That one just gets better every time I play it, exactly my style of metal.

Found some time today to go through the 2 new singles of Solitary Sabred. The Cypriot swordbrothers with Asgardlord's crazy metal-dripping vocals most certainly delivered! I knew he was extremely enthusiastic about the new material and couldn't wait to share and I think he was justified. I LOVE both of them, especially Bound by the Lich.

#1 Solitary Sabred - Spectral Domain

#2 Solitary Sabred - Bound by the Lich

What a year so far!

I had the same experience. Blood Star is fun, Kerrigan I can't even remember.

Thriller and Roadwolf both put out some Priesty meat and potatoes albums this year.

New JP song is kinda whatever, but man Halford is still going. He's the same age as my mom, wild to think about.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YqZuo1WKk4

On the thrashy side of things, Phantom (Mex) released some good German style thrash this year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-a2rfubLrk

It makes me think of Ger-thrash like Kreator etc + Ger-speed metal like early BG/Rage/Grave Digger, cool combo.

https://serenityaustria.bandcamp.com/album/nemesis-ad

New Serenity sounds good from these songs. Maybe up there with Excalion and Sacred Outcry for good melodic PM this year. Glad to see stuff like this going strong enough. They just get it right with the forceful, catchy hooks.

Those are conveniently most of the best songs on the album, but it's pretty solid, overall.

Anything in the vein of Saracen's 'Rock Of Ages' please? Thanks!!

That's a tough one. The closest things I can think of are the NWOBHM Wolf, early Riot, and early Europe. But I'm not sure if any of them are close enough to really satisfy.

New Solitary Sabred album is surprisingly good:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KB4TWmV3LA

Surprisingly to me because I've never listened to them before but I assumed they'd have really scuffed Greek-esque vocals that would ruin it for me (sorry, I like some Greek heavy metal bands but sometimes the vocal style really doesn't do it for me). This is actually really solid and well-written USPM.

Haven't heard the new album yet but I will soon and Solitary Sabred have always been the oddball of the Greek/Italian scene (maybe since they're actually from Cyprus?) in that they have a strong USPM influence and a vocalist with charisma who isn't afraid to go nuts! I'm pretty sure Howie of Cauldron Born first recommended them around here back in the day, and the band have been going strong since then! Not a bad release yet so I expect this to be great too.

Also wanted to report that, though it's hardly new anymore, Idol Throne's album from last year, The Sibylline Age, is fucking amazing USPM/thrash with an emphasis on the THRASH, feeling like something that could have come from Realm or Deadly Blessing maybe, and the vocalist is a fantastic shrieker but also quite versatile. If anyone else missed this when it came out, just check out the opener "Unholy Warrior" and tell me this doesn't melt your face!

DoomSword live at KIT in 2003, awesome vid:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dp2gWlsp24

Has anyone heard Mark Shelton's album Obsidian Dreams? Is it good? What does it sound like?

While we're at it, same questions for Mark Shelton and Rick Fisher's Riddlemaster.

Obsidian Dreams is basically what you'd expect - like the acoustic stuff on the proper MR albums. But it's good and has a lot of strong stuff. There's a rougher sounding version of "Tree of Life" from Voyager on there. Whole thing is just his warm voice and some nice soothing acoustic guitars.

So it's basically an album full of "The Fountain," then? I might have to take a look. I love that song.

Yeah Obsidian Dreams is just a bunch of ballads. I'm partial to "Blood on the Snow," myself. (Besides "Tree of Life" which is already on Voyager). But it's worth checking out at least.

Riddlemaster is more rock than metal but it has a couple of metal tracks, namely "Bring the Magik Down" and "Lair of the White Witch." "Crossing the Line" and "Ghost of the Plains" are epic half-ballads that wouldn't be out of place on a Manilla Road release at all, either; think some of the stuff on The Blessed Curse. The other two tracks I'm not really a fan of personally, but they're not bad for the style.

More or less - he was a talented songwriter and he could do both electric and acoustic stuff. Versatile.

This is fuckin wicked and has been ordered. Cheers for the recs last year, always appreciated.


This is bloody good too. I forgot to revisit it leading up to AOTY unfortunately. It would've at least made a honorable mention. And once again, cheers for the recs last year, greatly appreciated.


If you like the acoustic side of MR then yeah Obsidian Dreams is great. Riddlemaster is basically MR if ya ask me, so just get in there. Also Hellwell is bloody cool too if you haven't checked that side project out.

Speaking of Hellwell, can someone please explain to me why it's so easy to get the first album on CD for less than $10 USD but impossible to get the second album on CD for any less than like fucking $50 USD? Considering they were both released on the same goddamn label as each other.

Cool, glad you dug it! I also just found out about Hammerstar, their debut album is also from 2022, features Quimby from Skullview on vocals. Very solid traditional metal with some USPM vibes here and there. Not as crazy as Idol Throne but still very much worth checking out. I'm kind of surprised I hadn't noticed this sooner considering how big a Skullview fanboy I am, but hey, better late than never!





