Ladies and gentlemen, Dragonforce is back with their 9^th full-length album titled ‘’Warp Speed Warriors’’. This is their first album since ‘’Extreme Power Metal’’ which came out in 2019. The band has been testing the waters with a few new songs on their North American Tour with Amaranthe (soon hitting the arenas in Europe) to a roaring response.

Dragonforce is a very divisive band, to say the least. Some people hate them and say they are too flashy and just trying to do too much and some enjoy their brand of Power Metal. They are part of the second generation of the genre and blasted throughout the world of Metal back in 2003 with a sound like we never heard before. They were louder and faster than any band in Power Metal and broke down some boundaries. There is no middle ground with the band, they always did it their way and they made sure they were recognized for sounding differently than the rest of the bands out there.

The addition of Marc Hudson as singer of DRAGONFORCE back in 2011, boy oh boy, I was such a ZP Theart fanboy that it took me some time to get used to him. I thought he was uneasy and couldn’t find his stride in his first few albums with DRAGONFORCE but on the last album, he just delivers his style and doesn’t try to be someone he is not. I feel he hit his stride with ‘’Extreme Power Metal’’ and he continues to deliver his brand of Power Metal. I think he knows where he is at and knows his strengths and weaknesses, yet he is getting just more and more comfortable with the band and this album might be his apex.

The first single is ‘’Doomsday Party’’. We have two versions of this song on this album, but I will elaborate a bit later. At first glance, this did not sound like Dragonforce at all, it was a very rhythmic song, very upbeat. It felt unnatural when I first listened to it. I was wondering, where are they going with this? I was quite perplexed, but it grew on me. It has a bit more Pop Rock influences and it’s a very danceable track. It took me some time to get a hold of it and the videoclip is hilarious! The band changes into different outfits (from Glam to Black to Nu-Metal and even Punk) and when I took the time to listen to the lyrics and analyze the different scenes in the clip, everything dawned on me….

What is a Doomsday Party? Well, it’s the end of the world for everyone, no matter your race, gender, or whatever you love in life. There is no discrimination and that’s something akin to the world of Metal. Better make sure your last night on earth is a good one and something that always impressed me is the respect we have between metalheads that love different genres or subgenres.

It’s Metal: and acceptance for all…

Metal makes sure that everyone is accepted for who they are and that is all that counts, it’s to be happy in your skin no matter what. You can make a correlation with the wide world of Metal fans. Is there any other genre that is so open-minded and that accepts all shapes, sizes, genders, sexual orientations, and everything in between? I do not believe there is anything as great as Metal Fans.

I have been to over 100 shows in the last twenty years and the spirit of camaraderie is ever-present and it’s much better than back in the day. I feel that Metal fans respect other Metal fans, yes, you have some loudmouth fans who criticize other genres that are not in their wheelhouse, but I would say that most Metalheads are respectful of others. No genre unites people like Heavy Metal, it can be a headbanging unison or a never-ending circle pit but there is this unbridled passion inside of each of these individuals. When the show starts, there is something in the air, I simply cannot pinpoint it but there is some unreal magic out there and you can feel it in every bone in your body.  A Doomsday Party with fans of all genres, inclusive, this is what I can understand from their first single.

The second single from this new opus is ‘’Power of the Triforce’’. Well, if you have not lived under a rock for the last 4 decades, you would know this is their tribute to one of the best and longest-standing video game series, The Legend of Zelda. So, following in the footsteps of ‘’The Last Dragonborn’’ from ‘’Extreme Power Metal’’, which was an homage to Skyrim, they decided to write a song about one of their favorite games. Now you are speaking to my heart, a passion of mine since 1986 and this song is a banger, it’s very reminiscent of the older songs from the ZP Theart era, like ‘’Heroes of Our Time’’ or ‘’Operation Ground and Proud’’, it has that frenetic rhythm and the catchy chorus.  Not only does the title of the song speak to the legendary adventure games, but the lyrics reflect it as well speaking about the Land of Hyrule, Ganon, Twilight Princess (duh!), and even the Master Sword thrown in the mix!

