Sabaton – The Art of War
Black Lodge Records – 2008
By Adam McAuley
A very operatic sound characterizes
Sabaton as they deliver waves of a huge sound that envelops the listener. The band deliver a sound that is slightly different than the usual power metal as it overlooks the straightforward approach that many of those bands show for their own grandiose approach.
Don’t get me wrong, there is still a prospect of the album being cheesy to be largely found, but the band surround themselves with such pompousness that they distance themselves from other bands that could be potentially similar. But the band still manage to lack a flair that might rise them above their competitors as the songs sound big, but don’t have enough of an interesting element to carry them forward into greater pastures. If compared to a band like
Rhapsody, we can see them coming up slightly short in terms of the orchestration as they fail to be as exciting, but rather just churn on. As such, we can just hear them getting stuck in a rut that displays them to have talent, but perhaps miss some of the emotion that would bring them to a different level.
The band have enough talent to make something happen, but the rather bland sound they employ leaves them coming up rather short even though there is a hugeness associated with it to be readily found. Thus
Sabaton are the kind of band I’d recommend greatly towards fans of the genre, while people looking for something slightly more interesting might want to look elsewhere.
The Art of War is an album that’s for a certain taste in music.
Official Sabaton Website
Official Sabaton MySpace
Official Black Lodge Records Website