I was a bit surprised to see that, though I haven't paid attention to the price of the album since it came out, but I quickly found this. https://store.manillaroad.net/product/h ... -s-eyes-cd
Only $15, not sure where you were seeing 50+ but go ahead and pull the trigger! This website also has it for 12 euros with 5 euro worldwide shipping if that works better for where you are: https://www.recordshopx.com/artist/hell ... mons_eyes/

I never in a million years would have thought to check Manilla Road's website! Thank you for that, just pulled the trigger. For brand new copies I kept trying all my usual suspects for this kind of metal, SKR, Hellsheadbangers, High Roller (the actual label it was released on), grooves-inc., Deep Discount, Rockadrome, No Remorse Records... No one has it. So try second hand and the only places I know to go for second hand are discogs, amazon, and ebay. I may have been exagerating with $50, but I very frequently check those places and recently discogs had one copy available for ~$35 USD, plus the shipping which was an arm and a leg. I know this is extremely normal for our kind of collecting, its the contrast with how cheap and how available it is to get the first album brand new that has me mystified.

hello ive been pretty checked out of Heavy/Power/Speed Metal the last 6 ish years and i would simply like some of your favorite albums albums that i would have missed. Thanks

Hi guys.I was trying to do my Big 4 from speed metal.Two criterions are:Be a veteran band and have a speed metal discography as long as it could.I mean,a long speed discography as it can.I have nearly two granted:Exciter and Acid.

I thought about Motorhead,but i feel they are more a heavy/speed.But i ain't taking off their influencies at the genre (I was even thinking to do a speed metal pioneers big four which play more traditional heavy metal,like Motorhead and Judas Priest).

I have some favorites to the other two places:Atomkraft,Venom (But they follow thrash since Cast in Stone),Riot,Running Wild (But they are more pirate/power),Satan (They are pioneers,but i feel they are more heavy/NWOBHM),Stress (Brazilian pioneer band),Raven (But they abandoned speed between 80s/90s),Razor (But more thrash),Agent Steel (But need to check their last albums),Abattoir and etc.

I just came here to ask to you guys if you know more veteran speed metal bands that i should give a listen to help me to create my Big Four (I intend to do a modern speed metal bands big four.Enforcer,Seax and Skull Fist are favorites).

Abattoir, Exciter, Living Death, Iron Angel

Welcome, I had checked our for about 20 years but have been paying attention for the last couple of years.

Check out albums from Theocracy, Signum Regis, Narnia, Wings of Steel, Angra, Sacred Outcry, Megaton Sword, Metal Church, Diviner, Blind Guardian, Stratovarious, Helloween, Sorcerer, Stryper, Michael Romeo, Arjen A Lucasson's Star One, Zero Hour, Riot City, Livewire and Saint from the last 2 years.

found the 1984 split album "Death Metal" with Running Wild, Helloween, Hellhammer and Dark Avenger at a metal record shop today. I wanted to buy it so bad, but $100...

damn thanks, lots of stuff i dug in this Megaton Sword, Michael Romeo, Saint, and i dont think i liked a full Blind Guardian album until their last one.

Average / plain USPM bands with that one fantastic song? Only band that comes to mind are Holy Mother.

Behold!

Hello guys!
Past couple of months have been somewhat hard for me, so I'm looking for some optimistic and encouraging power metal. It doesn't need to have specifically lyrics in that vein, but the music should be "bright" (in lack of a better term). I'm not very fond of non-stop fast tempo power metal, so I'd like to hear something closer to mid-tempo. I'm familiar with all of the bigger names in the genre (Helloween, Gamma Ray, HammerFall, Stratovarius, etc...).

Some of the songs I like:
- Kamelot: Fourth Legacy
- Sonata Arctica: FullMoon
- Black Majesty: Silent Company
- Edguy: King of Fools
- Masterplan: Sail On
- Theocracy: Ghost Ship

Thank you!

Hope things pick up for you Paka, all the best. I'll throw in EverTale's Of Dragons and Elves, particularly their song "In The Sign of the Valiant Warrior".

Always picks me up, anyway.

Hope it gets better ASAP, Paka.

Here's some uplifting stuff:





(not exactly power metal, but...)

Nothing ever beat Power Quest - Neverworld for pure light, happy power metal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdhRROm ... JsZA%3D%3D

New Achelous. Greek epic power metal. Some really beautiful songs and melodies, some female vocals added and they work very well. I find the vocals really improved overall. Guest vocals by the Tyrant as well.

I haven't cared for post-ZP Dragonforce at all, but this new album is just fucking horrid. Doomsday Party is easily one of the worst metal
songs I've ever heard. A Far worse album than classic punching bags like St. Anger or Risk.

You know what definitely doesn't suck? Acero Letal. This recent EP is killer, and they *ruled* at Hell's Heroes.

It's so insulting and awful. You can practically hear that they weren't taking it seriously at all. Just a complete fucking worthless insult...

The Ascension album from last year is far better for that style.

That a band could go from Valley of the Damned and Sonic Firestorm to THAT is just stunning.

What ZP has been up to has been almost as frustrating. His stint in Tank was truly bizarre.

I couldn't think of any until I was looking through some of my folders and remembered this gem:


I don't care for any of the other songs on the band's sole EP, but this one kicks tons of ass.

Might as well throw this in the ring as well:



Not that the rest of the band's output is bad, but Steelpreacher went from second-rate Judas Priest worship to first-rate Omen/epic metal worship on this track and it rules! Especially the chorus.

Great stuff. Thanks.

Go check out Vindex if you haven't! Signum Regis man Ronnie König's another band.

They did start to write shorter songs when bassist Frédéric Leclercq stepped in. Blame him I have always had a soft heart for the band. After and during ZP. Well, I do not hate 'St. Anger' or 'Risk' either It's my problem, folks I've heard much worse.