Powerwolf - Best of the Blessed (2020)

I adore me some Powerwolf, but the last 5-10 years of the band's career have been littered with stuff you might consider cash grabs, from the number of live offerings, limited edition or otherwise, to all the other stuff like deluxe multi-disc versions of all their albums, covers album, orchestral versions, and so forth. Some of these, like The Symphony of Sin, Metallum Nostrum, and The Metal Mass - Live, make for pretty good products, but even then I'd have to say the band is laying it on thick, perhaps victims of their own productivity or maybe they just really need the cash?! Or maybe some of these weren't really the band's ideas. At any rate, Best of the Blessed is the 'greatest hits' package you just knew was coming, and at the very least it offers a pretty good amount of content, depending entirely on the version you buy.

And by that I mean, avoid the standard single disc edition entirely, because it's not a good value at all. 16 tracks, about half of which are re-recordings that do little more than bring some of the tunes off the first three records 'up to code', and I'll tell you, they didn't sound that bad in the first place, at least not to the degree that I'd ever imagine the band wanting to redo them in less than 30-40 years' time. It's not that the new editions of "Saturday Satan", "Resurrection by Erection" and "Kiss of the Cobra King" are bad...as I've said numerous times, Powerwolf is highly professional, but nonetheless, this one feels unnecessary. Maybe that professionalism is a double-edged sword...a great collection would have included a bunch of rarities, things we haven't heard, maybe a couple brand new tunes, but perhaps the band is so consistent they just don't have much left on the cutting room floor to offer. Anyway, if you're a fan of the Germans then you've already got all of this. The cover art is quite good, I like how it uses the various cover wolfs, and it comes with a nice booklet, but the musical content of the core compilation here is nothing to write home about. Not a total ripoff, since they put in a little work doing the new versions, but unneeded by any but their most devout audience.

Where it becomes a more interesting proposition is if you get the 2CD or 3CD earbook or mediabook which includes either one or two live offerings...we've already covered stuff like The Metal Mass - Live, and a lot of this stuff does seem redundant to that and their other, less impressive live albums, but at least there are a few different tracks here, and the sound quality is up to par. Plopping down the cash for all of this at once, rather than just some repressed tunes and re-recordings seems the far superior bargain. That said, this sort of thing really leads to exhaustion with a band, they seem like they're really milking it all dry. I get that they always love offering up these deluxe products, to give the fans something substantial, and you're by no means required to buy it all, but I think it's time they focused in on some killer new Lupus Dei-quality material and less on the assembly line.

Verdict: Indifference [5.5/10] (for the 3CD version), Fail [3.5/10] for the one CD.

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - The Symphony of Sin (2020)

The Symphony of Sin is such a pompous and over-the-top idea that you wonder why Powerwolf didn't pull it off any sooner. Okay, so it's not their first attempt, they did a couple orchestral versions as bonus tracks for Preachers of the Night, but not this well, and not to this extent. Clearly the sweep and dynamic range of their material has had a heavy imprint from opera and classical influences, ever since the earlier albums, and now the German ghouls and lycanthropes get to live it. And like so much of their output, it's carried out with a professionalism that is far beyond what you'd have expected they could accomplish...an adaptation of The Sacrament of Sin that, for my money, is just about as potent in this medium as it is was with the electrical guitars and thundering drums.

In fact, although it does have the sort of Wagnerian menace that you equate with a lot of metal, if I hadn't already heard the 'heavy' version, I'd have thought much of this was written for this very context. Attila's obviously a natural, and the choir does well to support his voice as well as give a similar impression to when the band is using one of its own gang choruses. You want screams or ethereal female vocals to break out? They do in "Demons are a Girl's Best Friend". The horns are brazen, the keys, organs and pipes all sound truly resilient, as if you're hearing this while traversing some haunted fortress in a modern-day Castlevania sequel. Percussion gives it a theatrical, exotic flare and barbaric seriousness worthy of Basil Poledouris. To its credit, even at its most glorious, it still maintains the superficial sense of darkness which fuels most of their better material, and it's done to such a degree here that you wonder if these fellas had a more promising career in opera?!

Maybe that's too far, but The Symphony of Sin is quite a lot of fun. If you're bored of all this sort of orchestration, it's not about to change your mind. I sometimes get a mixed opinion on it, like the new Blind Guardian Twilight Orchestra album, which is nowhere as good at this. But what makes this release valuable is just how you can feel the currents of these particular tunes shift into new dimensions that are equally valuable to the metal versions. I was also a little impressed that they did it for this entire album, and focused in on that rather than assembling a 'greatest hits' through their career, which might not have gelled so well. This is also another release which the band originally included on a multi-CD deluxe set, which I missed out on, but it's since been given its own treatment.

Verdict: Win [8.25/10]

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Metallum Nostrum (2019)

I touched a little on this material when I was reviewing the Powerwolf full-length Blessed & Possessed that it was originally attached to, a whole disc of covers that added most of the value if you were lucky enough to grab the deluxe version of that album, which I thought was otherwise one of their weaker studio efforts which was starting to just sound redundant to what they'd already released. But I wanted to come back around to Metallum Nostrum, especially as its got its own release that can be picked up by anyone who missed out the first time around, and because it's developed into one of my go-to cover albums by a power metal band, standing proudly aside Hammerfall's Masterpieces from 2008.

