Band:	Orden Ogan
Album:	To The End
Style:	Power metal
Release date:	October 26, 2012
A review by:	Baz Anderson

Disc I
01. The Frozen Few
02. To The End
03. The Things We Believe In
04. Land Of The Dead
05. The Ice Kings
06. Till The Stars Cry Out
07. This World Of Ice
08. Dying Paradise
09. Mystic Symphony
10. Angels War
11. Take This Light
12. Masks [Limited Edition Digipack bonus]
13. The Battle Of Waterloo [Running Wild cover] [Limited Edition Digipack bonus]

Disc II [Limited Edition DVD "Live In Wacken 2010"]
01. Intro
02. To New Shores of Sadness
03. Reality Lost
04. Farewell
05. Welcome Liberty
06. Easton Hope
07. We are Pirates
08. Angels War
09. Mystic Symphony
10. Outro
11. The Things We Believe In
12. Behind the Scenes

As a board generalisation, power metal these days comes either with extra cheese or saturated with symphonies. Orden Ogan are a German power metal band that have been plugging away for a few years now, and with the release of their fourth album provide something the scene has been somewhat lacking; a simple, solid and enjoyable album.

The unmistakable Teutonic power metal style is ever present here; strong songs, catchy chorus' and a hint of the apparently forgotten speed metal genre - much in the same vein as fellow Tutons Blind Guardian and Helloween. Orden Ogan don't need overly cringe-worthy lyrics, facepalm-worthy attempts at radio singles, or a symphonic orchestra to make an impression.

To The End is undoubtedly the band's most consistent and enjoyable album to date, with some belting songs throughout. Orden Ogan perform this style of metal wonderfully with great choral/layered vocals, great riffs, and a handful of memorable songs; "Land Of The Dead" and "Till The Stars Cry Out" to name two among plenty more in the stronger second half of the album. It might be very straight-forward stuff, but the simplicity goes a fair way in showing the bigger bands that solid song writing can't be created by slapping symphonies over the top.

By no means does To The End break any barriers or win awards for originality. This strong German style has been done by countless bands in the past, but that's just the thing; while you might have worn your Tales From The Twilight World CD into dust, To The End is a new album and not so much a breath of fresh air, but a sigh of relief for the power metal genre.

It's been done a thousand times before, but Orden Ogan do it very well. Let this be a reminder to the bigger bands about the importance of those core ingredients; solid riffs and honest, catchy chorus' when it comes to writing a metal album.

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Power metal
AFM Records
Germany
Length: 54:42