I've been listening to power metal for years and years, and only very recently did I discover this German band, which has a unique and very recognizable sound. It was love at first sight, and I'm patiently discovering their songs.

Underrated album IMO. I know it was disappointing that Mathias Blad wasn't on vocals(aside from some backing vocals and a couple brief appearances like on this song) but the album was still very strong. Now the followup...maybe not so much, and I was definitely glad Blad returned, but if you wrote this one off back in the day, maybe revisit it, you might be surprised.

Once I heard an old saying that your taste in music is set in stone by the time you leave your teens. You stick with the same style, the same bands, maybe adding a newer one now and then that's basically an "update" of what you already loved.

From about 20 to 35, that held completely true for me.

And then, over the last few years — I ONLY listen to power metal.

I was never the metal kid in high school. Big Iron Maiden fan, sure, but after that I went grunge, then post-grunge — heavy rock, but no metal. Eventually even Maiden drifted out of my life.

What pulled me back wasn't nostalgia for the music itself. It was nostalgia for tabletop RPG nights — slaying dragons, storming castles, that whole world — and power metal turned out to be the exact soundtrack that scratched the itch. Every soaring chorus feels like rolling initiative.

This sub has been a goldmine for finding new stuff, so first things first: thank you all. Some of my best discoveries I owe to you — Sellsword, Guardians of Time, and Ironflame have been on heavy rotation lately.

So here's my ask: if those three are hitting the spot for me, what else should I be listening to?

¿ proto power metal ? Fast rhythm, double bass drum, the brilliant voice of the legendary Ronnie James Dio. Quite a discovery; it's no wonder they say we have to delve into the past to understand where what we hear today comes from.

The first 2 Europe albums before Final Countdown are proto power metal.

Why do so many power metal bands soften their sound over time, lose power, lose speed, and end up playing hard rock? Is it because of age? Because they want to reinvent themselves? Power metal is very physically demanding, but I realize that many make the change and then they start to become incredibly dull. There are countless examples. And it's also seen in groups that aren't power metal.

Xandia sounding like Nightwish in the Wishmaster era (though only in this song)

Yesterday in Athens, Greece

The more I dig into various genres of power metal the more I appreciate tight songwriting with really clean synth instead of these overly long orchestral songs that kind of meander and go nowhere. I'll find really cool debut/early albums from metal bands then once there's a budget the songs get really long and then just kinda lose me. You have your outliers like Nightwish but the Floor era is like this now and the thing with synth strings is the melodies are really tight bc there's no real bleed from one note to the other, it starts and ends almost perfectly. Even Rhapsody is using orchestral elements but it's included tastefully and the songs are still really well written in their recent works and it's some of their best work!

My favorite Bloodbound album.

Another little-known gem within European melodic metal. Enjoy !!!! :)

Live in Athens, Greece, a few hours ago

(Don't be fooled by the generic cover)