Powerwolf is a band I really enjoy for both the quality of much of their output, as well as the blend of Gothic horror and sacrilegious snark that stands out as so unique among the rest of the German heavy/power metal field. They're basically the Universal Monsters of the scene, and listening through Metallum Nostrum they pretty much lay bare the sorts of influences you would have expected them to cultivate into what they've become. I've come to believe that just about every choice here was well-considered and makes for something that can naturally help pad out their sets when in need of a cover that will fit snugly with their originals. From the power metal of their countrymen Running Wild's "Consquistadores" and double coverage of Judas Priest's Painkiller with "Night Crawler" and "Touch of Evil", you can tell where a lot of the propulsion of their style originated, and then from others like "The Evil That Men Do", Ozzy's "Shot in the Dark" or Sabbath's "Headless Cross", they're touching on a lot of the classics without just picking the most obvious hits, and its much appreciated.

Something like Amon Amarth is a little more far afield, and yet they once again took this one and turned it into Powerwolf proper with all the pomp and majesty you equate with their own material. Most of this stuff is just glittering with the moonlit pipe organ tones they use fluently, and Attila does a fantastic job at maintaining his own vocal identity rather than just clinging to all the other bands. "Edge of Thorns" is a sore spot for me since I'm just not a fan of those first few Zak-fronted Savatage discs, but I can totally understand how these guys would be a fan of that, and although it's the weakest tune for me, I think I like it with Attila singing a little more these days. The production is just all-out here, there might be some points where it's a little blander than on their own albums, but a lot more went into this than just taking the piss in their garage with some covers and its a fun collection that stacks up well with the rest of their catalog.

Verdict: Win [8/10]

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - The Sacrament of Sin (2018)

There was nothing inherently 'wrong' with Blessed & Possessed, the band's previous album, but it felt like a clear case of diminishing returns, Powerwolf writing more or less the same types of songs with only an arbitrary amount of variation. Plenty of fodder for the live sets, where most of these fist pumping horror-tinged power metal anthems can tend to run into one another, but just not a lot that was standing out in my mind even a half hours listening to it. Its follow-up, The Sacrament of Sin, doesn't exactly thrust the band back into the thundering graces of their first three albums, which for me remain the pinnacle in terms of songwriting ideas and truly catchy hooks and choruses, but there is something slightly more subdued and mature about this one that just ever slow slightly gets the Transylvanian express back on the tracks.

If you still want your mug-swinging, organ hymnal critiques of the Church of the past, you know the naughty Christians that hunt all those benevolent critters like vampires, werewolves and witches, and catching a lot of innocents in the crossfire, then you've got a tune like "Killers with the Cross" which is basically like Sabaton, the Haunted House edition, and it's not the only case here. "Demons Are a Girl's Best Friend" is probably one of the breakout singles here, a little naughty but busting out a nice chorus flow that surely gets a lot of folks singing along at the shows. There's also the big, sweeping "Where the Wild Wolves Have Gone", which is more of a lighter flicker, operatic escalation wrapped in power ballad aesthetics; it just comes across as the band spreading its (gargoyle) wings to try something marginally different, and that one also hits a satisfying chorus. The title track, "Fist by Fist (Sacralize or Strike)" and "Nightside of Siberia" are also a couple of favorites here which give a steady ass kicking even if they're not quite so memorable as some of the amazing things they've written in the past. The latter has a little melodic chugging pattern similar to Amon Amarth's stuff, ironic since Powerwolf covers one of their tracks on Metallum Nostrum. It works.

Production and performance are at the same high standard the band always sets for itself...even though this is not the 'classical' version of this album, it still gives that impression with a lot of the bombast created through the backing vocals, organs and synthesizers, all accompanied by simpler, driving guitars that make the band sound like its constantly on the march. Attila stretches himself pretty far with a couple of the howls here, and he's not doing anything too unique in terms of advancing or innovating his style, but the guy just sounds good whether the band is hammering away behind him or he's belting out some pompous lines to the accompaniment of only the organs or choir. In the end we're talking about an album which doesn't stand out too far above the rest, but matches up with Preachers of the Night or Blood of the Saints, dependable and slightly more inspired than Blessed & Possessed, but not much. And full disclosure: I actually think The Symphony of Sin is quite a lot better than this, you might be swapping out the metal, but those orchestrated versions are just more interesting, and alternatingly dark and glorious. Compared to that surprise, this sacrament feels a mite insipid.

Verdict: Win [7/10]

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Preaching at the Breeze (2017)

Preachers at the Breeze seems like an act of pure redundancy after The Metal Mass - Live from the year before, with the caveat that this one I believe was technically recorded BEFORE the other, at the Summer Breeze Open Air in Germany the same year (2015). I don't know if there's a huge market for Powerwolf live albums with a following similar to Dave Matthews Band, Grateful Dead or Primus where you've got rabid fans that want recordings of every show the band performs, but that's doubtful since these Germans aren't really known to improv or structure their sets drastically different than one another. As such, this feels like a total waste, especially on the heels of that great live package the year before, and several others they had put out through magazines or limited editions or whatnot.

