Less than three years after the conceptual record about the First World War entitled The Great War, Swedish quintet Sabaton releases yet another conceptual album about the same topic which is similarly titled The War to End All Wars. This opening statement alone goes to show that the Swedish heavy metal band is running out of ideas and repeating itself over and over again.

To be fair however, this record shows some minor improvements in the songwriting department. The band combines catchy, epic and poignant choruses with gripping female spoken word passages introducing and concluding the context of the historical events in ''Sarajevo'' and ''Versailles''.

The band also uses majestic orchestral arrangements and powerful backing vocals in soothing ballad ''Christmas Truce'' that clocks in as the longest tune on the album at just above five minutes and does the touching topic justice. This song about friendship, hope and togetherness doesn't only work in relation to the historical events referenced here but also in connection to many things that are still going on in this world as history keeps repeating itself.

This release also includes a few decent heavy metal tunes. ''Stormtroopers'' opens with discordant guitar chords and leads into a tight mid-paced anthem that should work splendidly in concert. This song gets to the point in just four minutes and never overstays its welcome. The balance between catchy vocal lines and gripping musicianship works very well in this case.

''Dreadnought'' is another tight heavy metal stomper with a few interesting twists. The guitar riffs surprise with odd breaks that avoid the usual stereotypes. The sounds of waves in the overture as well as in the coda add some atmospheric depth as well. Sabaton proves that it still can be creative and push the boundaries.

The main issue is that all other songs are bland, exchangeable and forgettable. Simplistic drum patterns and lazy percussive elements meet boringly plodding bass guitar patterns. Generic heavy metal riffs by the numbers are combined with short guitar solos that fail to unfold any kind of magic. The fanfare keyboard sections always sound the same and fail to add any kind of atmosphere. The rough but melodic vocals seem to be on autopilot as well. The mellow production fails to give the material any energy, grit or passion. The songs just plod along unspectacularly one after another. That's a shame because the record's few highlights truly stand out and show the band's unexploited potential.

At the end of the day, I can't recommend purchasing Sabaton's The War to End All Wars despite a few sincere improvements in comparison to the abysmal predecessor The Great War. The band has to fine-tune its songwriting to make every single song stand out. The group would also benefit from a more energetic production as this record suffers from a mastering that would rather suit a pop group than a heavy metal band. Sabaton still has the potential to possibly write a decent album when combining bravery, creativity and energy but this one here has to go down as a miss.

Final Rating: 45%

New Yorkian trio Sanhedrin is among the more interesting bands of the so-called New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal. The band has released three studio efforts thus far, each convincing with a wonderful cover artwork, each including eight songs and each clocking in just above forty minutes. Heavy metal fans will certainly appreciate the grounded female vocals, gripping guitar riffs, melodic guitar solos, vibrant bass guitar play, tight drumming and adventurous percussion that come to life in the creative songwriting.

''Correction'' for instance is an instant hit and perfect opener for this record. The song gets to the point in four minutes and finds the perfect balance between tight musicianship and catchy melodies. It's no surprise that this track was chosen as the record's lead single and it should also open upcoming concerts with a bang.

''Lost at Sea'' is the record's second single and explores different genre territories. This song explores doom metal and even post-rock stylistics that make think of atmospheric progressive rock soundscapes that could almost come from Marillion or Rush. Despite those experimental undertones, this song is still firmly rooted in traditional heavy metal stylistics in the key of Black Sabbath or Judas Priest. The band's exceptional songwriting stands out once more since the trio manages to use these different inspirations coherently in only four and a half minutes.

''Change Takes Forever'' is a beast of a different kind. Once again based upon traditional heavy metal of the seventies and the eighties, this song has a few sudden changes in pace that make for this record's heaviest tune. The track's aggressiveness complements the inspiring lyrics fittingly.

My personal highlight might however be ''Code Blue''. This monster of a song is almost seven minutes long and invites for multiple spins to sink in. The song has vibrant swagger that makes it sound much shorter than it actually is. The musicianship is heavy, inspired and playful throughout. The vocals are particularly passionate here and go along with the wonderful lyrics that talk about a passionate love story while avoiding the usual stereotypes.