This is Dragonforce embracing more and more their freedom every step of the way. They started with the previous album and now they are talking about what they truly love in life and their passions outside of music, integrating these passions into the lyrical themes of songs. That’s a wonderful combination and they do not shy away from it and are not hypocritical at all in the way they are doing it.

Off to the third single ‘’Astro Warrior Anthem’’, typical Dragonforce, it’s fast and heavy, with lots of solos by the mastermind himself, Herman Li. Following their gut instinct for writing catchy songs, often with the science fiction themes that are rightfully exploited. There are a whole lot of lyrics on this one, probably more than any other song I have ever heard from the band. It’s more like a story than anything else, about this Astro Warrior character, roaming around in a Cyberpunk world, tracked by the unruly enemy. The Astro Warrior is the central piece of this song but also some other songs from the last album. It’s the guardian of the skies, it protects the world he lives and loves and must come to grips with not being the best to face this enemy pursuit and that the power of many and the unity between these people can save the world. It’s a science-fiction-heavy album, especially this song but it tells much more than a story and it has much deeper meaning when you take time to listen to the lyrics.

Let’s talk about the rest of the album because the three singles are great, but the ensemble cast is as good or even better, don’t expect too much of a downgrade for the rest of the album, it’s absolutely not the case, not by a long shot.

I may not be the biggest fan of ballads, but they do a good job with ‘’Kingdom of Steel’’. It’s a mid-tempo power ballad tinged with the nostalgia of the 80’s intertwined. It has that mid 80’s pace and it’s not a bad change of pace. After the first three songs, you need a bit of a respite, a breather and it serves its purpose. It’s not mind-blowing by any stretch of the imagination but it’s fine for what it is. The lyrics have a deeper meaning than some ballads out there, the kingdom of steel refers to the strong façade of some people, their solitary shell in life. Occasionally, you build this steel fence in front of you to protect yourself from the world or you just try to make sure people don’t pry their prison bars. You feel like you don’t want to open up and make yourself unreachable but sometimes you have to let the light shine through even if it’s opening yourself and your kingdom of steel to others.

‘’Burning Heart’’, is a nice throwback to the first album of Dragonforce and early stuff by bands like Hammerfall and Stratovarius. I can hear many influences from the genesis of the genre and it’s a definitive nod to the old school bands. I enjoyed it and the other version which I speak about later adds another dimension to it as well. For the fans of their earlier stuff, this is probably the song to listen to.

‘’Space Marine’’ starts off with a Marching Band style intro which was quite surprising. The whole song is very patriotic, and anthemic. It has a roaring chorus reminiscent of the chants in the army or navy. It has a continuous upbeat military cadence that goes off the beaten path. It’s something different than anything they have done before, and I applaud their efforts. It’s also another song based on a game, yet this time it’s on the tabletop classic, Warhammer 40000. A squad-based game that is loved by millions and the basis of a lot of songs from the good old Bolt Thrower back in the day as well.

‘’The Killer Queen’’ and ‘’Pixel Prison’’ this is kind of your ‘’Through the Fire and the Flames’’ style songs. Herman Li is having fun with his guitar and shows us the entirety of his talent. At a breakneck speed, these songs are a full-fronted assault of the senses. These songs are nonstop, and you can barely catch a breath and if you loved the fastest songs from their repertoire (like ‘’Highway to Obliveon’’ from ‘’Extreme Power Metal’’), you will absolutely love these two songs. It’s Dragonforce ramped up to eleven.