I also think this one sounds a little rougher than The Metal Mass - Live. Perhaps that was due to the festival atmosphere, the far bigger and louder crowd, but while you can pick out the 'highs' on this album like the pipe organs and Attila's voice quite well, the guitars seem a little murkier. Overall, I would be satisfied if there wasn't a better option. The set list is also practically identical for both albums, with only 1-2 exceptions, like this one has a slightly different intro and is lacking two of the tracks from that later set. Makes sense, since the list is from the same stretch of months in the band's history and it wasn't likely to change much, but it just makes you wonder why this needed to really exist in any capacity. If you're actually on the prowl for one of the Germans' live packages, this one certainly isn't bad, but spend the money on The Metal Mass - Live if you're seeking after an audio live album you can play in your car. I think this also might come with a limited edition of Blessed & Possessed, so if you're getting this, that album, AND the covers album, it's more worth your while. There's something to be said for consistency, and at the very least they show it here in terms of production qualities and packaging.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10]

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - The Metal Mass - Live (2016)

Powerwolf has so many deluxe double disc releases of their albums that this probably wasn't their first rodeo with a proper 'live' effort; I know they had one that came with a Metal Hammer magazine, but at least for me, this was my first experience hearing these loveable Saarland spook-metallers on a full live recording, and I expected they'd give it as much effort as they seem to do anything else. This was right around the time I had started to lose a little interest in their studio material, not because I thought any of it was bad, just that I thought they were feeling a little redundant with both the writing, the cover art choices, etc. That ghost ship would eventually right itself, as I've enjoyed The Sacrament of Sin more than Blessed & Possessed, but at least hearing it live would possess some novelty.

Spoiler: it does, but at the same time, the band has an insanely professional sound here which is not a far cry from how they sound in the studio. Attila's voice soars here with all its Romanian bombast, the guy is no joke...he's not the highest pitched or most versatile, but he's got a burly tone that just takes command of the audience and he doesn't really fuck up, hardly, at all. Some might consider that a bit of a weakness, since they want to hear the more 'real' attack on stage, but in a European scene whose power and Gothic metal bands are so honed in on polish and presentation, what I'm hearing from these Germans has to place them right at the top of the pile. The guitars and organs sound awesome, the drums have a nice slap to them which sounds especially good when they're doing the marching beats alongside the operatic arrangements, and I've rarely heard such a smooth mix of the audience cheering...it almost sounds too good to be true. Doesn't hurt that it's also being recorded on their home turf, so you can hear Dorn speaking to them in German between tunes and even that sounds just about perfect!

The set list is definitely where it misses out a little, almost entirely ignoring my favorite album Lupus Dei other than the title track...but no "In Blood We Trust", "When the Moon Shines Red", "Mother Mary is a Bird of Prey" or "We Take it from the Living", tunes I'd figure would be staples. I don't think the debut makes it on here at all, but Bible of the Beast through Blessed & Possessed are all covered well enough if you dig those, and they do such a flawless job representing that stuff that it's hard to hold a grudge...they were probably just tired of the earlier material, and much of the band's popularity picked up in the 2010s as they had built a solid live presence for tours and festivals. This is quite a good live effort, and Powerwolf has proven that they do not screw around, whether it be their studio output, cover songs album, live performances, or even the more recent symphonic version of The Sacrament of Sin. They believe in themselves, and spare no expense or effort to succeed, and as silly as they can seem with their ghoulish stage makeup, they demand respect and they've got mine. I still haven't tried out their board game though, Armata Strigoi...that will be the ultimate test...

Verdict: Win [7.75/10]

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Call of the Wild (2021)

Call of the Wild sadly doesn't offer up anything new or nuanced as far as the Powerwolf formula. From the songwriting to the very samey look to the cover artwork, if could be mistaken for any of the last 4-5 albums they've released, and that seems such a shame, for a band which puts this much effort into its material to play it so safe, when the formidable talent they've got could be applied more creatively. More musical tones, more color tones, new concepts. I notice too that this seems to a trend among the European power sect, even my most beloved bands do enter these long ruts of redundant releases, you could have said the same for a Running Wild or U.D.O. Fortunately, they both still put out a lot of kickass albums over the majority of their career, and ALSO fortunate is that Powerwolf have at least come up with a more fun set of originals than they have in years. Combine that with the pretty amazing 3CD-set they've put together for their fans, and Call of the Wild, despite my misgivings, is still probably my favorite album they've wrought upon us since the first three.

