Enforcer, not Enforced! The latter is Power Trippy thrash. Enforcer is pure heavy metal, some speed metal and lately some more hard rock. Katana, Undying Evil for some more goodness.



Riot V has been the second best band I have ever seen around my parts (I mean Crete, after Coroner, which is a band I can't be objective with) and one of the best live acts generally. Incredible performance including the very demanding vocals but also the twin guitar attacks and a setlist to die for. I'd see them any time.

Greetings.

I need something like Savage Circus - Dreamland Manor. Something fast, powerful and with solid guitar play (solid as opposed to scarce, I hope you understand) and with fantasy lyrics. Something that would make me want to cast fireballs while doing push-ups.

I have been summoned. Some of these are more sci-fi than fantasy, buuuutttt...

Blind Guardian (of course)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-roJi6wR_9Q

Demons & Wizards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vVe9TITFXI

Dragonforce (of course)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSgclvVMF3U

(early) Dark Moor
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGAChCy4yjU

Eternity's End
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVRT5tI22Z0

Grave Digger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RCA07mDDLI

Imagika
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNX3VmhB-a4

Iron Savior
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJZC8iY8Ufc

Persuader
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8cBDe-tjqg

Pharaoh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixQAtP1lDz8

Running Wild
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ny-97Oh-Fws

(recent) Unleash the Archers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvL6IncHeks

Warlock
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_5ELIEXpTE

Cool recs ^^ Let me add to those with links to some magnificent songs:

I'd say the best place to start would be the early Helloween (Kai fronted) era, which is the major influence to early Blind Guardian, which is the band Savage Circus is consciously emulating. I assume you know them, so no link!
Gamma Ray (Land of the Free, Somewhere Out In Space, Powerplant) too.
So:
Stormwarrior emulating the aforementioned early Helloween era.
Paradox- Product of Imagination (1987). Considered at the time in Germany the next Walls of Jericho. Just as thrashy as WoJ and early Blind Guardian and perhaps even more.
WitchHammer from Norway (1990)
Manticora
Falconer perhaps, for the folkier Somewhere Far Beyond stuff, which are rooted in Skyclad, who Hansi LOVES.
Perhaps also Narita from Denmark, which brings is to Malmsteenand doesn't he qualify? I am not sharing his europower stuff (one of the cornerstones of the genre), just an epic power doom song that I feel like listening to now, because, why not?


edit: Adding Angel Dust - Into the Dark Past because duh.

Wow guys, it will take me a while to process that and give some feedback. Thank you.

I can only say that I've heard most of Blind Guardian, excluding perhaps some recent albums. I've also heard all early DragonForce (Through Fire and Flames era). Their recent songs are cool, but don't give the same vibe the old songs do. That Doomsday Party was a complete disappointment because it doesn't induce any doom feelings at all and focuses on things I prefer to avoid. And of course Helloween, but only Keeper of the Sever Keys trilogy.

And yeah, Falconer is a bit too folk. Their first two albums are mostly fine, A Quest for the Crown and Clarion Call are something I really liked, but the third somehow didn't catch me. Guess I'll try their other albums some time later.

This Spectre EP is easily one of my favorite releases of the year. The riffs are so simple, but so effective. I do find it amusing that Will Fried found another person to imitate his vocal style rather than just recording his own vocals.

I have been completely lost in a fog of business for most of the year, so I'm super behind on the releases of 2023.

Hit me with that good heavy/speed/power stuff that's come out so far.

Excalion
Sacred Outcry
Blood Star
Kerrigan
Smoulder
Spirit Adrift

All killer.

There's been a ton of awesome stuff this year! Some of my favorites:

Midnight Vice - Midnight Vice
Flight - Echoes of Journeys Past
Century - The Conquest of Time
Blood Star - First Sighting
Wytch Hazel - IV
Sacred Outcry - Towers of Gold
Tanith - Voyage
Kerrigan - Bloodmoon
Spectre - Lonesome Gambler



I should really get on those Excalion and Spirit Adrift albums.

Fuck I forgot Wytch Hazel and Tanith, both excellent too!

Need to find some more good modern PM from this year...

Yeah, those Wytch Hazel dudes really don't miss. Lacking the more overt "grab you by the throat" moments (Like the chorus of Dry Bones), IV took a little longer to grow on me, but it's really damn good. They really have a knack for writing great melodies.

They only really came into their own on the previous album with this new polished sound (first two were good but they hadn't nailed down a signature sound yet). The last one had the three song run from "I Am Redeemed" through "Dry Bones" and there's nothing as good on the new one - but this new one is overall more consistent...

Not a big fan of II?

I rarely use the skip button for this band on II-IV, but I think I can agree that IV is a bit more consistent.

Well they just didn't have the slick, more poppy sound on their first few albums - seemed like they were just experimenting and figuring out where they wanted to go... but good albums anyway.

Thirding the Sacred Outcry rec., it's probably my album of the year so far.

Along with it, Triumpher's Storming the Walls, with a heavy Triumph of Steel Manowar and a touch of extreme metal influence.

Third Greek rec, Protean Shield for epic heavy metal.

Finally, Solitary Sabred is to release their new one in December. IYKYK.

Vortize from Chile for some unique heavy metal in their native tongue. It's the heavy metal project of Demoniac's Javier.

Sacro from Paraguay play awesome 80s US Metal.

looking forward to the new Tower Hill album, I loved their 3 track demo.

Wings of Steel (US) have also made quite the impression. Like a mix of hard rock (like Crimson Glory do hard rock) and US/Priest-influenced metal. Very good.

