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│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
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│ P R E S E N T S │
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│ + Bloodbound - Rise Of The Dragon Empire + │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Information ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Rls Date..2020-05-23 Encoder......LAME 3.100 ║ │
│║ Genre.....Heavy Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year......2019 Khz/Bitrate..44.1 / VBR kbps ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ripper....Anthem Songs........14 ║ │
│║ Source....CD Covers.......Yes ║ │
│║ Url..http://www.bloodbound.se ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Notes ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Bloodbound ║ │
│║ Album : Rise Of The Dragon Empire ║ │
│║ Label : Avalon ║ │
│║ Cat.No : MICP-11474 ║ │
│╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Description : ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Undaunted by changing lineups and grand strides of ║ │
│║ stylistic evolution that border on subgenre-hopping at ║ │
│║ times, the Swedish power metal institution that is ║ │
│║ Bloodbound has entered its 15th year of existence with ║ │
│║ another grand excursion into the realm of high fantasy ║ │
│║ exploits. For the uninitiated, the place where their story ║ │
│║ began was a good bit different, being somewhere along the ║ │
│║ lines of a musical answer to fellow Swedish metal stars ║ │
│║ Dream Evil with Urban Breed at the vocal helm (fresh off ║ │
│║ his legendary stint with Tad Morose), yet sporting ║ │
│║ corpsepaint and a darker lyrical direction. The various ║ │
│║ musical twists and turns that followed arguably owed to a ║ │
│║ revolving door of lead vocalists given UrbanÆs then ║ │
│║ newfound mercenary tendencies as a band member, though even ║ │
│║ with the entry of a stable lineup following the entry of ║ │
│║ former Dawn Of Silence vocalist Patrik J Selleby the next ║ │
│║ couple albums to follow saw a multiplicity of conceptual ║ │
│║ tendencies and divergent sonic flavoring within the power ║ │
│║ metal paradigm. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Following the release of 2014Æs Stormborn, an obvious nod ║ │
│║ to the hit television series Game Of Thrones, an air of ║ │
│║ consistency began to form around this bandÆs sound that has ║ │
│║ endured to an extent ever since. All the same, in ║ │
│║ comparison to said album and its 2017 follow up War Of ║ │
│║ Dragons, this yearÆs entry in Rise Of The Dragon Empire ║ │
│║ does offer up enough of a contrast in musical content to ║ │
│║ fit in well among their highly diverse back catalog while ║ │
│║ maintaining the same consistent high fantasy demeanor. The ║ │
│║ high fidelity production and fairly simplistic songwriting ║ │
│║ structure that is presented continues the previous albumÆs ║ │
│║ commonality with the vastly popular, anthem-oriented ║ │
│║ splendor of Swedish fellow travelers Sabaton and Civil War. ║ │
│║ Nevertheless, in direct contrast to the swift-paced, almost ║ │
│║ Gamma Ray-infused speed metal tendencies of War Of Dragons, ║ │
│║ the pacing and riff work on display here is notably toned ║ │
│║ down and geared in more of an middling, old school heavy ║ │
│║ metal vibe. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Perhaps the best way to describe this shift in feel is as a ║ │
│║ more direct emulation of the same straightforward, ║ │
│║ pomp-infused sound that Sabaton has used successively since ║ │
│║ the mid-2000s, touched up with a dense keyboard-driven ║ │
│║ symphonic backdrop and an almost folk metal-like gloss ║ │
│║ indicative of an Equilibrium or 90s Blind Guardian ║ │
│║ influence. This approach is basically shoved right in the ║ │
│║ listeners face with the mid-paced, folksy campfire romp ║ │
│║ with guitars and keys roaring opener and title song, ║ │
│║ hitting maximum crowd participation potential during the ║ │
│║ chorus and otherwise keeping things very easy to follow. ║ │
│║ Somewhat similar presentations of sonic largess at a ║ │
│║ reasonable tempo include the somewhat more bombastic ║ │
