Tag Archives: Power Metal

Mega Colossus – Razor City

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Happy Friday! Enjoy some bigass metal from Mega Colossus, this time it’s Razor City. These guys are from Raleigh, NC, and have been shredding faces since 2005. Although for 2005-2016 they were just Colossus. I guess in 2016 they upgraded. And whatever upgrade they did it is well worth it! These guys bring the metal that should be blasting out of every skate shop or dingy dive bar covered in stickers. They also have an album called “… and the Rift of the Pan-Dimensional Undergods” which is pretty spot on for a metal band.

The song kicks off with some staccato drums before a big metal scream. Also they’re slicing their way through the madness. I really dig the vocalist yelling RAZOR CITAAAAAAYYYYY before the first of many finger tappy solos. The vocals are not exactly what I’d expect on top of this kind of metal, but then he yells RAZOR CITAAAYYYY and I understand completely. The drums drive their way through the song, and into your heart. This is one of those “if I’m on a bike ride I’m putting up some PRs” type of songs. I feel like these guys had a checklist of awesome metal tropes to include in the song and took care of them with aplomb. Chock full of solos, chugga riffs, harmonizing, and more, this song rips so hard.

If Beavis & Butthead still covered music videos, this would’ve been in rotation. It cuts between the band playing in a club and clips from Skateboard Samurai 2. He starts off fighting a dude who looks kinda like him, and then he moves on to the Skooter Boys! There’s also a witch lady with a scrying orb and a little demon guy who looks like a Portuguese Gremlin. Oh dang guitar posing during the breakdown! And then a great twist at the end. I want to see more of Skateboard Samurai. He looks tough and awesome.

Friday Morning Metal – Aeon Gods – Reborn to Light

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Happy Friday, here’s Germany’s own Aeon Gods bringing the epic power metal that is part of a balanced breakfast. Pretty sure Colonel Jack O’Neil and Dr. Daniel Jackson rocked out to this stuff on that Stargate planet. They seem fairly epic and whatnot. I guess all their albums are about ancient gods, which seems like a rich vein to tap for epic metal. I hope they have Tobin’s Spirit Guide, so they can shout out more obscure deities.

A solid drum fill kicks the song into gear before hearing the main melody. It’s a rollicking riff with some big keyboards adding some extra oomph. I wonder if metal becomes epic when there’s a keyboard involved. I enjoy the vocalist, he’s a little growly while still hitting those soaring moments in the chorus. Also I think he pronounces thousand as “toe-sand.” The solo starts off a little slow before getting some sweeps picks and gnarly scales going. Just in time for the breakdown prior to the coda. I wonder if they planned to do a key change there but thought Alestorm had taken all of them.

The video takes place in the Duat, which is apparently the Egyptian underworld. Their outfits are pretty cool, like they landed on the Stargate planet with the lasers and stuff. I know the Stargate planet’s like sorta Egyptian, but these guys look… space Egyptian. Maybe it’s because the guitarist has one of those no headstock guitars, it looks fancy. Also there’s a dude with a ram head riding a boat, he looks heavily computer graphical. I kept waiting for him to do something, but he just kind of rode the boat for a while. Maybe they ran out of computer budget to make their outfits extra tough.

Friday Morning Metal – Tad Morose – Beneath A Veil Of Crying Souls

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Time for some bombastic power metal, from Sweden’s own Tad Morose. I wouldn’t say these guys are morose at all, they seem epic. I wonder if there’s a band called “Slightly Epic.” These guys have been shredding since 1991, led by Christer “Krunt” Andersson. Krunt doesn’t seem like a good nickname. I bet it’s totally chill in Sweden, but I’d totally call someone a Krunt if they were being rude. Or it could be a euphemism for eye gunk. “Hey Jim, you take a nap? You got a lot of krunt on your eye.” Beneath a Veil of Crying Souls is a hell of a title, like if you didn’t know the band you could imagine it’s going to be screamo or math rock or something. Or a Falconer album title.

The song kicks off with a great guitar melody before the singer gets going. He’s got a solid set of pipes, alternating between kinda growly and soaring. The rest of the band harmonizes well on the chorus, when it sounds a bit more power metally. There’s a solid chugga breakdown halfway through, right before the noodliest metal solo I’ve heard in a minute. I bet that guitarist is named De Cecco with how full of noodles he is. The song ends kind of abruptly, or at least they do a final chorus and then there’s like a couple measures and that’s that. Regardless, it’s shreddy and not very morose.

The video is pretty much them performing in a really dark church, or in front of some faux stained glass light boxes. Either way, there’s a lot of staring down the barrel from the whole band. I think they’re trying to show off how tough they look playing. Which they do look quite tough. Especially the bassist. I bet he did a Drillbit Taylor back in the day. Pretty sure if I was in a band and they wanted me to look right at the camera while playing I’d probably make a goofy face. So good thing I’m not in a band!

