If you're gonna come back, come back with a motherfucker of a big bang. FIREWIND, Greece's greatest metal export next to SEPTICFLESH and ROTTING CHRIST, were a thing before Gus G replaced Zakk in the Ozzy troupe, believe it or not. Long time vocalist Apollo departed the band shortly after their last release in 2012, "Few Against Many", having unfortunately lost his edge, perhaps cut short by rigorous touring. His bluesy voice sits right at home with stoner rockers SPIRITUAL BEGGERS, the side project of Michael Amott. Since his departure, FIREWIND have been on somewhat of a hiatus. I suppose, then, we may consider "Immortals" their 'comeback' album.

Described by the band as a concept album, it details the exploits of Leonidas' 300 Spartans against the Persian onslaught. We've had Romans, we've had Christians, we've had cosmic civilisations annihilating eachother, we've had trite, toff and abstract 'excuses' for concept albums, from other bands. Firewind, however, are bringing something quite close to home. Of course, the most noticeably change in the band is their new vocalist, German powerhouse Henning Basse, previously of METALIUM. To old fans of the band, one might consider him a combination of the vocal styles of Fredrik and Apollo; AKA, "fucking outstanding". Instead of shooting for the high notes, he specialises in the epic belt, a chest-beaty war cry suitable for the theme of the album.

It begins with the recently released single, "Hands Of Time". A stellar choice for an opener, it is obviously a 'true' FIREWIND song, led by Gus G's masterful sense of melody. Overall it is reminiscent of the material from "Days Of Defiance", the band's criminally underrated album from 2010. Of course, it is the first time we get to hear the voice of Henning, whom normally possesses a much more aggressive style of delivery. On this track, a decidedly Power Metal outing, his words soar, and is able to deliver a rather catchy chorus. "We Defy" carries on the chest-beating Power Metal vibe in a much more aggressive and dramatic cadence and is a brilliant example of the dynamics present on this album. Previous albums might have been criticised for poor mixes ("Burning Earth") or overproduction ("Few Against Many"), but "Immortals" is certainly up there with "Allegiance" as far as unmistakable quality goes, and being able to pick out the nuances of each piece of the timbre. For example, the harmonized guitar and keyboard solo in the middle track is an appealing instrumentation, seemingly playing against the bass guitar, creating a very musically interesting section.

FIREWIND throw in a few 80's influences on the track "Back On The Throne", a powerful and punchy song reminiscent of a few "Allegiance" songs and is one of the more memorable tracks on the album, with killer riffs and a diverse vocal delivery. I had "It's gonna take some time to put you back on the throne" ringing in my head whilst listening to the rest of the album, after all. "Live And Die By The Sword" and "Warriors and Saints" are easily the two album favourites, for me. The former is a powerhouse anthem of a song, and is perhaps the most 'mature' song on the album in terms of songwriting, with epic and meaningful transitions. The first minute and a half of the song is lead by a sombre intro, made up of fantastic interplay between tasteful and melodic bass and acoustic playing. Gus is displaying some interesting riff construction in this song, and is remarkably different to most other FIREWIND songs in their discography. The lengthy bridge-solo section in this song is one of the best moments on the album. The latter song is perhaps the album's fastest, oddly enough giving off strong KAMELOT vibes in places. Henning once again displays strong vocal diversity with an accessible clean voice, transition into heavy belts, and hits some decidedly epic high notes with remarkable stamina; good singers can high, great singers can sing high with volume and depth and he certainly falls into the latter.

As far as 'comeback' albums go, if this can be considered one, I was blown away by it. Henning is an extremely welcome addition to the band, and fits their new sound extremely well, if not having helped shape it himself, which is surely the case. A few of the songs on this album feel somewhat weaker, such as "Ode to Leonidas", with a little too much cheese and not quite enough interesting song structure to outweigh it. This is somewhat unfortunate, since that could have been the album's most important song, by definition. Additionally, what could have been another album favourite, "Vision Of Tomorrow", was relegated as a 'bonus track'; fans who do not buy versions of the album that contain this track are going to be missing out on it.

...That still doesn't stop this album from being, in my opinion, the best in their discography; yet another post-hiatus band that proves "absence makes the riffs grow stronger".