Unholy Savior

Battle Beast

As we creep closer towards the end of 2014, it's no surprise that from now […]
By MarcusTheRocker
December 14, 2014
Battle Beast - Unholy Savior album cover

As we creep closer towards the end of 2014, it's no surprise that from now on I'll start getting promos for 2015 albums and the album featured in today's review is an upcoming release which will be out on January 9th 2015. The release in question is "Unholy Savior" by Finnish Power Metal sextet BATTLE BEAST.

First off, I will say that this band is one I am familiar with as I have heard their music being played on a few internet radio stations but it's been a long time since that happened so this album gives me a chance to get myself reacquainted with their music but before I talk about my thoughts on the new album, it's time for a bit of history on the band.

Originally from the Helsinki area of Finland, BATTLE BEAST formed in 2005 and they have had a total of 2 full lengths (3 if you count the new album) and 3 singles under their belt as well as a few awards which include winners of the Wacken Open Air Metal Contest 2008 among many other astounding accolades. In 2012, they parted with their original singer Nitte Valo and brought in new singer Noora Louhimo soon after to lend her voice to the 2013 self-titled album and she would then continue to be their singer from there on in.

Fast forward to the present day and their new album "Unholy Savior" is only 1 month away from being unleashed onto the world on Nuclear Blast Records. I will confess that when I first heard this band for the first time during the times I heard them on internet radio, their style wasn't really my thing but maybe I was just being judgmental without giving it a chance as that's what I have a habit of doing.

So was I wrong to be judgmental? I was for the most part as I will confess, I did find myself liking this new album. To begin with, the guitar riffs are loud and heavy, the solos are insanely fast, the keyboard melodies sound haunting at times, the drums sound powerful and heavy and the vocal performance may sound a bit hit and miss at times with some of the lyrics not really being all that clear but overall, they're actually pretty damn good as there's plenty of punch and a lot of oomph to make up for any issues I have just addressed.

Another thing I like about this new album is that there is a good mixture of different styles of Power Metal here as you have the heavy insane tracks ("Speed and Danger", "Madness"), the powerful melodic sounding songs ("Lionheart", "Unholy Savior", "Far Far Away"), the slower ballad style tracks ("The Black Swordsman") and the mystical and also at times fantasy style songs ("Sea of Dreams", "Angel Cry") which sound like they came from a fantasy movie/video game.

Time now for that all important verdict and if there's one thing which did originally put me off this band at first was the vocal performance as I found it was okay but not really to my taste but upon listening to this new album from BATTLE BEAST, I actually found myself quite surprised by how wrong I was to think that as despite any issues I may have addressed in this review, I actually found myself enjoying the new album "Holy Savior" and if you are a fan of previous BATTLE BEAST albums or are new to their music and want to give them a chance like me, then you will find yourself enjoying this especially if you like your Power Metal.

8 / 10

Excellent

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"Unholy Savior" Track-listing:

1. Lionheart
2. Unholy Savior
3. I Want The World... And Everything In It
4. Madness
5. Sea of Dreams
6. Speed and Danger
7. Touch in the Night
8. The Black Swordsman
9. Hero's Quest (Instrumental)
10. Far Far Away
11. Angel Cry

Battle Beast Lineup:

Noora Louhimo - Vocals
Anton Kabanen - Lead Guitar, Vocals
Juuso Soinio - Rhythm Guitar
Janne Björkroth - Keyboards
Eero Sipilä - Bass
Pyry Vikki - Drums

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