You pretty much know the drill if you've heard anything they've produced over the last decade or so, the transition into the more orchestra-focused bombast of the Goth horror alternative to Sabaton continues, though even at their worst I think I enjoy what Attila and company come up with far more than most of the Swedes' material. Big, soaring heavy/power metal riffs, entertaining and often innuendo-strung lyrics and choruses, constant orchestration which almost always resembles the Wagner school, and Attila's distinct vocals which are delivered at the same quality and pitch they always have been, the guy shifting between his operatic tricks and the weight and volume that he needs to secure himself among that whole class of character-driven German power metal vocalists like Rolf Kasparek, Hansi Kursch, Kai Hansen, Andi Deris and Chris Boltendahl. The mix of strings and choirs is probably a notch higher quality than their previous shots, although it doesn't distance itself much structurally. The leads and riffs are good if not totally standout, the drumming is potent and the entire atmosphere of this could be heard to diamond cut the band's style into its most coherent yet. All of the songs here are fun enough, beyond the initial singles you've got stuff like "Varcolac", "Dancing With the Dead", "Sermon of Swords", "Undress to Confess" and "Reverent of Rats" which I'd be happy to mix into any Powerwolf playlist, and as with a lot of records, if you're new to this symphonic/operatic style of metal I think you'll easily be blown away by how professional and comfortable they sound in the niche.

Beyond the fact that it's 'more of the same but better', the bonus content here is quite excellent. There's a second disc of 'hits' from the band's catalogue in which they're joined by a number of other popular vocalists. A few of them try the wedge in 'extreme' vocals of folks like Alissa White-Gluz, Johan Hegg and 'Speed' Strid to mixed results, White-Gluz in particular sounds cheesy but then I've never been a fan of her style. The cleaner approaches taken by Euro power metal royalty Ralf Scheepers and Doro Pesch are quite though, and I was quite surprised by the results when they used some more Goth vocals like Chris Harms. All in all though, I enjoyed listening through this a lot, its another example of how the band gives its audience their money's worth, I mean if you're going to shell out $20-25 for the 3CD or 3LP it's just not something you'll regret. The final disc is the usual purely orchestral treatment of the new tunes, and some of them really shine here, especially at the end with the trio of "Sermon of Swords", "Undress to Confess" and "Reverent of Rats", all memorable enough to toss on your speakers when you're running your epic fantasy RPGs or wargames. Again, Powerwolf is all about the value, and these extra discs might end up getting at least 50% the play as the core album.

I will reiterate that I wouldn't complain if Powerwolf took some risks to evolve a little, maybe even 'devolve' a little back to the superb songwriting of their masterful Lupus Dei sophomore, still my fave after all these years. There were surely some symphonic elements, but they felt more restrained back then and I'd love if if they got back to more guitar-centric territory. New color palettes and artwork also wouldn't hurt; Zsofia Dankova's extremely talented and I think she could mix it up a little if they wanted her to. But as far as the overall Call of the Wild impressions, it's rock solid and I've certainly enjoyed the time I've spent with it so far, it would make a great crowning jewel to transition into territories even more haunted, atmospheric, lycanthropic, and hopefully, surprising.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (breaking down the altar and the verse)

https://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Blessed & Possessed (2015)

The past three Powerwolf albums have felt a lot like I was in the film Groundhog Day, reliving the same experience over and over with only minimal tweaks based on my own actions. Stylistically they've been on auto-pilot since around the sophomore Lupus Dei, but that was an excellent record with almost unanimously catchy tracks that showed the Germans at the limit of what they are able to accomplish and offer us. But since 2011 (and arguably 2009), the songwriting seems to largely have run out of ideas or nuances that could take their bombastic brand of lupine power metal to unheard heights, and even the cover art feels almost exactly the same with each new effort...fuck, swap up the color palette or something? I mean, resting on your laurels is one thing, hibernating on them is another entirely, and even though Powerwolf is consistent with regards to its production and musical proficiency, the returns seem to be diminishing, the receipts adding up to nowhere, and it's impossible to anticipate their releases with much joy when I feel like I could just switch up a few riffs from the last one and experience all the deviance and variation I should expect. It works for Motörhead, maybe a few other bands, but once in awhile you've got to go a little further over the top or you'll start scraping the bottom.

Granted, things aren't that dire in this Wolf camp, and Blessed & Possessed proves a serviceable affair with all the proper QC competence boxes checked off: Attila's soaring, sustained Ozzymass vocals hold up just as much as before, but the melodies and note progressions he belts forth often feel redundant to those he's already brought us. The song structures alternate between the slower, stand stomping meters and faster Euro-power rhythms, always dowsed in organ tone synthesizers as thick as any lycanthrope's hide, yet even where the tunes become the most pompous and you can just picture whatever audience actually likes this band donning their Dracula 2666 LARP costumes and shaking mugs of red-dyed light beer, almost like a Korpiklaani gig with more furries and fake blud. The leads are adequate, often the best parts of the entire album, and the Germans make sure to incorporate as many variations upon "Carmina Burana" as possible to break up the thundering beats and nigh endless choruses that the album feels like it possesses...to the point that even though verses and escalations are present, it still feels like there is little delineation betwixt the two. As a result, Blessed & Possessed too rarely gives itself room to breathe, it's so suffocated with self-plagiarism, vocal/percussion sequences that seem lifted directly from earlier tunes. Some tunes like "Dead Until Dark" and "Christ & Combat" still pluck at the silly strings that spawned my earlier admiration for just how absurd they were, but remain stagnant by the most glorious means.