│║ military march feel of ôSkyriders And Stormbringersö and ║ │
│║ the dense splendor and epic feel of ôMagical Eyeö, though ║ │
│║ the lead guitar work gets a tad fancier than usual during ║ │
│║ the solo sections. Along with similar slower-paced marvels ║ │
│║ like ôBlackwater Bayö and ôThe WarlockÆs Trailö, the ║ │
│║ overall ebb and flow of this album seems geared towards the ║ │
│║ former in terms of pacing. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Not being a band to fully box itself into a singular ║ │
│║ expression within a single album, there are some points ║ │
│║ where the relatively safe mid-paced fair gives way to a few ║ │
│║ songs that are a bit more dynamic and climactic in ║ │
│║ character. Playing off a similar speed metal format that ║ │
│║ hit all out pay dirt on the last album, the riveting anthem ║ │
│║ ôSlayer Of Kingsö hits the afterburners and also drags ║ │
│║ things out a bit longer to allow more time for nuance and ║ │
│║ contrasting moments. Also hitting speed metal territory but ║ │
│║ in more of a Primal Fear mold and keeping things a bit more ║ │
│║ uniform stands ôBalerionö, while a handful of reasonably ║ │
│║ fun upper mid-paced rockers in ôGiants Of Heavenö and ôA ║ │
│║ Blessing In Sorceryö mesh a Hammerfall feel with a lofty ║ │
│║ Sabaton sound to strong affect. But even on the more ║ │
│║ high-impact offerings found on here, there is a heavier ║ │
│║ emphasis on atmosphere and melody over fancy riff work, the ║ │
│║ latter being somewhat compensated for with Tomas OlssonÆs ║ │
│║ shred-happy solos occasionally rivaling Malmsteen in the ║ │
│║ technique department. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ As an overall package, it could be argued that this is the ║ │
│║ safest thing that Bloodbound has put together since their ║ │
│║ banger-oriented first outing with Selleby at the mic, ║ │
│║ namely 2011Æs Unholy Cross. ItÆs a bit more in the ║ │
│║ direction of the current craze of straightforward ║ │
│║ songwriting and a side of folksy melodic craftsmanship than ║ │
│║ the old style heavy metal character of said album, but it ║ │
│║ has a similar emphasis on grabbing its audience with an ║ │
│║ effective hook while toning down the bluster and battery of ║ │
│║ the drum work that was a staple of power metal during the ║ │
│║ early millennial period. It is the weaker side of the ║ │
│║ current sound that this band has largely stuck to since ║ │
│║ Stormborn, at least from the standpoint of overall ║ │
│║ intricacy and staying power, grabbing the ear immediately ║ │
│║ with an effective combination of grandiose textures and ║ │
│║ catchy shanty tunes, but tapering off on the impact factor ║ │
│║ upon repeated listens. It functions more like a prequel to ║ │
│║ War Of Dragons, being a slow build up comparable to The ║ │
│║ Fellowship Of The Ring before getting to the non-stop ║ │
│║ action of The Two Towers and The Return Of The King, but it ║ │
│║ still gets the job done. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Originally published to Sonic Perspectives ║ │
│║ (www.sonicperspectives.com) on March 25th, 2019. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
│ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Tracklist ║ │
│╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │
│ │
│ 1. Rise Of The Dragon Empire 4:37 │
│ 2. Slayer Of Kings 5:03 │
│ 3. Skyriders And Stormbringers 3:51 │
│ 4. Magical Eye 3:51 │
│ 5. Blackwater Bay 3:56 │
│ 6. Giants Of Heaven 4:05 │
│ 7. The WarlockÆs Trail 3:56 │
│ 8. A Blessing In Sorcery 3:51 │
│ 9. Breaking The Beast 4:12 │
│ 10. Balerion 4:41 │
│ 11. Reign Of Fire 3:51 │
│ 12. Battle In The Sky (Live) 4:20 │
│ 13. In The Name Of Metal (Live) 4:35 │
│ 14. Moria (Live) 5:49 │
│ │
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│ Total Length : 01:00:38 │
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│ ╔═════════════════════╗ │
│ ║ Greetings To: ║ │
│ ╚═════════════════════╝ │
│ │
│ Too all people who contributes to make this │
│ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │
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│ │
│■ ■│
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