Review Summary: Dragonforce may have had a rocky career of clichéd, boring music, but it is clear that this is the pinnacle of their career and modern-day Power Metal.
Dragonforce has always been a notorious band in the Metal industry. After being propelled to fame after the release of “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock,” it will be difficult to find a person who has never heard of this Power Metal quintet. After this popularity, the group’s material quickly stagnated into the 58 minute shred-fest (also known as Ultra Beatdown). Coupled with the departure of ZP Theart, the band’s singer, and things were looking rather grim for this once-hopeful Power Metal band.
That is, until “Fallen World” was released and shocked modern Power Metal fans across the globe. This song from their newest release, The Power Within, brings back much of what made old Dragonforce great; with fantastic Power Metal vocals, shredding riffs and awesome rhythms performed by the entire band. Though the song is one of the closer songs to Dragonforce’s old Extreme Power Metal style, the four-minute length creates a significantly easier listening experience compared to albums filled with seven-to-ten minute juggernauts like “Soldiers of the Wasteland” or “Heroes of Our Time.” “Fallen World” is also remarkable for the larger presence of the other members of the band; as both the drums and bass take center stage for a few brief moments near the middle of the song. Though this certainly is nothing to brag about from a typical Power Metal release, this is one of numerous times when the band as a whole contributes considerably to the product.
In fact, “Fallen World” is just scratching the surface on The Power Within. “Holding On,” the introduction to the album, has an intro reminiscent of “My Spirit Will Go On;” and transforms to a song that will soon become a Dragonforce classic with energetic singing and riffing while finally cutting down on the soloing. “Give Me the Night,” and “Die by the Sword” are two other examples of the familiar style; but both fortunately stay within 5 minutes in length and, again, put less of a focus on the guitar shredding that used to dominate their works. Though Herman Li and Sam Totman are incredibly technical players of their guitars, it is a pleasure to hear restraint on their behalf’s for a more complete and varied creation altogether; as “Give Me the Night” or “Fallen World” would promptly descend into mediocrity and boredom with additional minutes of soloing.
Even though the updated Speed Metal songs are excellent, the greatest parts of The Power Within come from the band’s will to branch out and try new ideas. “Cry Thunder” and “Seasons” are some of the best songs they have ever composed; focusing on mid-tempo performances with Marc Hudson’s fantastic vocals bringing the songs to life. Though Hudson may be a newcomer to Dragonforce, and to Power Metal as a whole, his somewhat lower voice is the perfect compliment to the instrumentals the band provides. His singing on every song enhances their quality, and will likely open up a strong future for both the band he is fronting along with himself.
The only flaw I can find with this album is the largely inferior “Last Man Stands;” which is a boring, clichéd song that just doesn’t stand out over the “Seasons” or the “Heart of the Storms” of this release. The song is more fun and upbeat musically than the majority of Dragonforce’s material (especially on this album), and just doesn’t stand up in comparison to “Seasons,” “Holding On,” or “Heart of the Storm.” With that said, the song does deserve a few listens; as it is still on a level much higher than many of extremely long, boring songs the band has previously made.
It is hard to believe that there is an outright superb Power Metal album in 2012, especially from Dragonforce, of all bands. The material from these men is astonishingly consistent and varied; combining elements of the band’s golden age with risks and experimentation from the band’s once stagnating formula. There is only a single bad song among the terrific ten, and this is easily Dragonforce’s strongest work from their entire career. Songwriting is at its most consistent and the band feels they have balanced among of their strengths; conceiving what might be the best Power Metal album in a very long time.