You cannot, however, accuse the Germans of not giving you enough bang for your buck, if you are wise enough to pick up the Napalm Records 2CD version, which is comprised of ten cover tracks done up in all the requisite glory. These are all pretty obvious, like a pair of Judas Priest tunes off Painkiller ("Touch of Evil" and "Nightcrawler", of course), and some Ozzy and Sabbath, but they reach a little further with songs by Running Wild ("Conquistadores"), Chroming Rose ("Power and Glory") and it's quite nice to see them address that heritage. I actually prefer their version of "Edge of Thorns" to the Savatage original if only because I can't stand Stevens' voice and I like the emotional little trill Attila spits out here. A bigger shock is transforming Amon Amarth's "Gods of War Arise" into pure Powerwolf, it works as well as one might have hoped and solidifies the fact that, if little else, these gentlemen are professionals. They don't fuck around with lazy covers, even when making 'safe' choices, each are given a little of that personal spin...I'm not lying when I tell you that I dug the covers disc even more than a lot of the new material, and I think if you acquire this version it does increase the overall value of the package. Ultimately, Blessed & Possessed is by no means a 'bad album', assuming you just want more of the same, but I for one hope that Powerwolf conjures up a few more compelling ideas for its next moonlight symphony. I fear my interest was already waning with the last.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10] (cursed by our desire)

http://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Preachers of the Night (2013)

The pseudo-Transylvanian answer to Manowar, Powerwolf elicits both admiration from the heavy metal fan who learns not to take their schtick too seriously, and ire from the heavy metal fan who does not. They've always run the risk of a paper-thin gimmick wearing out its welcome, a sacrilegious and horror-inspired lyrical pool, puns in titles and choruses that have become almost idiosyncratic to the band itself, and the goofy corpse paint thing which might not look nearly as threatening on these Germans as it would on Marduk. But, so what? I'm not about to kick my Alice Cooper, KISS and King Diamond records to the curb for initiating these theatrics, because when it comes down to it: I am not ashamed to be a Powerwolf fan. This is a band who I rely upon not only for the tongue-in-cheek themes in their music, but also for some goddamn fun. Big Euro heavy metal riffs, organs and atmospherics that set up an appropriately cheesy haunted house/cathedral atmosphere, and chest-beating, mildly operatic Attila Dorn vocals which create instant synaptic triggers in my brain that make me want to return to their songs again and again...fuck, Lupus Dei is STILL in my car. I need to get it out of there before it melts!

Now, having said all that and fallen prostrate before Powerwolf, I felt that their last effort, 2011's Blood of the Saints, was beginning to run low on ideas, and certainly starting to follow its own tracks through the forest a little too closely. Granted, a lot of other European power or trad metal acts could be accused of the same flaw, putting out the same album, repeatedly, ad infinitum, but with Powerwolf, the problem is that Attila's vocal melodies are so crucial to the quality of the songs that redundant note progressions can cripple the compositions for anyone already versed in the older albums. This is why they peaked in 2007, with a record that myself and many of my friends would constantly sing along and air-organ to...it was completely fresh, unexpected (except to the handful of people who heard the debut), and hilarious. The first and third efforts were comparable if less catchy, but by the time Blood of the Saints arrived, the pack had grown weary with little new game to hunt, all groomed up and ready for a kill, but no prey in sight. A decent album, surely, but entertaining song titles and exquisite cover artwork (which this record and the last both have) can only get you so far, the tracks themselves have to continuously beat themselves into the madhouse of your brain and lock themselves in its basement asylum...

That leads us to Preachers of the Night, which arrived with the pomp and gusto of both a lead-in single and EP featuring "Amen & Attack", a reasonably engaging tune fueled by a decent, sweeping chorus that feels almost like it belongs in a Gothic, lycanthropic spaghetti western, and some thundering, staccato picked guitars supporting the rampant synthesizers. Okay, I'll bite, since it's just as good as anything off the previous disc, at the very least. Sadly, though, Dorn's vocals are just drawing upon the same bag of tricks here that make most of the chorus sequences on the record feel like slightly altered phrasings on lines he has used in the past. Clearly, this guy has a range, so why isn't he using it more? I would not at all be opposed to hearing him base some verses around other, less grandiose scales, more discordant progressions, or go somewhere unexpected like hovering in his lower register for an entire track. There is this sense here that Powerwolf is not challenging themselves whatsoever, resting upon its blood-dripping rosary beads, and though they make an earnest attempt through the musicianship and writing to provide a few nail-biters, they simply open up too many of these tracks with the same bastardized "Carmina Burana" by way of Richard Wagner and the Therion orchestra...

