Warmen is stronger than ever.
For this new album, Band Of Brothers, Janne Warman (keyboards, ex-Children of Bodom, ex-Kotipelto), Antti Warman (guitar, Exlibris), Jyri Helko (bass, Oceanhoarse), Seppo Tarvainen (drums, Wretched Path, ex-The Scourger), and Petri Lindroos (vocals/guitar, Ensiferum, ex-Norther) renew their partnership with Reaper Entertainment.
The album kicks off with Band of Brothers, the eponymous track that offers a solid, fast-paced rhythm, quickly joined by furious vocals that contrast with the lighter keyboard sound. There’s no doubt that the track is perfect for the stage, with its devastating double bass drumming, but we quickly move on to One More Year, which returns to the roots of melodic death metal and offers some fairly aggressive Old School passages, linked to epic and elaborate leads. This is followed by the equally belligerent Nine Lives, which doesn’t hesitate to soften up on the choruses, letting harmonics and keyboards calm things down before returning to the charge, then the tone darkens on When Doves Cry Blood, offering a sometimes more minimalist rhythm while remaining on an approach made up of waves of aggression. The leads are also sharper, as on Out for Blood, which remains rooted in jerky riffs and a very raw touch, while Kingdom of Rust envelops us in its majestic keyboards, from which furious harmonics emerge to fuel the motivating mix. March or Die takes us on a journey with a very staccato and martial touch, made up of virulent moments, but also others that are more haunting, while Untouched offers us more soaring elements that create a contrast with the waves that the band has been serving us since the beginning of this album. Coup de Grâce provides a new source of energy, surrounded by its airy and solemn keyboards, but the track would have deserved to last a little longer, quickly giving way to Dethroned, which strikes the perfect balance between all the band’s influences. The tracks flow into one another, and then we find ourselves caught up in the groove of The Kiss of Judas, the final composition, which perfectly serves as the album’s climax with its formidable power and intensity.
After the reception given to their comeback, Warmen got back to work, and the result is more than satisfying! Band Of Brothers is an album that sweeps us away without warning and doesn’t give us a moment’s respite!
90/100
