BATTLE METAL!!!!!

[Erik]

Deströyer 666! Not that all of their lyrics are about war, but WHAT IF THE BATTLE BEGAN AT DAWN? WOULD YOU COME AND FIGHT THIS WAR? WOULD YOU JOIN US?! WOULD YOU JOIN US!? WHAT IF WE CALLED IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT! WOULD YOU LEAVE YOUR WOMAN AND FIGHT! WOULD YOU JOIN US!! WOULD YOU JOIN US?!?!

 

[Krilons Resa]

BATTLE RAM
Omen - Battle Cry (thanks to IoTS for intro me to this)

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

Thronar - self-described "battle metal"
Ensiferum
Moonsorrow - though I can't be sure, b/c their lyrics are mostly in Finnish, but the music sure sounds battle-like

 

[IOfTheStorm]

Definetally DOMINE and their first album "Champion Eternal", greatly influenced by Manowar, Omen, Manilla Road and some Queen (yes). The lyrics are mostly influenced by the Elric saga. It's a classic, seriously, one of the top 3 italian metal albums for me. Their second album is very very very good too, and the rest are just good (but maybe Doomcifer will like them more than i did).
Also, of course VIRGIN STEELE, their older and classic albums (especially "Guardians Of The Flame" and "Noble Savage"), talk about battles, war, etc, but they are not as "barbaric" as Doomcifer wants, cause their influences are bands like Rainbow, Queen and although they remind Manowar sometimes, they are not really influenced by them. Also they might have 4-5 EPIC songs per album, but there will be another 3 about how good David Defeis is in bed. I like ALL their albums (except "Life Among The Ruins") and the ones i mentioned before i highly recommended, also "Marriages Of Heaven And Hell" (part 1 and 2, but 2 is better) and the first "House Of Atreus" album, which is 100% epic, but the band has like.. at least 5 albums better than this one. Jack Starr (the band's original guitar player, and main composer of "Guardians Of The Flame) created BURNING STAR, who have released a series of killer albums, the best being "No Turning Back" , not many songs about battle, but the overall feeling is of battle-ish pure u.s. power metal .
Jag Panzer also dont have many songs about battles but "AMPLE DESTRUCTION" has this feeling too. It's like they are marching to war, seriously and they are epic enough. Also this album is probably the best american heavy metal album (Manowar excluded), so its essential any way.
CAULDRON BORN, is (was?, i've lost their traces some years ago, and i think they are no more) another pure war/epic metal band, but the thing about them is that they are more technical than your usual epic band, they have lots of influences from Helstar, or even Watchtower for example, but they are not "Wanky" or anything.. they just have a huge collection of killer riff-age in their songs, all epic, all atmospheric. "Born Of The Cauldron" is their best, but their more epic is their second album, "And Rome Shall Fall".
That's it (for now)

 

[Crimson Velvet]

Deströyer 666! Not that all of their lyrics are about war, but WHAT IF THE BATTLE BEGAN AT DAWN? WOULD YOU COME AND FIGHT THIS WAR? WOULD YOU JOIN US?! WOULD YOU JOIN US!? WHAT IF WE CALLED IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT! WOULD YOU LEAVE YOUR WOMAN AND FIGHT! WOULD YOU JOIN US!! WOULD YOU JOIN US?!?!

So have you finally listened properly to "Unchain the Wolves"? Better than "Terror Abraxas"?

 

[Krilons Resa]

Cauldron Born fucking RULE! I forgot about them.

I shall check out Domine's first album. I recently bought their newest one in a used bin and it seems to "happy" for me.

 

[Krilons Resa]

Also, "barbaric" would be a good term for what I am looking for as well. Very rough.

 

[MajestikMøøse]

I want to start a Battletech themed power metal band.

 

[Krilons Resa]

Another I forgot...
Medieval Steel

 

[IOfTheStorm]

Cauldron Born fucking RULE! I forgot about them.

I shall check out Domine's first album. I recently bought their newest one in a used bin and it seems to "happy" for me.

Yes, the band's evolution made their style kinda typical euro-power metal (less fag-y than your usual euro-power band of course). But their debut is not happy at all, just obscure, dark, powerfull, atmospheric power/epic metal on its best.

 

[JayKeeley]

There's not much I love more. This is the thread dedicated to BATTLE METAL. Ya know, the metal that makes you feel like you're actually marching with the fleet to battle, or makes you want to anyway. Lyrics mostly about war, war, war. Here are some of my fav's...I'm looking for more.


Doomsword
Holy Martyr
Bathory
Gjallarhorn
God's Tower
Wotan
Airged L'amh
Jotenheim
Manowar (first few albums only)
Manilla Road - Gates of Fire
Ironsword
Hate Forest - Battlefields
Morrigan


I REALLY REALLY REALLY need to hear Arpyian Horde's 7"

Those first 3 are the holy grail imho.

From The End Records...

Bannerwar - Centuries of Heathen Might
- cross selling suggests Falkenbach, Revenge, and Axis of Advance

I guess there's also BattleRoar and BattleLore. And the all female group, BattleWhore.

Also, Hin Onde - Songs of Battle.

I own this and had written it off, but who knows what I'd think of it today. This review makes it sound fucken cool: http://www.metal-observer.com/articles.php?lid=1&sid=1&id=2789

Early Thyrfing/Einherjer meets Slough Feg?? I'm all over this.

 

[Erik]

hin onde sux

 

[Ellestin]

hin onde sux

und wie...

 

[JayKeeley]

I always remember Hin Onde sucking, and laughing about it with footbalm, but then I read this review and I was like DAMN! The CD's been sitting in my trade pile for about 2 years now...maybe I'll give it another spin, who knows.

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

I have a Hin Onde CD, naturally I haven't ever heard it.

 

[JayKeeley]

It's funny because after a show like Heathen Crusade, I normally give those bands I just saw a break. Not this time -- I can't get enough of Novembers Doom, Primordial, etc. Last night I was blasting some "Voimasta".

That said, on the way home from MN, I threw on some Manowar. "Hail to England" to be precise....

...'kin hell, if Eric Adams doesn't have gold in his voice, I don't know who has. His vocals on "Blood of my Enemies", in particular the last line he sings while SCREAMING IN KEY, is bloodcurdingly good.

Guess I should check out more "battle metal" like Gjallhorn or Ironsword. I STILL haven't heard the latest Manilla Road, fuck me sideways.

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

I refuse to call those bands "battle metal," btw. They're just heavy metal, or true metal, or trad. metal, whichever you prefer.

Battle metal has extreme vocals, at least most of the time.

 

[JayKeeley]

Yeah, true metal is a good term. It's all about blood, fire, and death at the end of the day.

I was listening to Doomsword and Thunderstorm last night.

 

[MadeInNewJersey]

I can't fucking find my Thunderstorm CD; that's the Italian stoner band I told you & Nate about, right?

I'm fucking pissed too, b/c it was damned hard to find in the 1st place. Gar!

 

[IOfTheStorm]

No. If there is a genre like this, the bands tha established it (the first bands that had battle, epic, war, heathen, barbaric thematology) didnt use extreme vocals at all (thank God). Of course Mark Shelton's screams sound more barbaric and war mongering than any "extreme vocals".