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Human Fortress - Raided Land review



Reviewer:
8.0

31 users:
7.16
Band: Human Fortress
Album: Raided Land
Release date: November 2013


01. Raided Land
02. Child Of War
03. Wasted Years
04. The Chosen One
05. Shelter
06. Gladiator Of Rome (Part 2)
07. Dark Knight
08. Prelude
09. Pray For Salvation
10. Evil Curse
11. Restless Souls
12. Under Siege
13. Guard The Blind

"A classic is classic not because it conforms to certain structural rules, or fits certain definitions (of which its author had quite probably never heard). It is classic because of a certain eternal and irrepressible freshness."
- Edith Wharton


Human Fortress play classic power metal.

If the first sentence hasn't brought you to close this review, welcome aboard. And, I would say, congratulations for your trust, since Human Fortress, though playing power metal, are far from being another copycat of the famous bands of the genre, having developed and shaped throughout the years their very own conception of power metal.

The band, in fact, before becoming what now appears to us, used to play hard rock under the name of Timezone. And this is a feature that's clearly appreciable in all their releases, and Raided Land is no exception.

Human Fortress return after five years of silence with a renewed line-up and the intent to enliven the flame of their early and successful albums, taking a step back to their dawning, concerning the style. This brings to the fact that Raided Land mainly has the sound of a power metal release, but lacks the features that have made this genre so loathed. Guitars, in fact, have no fear in being heavy and relevant, instead of sounding thin as raindrops bouncing on a steel plate just for the sake of achieving a shrill and "nordic" sound, drums don't measure their quality in beats per minute, and the singer (newcomer ex- Adagio and Revolution Renaissance's Gus Monsanto) doesn't feel the urge to break crystal chalices with useless high-pitched notes.

However, an inappropriate song placement brings to the fact that approaching this album with the typical genre specialist's multi-year experience can be dangerous, as it leads them to expect the album opener to be the best, maybe alongside with the closer. The strongest part of Raided Land is, in fact, in its core, with the medieval semi-ballad "Wasted Years", the power metal fun "Gladiator Of Rome (Part 2)" (where Monsanto could have dared to strain his voice a little more), the heavy and mid-paced "Dark Knight" and the epic and melodic "Pray For Salvation".

Raided Land is an album that is undeniably full of ideas, some of which could have been pushed a little more, and with the exclusion of a few fillers, such as the avoidable "Shelter" or "Guard The Blind," it would have been fighting among the best power metal albums of the year. But this is still a solid and epic release, willing to satisfy every genre die-hard and also some genre foreigners.

Human Fortress incorporates the best of both power metal and hard rock: it's armors and jackets, castle stakes and beach bonfires. Who can say that the leaders of a hoped power metal rebirth won't be bands such as this...





Written on 11.12.2013 by Hopefully you won't agree with me, diversity of opinions is what makes metal so beautiful and varied.

So... critics and advices absolutely welcome.


Comments

Comments: 5   Visited by: 148 users
12.12.2013 - 14:54
NocturnalStalker
Metal Addict
Congratulations, Lewis! Your review made me consider giving this album a try.
Even though, I've long ago given up on power metal, but there is a faint hope somewhere deep inside me that there will come a band (or maybe bands) that will rejuvenate the sub-genre that has been drowned in a mire of plagiarism.
----
"And we are not who we think we are
We are who we're afraid to be"
- Lux Occulta "The Opening of Eleventh Sephirah"
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12.12.2013 - 18:08
Rating: 8
R Lewis

Written by NocturnalStalker on 12.12.2013 at 14:54

Congratulations, Lewis! Your review made me consider giving this album a try.
Even though, I've long ago given up on power metal, but there is a faint hope somewhere deep inside me that there will come a band (or maybe bands) that will rejuvenate the sub-genre that has been drowned in a mire of plagiarism.

Thanks, that's the best thing to read for a reviewer.
Let's just hope this won't be the album that will wipe out your last traces of respect for power metal
----
We could be so much more than we are. Stop.
Loading...
12.12.2013 - 19:45
Cynic Metalhead
Paisa Vich Nasha
Written by R Lewis on 12.12.2013 at 18:08

Written by NocturnalStalker on 12.12.2013 at 14:54

Congratulations, Lewis! Your review made me consider giving this album a try.
Even though, I've long ago given up on power metal, but there is a faint hope somewhere deep inside me that there will come a band (or maybe bands) that will rejuvenate the sub-genre that has been drowned in a mire of plagiarism.

Thanks, that's the best thing to read for a reviewer.


That's a big compliment from his side, Lewis.

You turn his power metal taste upside down. Must be strong attraction force.

Well done.
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12.12.2013 - 19:52
Rating: 8
R Lewis

Written by Cynic Metalhead on 12.12.2013 at 19:45

You turn his power metal taste upside down. Must be strong attraction force.

Hail the first human pole reverser!
----
We could be so much more than we are. Stop.
Loading...
13.12.2013 - 15:40
NocturnalStalker
Metal Addict
Written by R Lewis on 12.12.2013 at 18:08

Thanks, that's the best thing to read for a reviewer.
Let's just hope this won't be the album that will wipe out your last traces of respect for power metal


Actually, I was a pretty big power metal admirer in my early metal days. I really loved listening to the bands such as Blind Guardian, Helloween, Gamma Ray, Rhapsody (not yet Of Fire)... But then I gradually get bored with it. There are some nice power metal albums nowadays, but none that would blow my mind. Then again, I'm still waiting for a miracle.
Well, I'm in the black hole of the world, where Internet connection is slower than a turtle, at this moment, but I will listen to this album, when I get back home.
----
"And we are not who we think we are
We are who we're afraid to be"
- Lux Occulta "The Opening of Eleventh Sephirah"
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