Too obvious, guys, really, playing it safe. One might assume that by record #5, the comfort zone would become restrictive and uncomfortable, thus warranting some further experimentation, but this has not proven the case. I suppose that, from a musical standpoint, they have grown to encompass a slightly broader range to the structure of the guitars; for instance, the harmony initiating "Sacred & Wild" felt new, and tunes like "Secrets of the Sacristy" feel like Powerwolf is encompassing an anthemic Gamma Ray/Freedom Call sensibility with busier, more acrobatic guitar lines, but then the 'hallelujah' vocals just drag you back into the limited palette of diminishing returns, so it's all reduced to standard power metal with the one caveat being the operatic vocalist. And that's really how I'd describe it to a newcomer: dramatic power obsessed with idealistic, stereotypical Gothic horror. The Vision Bleak gone Sabaton. It could be far worse, of course, they could slinging about the usual, generic uplifting power metal buzzwords like 'eternity' and 'destiny', 'wings of _ _ _ _ _', 'glory' dosed liberally with self-referential discussions of how metal they are, but evil churches, fallen saints, vampires and werewolves can also grow tired after a spell.

I do like that they've got a song ("Nochnoi Dozor") which I believe is based on the modern Russian horror novel and film of the same name; and that they also do a number ("Kreuzfeuer") in their native tongue. The latter is a pensive storm with a lot of warlike drumming which builds to the inevitable climax in which one realizes that Powerwolf sounds pretty damn good in German, and also the most unique sounding track of the lot. You can always tell that they put a lot of effort into the production and arrangements, but their minds are too often driven by the predictable climaxes of theater and opera, so they're hardly the modern equivalent to Queen (even if they obviously have listened to them). Some will find the very brickwalled, clean and potent guitar tone and drums a bit too perfect for their liking, and I can't say I entirely disagree. Perhaps this is one of the ways the Germans could experiment in the future...a rougher, grainier guitar tone and more of an occult, psychedelic horror vibe with less overt organs, but keeping the same humor in the lyrics. This would also allow Attila more room to play around with his vocals in an intimate setting.

Ultimately, though, Preachers of the Night is more of the same we got on the last album, without any large, discernible rise or dip in songwriting or tonal quality, though this might be a fraction more bombastic and effective if I were to make a direct comparison track by track. I was actually disappointed to find that it was quite a lot less humorous than their earliest outings...the lyrics deal more with a conceptual, alternate historical takeover of the Catholic church by wolf-men. Not a bad idea, but if you're expecting the joy of "Saturday Satan", you're out of luck. That aside, if you really loved the previous two outings and merely want more of the same, then you'll probably devour this one, but I admit to growing wary of the same repeated spectacle year in and year out. It speaks...err...howls volumes to me that the songs on Lupus Dei still blow away anything that has come since, and back then the production felt even cleaner and louder, a little less compacted by the over the top symphonics and vocal arrangements. In their defense, they've put too much care and effort into this record to be anything less than 'good', but it really walks...err...stalks the border between success and mediocrity. Stagnation imminent, if not immediate: if you can teach an old dog new tricks, can the same be said for a wolf? I hope Attila Dorn and crew answer this the next time they venture out into the moonlight.

Verdict: Win [7/10] (the resurrection of the carnivore)

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Powerwolf - Blood of the Saints (2011)

Let's face it, folks, Powerwolf's absurdist nature and reliance on theatrical corpse paint is not about to win them over many new fans among those that take their flower metal seriously. Yet the band has thus far always come through with regards to their songwriting, with three entertaining albums already under their belts, one of which, Lupus Dei, was astoundingly memorable and fun. They've been releasing a new full-length every other year, maintaining a steady rate of production without spreading themselves too thin, so I'm a little sad to say that it appears the Romanian-German act has run full out of steam conceptually, and Blood of the Saints feels like a mere retread over the pack's previous proving grounds.

I was actually pretty stoked for this record when I heard the sample track floating around called "Sanctified by Dynamite" (what a title), but it turns out that's one of the better songs on this album, with a nice escalating verse sequence building into another of those mighty (and silly) chorus parts that ricochets around in your head. The riffing and leads are once again tight; they are solid throughout the entire album, in fact, but very few individually scream out for instant replays, and thus once more the burden is lain upon Attila Dorn, whose high register howling is redolent of a more potent, operatic Ozzy Osbourne, and performs his task with the same faculty as all the previous albums. But there are really no new tricks here. The same pipe organs are used to give same haunted castle impressions, the choruses are beginning to bleed together in the memory, and the lyrics all revolve around the same subjects: vampires, werewolves, the Church, Satan, funerals and so forth. I understand it's 'their thing', but how many 'blood' and 'wolf' anthems are the band going to write? "We Drink Your Blood", "All We Need is Blood", "Son of a Wolf", "Night of the Werewolves". You see what I'm getting at.

That's not to say that Blood of the Saints is bad, because it's not. It plays it completely safe, with the only deviation arriving in the muted rock intro riff to "Night of the Werewolves". The album sounds enormous, polished, and professional, much like any other they've released. Those who want only a mirror reproduction of Lupus Dei or Bible of the Beast will find the fourth opus much to their tastes, but I for one wouldn't mind if Powerwolf waxed a little more creativity into their writing, rather than just repeating themselves to diminishing returns. They already bought me with the tongue-in-cheek horror and blasphemy years ago. Now would be the time for some further development of character and theme. There are some genuinely entertaining songs to be found here, in particular the driving German power metal surges like "Phantom of the Funeral" and "Dead Boys Don't Cry", but ultimately it seems to course along the same old Möbius strip, looping back on itself ad infinitum. They've got the air raid siren front man. They've got the sacrilege. They've got the fangs. They've got the 'image' (love it or hate it). Now break the downward spiral and bite our heads off again. No more scraping by.

