Trollheart

Although it has to be admitted that a lot of Metal lyrics centre around the beer/motorcycles/women triumvirate, it annoys me that people outside the genre dismiss these sort of subjects as being all Metal bands can write about. And you only have to look at the lyric to any song by Iron Maiden, Diamond Head, Bathory or Rainbow --- or most other metal bands --- to see what a fallacy this is. Like any other genre, Metal songwriters take pride in their craft, and while a lot of some of the subgenres may stick to writing lyrical gems such as “Satan is our Lord!” and “Fuck everything!” there are some very deep and well-crafted lyrics to be found if you even slightly scratch the surface of Metal music and take the time to look for them.

Angel of death" (Thin Lizzy) 1981, from the album "Renegade"
Music and Lyrics by Phil Lynott and Darren Wharton
Okay, first off I’m not the biggest Lizzy fan, though I do love their final album “Thunder and lightning”. This comes from the one prior to that, and it’s the opening track. Now, there’s nothing terribly original about a Metal band singing about the Devil. Everyone from Sabbath to Slayer has done it, with varying degrees of success and believability. But I do like how Lynott here takes the persona of the Evil One, and details his exploits down throughout history as Satan watches Man make it easy for him to consign his soul to the flames.

It’s also very interesting how the narrative switches, and Lynott drops the Satanic persona and becomes just another man ”Standing by his bedside/ The night my father died” as the whole song takes on a more human, and yet somehow darker tone. The idea seems to be that we don’t need the Devil to destroy us: we’re doing just fine on our own; a sentiment that would be echoed two years later by Metallica when they wrote "Jump in the fire". It’s the only song on “Renegade” on which keyboard player Darren Wharton has a credit for songwriting, though he would contribute to nearly half of the final album, two years later. It’s a song without much optimism --- well, you wouldn’t expect much from a song with that title, now would you? --- as Lynott declares ”I foresee a holocaust/ An Angel of death descending/ To destroy the human race!”

There are historical inaccuracies in the lyric --- Lynott mentions "Hitler’s stormtroopers march/ Right across the Maginot Line”, but the French fortifications failed miserably as a deterrent to German invaders, who simply circumvented them by attacking through Belgium. Also he notes this as ”The year one thousand nine hundred and thirty nine" but the Germans moved against the French in 1940, not 1939. But these inconsistences, while annoying to a niggly fucker like me, don’t spoil or ruin the song, and at its heart it’s both an indictment, not only of war, but of Man’s powerlessness in the face of natural disasters, as well as a dire prophecy that our collective are irreversibly on the path to damnation.

Whether he means we all go to Hell when he snarls ”You’ll go down, down, deep underground”, or he’s just referring to being buried, it’s a dark, bleak song with a fatalistic message that belies its uptempo, rocking rhythm.

And a stone-cold classic, a reminder of the talent the world lost so young when Phil was taken from us. Rest in Peace, man. Rest in Peace.



”I've seen a fire start in Frisco
The day that the earth quaked.
I've seen buildings a-blazing,
Throwing up in flames.
I heard men, women and children
Crying out to their God for mercy,
But their God didn't listen
So they were burned alive!

They went down, down
Deep underground
In the great disaster.

I was hanging out in Berlin
In the year one thousand nine hundred and thirty nine.
I've seen Hitler's storm troopers
March right across the Maginot line.
I've seen two world wars;
I've seen men send rockets out into space;
I foresee a holocaust:
An angel of death descending to destroy the human race!

Down, down
Deep underground
A great disaster.

In the sixteenth century there was a French philosopher
By the name of Nostradamus
Who prophesied that in the late twentieth century
An angel of death shall waste this land;
A holocaust the likes of which
This planet had never seen.
Now, I ask you:
Do you believe this to be true?

I was standing by the bedside
The night that my father died.
He was crying out in pain
To his God, he said, "Have mercy, mercy!"
His body was riddled with a disease
Unknown to man so he expected no cure;
But before he died that night
He was lost, insane!

