MANOWAR: Louder Than Hell (HEAVY METAL): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Compared to the 80s, the 90s were not a very productive decade for the Americans of Manowar. A very poor decade for fans of the combo, with just two releases, "The Triumph Of Steel" in 1992 and "Louder Than Hell" four years later. To compensate for their low output, Manowar released a number of best-of albums and two famous live albums, "Hell On Wheels" and "Hell On Stage".

With "Louder Than Hell", Manowar takes his most recent fans by surprise, offering an album almost stripped of all superfluous, with no grandiloquence and a genuine simplicity to which the band had no longer accustomed us. Well, almost, for on the one hand, there's the long, beautiful and atmospheric instrumental track 'Today Is A Good Day To Die', and on the other, there's the beautiful ballad 'Courage', with its piano introduction and light symphonic overtones. As for the rest, apart from the brief, pretty piano introduction to 'King', "Louder Than Hell" offers straightforward, no-frills compositions.

In contrast to an album such as "The Triumph Of Steel", Manowar has returned to the recipes that made them such a success, namely energetic compositions with a mostly leaden rhythm and unstoppable choruses. Alternating between mid-tempo and speedier tracks, "Louder Than Hell" contains a number of genuine heavy metal anthems such as "Return Of The Warlord", "Brothers Of Metal" and "King". It's undeniable that the arrival of Karl Logan has brought a certain added value to the compositions, with guitar solos that are more timely than those of Ross The Boss or Schankle. The new guitarist has integrated so well with Manowar that he is responsible for the usual instrumental on 'My Spirit Lives On'. And it's fair to say that the tradition is respected: this composition is just as tedious and grueling as Joey DeMaio's instrumentals.

This album may be less grandiloquent than its two predecessors, but it's still a very good Manowar record. This is the kind of album to be listened to without moderation, all the more so as it seals the end of an era and heralds Manowar's twilight, since the American band's discographic follow-up will be nothing but a series of more or less strong disappointments. - Official website

MANOWAR

LOUDER THAN HELL

GEFFEN

HEAVY METAL