#primalfear — Public Fediverse posts

https://www.europesays.com/at/361870/ Primal Fear: Release-Datum von neuem Album bekannt #AndréHilgers #AT #Austria #Domination #Entertainment #MagnusKarlsson #MatSinner #Music #Musik #Österreich #PrimalFear #RalfScheepers #SHADOWRIDERS #SummerBreeze #SummerBreeze2027 #ThalìaBellazecca #Unterhaltung

Some bands need no introduction; somehow, Lion’s Share do. Hailing from Sundsvall, Sweden, guitarist Lars Chriss and keyboardist Kay Buckland formed the group in 1987 and, between 1995 and 2009, cranked out a smattering of respectable, high-octane heavy metal records before seemingly falling off a cliff. Lion’s Share were never condemned to obscurity,1 but they never reached the level of acclaim their fans believe they deserved. Now, seventeen years after 2009’s Dark Hours, Lion’s Share attempt to swing back with Inferno, something Chriss claims as “the strongest, heaviest and most focused Lion’s Share record of our career.” There’s a lot working against Inferno: seventeen years between albums could either stoke the flames of ambition or see them snuffed out, and vocalist Nils Patrik Johansson most recently came off a plain bad solo record in War and Peace. But can Lion’s Share overcome these challenges and stumbles to claim the throne they deserve with Inferno?

Lion’s Share raise their Inferno through the ancient metal magiks of the early 80s. Ruled by the riff as first envisioned by the likes of Exciter, Diamond Head, and Dio, Inferno sneers at any notion that heavy/proto-thrash doesn’t deserve consideration this side of 2000. For the most part, Inferno’s throwback nature proves engaging. “The Lion’s Trial” evokes Dio’s “Holy Diver” with its dramatic synth intro and anthemic structure, while “We Will Rock” teeters the line of homage and plagiarism of Dio’s “We Rock,” borrowing heavily from its chorus riff and vocals. Inferno flirts with select 90s innovations, like Primal Fearesque power metal in “Live Forever” and “Another Desire” and brooding groove in “Pentagram” and “Baptized in Blood,” which catches similar waves as Bruce Dickinson’s The Chemical Wedding. The only break from the formula is closer “Run for Your Life,” which blends doom riffs with symphonic elements and full-on hair metal sleaze into a ridiculously fun package. Inferno sees a band that doesn’t just mimic the sounds of old but realizes them authentically.

Lion’s Share sound spry as ever on Inferno. Vim drives Inferno, bestowing it great volumes of speed (“We Will Rock”), brawn (“Pentagram”), dirt (“Another Desire”) and drama (“Run for Your Life”). Inferno’s biggest surprise is Johansson, who sounds simply robust, and his Dioisms feel more like a feature and less like a caricature than on War and Peace. I think because Lion’s Share is riff-centric, NPJ doesn’t have to carry the material himself and put too much pressure on his voice. When Inferno does call on him to take the lead, the results range from the strained hiccup of “Live Forever” to the chest-pounding victory of “The Lion’s Trial.” But the highlight of Inferno is Chriss’ soloing, which evokes the gnarly excess of Vivian Campbell and Eddie Van Halen in their shreddy melodicism. Lion’s Share may have been away from the studio for some time, but age doesn’t seem to have taken its toll on Inferno.

Lion’s Share don’t do much you’ve never heard before, but Inferno is just too fun not to feel like a total victory. There’s little bloat on Inferno, bar some over repetition on “Chain Child” and “Live Forever,” and the mix is clear and dynamic enough for what Lion’s Share do. The hooks are massive without being overbearing: I’ve been humming “Baptized in Blood” and “The Lion’s Share” all week, and “We Will Rock” escapes the knock-off label with a ridiculously catchy verse all of its own. Inferno’s lyrics are silly but delivered so convincingly it rarely comes off as corny but more tongue-in-cheek: when “We Are What We Are” calls for a heavy metal revolution, or NPJ describes himself as the “Anti-Social Warrior” on “Inferno,” I laugh with Lion’s Share. Overall, Inferno crackles and rages with simple heavy metal goodness.

