HammerFall - Glory To The Brave review
| Band: | HammerFall |
| Album: | Glory To The Brave |
| Style: | Power metal |
| Release date: | June 27, 1997 |
| Guest review by: | Spyroid |
Disc I
01. The Dragon Lies Bleeding
02. The Metal Age
03. HammerFall
04. I Believe
05. Child Of The Damned [Warlord cover]
06. Steel Meets Steel
07. Stone Cold
08. Unchained
09. Glory To The Brave
10. Ravenlord [Stormwitch cover] [deluxe edition bonus] [20-year anniversary edition bonus]
11. Glory To The Brave [Radio Edit] [20-year anniversary edition bonus]
Disc II [20-Year Anniversary Edition] [CD bonus]
01. The Metal Age [Live 1998]
02. Steel Meets Steel [Live 1998]
03. Stone Cold [Live 1998]
04. Glory To The Brave [Live 2012]
05. Hammerfall [Live 2012]
06. The Dragon Lies Bleeding [Live 2012]
07. Glory To The Brave Medley
Disc III [20-Year Anniversary Edition] [DVD bonus]
[The First Crusade]
01. Introduction
02. Steel Meets Steel - First Live Show
03. Glory To The Brave - Clip 1
04. HammerFall
05. Steel Meets Steel [live]
06. Glory To The Brave - Clip 2
07. The Making Of "Glory To The Brave"
08. Ravenlord [Stormwitch cover] [live]
09. The Metal Age [live]
10. Nominated For The Swedish Grammy Award
11. Stone Cold [live]
[Interview 2017]
12. Chapter I: The Early Days
13. Chapter II: The Rockslaget Festival
14. Chapter III: The Album
15. Chapter IV: New Members, Wacken & Touring
[Live: Dynamo Festival 1998]
16. Child Of The Damned [live]
17. The Metal Age [live]
18. Steel Meets Steel [live]
19. Eternal Dark [Picture cover] [live]
20. The Dragon Lies Bleeding [live]
21. Stone Cold [live]
22. HammerFall [live]
It actually bothers me a lot that this album is considered not only good but also a classic by a lot of power metal fans. It might have been influent, although I don't really want to believe that, but it sure isn't good. I have never really liked Hammerfall - nowadays they are very good at writing catchy songs even if they're often quite boring, but on 'Glory To The Brave' the attempt to be catchy fails quite hard.
Song structures, riffs and solos aren't way to bad for a début at all, but that doesn't help very much when the most of the songs lacks good melodies, good vocals, good lyrics and catchy hooks. There you've got another problem with this album - I really can't stand the vocals, mainly because the Swedish accent bothers me, but I don't think Cans sings very good either. He is quite whiny and nasal, and if a power metal singer wants to try a more falsetto based style instead of the more 'manly' alternative, he really needs to do better than Cans to impress me. The lyrics are also quite stupid and 'I Believe' could be one of the worst ballad attempts that I have heard. 'Glory To The Brave' isn't totally despisable though, the opener is not bad at all and 'Child Of The Damned' remains one of my favourite Hammerfall songs.
Luckily enough - as I mentioned, Hammerfall evolved to a, if not good at least very professional metal band and Cans turned out to become a really good singer. I wouldn't recommend this album to anyone, except for a fan that has heard all their other albums (or maybe to someone who finds it for 5$, the better songs might be worth that). 'Glory To The Brave' slightly reaches the OK level on my rating scale.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 6 |
| Songwriting: | 6 |
| Originality: | 7 |
| Production: | 7 |
Written by Spyroid | 13.06.2008
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Comments
Comments: 20
Visited by: 194 users
| wrathchild Staff Posts: 14090  |
Well, to me, this clearly is Hammerfall's best effort ever. Yet I agree, it's not a very good album at all.
---- La belleza no reside en lo que puedas crear, sino en lo que eres capaz de transmitir Beauty resides not in what you're able to create, but in what you're able to communicate Txus, Mägo De Oz
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| K✞ulu Seeker of Truth Posts: 2573  |
I do find them boring. I can't even remember the album now although I listened to it not so long ago...
---- Savor what you feel and what you see Things that may not seem important now But may be tomorrow R.I.P. Chuck Schuldiner Satan was a Backstreet Boy
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| Spyroid Rosetta Stoned Posts: 1023  |
Written by wrathchild on 14.06.2008 at 14:13 I claim that most of the members are very professional (today), but well, that's not enough. Justin Timberlake could also be called professional... anyway, I prefer to listen to their newer stuff because of that reason. I was waiting to get bashed for this review but it doesn't seem so 
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| TOUGHEST MEMBER Posts: 3619  |
One of the first metal album I encountered. I love best the last song Glory To The Brave and the first one.
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| Luneth Account deleted |
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| 4look4rd The Sasquatch Posts: 840  |
I personally like this album. There is nothing really special or unique about it, but everything is just right. I consider it a classic because this is pretty much traditional power metal very well played (although not very imaginative). My personal rating is a 6.5 or 7 (average music well performed).
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941  |
I think this is the best Hammerfall album. But I find the band so forgettable and their recent material so horrible, it doesn't mean much. Of course, it is not original at all. Hammerfal has never been about originality. But at least it was decent Powermetal back then.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| ErnilEnNaur Account deleted |
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8669  |
"Glory To The Brave" song is great anyway
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep 
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| Mountain King K i K o Posts: 1361  |
Not the best album but the 2 ballads "I Believe" & "Glory To The Brave" are really good...
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| Infernal Eternal Posts: 647  |
I think it's quite a good album, but not the best HF has to offer.
---- {}::::::[]:::::::::::::::::> ONLY DEATH IS REAL <:::::::::::::::::[]::::::{} Rest In Peace: Bon Scott, Dave G. Halliday, Michael "Destructor" Wulf, Jerry Fogle, Quorthon, Witchhunter
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| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071  |
I will never forgive Niklas Sundin, Mikael Stanne and jesper Strömblad for forming this band together with Oscar Dronjak
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996 
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| X-Ray Rod Skandino Staff Posts: 18374  |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 19.07.2012 at 10:52 Holy crap! I... I did not know that. I feel weird now. All of them playing melodic death metal, what the hell happened in 1993... What were they thinking?! 
---- Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29 Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
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| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by X-Ray Rod on 19.07.2012 at 11:57 to make it even worse Johan Larsson was also part of the very first line-up of the band.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 19.07.2012 at 10:52 Quite a difference between this and Ceremonial Oath.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| Valentin B Iconoclast Posts: 10094  |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 19.07.2012 at 12:27 By all indications I think that the band (which was probably not even known as "Hammerfall" back then) either started out as a Gothenburg-metal band, or was basically a joke of some sort, like "hey dudes, let's get drunk and try to play Helloween mixed with Manowar and see what happens".
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| Supernaut Posts: 21 |
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| Bad English Tage Westerlund Posts: 62012  |
Written by wrathchild on 14.06.2008 at 14:13 There is dilemma and irony, I agree its not good but best band album ever, because in some way band delivered good album, others just few good songs and weeker album
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die"  I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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| Bad English Tage Westerlund Posts: 62012 |
Swedish accent where  I don't hear it , but I agree Cans don't sing well... but well maybe its magic of this album?
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die" I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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| christosdd Posts: 15  |
From the golden decade of euro power metal, the first 2 Hammerfall albums are fresh, powerful, with catchy melodies, good riffs and some nice solos..unfortunately, since then they never reached the quality of these albums.. i still enjoy Glory to the brave
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