Gotta save the best for last, or don’t you? Let’s talk about the elephant in the room, ‘’Wildest Dreams’’, the Taylor Swift song covered by our favorite UK Power Metallers. This time they are covering America’s Sweetheart, the most popular artist in the world. In the last album, we had their metal version of ‘’My Heart Will Go On’’ and Dragonforce really nailed it, making the song more accessible (bearable!), faster and fans even liked the cover of a song we heard way too much back in 1997. As for Swiftie, they make a song that is supremely popular and make it their own, I was impressed. They have done the live version with Alyssa White-Gluz on this tour and she did a great job doing the vocals on this cover. This time, Marc Hudson does a pretty damn good job holding up his part of the bargain. You may hate the original (I actually don’t mind it at all) but I bet you will really enjoy this ramped-up version. I would have preferred having a version with our Arch Enemy beauty because she killed it live here in Montreal.

As for the 4 bonus tracks, we have three alternative versions of songs from the album, and we also have the instrumental version of ‘’Power of the Triforce’’. I believe but I obviously can be wrong that’s the first time we get an instrumental version of a song on any album (bonus or not). This was a pleasant surprise because that’s how you appreciate the musical talent of the band without the vocals in the way at times. I think it really showcases the talent of new bassist Alicia Vigil. It was not an easy task to replace the departing Frédéric Leclercq (now with Kreator) but this instrumental version makes her shine even more than we she brings to the table on the rest of the album.

Now it’s time to speak about those three alternative versions.

I was expecting the ‘’Wildest Dreams’’ cover with Alyssa White-Gluz from Arch Enemy because she has sung with the band during this tour, but we have her singing on ‘’Burning Heart’’. No, it’s not the Rocky 4 song, I was kind of disappointed, well a little bit to be honest! She does a good job, but it doesn’t add that much to the album version. It’s a bit of a throwaway track though she does a great job handling the vocals, it feels like her talents could have been used elsewhere to make it stand out.

Matt Heafy and Nita Strauss lend their talents to a new version of ‘’Astro Warrior Anthem’’. I am not a fan of Trivium at all, I have tried countless times to listen to their material and I just can’t connect with it, and I have tried hard. I guess sometimes you do not enjoy something and that’s not a bad thing, you can’t force yourself to love something if you don’t. Yet, Matt Heafy has a great voice for covers and adding his talent to other bands like he did a few years back for a cover of ‘’Fist by Fist’’ by Powerwolf. He changes his voice, adds layers, and such power, I feel like he likes doing something else than his main band, he goes balls out on this one and he does a great job. What haven’t we said about Nita Strauss that hasn’t been said before, one of the best shredders in all of Metal, man, or woman. She does a great job challenging the talent of Herman Li and does an awesome job, showcasing her incredible talent that should be widely known.

Elize Ryd from Amaranthe lends her vocals to ‘’Doomsday Party’’, now we are talking! My favorite female vocalist just nails it out of the park, I thought the original version was pretty good but now this version is just the best song I have heard in several years. Her angelic voice adds such texture to the song (especially when she has her chance to shine in the last part of the song singing ‘’Everything Was Beautiful, We Were Young and Free’’), and she seems to have the time of her life when they did the video for it. She is happy, smiling, dancing and you can see she is having fun. I saw Dragonforce and Amaranthe together in November and those two bands seem to love what they do, and they are having a blast. It doesn’t feel like a job for them, it’s living a dream and passion. Bar none, is my favorite track of the new album.

All and all, Dragonforce embraces fully their off wall, brand of Power Metal. ‘Warp Speed Warriors’ is a continuous adventure for them and now they are committed to integrating their passions into their music and it’s a sight to see. They are not ashamed to be geeks and nerds and video game players, and they manage to not make it cheesy, I know some people don’t love what they do but everyone loves a band that someone hates. We still have a heavy case of guitar noodling by Sam Totman and Herman Li but that’s what makes them stand apart from the rest of the cookie-cutter bands in the genre. A massive new release and an early album-of-the-year candidate for the UK Veterans. ‘Warp Speed Warriors’ reaches old and new fans alike, there is something for everyone and they are still high atop Mount Rushmore of Power Metal.