Fortune Favors the Brave

The first time I came across the name Desert was when I stumbled upon their 2015 full length “Never Regret”. I remember liking this one quite a bit, but it had a few flaws. Time went on and I consumed a lot of black and death metal beside my standard power/prog metal fare, so I have not really looked back to that album. Thanks to the algorithms of certain video channels the title track of the newest output by Desert suddenly popped up, and I was immediately hooked. Also the cover artwork strongly reminded me of Judicator’s (in my opinion) best record to date “The Last Emperor”, so I needed to check out the full album. “Fortune Favors the Brave” builds upon the strengths of Desert’s past outputs, but the band managed to step their game up several notches.

While the band refers to their style as “war metal” they have got nothing in common with acts like Archgoat or Blasphemy. In fact their music is much closer to the aforementioned Judicator, as they play a very uplifting and insanely catchy brand of power metal. That being said this is not the kind of sugary pop power metal that has become popular among a broader audience over the past few years. Desert know how to write some killer riffs and pack a nice punch. While not really bordering on thrash metal there are similarities with some of the heavier bands of the spectrum – think Persuader or Rage as reference points. This comparisons are also underlined by the raspy and demanding voice of singer Alexei, who reminds a bit of a slightly more subtle Chris Boltendahl, mixed with the epic character of someone like Nils Patrik Johansson. That being said he got quite a unique style, so this is surely a big plus for the band.

Desert’s music is deeply rooted in NWOBHM, European power metal and symphonic metal, and they take some of the best elements that made several other bands famous a few decades ago. The rhythm and the lead guitars are perfectly harmonized, offering a perfect blend of straight rocking grooves and some cleverly placed melodic elements. Of course there are solo parts to be found as well, but those are never overdone to hurt the flow of the music. The riffs are sharp and expertly executed, and some of the chord progressions are among the best I have heard for quite a while when it comes to that kind of music.

The songwriting is top notch and the guys exactly knew where they wanted to go. The song structures are well defined, following the traditional verse-chorus formula for the most part, and the overall placement of the single tracks in the context of the album led to it being easily enjoyable in one sitting. They have put a lot of emphasis on creating build-ups, peaking in glorious and epic moments and memorable chorus parts. The soaring voice of Alexei is often accompanied by some choirs in the background, leading to a few early Blind Guardian memories. To top things off you got some well placed keyboard samples, ramping up the epic factor even more.

The rhythm section acts as a tight unit, building the perfect backbone to the stunning harmonies. The production is also fantastic, with the guitars sounding crunchy and the drums having a nice punch. The mix is clear and transparent and the beefy overall sound combined with the powerful vocals put Desert up there with some of the genre’s best representors. So in case you are a fan of melodic and catchy yet heavy hitting music look no further and order a copy of “Fortune Favors the Brave. Highly recommended.