Lion’s Share are so easy to root for, and Inferno proves why. Good songs, good performances, excellent solos, and an undying allegiance to their craft make Inferno a blast all around. With how good “Run for Your Life” turned out, however, it makes me wonder if Inferno could’ve ascended beyond mere enjoyability if Lion’s Share went in more adventurous directions in their songwriting. But there isn’t a whiff of pretension on this thing, and I get the sense that this is exactly the record these guys wanted to make. Lion’s Share are probably not going to take the world with Inferno, but if you like your metal loud, beefy, and dated circa 1981, it’s just the record you want to hear.



Rating: Good
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mps
Label: Metalville Records
Websites: lionsshare.org | lionsshare.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/lionsshareband
Releases Worldwide: March 27th, 2026

Primal Fear – Domination Review

By Steel Druhm

Ever since Ralph Scheepers left Gamma Ray for greener pastures and an ill-fated tryout for the vacant vocal spot in Judas Priest, he’s thrown his all into Primal Fear, and so, every two years or so, like clockwork, we get a new gleaming chrome platter from them. At first, it felt like he was doing Painkiller-esque album after album to show Priest what a huge fuck up they made by choosing Ripper over him.1 Over time, though, the Primal Fear sound morphed into a more power metal-centric style with Judas Priest no longer the primary influence. They’ve more or less occupied the same space as bands like Brainstorm and Mystic Prophecy for the last decade, and every release is a familiar buffet of macho riffs and Scheepers’ high-flying Halfordisms. 15th album Domination sees long-time guitarists Tom Naumann and Alexander Beyrodt depart, and Angus McSix axe-mistress Thalìa Bellazecca stepping in to replace them. Well-traveled drummer André Hilgers also comes aboard, replacing Michael Ehré. Will all this new blood shake up the Primal Fear sound and give us something different and unusual? Yes and no.

Domination kicks off in typical Primal Fear style with the anthemic and fist-pumping “The Hunter.” It’s a great example of their “Judas Priest doing power metal” sound, and it hits the chorus and makes you remember it after one spin. It’s what you expect at this point from Primal Fear, and it’s easy to enjoy. They follow that up with a run of equally catchy nuggets from “Destroyer” on through lead single “Tears of Fire.” All featuring their tried-and-true blueprint of meaty riffs and commanding vocals with a big(ish) chorus to screw your memory to the sticking point. Five songs in, you’re experiencing a very solid album that checks all the primal cuts.

Unfortunately, things start to get wobbly after that, with hits and misses appearing in random order. “Heroes and Gods” is decent and has some intensity, but the chorus falls flat and grows annoying. “Eden” is a 7-minute epic power ballad that’s okay but not epic or interesting enough to justify its length despite some decent guest vocals from Melissa Løwe Bonny (Ad Infinitum). Both “Scream” and “The Dead Don’t Die” feel generic and underwhelming, and this makes for a very soft and doughy middle for Domination. Late album track “Crossfire” brings things back around with a muscular, testosterone-heavy trip that plays to the band’s strength, but things then immediately crash again on the weird and awkward “March Boy March.” This one kicks off with weird EMD/club music before eventually launching into a speedy assault, but it feels flat and forced. I do give the band props for the odd closing ballad “A Tune I Won’t Forget” that starts out like a Leonard Cohen tune with Ralph adopting a smoky, world-weary baritone before exploding into his usual power and fury. It doesn’t amount to much, but it’s an interesting new shade nonetheless. At just over an hour, Domination is definitely too long, and since it has several lesser inclusions, it should have been pared down for a tighter, meaner release.

As ever, Ralph Scheepers is in fine form. He relies less and less on his upper-register screams and shrieks as the albums pile up, but he’s still the working man’s Rob Halford, and he knows how to push a metal anthem over the top. I’ve been a fan since his Gamma Ray days, and he always hits the mark. Long-time guitarist/songwriter Magnus Karlsson and new addition Thalìa Bellazecca do a respectable job providing the riff backdrop for Ralph, and on about half the tracks, they work some degree of magic. On the lesser tracks, things bog down into simplistic 80s-centric riffing and leads that just kind of disappear into the background. They do, however, come together for a rousing shred-fest on instrumental “Halluctions,” which is an interesting and moody addition.

