adg211288
Preachers of the Night (2013) is the fifth full-length by German power metal act Powerwolf. Despite this year marking ten years of the band it's fair to say that they're one of the current big name power metal acts I've never previously given the time of day. I'd heard their song We Drink Your Blood from their previous album Blood of the Saints (2011) but I have to honest although it was enjoyable enough I wasn't thrilled enough with it to pay any extra attention to them at the time. Fast-forward to the present day and yours truly has recently been provided with a promo copy of Preachers of the Night, so there's no better time really to wipe the slate clean and give the band a proper go.
The instant highlight of the music on Preachers of the Night is vocalist Attila Dorn. This man has a really powerful and varied voice. Able to sound both epic, almost to the point of being operatic, yet also sing with the aggressive edge that German power metal is known for. The opening pair of songs Amen & Attack and Secrets of the Sacristy are a great way for him to show off just what's he's capable of. They're also two of the very best on the album, so also show off just how catchy Powerwolf can be without going silly with the power metal cheese. Amen & Attack in particular quickly asserts itself as the most addictive straight up power metal song I've heard this year so far.
The music itself is more or less straight up melodic power metal throughout, with a few slower melodic heavy metal sections thrown in to vary things up a bit. Where the Powerwolf sound tends to differ though is that where you can hear keyboards being used it's not in the usual symphonic stuff, but well, it kind of sounds like church organ music, a feeling heightened by the band's use of choirs. This makes Powerwolf's brand of power metal have a darker sound than the norm, but without dropping the genre's epic, catchy and melodic qualities.
The songs themselves retain a high quality level, although the first third of the album is a lot stronger than anything than follows. It doesn't so much stall during the next few tracks but they don't make such a massive impact on me the way anything up to Sacred & Wild does. Getting towards the end the quality picks up again though with another pair of belters in the form of Lust For Blood and Extatum Et Oratum. Neither is of an Amen & Attack level of quality, as the first four songs are, but definitely serve to give the album that last gasp of life towards the end. Songs like Kreuzfeuer and In the Name of God (Deus Vult) that appear in the middle of the album are still quality work, but come across as filler in the grander scheme of things.
Overall though there is a lot more celebrate within Preachers of the Night. This isn't a perfect album by any means but it isn't hard to hear why Powerwolf are so highly regarded within the power metal circles. An exceptional grade rating is easily deserved.
89/100
(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven: http://metaltube.freeforums.org/powerwolf-preachers-of-the-night-t3065.html)