Bathory
Hammerheart

THE REVIEW

Year: 1989
Location: Sweden
Artist: Bathory
Album: Hammerheart

After providing a brief summary of what I'm discussing, I would say it's time to start the review. Bathory, one of the longest-standing and most important metal bands in the world, devoted to the most uncompromising black metal around the late '80s and early '90s, returned to the market in 1989 with this "Hammerheart," bolstered by a contribution like "Blood Death And Fire"; the decisive shift towards more pleasant and less violent sounds heavily divided the fan base that our Quorthon had managed to attract with albums like "The Return..." and "Bathory." In fact, both themes and musical structures, along with the music, were completely upended.

The album reviewed here was then a true novelty, which (unfortunately) paved the way for all the epic/viking groups in circulation today; the album presents itself as very simple, almost austere, rich with ideas and beautiful songs: these always formed by a very linear structure, and lacking any technical evolution, and that's precisely the strength of the album: its directness.

The icy, Nordic sounds thus resonate throughout all the songs, which are a mixture of healthy American-rooted epic mixed with the cold rhythms of Scandinavian black. The strong pagan/Viking tradition to which the vocalist, as well as the mastermind of the group, Quorthon, is inspired, permeates the lyrics of all the tracks, which are real odes to Nordic culture. The album opens with the massive "Shores In Flames," which after an atmospheric intro complete with waves crashing on the beach, begins with an electric guitar arpeggio, to then make the track take off: an explosion of energy and violence, where Quorthon's ungraceful voice reigns supreme, masterfully leading the entire song thanks to a particularly convincing melody; 11 minutes of pure Viking will overwhelm you, transporting you to the icy lands of Northern Europe. The next "Valhalla," moves on similar coordinates to the previous song, with cues exploited even better, if possible: the broad and slow guitar riffs, as well as the rocky rhythms, make this song one of the true gems of the record. Quorthon once again proves to be particularly untechnical in the vocal parts, but precisely for this reason extremely theatrical and sharp. A drum intro leads us to the monolithic "Baptised In Fire And Ice," an extremely easy song, but no less beautiful than the others for this; the great linearity and melodicity of the track are often broken by the rough voice of the vocalist, who this time does not perform a commendable job, yet the song can be listened to with much pleasure. Glorious traditions are at the center of "Father To Son," another great piece signed by Quorthon. The song, led by a dark guitar riff, is surely one of the most personal and passionate on the record. The beautiful lyrics (the story of a father narrating the traditions of his people to his son) also make this track a real gem. The chorus is splendid. A classic guitar arpeggio instead opens the short but touching "Song To Hall Up High," a delicate yet sad piece that can be considered the ballad of the album: splendid the way Quorthon, accompanied by a very delicate choir, leads the vocal lines of this gem. We then arrive at "Home Of Once Brave," a song opened by a robust riff, accompanied by Quorthon's extremely raw voice, which however fails to make an interesting song a little predictable, which although not shining, doesn’t turn out to be particularly bad either. We thus pass to another Bathory classic: "One Rode To Asa Bay," a track opened by a choir accompanied by an electric guitar arpeggio. This is undoubtedly the episode that perfectly summarizes the new soul of the group: a wave of emotions and pure epicness will overwhelm you while listening to an extreme Viking masterpiece of such magnitude.

The album thus concludes, leaving the world a true masterpiece of music, unrepeatable and unmissable, which will lay the foundation for all future Viking albums.