WINTERSTORM give us their take of that most Germanic variation of the genre we love METAL (you are reading this on Metal Temple, so you must, right?).  I am of course meaning Power Metal with a side of Symphonic and the occasional Folk-ish vibes.  Hailing from what appears to be the Power Metal hot-bed of Bavaria, WINTERSTORM have been doing their thing since 2008. "Everfrost" is their 5^th album, although prolifically banging out an album every two years at the start, there was a 7-year hiatus between this and their last opus "Cube Of Infinity", that is METALLICA levels of tardiness!

Was it worth the wait?  Well ultimately that is for the true fans of to WINTERSTORM decide, not I, this being my first exposure to their music. But as a WINTER virgin I can say it doesn't suck. If I am honest, I prefer my Power Metal with a bit more heft. WINTERSTORM for my tastes are on the lighter side, but with some great touches. Schirmer's vocals suit the material very well, the guitars of Liewald & Windisch work well together and I like they are not too OTT and the Powerhouse of Cerveny & Hack (Bass & Drums respectively) are tight (although the bass is a little light in the mix. There really isn't a bad track here, overall, for this writer's tastes a little heavier would have elevated the experience.

I really like the opening salvo of "Origin", and cinematic extended spoken-word intro for "To the End of All Known" which does bring the POWER.  The heaviest track, all Viking and Metal in its delivery, with a bit of the classical to add that little something.  Great guitars and fist-pumping energy. "The Phoenix Died (Remember)" is a gear-shift.  It feels more "modern" and benefits from the added female vocals from Elina Siirala (LEAVES EYES) and its (lowercase) symphonic touches, another banger.

For me apart form these couple, the best tracks are "Future Times" one that reminds me of POWERWOLF, relatively straight-ahead track of this type, but delivered expertly and title track "Everfrost" which twists and turns all over the place ambitiously, progressively, and could have fallen on its face.  Interestingly whilst there are layers on layers in this track, it doesn't feel labored or overblown.  In the hands of some bands, this would have become some sort of bloated extended piece, but it is done with economy, well done gents!

With this two and "Final Journey", they have a feel of a linked passage, a trilogy if you will, and the three do work very well together, and I hope they play them in sequence live, that would be something. Whilst the bands press release says there is no filler on "Everfrost", I would say that isn't the case.  I could happily listen to this album without "Fate of the Atlanteans" and I might skip "Overcome the Fear", even though it has a tasty solo, and I am not a fan of "Silence". I really wanted to love this, but that love just waned a touch after such an excellent start.  Which is why I cannot give too high marks, but I have scored it for the first 7 tracks, which I very much enjoyed.