones
7. Losing You
8. The 7th Day
9. Heavy Metal In The Night
10. H.M.J.
11. Hail To The King
12. Outro
Album length: 46.18
