The French Power Metal scene tends to be one of a happier, flowery type, following the success of HELLOWEEN and its offspring for decades. So it's nice to hear a domestic act that gets back to the roots of the genre, and performs from an older 80's perspective, which is what you'll hear on this second album "Blood Leads to Glory" from ELVENSTORM. Active since 2008, the ace in the hole for the band is the female vocals of Laura Ferreux, as she belts out the lyrics from a Pure Metal perspective, instead of the siren Symphonic route many of her contemporaries seem to take.

Expect a hefty amount of culturally oriented guitar melodies and rousing mead hall style choruses that possess a lot of that Speed Metal 80's charm from Germany on instant appealers like "Reign in Glory" and "Ruler of the Night". Drummer Felix Börner wailing on the snare and double bass like his life depends on it, and bassist Will Duclot also free flowing in a Steve Harris/IRON MAIDEN manner, as the layers of Michael Hellström riffs and harmonies pour through the airspace. Take in the multi-octave lung capacity of Laura and you have a winning formula for those that miss the early days of RUNNING WILD, HELLOWEEN (circa "Walls of Jericho"), and contemporaries like STORMWARRIOR (whose guitarist/vocalist Lars Ramcke produced the album).

ELVENSTORM know the right time to go for the audience-oriented chant riff/ hook, the perfect balance of mid-tempo anthems and speed-oriented numbers, and throwing in a great CD bonus track in their SAVAGE GRACE cover "Into the Fire". My money's on mandatory material that the band better be performing live, includes the 6 minute slow marching "Where Angels Dare to Die" and guitar harmony abundant, "Werewolves of the East" that fans of RIOT circa "Thundersteel" clamor for.

We know plenty in the scene that live for this European style, and when it's arranged, performed, and executed as well as "Blood Leads to Glory", it elevates ELVENSTORM to the level of their influences. Probably an album that would be wise for RUNNING WILD to use as a textbook on their next studio offering.