Label: Napalm Records
Release date: August 16, 2019
Production: James Michael, Oscar Dronjak & Pontus Norgren
Album length: 50.30 min
Genre: Power Metal
Rating: 7.5 / 10
HammerFall are by now practically card-carrying legends of power metal. The unbending Scandinavians from Gothenburg have been at it since 1993, and their debut “Glory To The Brave,” released in 1996, was an important counterweight at the time to the rampant onslaught of extreme metal. By reviving the old-school approach to melodic elements in metal, it helped restore some balance. Once HammerFall’s boldness found approval with the labels, plenty of new bands followed, along with older (cult) metal acts that had mostly been languishing through the nineties.
Anyway, HammerFall have proven to be an extremely high-quality band, otherwise they wouldn’t have made it to their, believe it or not, eleventh studio album, which they’ve named “Dominion”. They’re excellent songwriters, and it’s always been true that HammerFall know how to drop a good riff into a song and breathe into it the most important thing: that epic bombast and rapaciousness that, musically speaking, grabs you right off the bat.
Let’s be honest, HammerFall don’t surprise anymore. Haven’t for a long while. They stay firmly saddled in the musical territory and direction they’ve mastered, loyal to it and so loyal to their listeners. And they’re incredibly lucky that Joacim Cans’ voice is so “damn” instantly recognizable and unique. He only has to open his mouth and you know right away that HammerFall are with you. New or old. Cans remains a piercing, dominant vocalist. Hugely distinctive. How funny that the band every now and then tries to recreate the songwriting recipe of the debut’s title track, which is considered a cult classic today. This time that kind of song on the new album is Second To None. Once again there are infectious riffs over a faster, galloping rhythm, the kind that already lit things up on the debut, like Scars Of Generation, which pulls toward Metal Age, while the closing Chain Of Command delivers one of the album’s most interesting riffs and is set up at the start of the chorus in such a way that you could derive the Hearts On Fire chorus from it. “Dominion” is 100% a HammerFall album, no question. It recalls moves struck in the past, but HammerFall don’t overdo it, and they’ve once again managed to repackage the new ideas so that they breathed enough freshness and clever tricks into the new record. There’s no way to call “Dominion” an average copy. It’s a very good album that stands proudly in the band’s discography beside its older brothers and secures the band the continued high favor of their fans in this new era too. It’s no worse than its predecessor “Built To Last”. Among the interesting songs, or moments, on the album that depart from the general recipe is definitely (We Make) Sweden Rock. It isn’t entirely typical of HammerFall’s songwriting style, but here the band was going after a special “anthem”, and the arrangement turned out incredibly well. The song fires on all cylinders in its starting intent! It’s a tribute to the bands that inspired HammerFall to become what they became. The song Dead By Down channels the good old Accept of the eighties and delivers one of the most elementary riffs on the album.
The band’s new album will no doubt satisfy all the loyal fans, even though it shows signs of creative fatigue. Not all the songs hold the same level of quality across the record. There are ups and downs, but that doesn’t strip the album of its essential safeguards, so you couldn’t call it a miss by any stretch. HammerFall didn’t let us down. They stick to their tried-and-true formula, it’s just that sometimes it’s more convincing and sometimes a little less. The album will never become a classic, nor is that its goal, but it’s a credible continuation of the path of a band that doesn’t stop and keeps defying the odds. It’s a good thing the outstanding Pontus Norgren is lurking there with his outstanding solos. “Dominion” is, after all, a true HammerFall album in every way. From head to toe. It doesn’t ignite as much as it could and there are some reservations, but as said. The band’s followers will definitely grab it with both hands.
Track list:
01. Never Forgive, Never Forget
02. Dominion
03. Testify
04. One Against The World
05. (We Make) Sweden Rock
06. Second To One
07. Scars Of A Generation
08. Dead By Dawn
09. Battleworn
10. Bloodline
11. Chain Of Command
12. And Yet I Smile
Line-up:
Joacim Cans – vocals
Oscar Dronjak – guitar
Pontus Norgren – guitar
Fredrik Larsson – bass
David Wallin – drums
