It's no secret that I am a huge power metal fan, from the old school speed style of GAMMA RAY and BLIND GUARDIAN, the symphonic and epic style of STRATOVARIOUS and RHAPSODY, and the progressive style of ANGRA and LOST HORIZON, I love it all. So whenever I am graced by a new Power Metal album I always become a little over excited.

Today I get the pleasure to give my thoughts on the new DRAGONHEART album. DRAGONHEART were founded in 1997 in Curitiba, Brasil and have relesed 1 demo and 3 full length albums prior to "The Battle Sanctuary". I came into this album having never heard the band before so I didn'nt know what to expect, and with 11 tracks I had a lot to sink my teeth into.

With a short (but powerful) build up, "Far From Heaven... Close To Hell" soon kicks straight into action with fast paced riffing and a short melodic solo which hooked me in instantly! Much to my surprise, for a power metal album, the vocals were very different from what i was expecting; Marco Caporasso has one of the lowest voices I have ever heard that doesnt venture into 'growling' territory, making this band very unique indeed and I love it! I also hear a lot of Andre Olbrich (BLIND GUARDIAN) influence in the lead guitar work, especially on their folk-metal ballad "Marching Under The Stars"

This album has everything every power metal fan loves; speed, great vocals, powerful lead guitar melodies and a couple of nice ballads that simply can't go a miss on a power metal record! I will definitely be keeping my eyes on DRAGONHAMMER to see what they will do next and I cant wait to back track their discography because a power metal fan like me would be a fool to discard a band like this; staying true to the roots of power metal whilst also branding their own unique flavour into the mix. These guys need a lot more recognition so I urge you to pick up this incredible release!