Grave Digger
The Clans Will Rise Again

Indissoluble metal bashers, the Grave Digger have tried again. "Ballads of a Hangman" had been a lackluster album, devoid of ideas, with convoluted tracks, all alike. For many, that had been the definite negative chapter, after which it would be difficult to recover. Instead, almost as if to challenge everyone and everything, the curly-haired Chris Boltendahl, the only true leader of the band and author of all the lyrics, has returned.

The renewed desire to return to the studio and dispel the negative judgments generates "The Clans Will Rise Again," the latest effort from the Teutons, dated October 2010. The cover, just like the track titles, make it clear to us that musically nothing will move the Grave Digger from classic heavy metal, which has now become their trademark. Granitic and old-style riffs, Boltendahl's very rough voice, and lyrics that cannot do without the four words Blood, Fight, Glory, and Battle. The band's trademark remains the same, and as predicted, there is nothing new under the voice of originality.

Here comes into play the charisma of Boltendahl, who alone tries to shoulder the entire burden of the band: in fact, if the tracks are once again far too academic, with the combo that seems unwilling to go beyond the usual routine, the vocalist gives it his all to show that despite the difficulties, the five Germans are still alive. The return to the concept from which "Tunes of War" was born is a further attempt to reconnect with the past, to show an attitude that seemed lost. In part, this happens, but "Paid in Blood" and "Hammer of the Scots" do not raise eyebrows; instead, they show power and choruses at least worthy of Grave Digger's history. The originality is equal to the intelligence of Minister Rotondi, but the desire to try seems to be there. Some positive tracks ("Rebels", "Coming Home"), others less so. Of all, "Whom the Gods Love Die Young" stands out, where at least for a moment the glories of old, those that now seem almost entirely lost, resurface.

There are few moments when the Scottish air so dear to the band is breathed: the sound slightly darker than before leads the band towards sonorities more connected to horror than to the epic scenarios of Tunes of War. The result is nonetheless the predictable one of a heavy metal heavily infused with classicism, with some bagpipes here and there. Compared to the past, at least, the head has been raised, and this is enough for the die-hard fans. For everyone else?

1. "Days Of Revenge" (1:58)
2. "Paid In Blood" (3:59)
3. "Hammer Of The Scots" (4:02)
4. "Highland Farewell" (4:08)
5. "The Clans Will Rise Again" (5:01)
6. "Rebels" (4:41)
7. "Valley Of Tears" (4:09)
8. "Execution" (4:46)
9. "Whom The Gods Love Die Young" (6:12)
10. "Spider" (3:19)
11. "The Piper McLeod" (0:49)
12. "Coming Home" (4:23)
13. "When Rain Turns To Blood" (6:14)