Riders of the Ancient Storm

Swedish metal legends Heavy Load were reunited after almost 30 years back in 2018 played a few shows in Europe, and promised an upcoming album to the fans. The album took more than 5 years to be released, with an unfinished version of the "Walhalla Warriors" being the only thing (which had mixed opinions due to its incomplete state and some opinions that Ragne's vocals sounded weird) the band released between 2018 and 2023. People thought the album would be abandoned and that Heavy Load was going to split but with patience, the fans got one of the best heavy metal albums ever made!

To be honest, records like ROTAS don't come out anymore. Most bands nowadays release albums that might have a couple of great songs but in every release, there is at least some music that sounds like a redundant, dull, and uninspired tribute to traditional bands such as Iron Maiden, Helloween, and Judas Priest. ROTAS, however, is absolutely perfect! The compositions, the arranging, the sound design, and the lyrics are a much unexpected but welcome throwback to the classic Heavy Load that we all love! A real time machine to The Load's Masterpieces such as Stronger Than Evil and Death or Glory with ROTAS itself being the 3rd masterpiece pretty much like how Silent Hill's first three entries are absolute Horror Magnus Opuses in the gaming community.

Ragne's and Stybjorn's voices have really stood the test of time and despite them reaching old ages, they still showcase the same explosive energy and send the true metal spirit to the fans. One can feel the youthfulness and rebellious spirit of the two brothers, in tracks such as "Ride The Night", "We Rock the World" and "Slave No More" with Ragne still possessing that powerful, wild, raspy, epic voice he had on Death or Glory (On the intro of "Sail Away" we get to listen to Ragne's more peaceful and tranquil side of his timbre), while Stybjorn's sound-color remains unscathed and exactly how I remember it from his performances on HL classics such as “Singing Swords”, “Might for Right” and “Roar from the North”.

I like how this album includes keyboards that have a quite Royal, imperial, robust sound to them As One can hear on “Ride The Night”, “Sail Away” and “Raven Is Calling”. Generally, the way the songs are arranged and orchestrated requires a lot of talent, insightfulness, and of course very advanced musical knowledge. ROTAS mostly has very uplifting songs such as “Ride The Night” with its classic metal mid-tempo structure, motives, and its “ooo ooo” vocalizing, “We Rock The World” with its Fuel-like riff, the East Asian keyboard melody and Styrbjorn telling the listener that HL will rock, shock, break and take the world and the grand “Walhalla Warriors” with its sweet bass break point in the middle, its epic multi-layered vocal chorus and overall powerful performance by Ragne. Still, there is “Angel Dark” which is a completely unorthodox song for Heavy Load. Don't get me wrong, I love the song and its melancholic energy but it sounds like something Rush would compose for some reason.

The album closes with the breathtaking “Sail Away” which starts with heavy riffing accompanied by once again imperial, regal keyboards and choirs, Ragne singing at the beginning of the song with a soft tone, and after that, the melancholy strikes back while Ragne's poetic words that come from his mouth really speak to your heart about the journey he had in his life, as the song was intended to do so according to him. For those that bought the CD version of the album, they are rewarded one bonus track in the form of a beautiful solo acoustic guitar composition which has some flamenco in it, some baroque, and some Aeolian shapes. I think it was a welcome addition to the album and it doesn't tire me at all personally because of its duration! Ragne should send it to an acoustic/classical guitar competition, however! It does deserve an award!

Ragne's playing is without a doubt, absolutely virtuosic to the maximum. The phrasing in his leads, the way he makes the guitar cry with his tapping technique in the guitar solos of “Ride the Night” and “Sail Away”, and how he plays out of the box and not classicistically shows how brilliant of a musician he is! He plays like Blackmore in this record but without the drugs and Blackmore's 70s-80s slopiness and pseudo-experimenting. Also, I think his pinch harmonics sound very full and satisfying to my ears. Overall, ROTAS was in my opinion the best album released in 2023 and a sign that Heavy Load still carry the true heavy metal torch and blow away commercial NWOTHM bands such as Visigoth, Enforcer, Sonja, Haunt, and Night Demon. Also, it is an undisputed fact that they let the behemoths of the modern era such as Anthrax, Metallica, and Ghost eat all their dust while the latter are releasing compressed and plastic-as a Barbie doll music.