Millennium Metal - Chapter One

When one recalls the 1990s, in conjunction with the genre of heavy metal, one sees a dark and desolate place with no hope for a rebirth. In essence, the spirit of metal had not really died; it had only been blighted by the passage of time and the lack of credible proponents. Somewhere in the mid-90s, at the trough of metal’s decline, a flame was rekindled due to the constant efforts of older acts that refused to bow to the whims of mainstream taste and newer acts hungry for an audience. Although Metalium was made up of a group of seasoned veterans of the metal scene, the music that they put forth on “Millennium Metal” is quite youthful and vital.

Much like other German acts who either came out at the same time or a few years before (Iron Savior, Freedom Call, Mob Rules, Gamma Ray) they format their albums into conceptual works, although the subject matter of the narrations and lyrics found within are more in line with the storytelling of Manowar and perhaps Rhapsody if one takes the narrations in themselves. Themes of struggle and triumph with perhaps a tinge of cheese run rampant in every song, combined with a sort of Jekyll and Hyde concept of morphing from a blind conformist to a stalwart champion of true heavy metal. If nothing else, this album and those that follow have a very uplifting spirit to them.

Most of the music on here is power/speed metal of the Judas Priest persuasion, although unlike Hammerfall and Gamma Ray they shine equally as well on their ballads, which usually end faster than they begin. The riffs also carry some traditional influences such as Deep Purple, Accept, and even early thrash. “Revelation” has a hypnotic jazz shuffle beat and a very memorable chorus, while “Fight” and “Strike down the Heathen” are straight forward fast rockers that put more emphasis on the guitars rather than on vocal hooks. You’ve also got a sizable collection of slower and catchy metal anthems in “Metalium”, “Dream of Doom” and “Pilgrimage” that showcase non-Judas Priest influences and plenty of classic heavy riffs.

Other songs on here have a stronger emphasis on melody and vocal work rather than crushing riffs and pummeling beats. “Metamorphosis” is a rather nostalgic ballad with a simple piano line that develops into a quasi-speed oriented metal anthem towards the end. “Break the Spell” features some interesting interchanges between the voice and guitars during the verses, as well as some off-the-cuff vocal effects. “Free Forever” starts off with a solid guitar theme and some military drumming, pretty similar to some of the tracks heard on Freedom Call’s and Iron Fire’s debuts actually. The 2 cover songs are quite well done, the Accept one being very faithful to the original, while the Deep Purple cover has a lot of added guitar parts and a faster beat to mold it into something closer to the rest of the works on here.

Two songs, however, really stand out despite the large amount of quality work on here. “Metalians” is easily remembers for it’s stop and go riffing over top a constant drum beat, as well as the active lead guitar presence, but Henning Basse’s vocals are what really make this one work, as he rivals Dan Heiman in the range department and Nils Rue’s in the quality department. “Void of Fire” is one of my favorite speed metal tracks of all time, between Chris Caffery’s guitars and Mike Terrana’s thundering tidal wave of speed beats, what results is something that even Gamma Ray would have a hard time topping. This song will literally kick your ass so hard that it’ll knock your teeth out and then proceed to jam your teeth back into your gums, pick you back up, and force you to hit the replay button to repeat the process again.

To prospective buyers, this is the greatest album ever put out by this band, as they haven’t yet been able to recapture the same magic they had with Chris Caffery and Mike Terrana. If you like the German power metal scene of the late 90s with a slight case of Manowar worship, this will definitely make for a great listening experience. If you buy one album by this band, get this one, and if you wish to get a second I highly recommend picking up the 2nd as this band did its best work with two guitar players.