As you can read, Sanhedrin' Lights On is a very good traditional heavy metal record with a few creative surprises and twists. The chemistry among the three band members is excellent. This album might not reinvent the genre and be the shortest the band has released thus far but it's certainly worth your attention and the material presented here should work even better in concert.

Final Rating: 80%

Japanese heavy metal legends Loudness are back with a thirty-first studio record to celebrate their fortieth anniversary in style. While the predecessor Rise to Glory -8118- had much promotion, was supported by several music videos and received an international release with a valuable bonus disc in form of thirty-fifth anniversary album Samsara Flight ~ 輪廻飛翔, the band's new output Sunburst ～ 我武者羅 barely received any promotion, didn't feature any singles or music videos and was only released in Japan on relatively obscure label Katana Music. The record was not even released on popular streaming platforms such as Spotify, so don't even bother researching this record there. This album further walks off the beaten path since it features two discs with sixteen new songs and eighty-five minutes of music. The valuable limited edition goes even one step further and features a live concert with eighteen songs from all eras of the band on DVD. As if that weren't enough, this stunning package comes around with a special booklet, a sticker and even a poster if you order the record from CD Japan. One also has to point out the gorgeous cover artwork by Iwata Keiichi who has collaborated with renowned bands such as Anthem and Jupiter in the past and managed to create the most beautiful cover artwork in Loudness' stunning career. Despite its limited release, Loudness has put much effort into this stunning package that should be purchased by anyone who claims to be a fan of the Japanese heavy metal emperors.

While Loudness deserves to be put on the same level as Western heavy metal legends such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Saxon, there have been quite a few nasty comments about these legends based upon half-truths in recent years. Some people claim that the band is only living in the past and attempting to copy its successful style from the eighties. This is objectively wrong since the band has experimented with commercial hard rock and glam rock elements on Soldier of Fortune, with groove metal, funk rock and alternative rock sounds on Heavy Metal Hippies, with psychedelic rock incorporating Indian folklore on the trilogy Ghetto Machine, Dragon and Engine, with punk rock and nu metal soundscapes on Biosphere and with doom metal stylistics on Terror ~剥離~. This band has never stood still throughout all these years while being faithful to its very own heavy metal soundscapes.

Other people claim that the band has been losing some steam and that its members are getting old and should just call it quits. The boundless creativity with sixteen new songs and the dynamic live concert included here alone show that the band has aged gracefully as the group's rhythm section is still precise and tight, the vocals still sound charismatic and timeless and the adventurous and playful guitar play is even among the best you can find in rock and metal music. This group has always had much to say and shall continue to do so as long as it wants to.

Some naysayers mention that the band's lyrics and attitude flirt with far-right politics. To be fair, it's certainly true that Loudness are conservative patriots who are proud of their origins and positively promote their country and culture all around the world. Takasaki Akira, the founder, guitarist and songwriter of Loudness has however regularly been writing lyrics in English, has given himself the name Dario De Parma for his side project M.T. Fuji, has cooperated with Finnish heavy metal project Tuska20, has had an American singer in his band Loudness, has been living in India for long periods of time and has converted to Hinduism while living there. There is no proof whatsoever that this man has far-right political views loathing immigrants and desiring to conquer half of the Pacific as some people boldly claim. It's actually quite the opposite as he has always shown an honest sympathetic interest in foreigners and their cultures.

With those prejudices out of the way, let's focus on the music offered on Sunburst ～ 我武者羅. While the record doesn't include obvious singe candidates as on the immediate predecessor, the song material here is overall more consistent as it entertains from start to finish. While recent double albums of other genre bands had a few lengths, Loudness' effort sounds addictive, focused and gripping. The longest tune still has a reasonable length of just above seven minutes but there are also songs clocking in below four minutes to be found which makes for a quite balanced mixture. Stylistically speaking, this double album offers heavy metal alright but in different variations from melancholic slow-paced power ballads over slightly progressive doom metal monsters to energetic and precise anthemic tunes with strong melodic guitar play and catchy vocal lines.

