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artist: Black Knight
title: The Tower
year: 2025
genre: Heavy Metal
type: Album
label: No Dust Records
language: English
rel. date: 2025-07-04
source: WEB/MP3
quality: CBR 320kbps / 44.1 kHz / Full Stereo
runtime: 00:48:17
size: 121.86MB
rip date: 2025-07-21
source url: https://www.deezer.com/album/764917501
tracklist:
1. Deluded 1:14
2. Tower 5:08
3. Survive 4:48
4. Exploration 5:35
5. Misery 5:38
6. Die 5:06
7. Rise 6:16
8. Deceivers 6:24
9. Fire 4:02
10. Im Dunkeln (Remastered version) 4:06
release notes:
It's always an interesting experience to seize a promo by a band that's
been around for decades, yet you've never heard of them. Thus did I come
to discover Dutch traditional metallers, Black Knight. Formed way back
in the 80s, they didn't release an album until 1998, and since then,
they've only managed 2 other releases, the last being in 2020. Badly
delayed by COVID lockdowns and lineup changes, it's only now that we get
4th album, The Tower. With a sound that borrows mightily from Accept,
Primal Fear, and Brainstorm, they bring exuberantly old school antics to
the table with slight traces of power metal decorating the edges. It's
not fancy, it's not new or innovative, but these chaps know what they
are doing and how to push a metal song into your ears through brute
force. But is there a reason why Black Knight is so little known after
so many years in the game?
After the requisite intro that adds nothing at all to the album, things
get extra spicy on "Tower," where they throw all their traditional /
classic metal bona fides at you like pocket sand, leaving you vulnerable
to the brutal stun. It's a burly, badass, fist-pumping gem not far from
what Primal Fear churn out on a good day, and it has that big, anthemic
sizzle that makes you want to throw cars at disfavored locals. "Survive"
comes out with a heavy battering ram riff before shifting gears to a
more Brainstorm-esque macho metal style that suits them well. Black
Knight have a real gift for crafting classic metal hooks that dig deep
and get you on board. Shockingly, they deliver 7 ball-busting metal
chestnuts in a row with nary a dip in quality. You get a grinding, moody
power ballad like "Misery," and then they just as easily bludgeon you
with an Accept-meets-Mystic Prophecy steamroller like "Die." This stuff
puts you between the hammer and the anvil and irons your shit out good
and proper.
Considering I never heard of these guys, I was quite shocked by how
consistently good to great these songs are as they kept piling up like
an epic car wreck in the consciousness of Steel. The slick songwriting
heard on a heavy metal cut like "Deceivers" doesn't grow on trees, and
damn is it sticky like hot tar on a cold day. Not many bands can string
together seven sick bangers like these on any given album. So what are
the downsides? Well, as impressive as things are for the bulk of The
Tower's runtime, the last few songs seriously undermine their run of
luck. "Fire" is a standard, stadium-ready rocker that doesn't do a lot
for me, but the real problem is how things end bizarrely with a German
language soft rock ballad called "Im Dunkein." This thing fits with the
rest of the album about as well as steaming rhino shit does on a pricey
porterhouse steak. It's not a good song regardless of genre, and it has
no business being the conclusion to a balls-to-the-walls metal album.
It's the kind of song you promptly delete and forget it ever existed,
and it's greatly perplexing why the band thought it fit here. Once this
thing is removed, repudiated, and scorned, The Tower makes a Hell of a
lot more sense!
GertJan Vis and Ruben Raadschelders are able axe slingers and deliver an
effective collection of jackhammering riffs and earwormy harmonies as
they crunch and crack along. There's a definite Accept-on-roids vibe to
much of what they do, along with flashes of salad days Annihilator. This
blend works well with the kind of songs they serve up. New frontman Henk
Overbosch delivers classic metal vocals with poise, power, and enough
versatility to move from mood to mood without sounding forced or out of
place. He has the right amount of grit and hoarsepower to convince, and
the guy has legit pipes too. This is a seasoned, talented crew, and they
have serious songwriting chops, which makes it even more completely
baffling why they opted to end The Tower with such an ill-advised
whimper.
The Tower is a very good traditional metal album with enough piss,
vinegar, and pruno to make you even more of a beefbrained barbarian than
you already are. It's entertaining enough to have me sorting through
their back catalog, and even with a disaster of a closer, it's still got
serious legs. If you need a classic metal fix with raw power and hooks,
Black Knight will be your huckleberry. Sometimes the obscure side is the
fun side.
-- angry metal guy
Not to be confused with other bands with same name.
https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Black_Knight/5638