He went down, down
Deep underground
A great disaster.

You'll go down, down
Deep underground
A great disaster.
You'll go down, down
Deep underground
A great disaster.”

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Okay, I’ve had it with melodic death metal and other subgenres I don’t enjoy. Time to indulge my own preferences, so let’s have a power metal band. In fact, let’s have the German Power Metal band, of whose work I have heard precisely nothing but who come highly recommended and are acknowledged as one of the premier movers in the German Power Metal scene, and one of the most important bands in the history of that subgenre in that country.


Nightfall in Middle Earth --- Blind Guardian --- 1998 (Virgin)

Like I say, Blind Guardian are supposedly the best Power Metal band I never heard. And I should be totally into them, with their love of Tolkien and all things fantasy; in fact, this album is a concept based around “The Silmarillion”, precursor to the epic “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and the inspiration for the name of my second-favourite prog rock icons, Marillion, so all the pieces would appear to be here and if I had to bet on my enjoying this album, I’d be plonking down a big wedge of cash at Paddy Power. If I had a big wedge of cash. Which I don’t. Not even a small one. But this should be good.

Edit: Holy Crap! Twenty-two tracks! That’s gotta go down as the longest album I’ve done in quite a while, though on balance there are apparently spoken passages on the album, which average out at less than a minute each. Still, running time overall --- meh, just over an hour. Not too bad really. And if it’s as good as I think it will be then it won’t matter how long it is. Just hope it doesn’t disappoint.

With the sounds of a climactic battle we open on “War of wrath”, as Sauron speaks to his master Morgoth (look, if you didn’t read the book you’re not going to know, or want to know, so I’ll keep it brief but we need context here) and advises him to flee after being defeated, which the dark lord refuses to do, preferring instead to ruminate upon what went wrong for him. It’s a short piece, backed by the sounds of battle and the voices of the narrator. Norman Eshley takes the role of Sauron while Douglas Fielding plays Morgoth, the interchange between the two like watching a movie it’s so powerful and realistic. Morgoth sends Sauron away, into hiding, but goes himself to try to take the fabled Silmarils, the ageless jewels of Middle Earth, leading into the first song proper, the appropriately-titled “Into the storm”.

With a real sense of urgency and haste, the song explodes across the canvas of the storyline with excited guitars, rolling drums and a passionate vocal from Hansi Kürsch, who also wrote all the lyrics on the album. With the aid of the huge black spider Ungoliant Morgoth steals the Silmarils, taking them to his dread castle where he sets them in his iron crown, denying their light to the world. A backing choir helps load the song with a sense of drama and epicity, and we move into “Lammoth”, which is another very short track (less than thirty seconds) as Morgoth, thinking to cheat Ungoliant, is trapped by her but lets out an awful scream which brings his Balrogs to his rescue.

“Nightfall” is the first chance to catch our breath, a minstrel-like ballad that soon shows its teeth as Feanor and his seven sons mourn the theft of the Silmarils and swear revenge on Morgoth. it is, not surprisingly, a song of lamenting mingled with a cold desire for revenge and retribution, with the choir often putting me in mind of Queen. The song certainly gets more intense as it goes on, the need for revenge almost overwhelming the need to grieve in the recently bereaved family. Another uber-short piece is next, “The Minstrel” taking a look inside the head of a bard who is not sure what to sing next. It’s accompanied for its brief, thirty-two-second run by acoustic guitar and flute and then we hear how the creator of the Silmarils takes his revenge in “The curse of Feanor”.

There’s a galloping, almost insane rush to the song as Feanor charges out into Middle Earth to exact revenge for the theft of his creation and the death of his father. There are softer passages within the song too, but they’re quickly subsumed by the faster, more frenetic ones as the fury of Feanor explodes across the world. Great performance from Kürsch as the maddened craftsman, and the choir add their own power to the track too. Super fretburning solo from André Olbrich, then the song begins to slow a little as Feanor realises what he has done, but by now it’s much too late. The voice of Morgoth gloats “You are now my guest, forever!” and we move on into “Blood tears”, where Feanor’s brother laments his capture and imprisonment at the hands of Morgath.

