UMUR
"Force Majeure" is a compilation album by Danish heavy metal act Force Majeure. The compilation was released through Steel Legacy Records in January 2010, almost 20 years after Force Majeure disbanded. Force Majeure formed in 1983 and were originally called Apocalypse but changed their name to Force Majeure in 1988. They shortly changed their name to Crime Academy in 1990 and then back to Force Majeure later the same year. They disbanded in 1991 after releasing one demo as Apocalypse, one demo as Crime Academy and three demos as Force Majeure (the Crime Academy demo was released between the second and third Force Majeure demos). This compilation features the material from the three Force Majeure demos and the unreleased 1988 demo track "Kingdom Fall" (which may or may not be featured on some versions of the first demo). As a bonus the compilation also features live videos for "Ballerina" and "Crime Academy".
Force Majeure played a powerful, melodic, and quite sophisticated heavy metal style with power metal and neo-classical leanings throughout their career. The material from the 1988 demo is quite impressive and professional, while the material from the 1989 demo is slightly less well produced but ultimately still is good quality demo material. The real gem here is the material from the December 1990 "The Fortress" demo though. High quality material performed by a skilled and professional band. There had been quite a few lineup changes (and a band name change) between the second and the third demos, and the last incarnation of Force Majeure really were a force to be reckoned with. It´s such a shame they disbanded at that point, because I would have loved to hear a studio album from them.
Upon conclusion this compilation is well worth the price of admission for the material from "The Fortress" demo alone, but the material from the two other demos is definitely worth a listen to. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is fully deserved.