PRIMAL FEAR „Seven Seals”

Music: Traditional/Power Metal
Country: Germany
Website: http://www.primalfear.de
Duration: 54.26


Cool Songs: Evil Spell, In Memory, Diabolus, Seven Seals, The Immortal Ones, Diabolus

It’s pretty easy to thrown mud at Germany’s Primal Fear. Cheesy Power Metal with an overtly Judas Priest feel, the band has certainly had its detractors. Yet, originality was never the point though, hey? Some would even say that with the mighty Priest back in tow, do we really need Primal Fear? And while ‘Angel of Retribution’ is a fine return for Halford & co, it is my opinion that in the down time (some fourteen years) between it and ‘Painkiller’, Primal Fear did Priest better than Priest!! With full length album number ‘six’ Primal Fear are determined to prove that there is more to their style than pure homage. Oh it’s still there in massive slabs, be very certain of that, but you know, I think ‘Seventh Seals’ is Primal Fear’s strongest and best album yet. These guys are not going away.

For fans of classic metal/power metal, Primal Fear is your proverbial wet dream. They ooze that traditional metal attitude and the riffs are pure 80’s Priest/Accept fodder. Over the course of their career, now some six albums they’ve always maintained a consistent thread. It’s all about being ‘metal’ to the bone. They could care less about being progressive or even relevant in some respects. Primal Fear is all about flying the metal flag. Damn to the fucking naysayers!

Understanding this, it won’t surprise that ‘Seventh Seal’ isn’t anything you haven’t heard from these guys on previous affairs. It is however, their strongest in terms of songwriting – the riffs; the melodic hooks; the vocal lines are all ‘pure’ Primal Fear, but everything is graced with a likable, authentic metal attitude – powerful, energetic and superbly delivered. The Matt Sinner/Charlie Bauerfeind production (and Mike Fraser mix) helps no end – clean, yet heavy in the riffs with a blazing bottom end and those omnipresent Ralf Scheepers vocals hit harder than ever.

In terms of songs, there is a real balance on ‘Seventh Seal’ – typical metal belters like ‘Rollercoaster’ and ‘The Immortal Ones’ are standard PF moments, whilst killer ‘Evil Spell’ is the fastest track they’ve ever written. However, it is the more dramatic, almost epic pieces that work better in my opinion – and this is where Ralf Scheepers becomes even more important to the band. Ralf has always had his detractors (even with a voice that is possibly closer to Rob Halford’s than Ripper Owens), but on ‘SS’ the guy keeps his voice decidedly mid to lower range for the majority of the album, unleashing those high pitched ball tearing screams in a much more measured fashion. As a result, the ‘title track, Diabolus and Carniwar’ show off Ralf’s complete range and also the musical dexterity of his band. Ralf’s finest moment comes via the brooding closing power ballad anthem ‘In Memory’ where his gentle opening tones send shivers up the spine with its Halford ‘Beyond the Realms of Death’ feel.

Primal Fear continues to roll on like a gleaming well oiled machine. Fans of the band will agree that they’ve never really made a weak album and with ‘Seventh Seal’ there’s complete trust in the delivery and consistency of their song writing. Riff heavy, melodic and catchy as hell, this is their strongest effort yet. And like all their previous affairs, it just screams ‘Meeettttaaaaall’. You gotta love it. Suck it in!

note: 8.1

Tracklist

Demons and Angels
Rollercoaster
Seven Seals
Evil Spell
The Immortal Ones
Diabolus
All for One
Carniwar
Question of Honour
In Memory