Primal Fear has had a long run of good to very good albums, and Domination is the first miss in my book since 2009s 16.6 outing. Even when they miss, you still get over half an album’s worth of entertaining and replayable gym fodder. I suspect they will right the ship and come back in two years with something more memorable, and until that day, this will have to tide the faithful over. Hold fast for the Fear!

Rating: 2.5/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 256 kbps mp3
Label: Reigning Phoenix
Websites: primalfear.de | facebook.com/primalfearofficial | instagram.com/primalfearofficial
Releases Worldwide: September 5th, 2025

#2025 #AngusMcSix #Domination #GermanMetal #HeavyMetal #JudasPriest #MysticProphecy #PowerMetal #PrimalFear #ReigningPhoenixMusic #Review #Reviews #Sep25

Black Knight – The Tower Review

By Steel Druhm

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, baddass, 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 steamy 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.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: NA | Format Reviewed: Fucking Stream!! Stop with the streams!!
Label: Pure Steel Records
Websites: blackknight.nl | facebook.com/blackknightNL/# | instagram.com/black_knight_band
Releases Worldwide: July 4th, 2025

#2025 #35 #Accept #BlackKnight #Brainstorm #HeavyMetal #Jul25 #MysticProphecy #PrimalFear #PureSteelRecords #Review #Reviews #TheTower

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Primal Fear Add Guitarist Thalìa Bellazecca to Their Lineup

https://www.metalsucks.net/2024/08/29/primal-fear-add-guitarist-thalia-bellazecca-to-their-lineup/

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Primal Fear Add Guitarist Thalìa Bellazecca to Their Lineup

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Primal Fear Add Guitarist Thalìa Bellazecca to Their Lineup

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Primal Fear Add Guitarist Thalìa Bellazecca to Their Lineup

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Primal Fear Add Guitarist Thalìa Bellazecca to Their Lineup

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PRIMAL FEAR Recruits Ex-FROZEN CROWN Guitarist THALÌA BELLAZECCA

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PRIMAL FEAR Recruits Ex-FROZEN CROWN Guitarist THALÌA BELLAZECCA

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PRIMAL FEAR Recruits Ex-FROZEN CROWN Guitarist THALÌA BELLAZECCA

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PRIMAL FEAR Recruits Ex-FROZEN CROWN Guitarist THALÌA BELLAZECCA

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PRIMAL FEAR Recruits Ex-FROZEN CROWN Guitarist THALÌA BELLAZECCA

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Guitarist MAGNUS KARLSSON To Rejoin PRIMAL FEAR On The Road

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Guitarist MAGNUS KARLSSON To Rejoin PRIMAL FEAR On The Road

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Guitarist MAGNUS KARLSSON To Rejoin PRIMAL FEAR On The Road

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Guitarist MAGNUS KARLSSON To Rejoin PRIMAL FEAR On The Road

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Guitarist MAGNUS KARLSSON To Rejoin PRIMAL FEAR On The Road

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Today In Metal History 🤘 August 10th, 2024🤘
JETHRO TULL, BLIND GUARDIAN, WINGER, WHITE LION, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY

https://bravewords.com/news/today-in-metal-history-august-10th-2024-jethro-tull-blind-guardian-winger-white-lion-black-label-society

#JethroTull #BlindGuardian #Winger #WhiteLion #BlackLabelSociety #IanScottAnderson #HansKursh #JeffKollman #Loudness #MachineHead #DarkTranquillity #LynyrdSkynyrd #TheBinaryCode #Crash #Chthonic #BondedByBlood #EnuffZnuff #Erra #MadMax #PrimalFear #SinSaenum #Infrared #BlindGuardian #Hammerfall #VanHalen #BadBrains