It’s a low-key, melancholic song in sort of acoustic vein with the assistance of the choir, and it kicks up for the midsection as Meadhros sighs ”My mind's in frozen dreams/ The rotten flesh of bitter lies/ Welcome to where time stands still/ No-one leaves and no-one ever will!” A somewhat more optimistic song as the building of the city of Gondolin is related in “Mirror, mirror”, with some celtic influences in the melody and a rattling, rocking beat with an excellent performance by the choir, some sort of Irish jig reeled off (sorry!) by Olbrich on the guitar adding to the celtic feel, then another short spoken passage takes us into “Noldor (Dead winter reigns)”.

A slower, more stately rhythm indicative of a people marching fits this song perfectly as the army of Fingolfin march out of the ice lands. The drama and passion in this track has it occupying the position of standout, so far, for me. The next track is a short minstrel-like lay, followed by a powerful rocker in “Time stands still (at the Iron Hill)", in which the dread Lord Morgoth is challenged to single combat against Fingolfin who, though he wounds him badly, is killed and Morgoth triumphs. Great interplay between vocalist and choir here, with a tremendous hook in the chorus and some excellent soloing. Death and betrayal are the stuff of “Thorn”, when Gondolin is betrayed by Maeglin, son of the Dark Elf. Reflecting the theme, the song is heavier and harder than previous tracks, with a harsh vocal from Kürsch.

A beautiful piano frames “The Eldar”, as the elven king dies and bids farewell to his people, sad song as you would expect, laden with regret and sorrow and other than vocals --- the choir return here to mourn the passing of the ruler of the elves --- the song is completely carried on what I believe to be the grand piano of Michael Schüren, a stunning performance, and after another short spoken passage heads into “When sorrow sang”, the penultimate musical track as Beren lies dying, awaiting the final kiss from his lover. Rather than another sentimental lament, this song is powerful and uptempo, mirroring the defiance of the dying Beren, refusing to die until he has gazed into the eyes of the one he loves once more.

Morgoth revels in his triumph as the armies of men and elves are scattered, defeated, and “A dark passage” marches along victoriously, as the dark lord scorns his foes and takes control of Middle Earth. It’s a powerful, almost operatic ending to the album, with the faint promise of hope leaking through like a weak shaft of sunlight in the all-encompassing darkness as a prophecy is mentioned right at the end, a prophecy we will eventually see come to pass in the three-novel cycle we know as “The Lord of the Rings”.

TRACKLISTING

1. War of wrath
2. Into the storm
3. Lammoth
4. Nightfall
5. The minstrel
6. The curse of Feanor
7. Captured
8. Blood tears
9. Mirror, mirror
10. Face the truth
11. Noldor (Dead winter reigns)
12. Battle of sudden flame
13. Time stands still (at the Iron Hill)
14. The Dark Elf
15. Thorn
16. The Eldar
17. Nom the Wise
18. When sorrow sang
19. Out on the water
20. The steadfast
21. A dark passage
22. Final chapter (Thus ends…)

I apologise if I concentrated more on the story than the music, but I got caught up in it and it is an amazing tale if you haven’t read it. Tough going though, the book. As far as Blind Guardian are concerned, I’m glad I finally got to listen to them because this was excellent. I had some carzy notion that The Batlord disabused me of (he’s not often charged with the reverse!) that their singer was a death growler, and I see of course now that I was completely wrong about that. This is almost the perfect synthesis of the things I like: fantasy, Tolkien, Power Metal, excellent lyrics and a great interpretation of a classic story. Couldn’t ask for more really. Will definitely be checking into some of their other material.