Verdict: Win [7/10]

http://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Return in Bloodred (2005)

In retrospect, my initial reaction to Powerwolf's unique mixture of cult horror aesthetic and booming heavy metal siren seemed rather foolish, for I've come to greatly appreciate their sound through the past 5 years, in particular that of their sophomore outing Lupus Dei. But my first time listening through Return in Bloodred, I wasn't sure what to think. Did these guys not get the message that a bad gothic getup was hardly the ticket to success at the crossroads of classic heavy and power metal? Fuck, it didn't work out for Crimson Glory, and these German-Transilvanians were nearly as ridiculous looking as Sweden's Lost Horizon.

Of course, as often happens when one makes rash judgments about anything, I was wrong in giving even a cursory thought to the band's image, because their music is really something else. Lively and welcome, the band's arsenal of catchy, gothic power metal creates an immediate distinction from the fleet of Judas Priest, Rhapsody and Helloween clones that were assailing the continent. No, you won't hear a sped-up, X-treme Gamma Ray here (i.e. Dragonforce), or a soulless interpretation of Stratovarius, but an entirely different beast that balances Deep Purple, 80s Sabbath, and Alice Cooper with the cult sounds of NWOBHM bands like Demon or Witchfynde. Interestingly, vocalist Attila Dorn was not in all out firing mode here on the debut, Return in Bloodred. Whereas Lupus Dei offered a glance at what Ozzy might be doing in the 21st century if not for sucking and being slowly put out to pasture, Dorn's performance here is far more restrained, with an emphasis on his middle range. He still screams, but not quite at the level of 'mad gypsy siren' found on the sophomore.

In fact, I feel so spoiled by Lupus Dei (which is a vast improvement over this album) that much of Return in Bloodred feels subdued, which chorus parts not nearly as striking as those the band will later concoct. But there is some solid heavy metal here, complete with organs and big, simple rock rhythms set against an old European landscape of cobwebbed castles, howling wolves and a blood red moon. Tracks like "The Evil Made Me Do It" and "Lucifer in Starlight" crawl along with a massive, doomed influence, Dorn giving some his most powerful performances on the album. You get the feeling this material could be played as a horror rock opera, much like a King Diamond or Alice Cooper, and the band has the uncanny to craft an almost 'Gothic Wild West' motif when they stray away from the verse and chorus.

"Montecore" is one of the more powerful tracks on the album, beginning with Dorn's soothing heights along the sample of a babe, before a huge, Arabesque rhythm cedes to the steady triplets of the verse. "Son of the Morning Star" is a pompous, elevating martial power ballad in which Dorn offers some endearing, if completely cornball narrative (and a brief duet with a female singer in the opening). Not all the songs are perfect. For example, "We Came to Take Your Souls" is a raging, basal rocker with utterly cheesy lyrics about fighting for metal and the like. Not that memorable. "Black Mass Hysteria" is a slower, predictable piece with some nice little leads cutting through the vocals, but not much by way of quality riffs. On the other hand, "Kiss of the Cobra King" is amazing, with excellent vocals and a truly singalong chorus (best representative of the Lupus Dei material). "Mr. Sinister" is also a fairly kick ass opener, with cool, controlled licks and a chorus highly reminiscent of Ozzy at the prime of his solo career (at least in popularity, the early 90s efforts).

In all, this is an enjoyable effort, with a few tracks lagging behind the rest of the band's career. The mix is wholesome, and you truly get a shiver as if you're listening to the entire album in a cathedral with high vaulted ceilings, while the full moon and all its terrors lurk just outside the sanctity of the pulpit and crucifix. Is it cheesy? Sure it is, but the good kind, and I'm sure the band had the clear intention of writing in a style you laugh at while banging your heads and fists to. Perhaps the biggest problem with Return in Bloodred is that it the band would go on to destroy it with the follow-up. But a few of the songs here walk toe to toe (or paw to paw) with anything on Lupus Dei, and I'd say this was just as good as their 3rd album Bible of the Beast.

Highlights: Mr. Sinister, Kiss of the Cobra King, Demons & Diamonds, Lucifer in Starlight

Verdict: Win [8/10]

http://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Lupus Dei (2007)

In all honesty, Lupus Dei is the type of album Ozzy Osbourne should be releasing these days. Not to infer that he would be capable, but Powerwolf really has that same cheesy, pompous veneer that made Ozzy so great on his solo albums during the 80s. That said, at least we have Powerwolf to offer us these libations to gothic horror, alongside the band's unforgettable, brazen chorus parts, haunting organs and choirs, and big, traditional metal riffs.

They've only released three albums thus far, but Lupus Dei is far and above the best of them, taking the style introduced on Return to Bloodred and cranking it to 11. Every song on this album is fucking hilarious and amazing, an anthem for every wannabe vampire goth in the Western World, and for those of us who like to laugh at them. I had already been versed on the band's campy image, and of course their debut, but even forewarned this album made my head explode, and my cheeks burn bright red for the next 45 minutes. It's jolly and in bloodsucking taste, yet quite powerful even despite itself.