Welp, guess my work's cut out for me, then. Time to go a-listenin'.

Can't go wrong with the recs above. Some veterans like Overkill, Metal Church, Narnia, Fifth Angel, Raven, Jag Panzer and Redemption made killer albums too.

Aventhur - Fractured Memories (Brazilian prog that emphasizes the rhythm section)



Skull & Crossbones - Sungazer (Stormwitch members with a great new vocalist)



Megaton Sword - Might and Power (Great vocals, Heavy Load/Maonawar style)



Ascension - Under the Veil of Madness (A mix of Dragon Force/Helloween/Stratovarious)



Martin Simson's Destroyer of Death - Eternal Reign (Rob Rock on vocals and one song with Jorn Lande)

Really liking the new Heavy Load single. Ragne arguably sounds better than ever!

So of these many recommendations, the ones that are speaking to me most are Blood Star, Sacred Outcry, Spirit Adrift, Skull & Crossbones, the new Metal Church, and maaayyyybe Fifth Angel.

(Already heard Excalion and Overkill. The former is super eh, the latter is quite awesome.)

Apparently Hansi-like vocals are the only vocals that don't start to irritate me after 5-10 minutes of listening. But if such vocals come without fast/thrashy/aggressive/BlindGuardian-like instruments...

Evolution Purgatory rips and tears me apart. I am so impressed. It is what I always defined as perfect power metal and what I was never able to find and why I quit power metal.

I guess my attempt to re-journey into power metal is hopeless. I'm fed to the full with average just-power-metal stuff. Doesn't impress me a single bit anymore. Too bad there's only one Blind Guardian and only one Persuader.

Tad Morose, Morgana Lefay, Pharaoh, Grave Digger, etc don't do anything for you at all? Rage? Dark at Dawn? Shadowland-era Nocturnal Rites? Black Majesty? Some newer options are Vulvagun and Arrayan Path.

The only Persuader album I really liked that I heard was Necromancy. That one rules though.

Besides "Seven Angels" I didn't like this one a bit. Why is it 70 minutes long?!

I love this album, the whole band and new vocalist are spot on, but the narration is goofy and detracts from it.

Yeah I feel the same way, when I first listened to it it didn't grab me like III did, but on repeated listens It's definitely more constant and equally as great. Those harmonized guitars to end the album on Digging Deeper are absolutely incredible and give me chills when I hear it.

I'm annoyed the new Heavy Load doesn't seem to be on streaming platforms yet. Hopefully I can get my hands on a promo, because I'm dying to hear it after that first single.

This will probably be an easy one, but I am looking for bands most similar to Manilla Road. Classic heavy metal with lyrics focus on sword and sorcery, demons, mysticism, fantasy etc. Hopefully one of those big bands with around like 20 albums or more, veterans more or less.

The Metal Archives similar artist list is pretty good. https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Manilla_Road/379

Thank you, I should have mentioned that I've already had a look through that. Just wondering if there was any more out there.

Hanker - The Dead Ringer is one of the closest I've heard, particularly just in spirit and ethos... it's a similarly weird, quirky old school metal album and done with care.

Evolution Purgatory was definitely one of my favorite power metal albums as a teenager, fantastic.

If you've looked at literally every band on the Similar Artists tab already, the short answer is going to be there aren't really any, outside of a few bands with one-off demos like Ageless Wisdom. Certainly nothing with 20+ albums. Lethean and Temple of the Damned are two that don't show up on that list that are probably worth checking out. Beyond that, I mean, even just expanded to long-running heavy metal bands with fantasy lyrics, it's still not a super long list - Manowar and Virgin Steele are the only ones I can think of that started in the 80s and continued to put out material for 20+ years with much consistency. Slough Feg has a pretty sizeable discography though they started in the 90s. Otherwise...what you're looking for doesn't really exist, unfortunately.

If you just want anything obscure that bears some resemblance to Manilla Road, I might be able to scrape a couple other things out. But that Similar Artists tab does a pretty good job of taking care of most of it that I can think of.

This is dope, thanks for mentioning them those vocals remind me of Blind Guardian too much lol.



Thanks brother appreciate it, I will check those ones out as well, already had a listen to Ageless Wisdom which is really good, I will keep searching.



This isn't bad at all bro, quality

Cam Mesmer from SPELL and I did a fun collaborative song+video that just came out today. It's a little heavy/power metal, a little Ghost, very spooky.

"Blood Lust"

The greatest romantic tragedy of the 21st century

That kind of underground old metal is so good. Some of the best stuff ever... never heard a BG comparison to the vocals, interesting.

The new Wytch Hazel single is amazing as expected. Those chorus vocals are *gorgeous*.

https://youtu.be/YkUWDvikyIM?si=-z6eOxvUngMpN6Li

That Blood Star album is a winner, in my book. Pretty excellent from start to finish, and I look forward to what they bring us in the future.

That and Kerrigan are the best things I've heard in trad metal in a while. Blood Star may have the edge since Madeline's voice is so fucking good and powerful. "Cold Moon" and "The Observers" - fuckin brilliant songs.

Fearless Priestess gets stuck in my head for DAYS. Such a great album. I missed their show a few weeks ago and am absolutely kicking myself.

It's a good one.

This fucking Heavy Load album from this year is stunning stuff. Brilliant grooves and epic vibes.

Listening to the new Blood Star album and it's damn good meat n potatoes heavy metal, I think it would be a real grower, might pick it up. Kerrigan however do not do much for me at all, disappointing after reading the reviews and the scores.