Friday Morning Metal – Power Paladin – Sword Vigor

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Ready for some cheeky power metal? This week it’s Iceland’s own Power Paladin, shredding out Sword Vigor. Apparently they used to just be called Paladin, then the pandemic™ happened and they became POWER PALADIN! I bet they know Björk. Maybe she’s featured in other songs. That would rule.

Much like most power metal, there’s some big guitar hooks before the rest of the band dives in. The hook is catchy as hell. Their vocalist is solid, transitioning from staccato verses to soaring choruses with ease. I think there’s even a baby key change before the solo, so this song has it all! The epic solo halfway through gets the added bonus of some keyboard, or they actually have someone playing a harpsichord in the band. Wouldn’t put it past a power metal band to get a harpsichord or zither up in there. The song is pretty paint by the numbers epic power metal track, but they do a great job of it so I look forward to more Power Paladin!

The video highlights the Power Paladins doing their regular day to day, I guess? Turns out they have a carpool and one of them vapes a ton. Oh and one of them is wicked passed out in the car. That can’t be healthy. And I guess they hate the vikings. LUTE SOLO! I know it’s guitar but the Power Paladin playing on a lute in the video is great. Then they beat the pie out of a goblin. Those Power Paladins sure are good at paladin’ around. And then they rip off in their sedan. This video gives a lot of the same goofy vibes I saw from Red Fang, and that’s fantastic.

Friday Morning Metal – Aquilla – Battalion 31

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HELL YES! HEAVY METAL WITH A TANK! Today we’re bringing you Battalion 31 by Warsaw’s on Aquilla. This is off their recently released album Sentinels of New Dawn, which sounds like a Twilight spin off. Google’s doofy AI drained one of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes to tell me “Aquilla band” could refer to a Canadian metalcore band from Hamilton Ontario (go Hammer!) or a 1970’s Welsh art rock band. This band is clearly neither metalcore nor art rock, so thanks for that, Google!

Angry Metal Guy shared “Creed of Fire” in their review, which is a banger of a speed metal track. But there’s a music video for Battalion 31 and, while it’s not quite as fast, it’s still pretty great. The guitarists provide some solid noodling to kick the song off, on top of a good steady driving beat. I’m digging the vocals, he’s not trying to push too high or too low, and it fits in the tone of the song really well. Kicking off the guitar solo with a solid metal scream is fantastic. He gets a couple bites at the apple in the solo before an epic metal breakdown. The breakdown pivots into a more ballady refrain, with vocals that beg to be shouted by a whole arena of metalheads.

As I said up above, the video is the band gearing up for battle and then riding around in a big truck with space laser guns. I guess they’re Battalion 31, and they’re fighting to kill. Is a little funny there’s a “die by the sword” line in a video where they’re chucking grenades and riding tanks and stuff. It’s also interspersed with the band playing in a quarry and HOLY CRAP SOLO ON TOP OF A HILL! It’s not quite a mesa but it’s still pretty great. Seeing the whole band just standing around while the solo shreds was just a cherry on top. After the breakdown, I guess we’re seeing the aftermath of Battalion 31, torches blazing.

Friday Morning Metal – Burning Sun – Shadows Undone

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Happy Friday, here’s some power metal from a band hailing from both Hungary and Chile. I know when I’m hungry, sometimes I’ll go for chili. Maybe that was the impetus for their joining forces. Apparently the band is named after a Helloween song. It’s fun when bands name themselves after other tracks. I’m still looking forward to bands named The Lord of the Blacksmiths, Heavy Metal Jesus, and Resurrection by Erection. Though it would be tough if a band named themselves Angel Witch. These guys have been shredding since 2022, and Shadows Undone is a banger of a power metal track.

The song kicks off pretty powerfully, which should be expected. Great dueling guitarmonies intro before the vocalist gets going. There’s some solid vocal harmonizing before the solo soars off to the skies. It’s very noodly, I would look forward to seeing someone air guitar or Rockband it. A barely 4 minute run length for power metal is pretty great. You don’t need to write 12 minute opuses (opii?), you’re not Dream Theatre. I may have made this joke recently. I’m not very original, it’s okay.

It’s a lyric video, so you can figure out exactly what these guys are saying, so that’s nice. But it looks like it’s over a picture of a creepy necromancer trying to paw at a warrior lady? Maybe she’s about to slay him for being a creeper. Don’t be creepy and you won’t get slain, Jeff the Necromancer. I think her name is Emaly. I didn’t know that was a spelling. Maybe she’s Gen Z or something, laying waste to the countryside with her cohorts Madisynn and Nevaeh.

Friday Morning Metal – Leverage – Shooting Star

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I don’t know if I’ve heard Leverage before. They’ve been around since 2002, and bring a pretty big power metally sound. So powerful that they have an electric violinist in the band. Can’t go wrong when there’s non-standard instruments in a metal band, like a hurdy gurdy. According to encyclopedia metallum, they delve in themes of life and nature, and I guess Shooting Star is leaning on life.

