The only album I have owned by these guys was "United' . I assumed given their name they were going to sound more like Dio. What I do like about this album is it feels heavier, though that might just be more layers of guitars giving the crunch. Lyrically there is a great deal of cheese especially on the title track that opens the album, though the bulk of the album is the kind of warmed-up 80s silliness, that has become a cliche. The second song benefits from a more deliberate drum beat. You have to give Niklas credit that at 58 he is still able to belt it out like he does.
They do not rip any one band off but wear their influences proudly as they imitate the twin guitar attack of both the Scorpions and Judas Priest. I skipped over my speech as to why I do not review a great deal of power metal, since in the past these guys have been a little darker than their peers but it does not stop them from being too melodramatic on songs like "The Tyrant Dies at Dawn". It gallops with command, but there are plenty of the color-by-numbers metal tropes in play, and ample double bass to keep things moving. "Lightning Strikes" is an anthem rallying against a vague enemy. "Fight In the Night' has the most convincing chug so far that gives the album some thrash muscle.
"Masters of Arms" has the swagger of when the Scorpions once dominated arenas. I can take or leave the background vocals chiming in on this one, but they are not a deal-breaker. 'Born in Hell" is another headbanger driven by a mid-paced chug. "Insane' is like a heavier version of Dokken. "Night Stalker" finds the guitar carrying most of the weight as the lyrics are pretty silly, The last song is a bit of a power ballad, but it works for what they are going for here. Despite some of the genre tropes that bring the Velveeta, this album benefits from having the guitar dialed in at a more modern level, and is pretty convincing, I will give this album a 9.
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