I thought twenty-two tracks was a lot, and it kind of was, but given that a large percentage of those were short, spoken ones or very short musical interludes --- though interestingly, no instrumentals at all, which I would have expected --- the time did not drag but trying to capture the essence of this album in one review is like attempting to distill the basics of LOTR into a few sentences: you can’t do it justice, and I’m sure I failed to get across how great this album is. But take my word for it: if you’re a fan of Tolkien and love metal, you really need to hear this.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Time to take a small break from the noise and mayhem, and dial it back just a little for a while as we experience the
for the first time in Metal Month. What is it? I'm glad you asked. Actually, I'm not glad, because that shows me you either have not been reading my journal (shame on you!) or have not been paying attention.

This is the section where we look at an oft-overlooked aspect of metal, the metal ballad. Yes, the slow songs, the ones all true metalheads will tell you they skip on the album, but which in reality have them marvelling at the soft interplay of guitar and piano, or the sudden appearance of strings, and wondering how a band who just moments ago were roaring, raging and rocking fit to burst could suddenly be this quiet, engaging, gentle collection of people writing love songs? But it happens, and more often than you would expect. Even Metallica have their ballads. Let's unashamendly wipe a tear from our rime-encrusted eyes and put down the beer can for a second while we check out some of the best.

Let's start with our man Dio, and one of the few, in my opinion, decent tracks on the “Dream evil” album. With a full choir in attendance, this is “All the fools sailed away.”


One of The Batlord's favourites, this is Hammerfall, with a track from their second album “Legacy of kings”, and “Remember yesterday”.


And from the second album by Nightwish, “Oceanborn”, this is “Sleeping sun”


Like I said, even Metallica mellow out on occasion! Here's “The unforgiven”.


And we'll leave it at that for now, closing out with a Danish metal band called, um, Pretty Maids, who are neither pretty nor maids. But this is pretty. Track from their “Spooked” album called “If it can't be love”. See ya next time!

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

The Batlord

First of all, you used the wrong album cover for Nightfall In Middle-Earth. That's the one to Imaginations from the Other Side.

Secondly, that wasn't me, that was Unknown Soldier. I suggested you listen to them, and US mentioned that you probably wouldn't like the singer.

And last, I have no idea how you've managed to go this long without listening to Blind Guardian. They're pretty much synonymous with power metal. Glad you've heard the light though.

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Isbjørn

Hey, just a little something I thought you should know: you got the Blind Guardian cover art wrong. The one you have is for the album Imaginations From the Other Side. I don't blame you, though. You're doing an awful lot of work.

EDIT: Didn't see Batty's post before now. Man, you can't catch a break.

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Urban Hat€monger ?

Did Blind Guardian think This is Spinal Tap was a real documentary

I don't see it as a inconsistency.
He says he was in Berlin in 1939, he doesn't say he was at the Maginot Line in 1939.
Each other line in that verse is about a separate event, so is this.

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Trollheart

Yeah I see that. Guess I hit the wrong link on Wiki. I had been deciding which album to listen to and I must have linked that by mistake. I'll sort it.
It was you. You said something like "Wait, are you trying to tell me that you think Blind Guardian have death vocals??" and then you posted a video. Which I never listened to.
Yeah, there's loads of power metal I haven't heard. Remember, I'm primarily a proghead!
Danger! Danger! Overload! Over--- pffft!
I don't understand the reference?
Well I do. If you were to say "I was hanging out in Dallas in 1962 and saw Kennedy assassinated", would that not be wrong? The date intrinsically links the event to it, otherwise why mention it? Also, do you accept that "Hitler's stormtroopers marching over the Maginot Line" is incorrect? Not that as I say it matters, but I just wonder what your view on it is?

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Pet_Sounds

I may have to try that Tolkien-based album. I'm familiar enough with the story to appreciate the lyrics. BTW, I loved your humorous review yesterday.

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Everybody's dying just to get the disease

Isbjørn

You should, but it's power metal with gruffer vocals than usual, so you might find it a little overwhelming. It's great, though. Recommended.

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Trollheart

Great. I'm glad someone appreciated it. Poor old Buzz though: doubt we'll be seeing him again. Wait till you see who the next guest reviewer is though!

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018