THE PRIVATEER is a Heavy Metal band with Folk, Symphonic, and Power Metal influences from Germany. Formed in 2007, they've spent 15 years building their brand and working on perfecting the sound they desire. Gigging through Germany and Switzerland in the early days, they've steadily broadened their horizons, working to get to where they are now. The latest offering, Kingdom Of Exiles, was released on January 20, 2023, via Napalm Records. The album fades in with strings, then brings in pipes, drums and keyboards to build the intro, "Cadence Of Life" to a point where it can help launch "Madness Is King." This track has nice, powerful drumming with a bombastic rhythm fueled by the bass and rhythm guitar. The violin layered in around the riff is really well done, accentuating the song nicely.

For a bit of a ballad feel, "Foretold Stary" opens with acoustic guitar, setting up a heavy riff beautifully. Most of the vocals on this album are clean, but this song does have some fry vocals under the female leads. We also hear clean harmonies between the male and female voices. THE PRIVATEER uses multiple vocal styles to blend voices in a way you don't hear very often, most notably in bands like AMARANTHE and LACUNA COIL. I think we need more of this in metal, but that's just my opinion. "Kingdom Of Exiles" continues the nautical theme that pervades this album and the band as a whole. We get the mixed clean/harsh vocals again here. I do not know if it is Pascal, Clara, or both who do the growls, nor do I care. The harsh voice(s) sound good and I am here for them however they're done.

"The Realm Of The Forest" is the complete ballad, not a power ballad. Folksy acoustic guitars accompany the serene vocals through most of the song, with drums coming in around the halfway point to help build the song a bit. This is the like the epiphany song of the album. Here, the protagonist is coming through the battle and now knows how to make it home, victorious. "Memory Of Man" is the song that concludes the tale, wrapping everything up and giving us the final moral of the story. This is the longest song on the album and it has the Progressive Metal feel with changing tones and tempos and textures throughout the composition. The strings are delicate over a heavy riff and a massive drum line. The bass grounds the song with a driving tempo that steadily pushes the track forward. Mixed vocals again give the impression of different characters.

THE PRIVATEER is one of those bands that has a lot to offer. They are fantastic songwriters and have a creative streak that goes beyond simple definition. They cannot be placed into a single genre or sub-genre. Their sound is too expansive. Instead, they touch on multiple genres and styles, creating their own category, allowing their influences to flow through the music like a river heading for the ocean.