• New Music Reviews
• |
• Archives
• |
• News
• |
• Submissions
• |
• About
• |
• 
• |
• 

April 2024

• War Grave: War Grave EP
• Six By Six: Beyond Shadowland
• Vanden Plas: The Empyrean Equation Of The Long Lost Things
• Praying Mantis: Defiance
• King Zebra: Between The Shadows
• About Us: Take A Piece
• Blue Oyster Cult: Ghost Stories

March 2024

• Cruzh: The Jungle Revolution
• Whom Gods Destroy: Insanium
• The Prog Collective: Dark Encounters
• Lords Of Black: Mechanics Of Predacity
• Lipz: Changing The Melody
• The End Machine: The Quantum Phase
• Stargate: Escaping The Illusion
• Turbulence: Binary Dream
• Sonata Arctica: Clear Cold Beyond
• D'Luna: Monster
• Big Big Train: The Likes Of Us
• Benjamin Croft: We Are Here To Help

February 2024

• Traveler: Prequel To Madness
• Lionheart: The Grace Of A Dragonfly
• Honeymoon Suite: Alive
• Durbin: Screaming Steel
• Smoking Snakes: Danger Zone
• Revolution Saints: Against The Winds
• Striker: Ultrapower
• Show N Tell: The Ritual Has Begun
• Robert Hart: Circus Life

January 2024

• Corvus: Immortals
• Caligula's Horse: Charcoal Grace
• Grand: Second To None
• Neal Morse: The Restoration - Joseph - Part Two
• The Rods: Rattle The Cage
• Gotus: Gotus
• Metalite: Expedition One
• Cobrakill: Serpent's Kiss
• Jack Russell & Tracii Guns: Medusa
• Jim Peterik & World Stage: Roots & Shoots Vol. 1
• The Grandmaster: Black Sun

[ More Music Reviews ]

Goblins Blade: Of Angels And Snakes

Heavy Power Metal

3.5/5.0

Facebook
Massacre Records
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 17.06.2020 | Released: 26.06.2020

The history of Goblins Blade is a short one. The band was created by German guitarist and heavy metal veteran Jörg M. Knittel, known for his past work with Sacred Steel, but also his own bands awn Of Winter and My Darkest Hate. Gathering players from other German metal bands, such as Mystic Prophecy, Chinchilla, and Destillery, Goblins Blade dropped an EP, Awakening in 2019. Signing then to Massacre Records, the band arrives with their debut long-player, Of Angels And Snakes, which includes two songs from the EP, Final Fall and Call For Unity.

Goblins Blade

Whereas Knittel has been exploring doom and death metal in the last several years, Goblins Blade finds the guitarist returning to his heavy power metal roots. Essentially, a Goblins Blade song features three things: a twin guitar riff attack, mucho gallop and groove from the rhythm section, and Knittel's fierce and soaring guitar solos. Most songs feature a sharp guitar start over some pummeling and powerful bass and drum lines before dropping into a brisk pace, yet often mixed with moderate tempos. (No, that does not make it prog.) You'll hear this with Blink Of An Eye, Utopia, Final Fall, and Call For Unity with its furious drum rhythm. Alternatively, with When The Night Follows The Dawn, Goblins Blade doubles down on the steady metal. The song has a wall of riffage, but a pacing that might near epic doom metal (without sounding like doom metal). The wild card for me was vocalist Florian Reimann. While having a melodic and clean style, I thought it uninteresting, perhaps even flat at times. But that's just my ears. In the end, I found Goblins Blade and Of Angels And Snakes to offer consistent, though hardly novel, guitar forward heavy power metal. Check out the video, and support the band.

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.

I found Goblins Blade and Of Angels And Snakes to offer consistent, though hardly novel, guitar forward heavy power metal. Check out the video, and support the band.

Alphabetical Index

Three years have passed since Sweden's Cruzh dropped their second long-player, Tropical Thunder, also introducing their new singer, Alex Waghorn. Now the band returns with The Jungle Revolution ... [ Read More ]