Hammerfall - (r)Evolution (2014)

Genre: Heavy
Subgenre: Heavy Metal / Power Metal
Bitrate: 320 k
Size: 113.75 MB

Formed in Göteborg, Sweden, in 1993 by guitarist Oscar Dronjak. Early line-ups included members from In Flames and Dark Tranquillity, most notably Jesper Strömblad, who continued to write songs together with Oscar and singer Joacim Cans despite leaving before the first album was released. "Glory To The Brave" (1997) and "Legacy Of Kings" (1998) cemented the band as the pioneers of modern Eighties heavy metal.

Often credited with bringing back the melodies and honesty in music, the world-wide crusade continued with "Renegade" (2000), an album that generated a breakthrough for HammerFall and metal music in general in the mainstream media in Sweden.

The line-up was now complete with drummer Anders Johansson, formerly of Rising Force fame, Stefan Elmgren on guitar and Magnus Rosén on bass guitar. The latter two joined HF before the release of the inaugural record, with Stefan even being a session player on "Glory To The Brave".
"Crimson Thunder" (2002) was next, followed by a live album and DVD - "One Crimson Night" (2003) - recorded in their home town in front of a capacity crowd. The fifth album, aptly titled "Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken" (2005) further planted the name HammerFall in the minds of households in Sweden, as well as metal fans all over the world. The band's fourth world tour on as many albums was an even bigger success than before, headlining the U.S. for the first time (after supporting Death and Dio in 1998 and 2002 respectively).

Two sportsrelated videos were recorded in 2006, a remake of "Hearts On Fire" for the Swedish Olympic Women's Curling Team and a brand new song specifically written for Kajsa Bergqvist and a couple of other Swedish track & field superstars, culminating in a performance at the opening ceremony at the European Athletics Championships in August, bringing HammerFall into the home of 250 million people around the world. Threshold (2006) saw the light of day at the end of the year, and virtually the entire 2007 was spent on the road promoting it.

Magnus Rosén left the band in March. Without skipping a beat, original basist Fredrik Larsson was brought back into the fold, elevating the musical side with his steady brilliance. Celebrating its ten year anniversary as a record-releasing artist, HammerFall released "Steel Meets Steel - Ten Years of Glory" (2007). The album features two brand new tracks, a re-recording of an old classic plus some bonus material for the true fans.

Surprising to all, Stefan got a job as an airline pilot in the spring of 2008, and after careful consideration decided to pursue that dream instead. Pontus Norgren of The Poodles fame replaced Stefan and made his on stage debut with the band at the Heavy MTL Festival in Montréal, Canada.

The very successful album "No Sacrifice, No Victory", and the world tour took the band to as remote locations as India, as well as the regular sold-out shows in Scandinavia, continental and Eastern Europe and USA.

The strain known as "Infected" spread throughout the world in 2011, and was followed by an extensive tour over the next two years. The concert at Dalhalla in July was captured by Patric Ullaeus and released as the Gates To Dalhalla DVD/Bluray. Currently, the band is on a time out, after fifteen years of non-stop recording and touring. In order to be able to bring the fans another fifteen years of Templar steel this was a necessary move, to recharge the batteries and return with a fresh energy. Expect a new album and everything that comes with it in 2014.

HAMMERFALL stand for powerful, majestic and melodic heavy metal. Memorable choruses, straight and heavy riffs, thundering drums, pounding bass power and outstanding vocals will without any doubt become the metal hymns for eternity. These seasoned musicians have become one of the leading and most successful metal acts of our time. Their unstoppable creations reigned in a time when none cared about classical Heavy Metal, and without a doubt they have and will always deserve credit for keeping the heavy metal genre alive.