Name: Ready To Be A Warrior by skyforger in various
Duration: 3 min 27 s
Description: From the acoustic folk album "Sword Song", 2003

various

Leviathan III

Ayahuasca

From the acoustic folk album "Sword Song", 2003

Ready To Be A Warrior

Crash Kills Four - Machines

On the Loose (G Lessons Cover)

ReEvolution by Sybreed, 2004. Slave Design.

Sybreed - ReEvolution

One Man Army

The warrior longboats are coming back ashore with Leaves’ Eyes 7th full-length studio album, "Sign Of The Dragonhead."  Produced through Germany’s Mastersound Entertainment by Leaves’ Eyes’ own Alex Krull and Thorsten Bauer, this is the band’s first full release featuring new singer Elina Siirala.  Fans got a taste of her work via the 2016 EP Fires In The North, but this album gives a much fuller sampling of her skills and a better sense of what fans can expect from this new incarnation of Leaves’ Eyes.

In brief: if you are an admirer of Leaves’ Eyes previous catalogue, you’ll relish "Sign Of The Dragonhead."  The album picks up musically where 2015's “King Of Kings” left off, with a similar production style and lyrical themes.  The mixture of styles and pacing from track to track makes this an eminently listenable album, with haunting ballads such as “Fairer Than The Sun” seguing seamlessly into headbanging anthems like “Shadows In The Night."  Clocking in at just over 45 minutes, it’s a balanced and well-conceived album from beginning to end.

As a big fan of symphonic metal, I am aware of the potential pitfalls this genre holds.  Bands who are able to avoid recreating Nightwish's sound still can move so far into melodic territory that the music becomes indistinguishable from commercial hard rock.  No worries here on either front.  With their new album, Leaves’ Eyes maintains their own distinct sound, navigating the treacherous shoals of “beauty vs. beast” vocals, folkish elements, Viking lyrical imagery, and big orchestrations.  The band utilizes all these tools effectively, in ways that never come off as derivative.

Vocalist Elina Siirala’s singing is quite impressive throughout "Sign Of The Dragonhead," her voice expressed with variety and heart.  Elina’s delivery is distinct from predecessor Liv Kristine, but not so much that fans will see her addition as a radical retooling of the band’s sound.  Her voice gives extra punch to the Celtic-inspired pace of standout tracks “Across The Sea” and “Völva." As usual with Leaves’ Eyes, Alex Krull’s harsh vocals are used judiciously and in just the right places to give extra aggression and “oomph."

Like previous Leaves' Eyes releases, folk sounds play a key role, but the band wisely meters them out, with fiddles, pipes, choirs and acoustic guitar nurturing rather than overwhelming the songs on which they appear. “Riders On The Wind” is a great example of this balance, providing the perfect meshing of sonic metal and folk kick.  Krull and Bauer did an impressive job in producing this album: the mix is clean and lively, making the music that much more exciting.

This is a solid metal album, and one I won’t forget when considering the best for 2018 at the end of the year.  This album is very consistent, and the only negative I might mention is that there’s not any single track that leaps out as a ‘must-hear’ classic like the songs “My Destiny” or “Hell To The Heavens” from previous albums.  However, with zero filler – no weak submissions here – and so much good material, Leaves’ Eyes will have a tough time determining which songs will represent this album on setlists.  With "Sign of the Dragonhead," Leaves’ Eyes further solidify their niche as one of the strongest symphonic metal bands going.

Album Review - Sign Of The Dragonhead (Leaves' Eyes)

Electric Cool-Aide w Tony - American Ruse

Electric Cool-Aide w Tony - Day My Baby gave me a Surprize

Dodge Dart - 911

Dodge Dart  -  gonna fuck you up

The wait is over!

Baroness have reemerged after 3 years of touring, writing and recording!!!!

Baroness' Yellow & Green finds a band that has developed into more than just giants of the metal underground, they are now fully formed hard rock titans. Fans of the band have come to expect nothing less than constant evolution from Baroness and that is precisely what the band has delivered, but in ways noone could have anticipated: the hooks are immediately seared into your brain, riffs that take just one listen to fully lodge themselves in your consciousness and vocals that are sung both heavily and beautifully. Some songs are more delicate than Baroness ever hinted to before while others are straight up arena rockers—yet all along Yellow & Green is unmistakably the Baroness that the world has come to love and look to for Record Of The Year quality rock and roll. It’s not hard to imagine any one of the 18 songs that fill out the Yellow & Green 2CD/2LP being rock radio anthems, and deservedly so. At no risk of hyperbole Baroness’ ‘Yellow & Green’ is on a very short list as one of the new millennium’s best rock records.

 Available also in limited edition one time deluxe pressings of 2CD and 2LP sets with expanded artwork. The deluxe 2CD and 2LP sets will each be housed in a heavy duty 28+ page perfect-bound hard covered book set, of course featuring the art of frontman John Baizley.

Buy on iTunes

Baroness - Take My Bones Away

From the SCAR SYMMETRY album, Pitch Black Progress

The Illusionist

SCAR SYMMETRY - The Illusionist

Cyanide _Deathstars_Remix

The Heretics

In the Name of God

Extraordinary Folk / Pagan / Black Metal band from Riga, Latvia, established in 1995. 

Skyforger has been forging their music in the smithy of the Thundergod since 1995.

For more than last two decades, the band has been fighting under the flag of Latvian Pagan Metal, an extreme blend of traditional Baltic Folk music and various Metal influences ranging from Norwegian inspired Black Metal through to 80s-rooted Heavy Metal. The band's unique combination of ancient and modern influence has given them a wide appeal throughout both the Metal and Folk scenes, and has brought great variety to their song writing over the course of the six Skyforger albums.

The first of these was unleashed from the forge in 1997. Titled 'Semigalls' Warchant', the demo tape told tales of the last free Pagan tribes of the Baltic peoples; and their struggles with Christian invaders throughout the thirteenth century.

These tales of ancient tribal Latvia and its Heathen tradition were to be expanded upon in 1998 with Skyforger's first full-length album, 'Kauja pie Saules' ('The Battle of Saule'). Later, in 2000, band followed with their third release, the First World War themed album 'Latvian Riflemen'.
  
Skyforger signed to the German label Folter Records and soon the world saw the release of their newest Pagan Metal masterpiece, - 'Thunderforge', which was a fine return to their old themes of ancestral culture and Heathen gods. The next album in line, recorded also in 2003, was the self-released 'Sword Song', - an album of purely acoustic Latvian Folk music and a long coming tribute to their ancient forefathers' heritage. In 2005 Folter Records released re-mastered demo album 'Semigalls' Warchant' on CD format, with additional EP 'Asinslauks'.

Skyforger spent next few years working on a conceptual album about the legendary Latvian fairytale hero, Kurbads. The album, similarly entitled 'Kurbads', was released worldwide via Metal Blade Records in 2010.

Throughout the years, band has been busy on festival stages all over Europe and Skyforger is well known for their non-compromising live performances. 

Skyforger released their latest album 'Old Prussia' on 6th of April, 2015, on Thunderforge Records. Right now band is actively working on new album, with approximate release date 2023/2024.

Discography:
Semigalls' Warchant (1997 mc, 2005 cd)
Kauja Pie Saules (1998)
Latvian Riflemen (2000)
Thunderforge (2003)
Sword Song (2003)
Kurbads (2010)
Old Prussia (2015)

Line-up:
Peter – lead vocals / guitars, 
Edgars "Zirgs" – bass / backing vocals
Alvis – guitars / backing vocals
Jānis – drums & percussion

Ready To Be A Warrior

skyforger

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