The song has a bit of a twangy country vibe to the melody before diving headlong into a big metal chug. Kinda has Blind Guardian vibes with the vocals. They do a good job shifting from standard power metally vibes to the twangy melody. The guitar solo shreds mightily and transitions to a combo guitar/keyboard noodlefest. At four and a half minutes, the song doesn’t waste too much time while still being chock full of great metal staples. All in all it’s a rad song and I look forward to more Leveraging.

The video starts with the singer getting kidnapped or something? So they send their electric violinist to go find him and pay the beefy ransom. While she’s looking for him, the singer makes eyes at some lady, who ends up helping the violinist find him. Talk about good fortune there. And with him freed they’re able to get back to the studio to record! They don’t really indicate why he got abducted. He also left his kickass hat in the sorta jail. Maybe he got abducted so they could steal his hat. Or he stole someone’s hat and they made him leave it. But the rat really likes the hat, so that’s nice.

Friday Morning Metal – Primal Fear – Far Away

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More Primal Fear! Melting faces and belting vocals since 1997, and they’re still at it. This time it’s Far Away, which is much nearer than the September 5th release of their next album. But wherever you are, this song shreds!

This has all the hallmarks of a good Primal Fear song, with Ralf Scheeper’s vocals soaring over big fast driving drums and awesome guitar work. It’s pretty awesome that they do the ultra combo of super noodly guitar solo, back to back guitar poses during a breakdown, then a followup guitar solo or two. And there’s a lefty lady guitarist kicking ass. Her name is Thalìa Bellazecca and is bringing some awesome lefty representation to metal!

The video is a combo studio session and green screen performing, so they look like they’re rocking out in a star destroyer hanger. It’s fun watching the bassist in the video, he’s kinda lackadaisical, or it looks like he’s hitting every other note. Or his hand is so fast I can only see some of the strums. It’s a pretty solid look, and thankfully doesn’t feel like AI nonsense behind the band. I don’t need that AI nonsense in my metal.

Also here’s a recap on the difference between near and far.

Friday Morning Metal – Warkings & Orden Ogan – Genghis Khan

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Oooh a song about the guy who’s related to around 16 million dudes on earth, it’s Genghis Khan by Warkings featuring Orden Ogan. These guys have been rocking faces since 2018, and this is off their upcoming album ARMAGEDDON! Oh dang, here’s a link to Warkings’ website: https://www.warkings.rocks this is a perfect use of that TLD. I may have heard them previously, but I don’t think I saw them before, their getups are fantastic.

The song kicks off with a bit of throat singing, reminds me of Tenngar Cavalry, then changes gears to a pretty down the fairway call and response epic power metal song. It’s got a good driving beat, perfect for riding into battle and slaying enemies. You can’t ignore the super noodly sweeps picks solos, played on a very apt flying v. There’s a killer breakdown toward the end of the song would be perfect for a cutout in the live performance for the crowd to sing along. At three and a half minutes long, they don’t waste much time and spend most of it rocking faces off, which I enjoy.

The video rips. It splits between the band playing all dressed up like warriors and shots of an epic battle. I guess that’s how the band looks all the time, which is wild. Their masks are badass, like they’re wearing the skulls of their enemies. It’s unfortunate that the battle shots look more like medieval battles in England and not, like, a Mongol Horde™ laying waste to the countryside, and totally ravaging Oshman’s. Need more crazed archers riding horseback and taking stuff out. Or at least a couple shots of Xanadu!

Friday Morning Metal – Ambush – Evil in All Dimensions

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HAPPY FRIDAY Even though I do these every week I hope this one snuck up on you and Ambushed you, much like Ambush sneaks up and shreds some metal. Swedish metallers from Växjö, Kronoberg, Ambush has been melting faces since 2013. Apparently their themes are violence and war. And this video seems to cover some of that violence. Not sure about the war part.

A quick drum fill transitioning to dueling guitarmonies is a great way to kick off a song. The song itself is pretty badass and is kind of a speedy power metal. I dig the vocals and the layering/backing up that happens during the choruses. I don’t know if the rest of the band sings along, they seem to be rocking out pretty hard. Also the drummer in the leather vest, great touch. And the outdoor guitar solo on a roof or battlement! It’s the British equivalent of a mesa guitar solo! There’s also some great guitar poses by the band, can’t pass those up! All in all a pretty kickass song.

The video is like the guitarist from Alestorm woke up in a creepy Victorian house and is being chased by equally creepy bleeding children. Creepy children are the prime way to make anything scarier by at least 50%. Children of the Corn? Way creepy. Weird Blond Adults of the Corn? Sounds like an afternoon in Iowa. The house kinda looks like Hampton Court, but I don’t think the Royal Family would let a metal band get fake blood on the floor, let alone record themselves rocking out in it.