Up-and-coming power metal outfit Battle Born made its major label debut over the weekend with the premiere of its debut album, Blood, Fire Magic and Steel. Having come less than a year after the band released its debut self-titled EP, the 11-song record is certain to impress the band’s established audiences and power metal fans in general. That is due in part to its featured musical arrangements, which will be discussed shortly. The lyrical content that accompanies the musical arrangements adds to the record’s appeal. It will be examined a little later. The record’s sequencing rounds out its most important items and will also be addressed later. Each item noted here does its own part to make Battle Born’s debut album worth hearing. Collectively they make the record a strong first outing for the band.
Blood, Fire, Magic and Steel, the debut album from Battle Born, is a work that is certain to appeal equally to the band’s established audience and to more casual power metal fans alike. That is due in no small part to its featured musical arrangements. From the outset of the 44-minute record to its finale, the arrangements featured throughout the record transcend the lines of power metal. The influences of so many of the band’s more well-known counterparts are evident throughout the album’s arrangements. ‘Fire Storm’ and ‘Dragon Heart’ for instance immediately lend themselves to comparison to works from the likes of Dragonforce, what with the use of the keyboards and the heavy guitars against the semi-operatic vocals. ‘Blood and Fire’ meanwhile is a much purer guitar-based power metal style that exhibits clear influence from the likes of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. ‘Sky Guard You’ which closes the album, presents an equally clear comparison to the likes of Beast in Black what with its symphonic power metal arrangement. Simply put, the arrangements featured throughout the album clearly show influence of so many power metal acts, but at the same time also boast their own identities separate from the works of those noted influential bands. Keeping that in mind, the musical content that makes up at least part of the album’s body is reason in itself for the noted audiences to give the record a chance.
The lyrical themes that accompany the album’s musical arrangements make for their own appeal here. Power Force,’ the record’s latest single, comes across lyrically as simply celebrating all things power metal. This is clearly inferred in the song’s chorus, which states, Power metal/Power force/No hesitation/No remorse/Power metal/Power force/You can’t resist/The power force.” This is just one of those old school fist pumpers that celebrates the genre, obviously. The band even states of the impact of power metal, “It’s the power you feel/Gives you blood, fire, magic and steel/It’s the power force.” So even more so here, listeners get a song that lyrically is just a fun, upbeat song that simply celebrates power metal as a genre. If that is not a prime example of the importance of this record’s lyrical content, then it is anyone’s guess what is.
‘Dragon Heart,’ the album’s second single, is another example of that importance. This song is, according to the band, a love song. More specifically, it is a song about forbidden love, according to the band. That message is illustrate through the song’s video which finds its protagonist, a warrior bear, finding love and security with, of all things, a dragon. The seeming point here is that love can be found in the unlikeliest of places. That the band would touch on this topic (which covers a lot of ground) and do it in such a unique fashion, lyrically speaking, shows great creativity from the band and yet another example of the importance of the album’s lyrical content.
‘Blood and Fire,’ the record’s lead single, is yet another example of the importance of the album’s lyrical content. In the case of this song, the lyrical content comes across purely as a fantasy presentation. That is evidenced through the mentions of a tyrant king and the impact of his rule on the kingdom he controls. The additional mention of another bloodline being banished to the dead adds to that fantasy sense along with the need to baptize “the unworthy” in blood and fire. It is just a fun, fantasy story set to music that is certain to engage fans of such stories (and the power metal genre) all the more. When this lyrical content is considered along with the rest of the album’s lyrical content and the other songs examined here, the whole leaves no doubt as to the importance of the album’s lyrical content to the album’s presentation. When the overall lyrical presentation featured here is considered along with the album’s overall musical presentation, the two sides work together to show even more what makes this record such a strong debut album for Battle Born.
As much as the overall content does to make Battle Born’s debut album so powerful (no pun intended), it is collectively just part of what makes the album worth hearing among the noted audiences. The record’s sequencing works with that content to make for even more engagement and entertainment. Audiences who immerse themselves in the album will not in regard to the record’s music for instance that for the most part, the music is largely loud and fiery. However, right in the middle of the record, the band changes things up starkly in the contemplative ballad, ‘The Endless Grey.’ This somber, melancholy composition is dramatically different from those of the rest of the album’s other arrangements. It serves well, in its placement, as a great way to break up the album and let listeners catch their proverbial breaths. ‘Meridia,’ which comes even later in the album’s run, opens softly, changing things up again. But that subtle opening in its opening bars is only temporary. It gives way to a much more energetic sound and style rather quickly, picking the record’s energy back up again. Simply put, from beginning to end, the album’s sequencing changes things up just enough to make things even more interesting. Sequencing to make things even more interesting. At the same time, the sequencing also changes up the song’s lyrical content at the same rate, creating even more interest. The overall result of the clearly well-thought-out sequencing is a positive general effect that ensures listeners’ engagement and entertainment just as much as the album’s content. When that content ais considered with the album’s sequencing, the whole makes Blood, Fire, Magic and Steel a positive debut album for Battle Born and one more positive addition to this year’s field of new hard rock and metal albums.
Blood, Fire, Magic and Steel, the debut album from Battle Born, is a positive first full-length outing from the up-and-coming power metal band. Its success is due in part to its overall musical content. The content in question exhibits influence from the likes of Dragonforce, Iron Maiden, Battle Beast, Judas Priest, and even Manowar while still ensuring each arrangement boasts its own identity from one song to the next. The lyrical content that accompanies the album’s musical arrangements adds more appeal to the record. That is because of its own diversity. From topics of fantasy to those of life and love, the varied themes are accessible and unique in their presentations, making for all the more engagement and entertainment. The sequencing of that content rounds out the record’s most important elements, in that it keeps things changing just enough musically and lyrically. Each item examined is important in its own way to the whole of the album’s overall presentation. All things considered they make Blood, Fire, Magic and Steel a successful first full-length outing from Battle Born and one more of the year’s top new hard rock and metal albums.
Courtesy: Prosthetic Records
In other news, Battle Born recently announced a tour in support of its new album. The UK tour is scheduled to launch Wednesday in Cambridge, UK and to run through June 3 in London, UK.
The tour’s schedule is noted below:
Blood, Fire, Magic and Steel UK Tour
17 May – The Six Six – Cambridge, UK
18 May – The Underground – Bradford, UK
19 May – Ivory Blacks – Glasgow, UK
20 May – Legends – Edinburgh, UK
21 May – The Fulford Arms – York, UK
22 May – Network – Sheffield, UK
24 May – Satan’s Hollow – Manchester, UK
25 May – The Underground – Stoke, UK
26 May – The Flapper – Birmingham, UK
27 May – The Hairy Dog – Derby, UK
28 May – Manorfest – Towcester, UK
29 May – Duffy’s Bar – Leicester, UK
31 May – The Gryphon – Bristol, UK
1 June – Fuel – Cardiff, UK
2 June – The Joiners – Southampton, UK
3 June – The Dome – London, UK
More information on Battle Born’s new album and tour is available along with all of the band’s latest news at:
Website: https://battlebornuk.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/battlebornuk
