Band:	Crimson Shadows
Album:	Kings Among Men
Style:	Extreme power metal
Release date:	September 01, 2014
A review by:	Doc G.

01. March Of Victory
02. Rise To Power
03. Heroes Among Us
04. A Gathering Of Kings
05. Maidens Call
06. Braving The Storm
07. On The Eve Of Battle (Intro)
08. Freedom And Salvation
09. Dawn Of Vengeance
10. Moonlite Skies And Bloody Tides

Let's face it people, epic metal is fucking dumb when you think about it. Grown men so obsessed with their Dungeons & Dragons adventures they give them life via recording entire albums. Cocaine, expensive tranny hookers and D&D have proven an awful mix, as we usually end up with two outcomes: Either the musician takes their bloated creation waaay too seriously, or they mock it so much they come across as resentful of own musical creations, and their fans in the process. It's always nice to hear some balance between self-aware fun and serious effort. Crimson Shadows epitomize that.

Crimson Shadows aren't exactly doing anything brand-new here, but they're just doing it damn well. Take the more extreme moments of Victory Songs era Ensiferum, maybe a dose of Amon Amarth, then pair it up with the oh-so-catchy melodies from DragonForce...

...If you've just read the word "DragonForce" and you haven't hastily returned to your porn other business, Crimson Shadows is for you. There's just something so indescribably connectable with this band. It's epic, heavy metal with no pompous bullshit. Kings Among Men does exactly what it sets out to do; deliver an epic, catchy, aggressive album that's assloads of fun. It's epic without over-production, catchy but not pandering and fun without the self-deprication.

Much like DragonForce, unfortunately, Crimson Shadows falls into pits of seemingly never-ending guitar solos, which they try to dig themselves out of with more solos. Guitar geeks out there might eat that shit up, but for the rest of us slobs, it's just wanking. Songs like "Braving The Storm" and "Moonlite Skies and Bloody Tides" really don't need to be six-minutes-plus a piece, but they're extended to "epic" length through aimless, albeit skillful guitar solos. The upside is that these tracks are quarantined, as if they're saying "You assholes like guitar solos? Well, now it's time to masturbate along with us!" Crimson Shadows are bestest when they're tightest.

If you like your power metal albums capable of actually tearing shit up, Give Kings Among Men a shot.[/