Grave Digger - Rheingold (2003) - A piece of German culture with the right mixture - 93% (16/05/11)

I always thought that "The Last Supper" would be my favourite album of Grave Digger but after paying closer attention to it predecessor, I must admit that "Rheingold" is slightly better as it has even more to offer. Maybe this album needs some time to grow as it is more complex than its follow up and that’s why it took me some time to realize and fully appreciate its rich qualities.

The band just plays the magic mixture on this record. There are typical heavy metal anthems like the dynamical "Valhalla" that convinces with a great chorus or the short and very fast "Liar", mystical and majestic passages that fit to the legendary topic like "Murderer" or "Dragon" and eerie ballads in the style of "Maidens of War" and "Goodbye" can be found on this outstanding record. Let me point out that this is for the last time that they perform one of their brilliant ballads with softer and clean vocals on a studio album and the reason might be that they reached out for the climax on this record. The greatest thing might be that there is not one single filler on the entire album. I highly suggest grabbing the special edition with the two bonus tracks that continue the "Rheingold" legacy and are as strong as the other ten songs. The songs should have made it both on the regular records and Grave Digger proves once again that their bonus tracks are worth being listened to and being purchased. If you want to check the style of this album out quickly, I would suggest listening to "Twilight of the Gods", the longest track on this record that unites some bits and pieces of all the songs and their different attitudes on this record. If you happen to like this song you won't do anything wrong by purchasing this record. I would compare the musical style of this album to "Heart of Darkness" with the conceptual skills of the Medieval Age trilogy.

The cover artwork and especially the lyrical conception are once again very interesting and well done and might introduce the world to an entertaining and legendary epic German tale and also a great German opera. But while a few slight orchestra and choir passages can be found on the album like in the dark and slow doom epic "Sword", the band plays as straight with all their typical trademarks as on the previous records. This record is a true piece of German culture and unites all the things and styles one likes about this band. The album is diversified, entertaining and addicting. Depending of which mood I am in, this albums offers anything I need to listen to concerning good heavy metal: straight and aggressive vocals, high pitched shrieks, soft vocals, pumping riffs, a couple of good solo guitars, some honestly said less stunning but overall solid pumping bass guitar riffs and drum patterns as well as some great orchestrations.

In the end, even after so many years, the band still pushes further and higher and presents a diversified high quality record with some truly surprising and addicting tracks. If you like traditional heavy metal with some slightly open minded approaches towards power and symphonic metal you should get this album right away.