Sabaton - The Great War (2019)

Just when you think Sabaton cannot get any better or more grandiose, they drop an album like “The Great War”. Delivering almost 40 minutes of their signature epic Power Metal music, the band steps it up a notch and crafts eleven superbly catchy tunes that are amongst the best they have ever produced. As one of the most expected albums of 2019, the band surely delivers for all their fans with this exciting new release.

Opening with “The Future of Warfare”, the band sets a very high-octane mood with lush choir arrangements and their signature simple-but-catchy Power Metal core. Joakim Brodén’s vocals lead the band into battle, through tracks like “Seven Pillars of Wisdom” and “82nd All the Way” and are brilliantly complemented by backing vocal arrangements and killer guitar leads. One aspect of this release is that the band’s core elements are more evident and nicely mixed to shine through the extra atmospheric elements.

The band also has a few surprises in store with the epic melodies of “The Attack of the Dead Men” and “Devil Dogs”, as well as some Ayreon-esque playfulness in “The Red Baron”, allowing the album to stay interesting and epic AF. As the album continues its furious pace and engaging nature, tracks like “Great War” and “A Ghost in the Trenches” are the epitome of the band’s musical prowess with some of the most catchy and engaging passages in this release. For those fans of Stratovarius-esque Power Metal, “Fields of Verdun” is one track you can’t miss out on.

As a whole, “The Great War” is probably the band’s most ambitious and bombastic release to date. Keeping a very dynamic and killer intensity throughout the release, even near the end with “The End of the War to End All Wars” the band takes their epicness to grand new levels. If you are a fan of the band, you will be far from disappointed with this brilliant release. Sabaton is a band at the top of their game and we can’t wait to hear them pummel through the USA later this 2019 with this new release.

Label: Nuclear Blast Records

Release: July 19th, 2019

Genre: Power Metal

Country: Sweden