There are several highlights worth being mentioned. On the first disc, we get to discover ''Stand or Fall'' that opens with sampes of sounds of nature before gloomy bass guitar play blends. The interesting transition continues with melancholic music box melodies and smooth otherworldly synthesizer sounds. As mid-paced rhythm section and guitar play kick in, occasional keyboard sounds evoking dramatic classical music passages continue the style of the opening section. Other experimental elements are added with sing-along passages and powerful backing vocals. The tight rhythm section, confident guitar play and catchy vocals keep all these different elements together and make for one of the best songs the band has ever written.

The opening sequences of ''The Sanzu River'' have a gloomy tone with dominant bass guitar sounds and longing distorted guitar sounds recalling psychedelic grunge elements from the early nineties. This adventurous tune however slowly shifts towards hard rock territory with gripping vocals recalling bands such as AC/DC. This atmospheric hidden gem might need a few spins to grow but certainly stands out stylistically from the rest of the material offered here.

The closing tune of the first disc ''Nihon no kokoro'' has sinister groove metal guitar sounds supported with haunting sound effects that wouldn't sound out of place on the soundtrack of a horror movie or video game. This same song however also features some of the fastest and heaviest passages on the record that are stylistically situated someplace between cold industrial metal and fierce thrash metal. This is the kind of song that could have been released by a band such as Over Kill in its experimental era in the nineties and early years of the new millennium.

On the second disc, we get to hear melodic power ballad ''All Will Be Fine with You'' that mixes uplifting lyrics with raw vocals complementing diversified guitar play with interesting changes in genre, pace and technique.

''The Nakigara'' on the other side is a gloomy doom metal monster with menacing bass guitar tones, psychedelic distorted guitar sounds, cinematic synthesizer sounds and dramatic choirs that make for an immersive atmosphere at its very best.

Album closer ''Wonderland'' opens with gloomy bell sounds before menacing, nervous and plodding musicianship enhances this atmosphere and takes the listeners on a adventurous voyage with inspired progressive and psychedelic rock passages that should even please fans of bands such as King Crimson and Pink Floyd.

As you can read, Loudness is still going strong forty years into its career on its thirty-first studio album that offers sixteen vibrant new songs and eighty-five minutes of passionate entertainment. The band's energetic heavy metal musicianship is complemented with playful psychedelic and progressive rock soundscapes on one side and gloomy doom and thrash metal eruptions here and there on the other side. The album doesn't include any fillers, entertains from start to finish and offers much replay value. The only thing that is missing is a truly memorable tune or potential single candidate that could stand the test of time. This release is a deep cut that is ony available in Japan but the band's faithful fans from all around the world should certainly make an effort to purchase this wonderful double album. Potential new fans or occasional listeners might as well start their discovery of these legends with this strong effort that presents the band's different soundscapes very well. I would like to congratulate the band on such a long and outstanding career and hope that these proud veterans will keep on releasing excellent new music in the future.

Final Rating: 85%

Slaves to Fashion is an imaginative Norwegian heavy metal quintet that had the interesting idea to honour the development of its favourite genre of music by releasing ten singles throughout one year that would end up on the appropriately titled record The History of Heavy Metal. The band collaborated with artists from all around the world regarding cover artworks, music videos and photographs. The material also involves additional musicians, numerous producers and guest singers.

The band proceeds in chronological order with thunderous opener ''MCMLXX'' being a gloomy, menacing and slow doom metal monster recalling the early years of Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin. The band even used vintage gear and analog tape machines to capture an appropriate vibe. The use of decently employed keyboards and mellotron add further atmosphere to the stunning opener.

Slaves to Fashion continues to explore other genres in chronological order. ''The Priest of Maidenhead'' is obviously a tribute to legendary British bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. This song convinces with poignant upper mid-tempo guitar riffs, tight rhythm section and melodic vocals hitting a few high and enthusiastic notes.

Closing tune ''Too Close (to See Clearly)'' explores contemporary trends such as metalcore guitar riffs and shouts, atmospheric blackgaze sections and even saccharine kawaii metal vocals provided by a female guest singer. Despite these numerous different influences in one single tune, the band has managed to create a balanced, fluid and focused closer that clocks in at just under four minutes and offers much replay value with its adventurous details that deserve to get discovered over and over again.

