All for Metal - Legends

Angry Metal Guy 70

It’s easy to be a cynic these days. Right now, dissonant, nihilistic blackened funeral sludge doom that speaks of the eventual destruction of the earth or the unavoidable heat death of the universe seems to be the darling of listeners and critics alike. Within this context, it’s easy to scoff at a band like All for Metal. The international heavy metal conglomerate is releasing their debut Legends, and it’s filled with stories of unabashed heroism. Heroism is a theme that doesn’t necessarily sit well with a generation that may relate more strongly to Game of Thrones than it does The Lord of the Rings, but while naive hero-worship can certainly lead to disillusionment and atrocities, we will always need heroes. Heroes and their tales give us something to imitate. Ask any parent, and they’ll tell you that imitation is a huge aspect of early human learning—for better or worse. A healthy, balanced view of heroes can be just the inspiration we need in a world that seems to be careening off a cliff. Heroes can remind us that ‘there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it’s worth fighting for.’

At first glance, All for Metal seems to be a near perfect facsimile of Brothers of Metal—sans the incredibly talented Ylva Eriksson—so much so, in fact, that when I first heard them, I was convinced they were a Brothers of Metal side project. But further research, and further listens, reveal that while All for Metal may peddle the same chonky, bordering on goofy heavy/power as BoM, they are certainly their own beast. The embedded single and album opener, All for Metal’s namesake track, finds the band paying homage to heavy metal with a rocking anthem that sounds like Carrie Underwood paying homage to Sunday Night Football, only in this case, Carrie sounds like the love child of Manowar’s Eric Adams and Disturbed’s David Draiman. Now that I’ve described that in as unappealing a way as possible, let me also say that the song fucking slays.

And whether or not you like that opening track will tell you all you need to know about All for Metal, because Legends is just one huge heavy metal anthem after another. Yeah, the songs are all pretty straightforward, but they pack a punch nonetheless. While there are faster power metal songs like “Goddess of War” and the Powerwolf-esque “Fury of the Gods,” most tracks fall into the mid-paced or semi-ballad tempos. “Raise Your Hammer” has an infectious, folky groove, “Hear the Drum” feels like a modern Amon Amarth pit-crusher without the death metal vocals, and “Mountain of Power” has become my new personal life-anthem (it’s also the new nickname that Steel has started using for me). The album closes in fitting fashion with the beautiful “Legends Never Die,” sending us on our way inspired to forge our own tales of glory.

As solid as these songs are, they wouldn’t be nearly as compelling without the vocal talents of main vocalist Antonio Calanna. I’ve already given you a bizarre comparison palette above, but he simply has incredible range and an extremely pleasing timbre. Yes, these songs are cheesy, but Calanna gives such an earnest performance that I can’t stop myself from getting immersed in the All for Metal universe of power and might. These guys know how to put a compelling tune together, and their commitment to the execution makes Legends a huge success. All the songs are winners, but “All for Metal,” “Goddess of War,” “Raise Your Hammer,” “Hear the Drum,” Mountain of Power,” and “Legends Never Die” will have you heading to the powder room to apply your war paint.

Of course, it’s important to face the music (and to create and listen to music that makes us face the music) of humanity’s choices and of our cold and heartless universe, but sometimes we simply need to tighten up our swordbelt, give fate the finger, and run into battle despite the odds. With Legends, All for Metal have given us a soundtrack for the latter. These guys are doing Odin’s work, and I hope their legend never dies.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AFM Records
Websites: facebook.com/allformetalofficial | www.allformetal.com
Releases Worldwide: July 7th, 2023

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