After the gothic intro, "We Take it From the Living" opens with huge organs and slamming rhythms, as Attila Dorn reminds you exactly why he's one of the best voices in heavy metal. In English, OR in Latin! His voice is massive, and distinct, but despite its pitch it retains a gritty edge to it, even when smacking a higher register. "Prayer in the Dark" unleashes an onslaught of POWER metal, Dorn's vocals searing through like an elder monk reading the sins of the world from a distant Carpathian mountaintop. The gang shout chorus doesn't hurt either. "Saturday Satan" is an anthem of gorgeous organ synths, bells, and careful guitar plucking as Dorn sets up the vocal pattern. Fucking massif!

The seven is my number
Temptation is my game
I came from six feet under
And Satan...Satan is my name!

Next, we arrive at one of the finest moments on the album, the bombastic "In Blood We Trust", which engraves a pattern directly into your brain. I still walk around singing this song today...even though two years and many thousands of metal albums have passed through my awareness. The riffs are balls out here, inviting you through their simplicity and rewarding you with a punch to the chest. The next few tracks are all gold, "Behind the Leathermask" with another operatic intro that morphs into killer, meaty melodic hooks. "Vampires Don't Die" is a rager, but not one of the album's creme de la neck. "When the Moon Shines Red", however, is fucking SICK. If you know me at all, you must have the lyrics mesmerized, because I will quiz you if you're riding in my car, and if you fail....I throw you right out the passenger door. This song is HILARIOUS. Why do I need Dethklok when something like this exists?

Blessed are the hearts of the sad
The sin of the Christian believer
Soon we return from the dead
To still our blood craving fever

Fullmoon night,
Awake us from the dead
Eija-uh, a eija-eija-uh!
Firelight,
The world we see is red
Eija-uh, a eija-eija-uh!

Nothing could possibly top this, yet Powerwolf gives it their damndest for the remainer of the album, with the excellent "Mother Mary is a Bird of Prey", "Tiger of Sabrod", and the glorious, operatic title track which closes the curtains and returns you to pitiful reality. Powerwolf is a funny band, but they're not actually very cheesy. Their music is like a wakeup call: get over yourself, and have some fucking fun once in awhile. That they can offer this to their fans while crafting albums of such an unparalleled production standard is amazing. Powerwolf is loud, proud and in charge. Sadly, the follow-up to this record would not be at the same level of songwriting, though it's consistent with the style. But truly, the sky is the limit for such a band a this...

Highlights: Saturday Satan, Behind the Leathermask, In Blood We Trust, When the Moon Shines Red, Mother Mary is a Bird of Prey

Verdict: Epic Win [9.5/10] (we came out of storm and nightmare)

http://www.powerwolf.net/

Powerwolf - Bible of the Beast (2009)

It's clear by now that Powerwolf are a somewhat silly band, parading about in their gothic makeup while they sing ridiculous gothic power metal songs about vampires, werewolves and the devil. These are adorned with all the pomp and circumstance once could imagine: organs, manly gang shouting where important, and lyrics that will literally break you down laughing.

The thing is, the band is really good at this, and more than a little self aware. Bible of the Beast pushes the envelope of absurdity just a bit farther than Lupus Dei lyrically, but the presentation is much the same. Attila Dorn's powerful register drives the simple and effective rhythms while Falk Maria Schlegel's organs and atmosphere bind the tracks into that very peculiar style which separates Powerwolf from the rest of the European power metal scene. They also like to give 'shout outs' in their music by writing various tracks about Eastern Eurasia (i.e. "Moscow After Dark" and "Werewolves of Armenia"). Although these are topical, they are also likely to create an added bond with the listenership. Some of the lyrics and song titles are pretty far out there this time, ranging from funny ("Raise Your Fist Evangelist" and "Catholic in the Morning...Satanist at Night") to just dumb ("Resurrection by Erection").

Just like its predecessors, Bible of the Beast sounds amazing. A bold and beautiful mix which highlights each individual piece of the puzzle, wisely leaving Dorn's vocals at the apex while the organ and synthesizers formulate lush gothic atmospheres that summon imagery of a not so olde world of gothic cathedrals and countryside, where Transylvanian terrors await in each shadow but the most frightening monster is the beast within. The album is pretty consistent in quality, though few of the tracks are as catchy as those on Lupus Dei. Rather than a step forward, this album seems more of a step sideways. Highlights for myself would be "Raise Your Fist Evangelist", "Midnight Messiah", "We Take the Church by Storm" and "Werewolves of Armenia" for its nice thrashing riff.

In the end, it's just another night at the opera for Powerwolf. If you enjoyed Return to Bloodred and Lupus Dei, then this is par for the course. There weren't any tracks which struck me quite as loudly as "When the Moon Shines Red" or "In Blood We Trust" from the previous album, but they're all fun, and this material should blend seamlessly into their live sets.

Verdict: Win [8/10]

http://www.powerwolf.net/