STORMWIND is a Swedish band founded in 1996 by Thomas Wolf. Consisting of a combination of Power and Neo-Classical Metal, they have not released a record of new music since 2004, though their back catalog appears to be getting the re-issue treatment. Legacy Live! is one of those rereleases and came out on June 11, 2021 via Black Lodge Records.

The album opens with a 59 second instrumental called "Rising Symphony," which dovetails into "Touch The Flame." This is a fast-paced song with a rhythm that races, start to finish. The guitar work is good. This is pretty impressive considering it's done live. The recording balance is pretty good, too. The vocals are clear and show a really good range. The solos are really good, especially the trade-off from guitar to keyboard, all while the bass rages just underneath.

The chanting intro to "Strangers From The Sea" gives the song a little added depth. The power metal is really shining through on this track. The keyboards acting as the second guitar in the solo sections is a bit of a departure from many power metal bands, but a welcome change since Kaspar knows how to take the lead. Thomas Wolf's classical leads and riffs add the neo-classical feel to the entire project.

The next song that has to be discussed is "Streets Of Prishtine." The guitars take a bit of a back seat through much of this. The vocals stand out front and the keyboards provide most of the tempo and texture through the verses. The guitar solo, with the vocal refrain, is a nice bit of variety from the normal blazing trail heard on many songs. It's a good alternative sound that adds some compositional maturity to the show.

"Excalibur" is a slower starting song with a darker, heavier riff. The chugging rhythm is rich and full of emotion. The guitar fills are crisp and timely. This is the song that gets the crowd doing the slow headbang while thrusting their fists in time to the bass drum. This leads to instrumental number two, "Tears Of Passion." This is a slow, melodic guitar piece with distinct neo-classical overtones. It provides a nice transition from one song to the next.

Closing the set on this live album are "Satyricon" and "Miramar," The former is a dark, haunting tune with a sludgy rhythm and keyboards setting a tense mood. The classical guitar work is pretty outstanding. It's one of the better instrumentals in recent memory. "Miramar" is not as heavy, even adding a wind instrument into the mix. Again, very classical in its' feel, just not as dark.

Normally, it would hard to classify a band with a single guitar as power metal, but STORMWIND pull it off with how they use the bass and keyboards as additional leads. The drum fills all over the record definitely add to the power metal label. That rhythm section is a step above most. They crushed this recording. The fantasy and epic lyrics finish off proving their power metal mettle.