Regardless of your personal opinions, there’s no denying that Dream Evil is an institution within Power Metal. These guys have been doing this longer than many of you have been alive. Nordström has been involved with almost every significant Swedish MeloDeath band in the last twenty years. Needless to say, a band with a strong history, extensive contacts, and reputable labels behind it sets high expectations for its work. So, we won’t hold any punches when reviewing its new album, Metal Gods.
Let’s start with the obvious: Metal Gods is music for the masses. I don’t mean this pejoratively. The album transports you to a time, probably the late ’80s, when Metal bands gathered millions of people in a cramped space with one toilet per 10,000 attendees and no clean water source in sight—a true and forgotten festival experience. It’s charismatic, happy, and epic in that distinctive Power Metal way (yes, a bit cheesy, as you like it). You’ve heard it all before, but that doesn’t mean you can’t relive more joyful times in your life as nostalgia takes hold.
Power Metal can make me jump on one leg or cover my face in embarrassment. However, at MER, we’re professionals (hahahah!), and I’ll tell you what I sincerely enjoyed from Metal Gods. Whether you like the lyrical content or not, Isfeldt’s excellent articulation deserves acknowledgment. In a music style where many vocalists sound like chimps farting in a tube (I love growling, but it’s even better when I can understand the lyrics), Dream Evil has a vocalist whose clarity helps you immerse in the different “stories” the songs tell. Plus, the production is clean, something you can especially appreciate in the guitar solos. Alright, enough praising; time for the ugly part.
Metal Gods follows a formula we’ve heard many times before: catchy, fun, and dramatic. If you’re an extreme Metalhead from the basement, you’ll feel alienated. However, my biggest contention with Metal Gods is that it doesn’t really surprise me. Everything is pleasant to the ears, but it doesn’t stick in my head. A few more risks would have benefited the album. Take Unleash the Archers, for example, who, despite being an established Power Metal band, dared to take new directions in its latest album (which we reviewed too!). I would have liked to hear more innovation here.
As I said, Dream Evil‘s members are successful musicians, despite multitasking their whole careers. Metal Gods might not be the album that changes Metal, but I’m sure it’ll spark curiosity about our unique and secluded musical style and give a second wind to those who already demand chairs at big festivals (you don’t have to be old to be this broken, trust me!). If you want change, you might have to look elsewhere.
Label: Century Media
Release date: 26 July, 2024
Website: https://www.facebook.com/DreamEvilOfficial
Country: Sweden
Score: It’s ok for the Gods! Let’s try this again, no numbers in the score!
Metal Eclipse Reviews 