THEN COMES THE NIGHT are a four-piece Melodic Power Metal band from Riedlingen, Germany. This is their second full-length album and is a side-project of the wonderfully talented Selin Schonbeck also known as Rod Rockbeck, the frontman of the wildly unheralded BELLS AND RAVENS. The one thing that is evident is he flies on his own wings compared to his other band, liberated from being just a featured singer, he really shines on this album and feel like the shackles are off.

They are very reminiscent of bands like CRIMSON GLORY, RIOT and early SAVATAGE. It is obviously very traditional Heavy Metal minded yet it packs a punch. I can hear those bands I previously eluted to at one time or another. The songs (well most of them) are a love letter to this genre and they are really well put together. He put his heart and soul on these songs and they are highly enjoyable. This album really reminded me STEEL PANTHER, why you ask? Well STEEL PANTHER does a great job reviving the Glam Metal days of the 80's, yet while celebrating the past but forging their own path. I feel that THEN COMES THE NIGHT is a real celebration of the genre all of it's own. They sound like a plethora of bands from the 80's yet it feels good to hear it. It's not reinventing the wheel obviously but you don't need it at all times. Sometimes you just need a good band to rock out and that's bloody fine. It's like a really good version of MANOWAR (whom I cannot stand) and it feels fresh yet vintage at the same time.

If you want just a good band that doesn't good in the finer details yet just express a frantic early metal energy, this is obviously the band for you. The first singles released from this album like ''Metal World'' and ''Headbangers Heaven'' are fantastic examples of old school goodness. You have some very thrash metal elements, very similar to early ANNIHILATOR yet you have songs that sound like Kai Hansen era HELLOWEEN and a bit of JUDAS PRIEST thrown in for good measure. Across their sophomore effort, these guys spew forth wrecking balls of distorted delight which completely nail the mark, ensuring the head-bang, the fist pump, and all that other good stuff that metal does to us.

Whilst their overall sound could be a deciding factor for some, on the whole I feel THEN COMES THE NIGHT proves itself to be a bright spark amidst the genres hopefuls, and one I hope bursts into a full-fledged supernova. With an impressively accomplished debut, I’d love to see these Germans appear on the radar of traditional metal buffs the world over, and really, I can’t stress the promise I see in these guys. Without a doubt an exciting band and one already carving out a sound they can proudly call their own. Recommended listening!