New Dragonforce Album

DragonForce is one the hokiest bands to ever walk the face of the earth (with a name like that, how could it not be?). The British Power Metal outfit will release their fourth album next month. Entitled Ultra Beatdown, it looks more like a video game than a Heavy Metal album. Power Metal is goofy by definition, but DragonForce really seems to be pushing the envelope with their latest effort.

As for the music... well, it's DragonForce. If you've heard one DragonForce song, for all intents and purposes you've heard them all. "Heroes of Our Time", one of the songs on the forthcoming album, is nothing if not proof of this. On the other hand, anyone who likes Dragonforce knows how formulaic the band is, so it's not likely to be a bother to them. Sure, the band is a one-trick pony, but at least they do that one trick really well.

I've got a feeling that a lot of metal purists are going to hate this album as much as (if not more than) they hated 2006's Inhuman Rampage.

Frostland Tapes

On 23 June, Darkthrone will release Frostland Tapes, a compilation which contains all four of their demo tapes. Also included is the material which was intended for their second album, but which was set aside after Fenriz and Nocturno Culto decided to change direction and pursue a Black Metal sound (Darkthrone, as you might know, was originally formed as a Death Metal band under the name Black Death).

The Ecyclopaedia Metallum entry for Frostland Tapes has the necessary info:

To coincide with the band's 21st anniversary, this is a fascinating trip into the earliest years of the band and the first official release ever to contain all 4 of Darkthrone’s demos in one place.

Frostland Tapes also includes a rare live recording from Denmark in 1990 (one of only a handful of live appearances that Darkthrone has ever made) and, perhaps most significantly, the previously unreleased version of the infamous 1991 Goatlord rehearsal session.

These songs were intended to feature on the proposed second album, before the band changed direction and the tapes were confined to the vaults. Vocals were subsequently added in the mid-nineties, but they are presented here as the recording sounded in 1991.

Collectors will no doubt leap at the chance to get a hold of this rare material, and rightly so. Darkthrone has almost never performed live in concert, which makes the included live recordings all the more intriguing. Some of the material present was previously available through the Limited Edition of Preparing for War, which was originally released in 2005. Still, there is enough new stuff here to merit obtaining Frostland Tapes, even if you are one of the lucky few to own a copy of the earlier compilation. It would have been nice if the two demos recorded during the Black Death era were included, but those have probably gone the way of London After Midnight.

Naturkraft

Naturkraft, the latest offering of Germany's Horn, must be added to the list of new albums I am eagerly anticipating. Horn has a rather unique sound among Black Metal bands, perhaps because Nerrath (the nom de plume of the band's sole member) draws his inspiration from nature, rather than the tired old schtick of Satanism. It's been my experience that such Pagan or folkish Black Metal is infinitely more accessible and enjoyable than its Satanic counterpart, though that's just one unqualified critic's opinion.

Horn's previous two albums (2005's Jahreszeiten and 2006's Die Kraft der Szenarien) were both solid efforts, so I'm cautiously optimistic about Naturkraft. Judging by the samples available on Horn's Website, my optimism is well founded--the spirit of the music is much the same, the only change being in the realm of production, where the music has been given a somewhat deeper and more "epic" sound, thought the prerequisite rawness is still very much present. Indeed, it is appropriate that Nerrath has given his project the name of Horn, since the distorted guitar work has a very brazen sound to it.

Naturkraft was released yesterday through German label Black Blood Records. Of course, I'm likely to have a hell of a time trying to find it anywhere here in the States.

The Art of Grimness, Ep. 4

Finnish Black Metal outfit Behexen doing what they do best--being blasphemous. Not coincidentally, Behexen released a boxed set of three 7" EP vinyls, entitled From the Devil's Chalice, on 15 January. In addition to that their latest LP, entitled My Soul For His Glory, will be available on 8 February (one day before my birthday, no less!).

New Ulver Album Out Today

Ulver's latest album, Shadows of the Sun, will be released today. I can't be entirely sure until I've actually heard the album, but I'm pretty sure it's going to be damn good. It is Ulver, after all. Some tracks from the album have been available for preview listening on Ulver's myspace, so go give them a listen if you're interested (as you should be.)

Hopefully I'll be getting a copy of this album soon.