However, some other songs are a lot less coherent as the band sounds at times too ambitious and loses itself in abrupt genre changes and lengthy running times. ''Expressions of Extremity'' for instance clocks in at almost eight minutes and combines fierce speed metal with sinister funeral doom sections, traditional death metal stylistics, sudden black metal eruptions and even brief grindcore passages that appear for ten seconds only to disappear rapidly to never be heard of again. The song rushes by like a stressful blur and leaves the listeners behind scratching their heads.

''The Evergrowing Tree'' is the most challenging song in this regard as it clocks in at thirteen and a half minutes. This song combines progressive power metal sections with moody alternative rock and grunge passages as well as technical extreme metal parts. The final result sounds interesting on paper and is certainly intellectually appealing but the final result with sixteen different musicians and singers involved and such an ambitious running time is quite tough to digest to put it diplomatically. A little bit less could have been so much more in this particular case.

Despite a few flaws related to its ambitious concept. Slaves to Fashion's The History of Heavy Metal deserves some acclaim, attention and respect from metal fans of all ages from all around the world. This release essentially sounds like a compilation that documents five decades of musical changes, experiments and progression. While there is something to find for every taste on the album, some genres explored here might obviously please traditional heavy metal fans a little bit less. Even though the album misses a certain unique style, it's a wonderful and almost encyclopedic retrospective to be discovered over and over again that should at least partially please open-minded veterans as much as curious newcomers. This is also a great album to introduce heavy metal music to younger or less experienced listeners with its collaborative, historical and intellectual approach. This record works well as an exceptional experimental project but let's just hope that the band's next regular studio album will focus on the group's own distinct style and be a little bit less challenging.

Final Rating: 80%

A whopping fifty-eight years after its foundation and twelve years after the band had announced plans to retire, German hard rock legends Scorpions deliver one of their strongest records in several decades with twentieth studio album Rock Believer. The quintet has recently been joining forces with former Motörhead drummer Mikkey Dee who has brought a healthy dose of energy to the veterans.

Rock Believer sounds timeless with its excellent organic production that makes the five gentlemen of which some are in their mid-seventies sound like a group of hungry youngsters. Appropriately titled opening anthem ''Gas in the Tank'' runs you over like a wrecking ball and only leaves broken bones behind. The song opens with sound samples of alarm sirens before passionately discordant guitar sounds join that are soon completed by vibrant bass guitar sounds, dynamic drum patterns, youthful lead vocals and passioante backing vocals leading to a catchy chorus. The song gets to the point in less than four minutes and is the band's greatest opening song in many decades as it would also make for a wonderful concert opener.

The band keeps the momentum with lively, playful and tight ''Roots in My Boots'' that would also work splendidly in the context of a vibrant concert once the pandemic has slowed down to allow the veterans to perform without any restraints and risks.

The powerful opening trio is completed with the energetic, gritty and uplifting ''Knock 'em Dead'' that also gets to the point in four minutes and makes you want to bang your head, raise your fist and sing along from start to finish.

If you expect the band to break down, include a filler or slow things down at a certain point, you are mistaken. The band might be known for its popular soft ballads but this is a vibrant hard rock record with quite a few dynamic surprises. They include cool cowbell sounds in titular anthem ''Rock Believer'', atmospheric doom metal vibes in plodding grower ''Seventh Sun'' and particularly tight musicianship in ''Peacemaker'' that clocks in under three minutes and takes no prisoners.

The limited edition is also particularly interesting with four additional new songs and an acoustic version of the record's mellowest tune. ''When Tomorrow Comes'' includes some playful vocal effects and particularly catchy backing vocals that make for a memorable stomper that other bands would crave to select as lead single. ''Unleash the Beast'' features guitar play that reminds of nomadic string instruments that give the eerie tune a completely unusual folk rock vibe as the band covers completely new ground.

I didn't expect much from Scorpions' twentieth studio record Rock Believer but it turns out to be one of the band's very best albums. This release is energetic, playful and tight as the chemistry between the five musicians seems to be excellent. If this album ended up being the band's final studio record, it would end the group's career on a particularly high level. However, the quintet sounds so fresh, hungry and juvenile that it would be a shame if the German hard rock legends didn't release at least one more effort. This album should make it onto numerous lists for greatest records of the year and underlines the band's stunnning creativity, influence and longevity.

Final Rating: 90%