Lupine loons Powerwolf are back with album number four, Blood of the Saints, another bloody and blasphemous dose of pantomime, sorry, power-metal. After an eerie intro that conjures up sinister images of blood-chilling horror in crumbling castles, 'Sanctified with Dynamite' – yes, you read correctly – is upon us. A sure-fire power-metal anthem, it's laced with full-bodied and frightening Phantom-esque organs, heroic guitar lines, and plenty of fist-pumping, sing-along-a choruses. An impressive opener, but 'We Drink Your Blood' – yes, you read that right too – oozes with hooks and hummable melodies and is another fist-pumping anthem that's guaranteed to have crowds howling along (albeit out of tune of course). And so, from the gothic rock of 'Murder at Midnight' through to the grandeur of six minute closer, 'Ira Sancti', it's more of the same: chillingly majestic organs, huge, galloping riffs, and classically-trained Atilla Dorn's melodic and powerful vocals that range from clean to operatic warbling all over the songs. Each song is as infectious as an open wound in a Mumbai brothel, equally unforgettable, but more pleasingly memorable. Thankfully.
Structurally, however, the songs tend to follow the same path and charge towards the chorus and the fist-pumping crowd pleaser and so can get tedious. That said, whether tongue-in-cheek or otherwise, suspension of disbelief makes this a fun album that is undeniably well crafted and very well produced. Whether you enjoy a mighty 'Hail!' at a metal gig, a night at the opera, a giggle at a pantomime, or being terrified by bloodcurdling tales of nightdress-clad nubile females running breathlessly through dark woods being chased by full-moon-activated, pointy-toothed quadrupeds, then Powerwolf's Blood of the Saints has it all.
Track Listing:
- Agnus dei (Intro)
- Sanctified with dynamite
- We drink your blood
- Murder at Midnight
- All we need is blood
- Dead boys don't cry
- Son of a wolf
- Night of the werewolves
- Phantom of the funeral
- Die, die, crucified
- Ira Sancti (When the saints are going wild)