We all have bands we feel a special kinship with and avidly root for, approaching each new release with great expectations. Of the acts near and dear to the heart of Steel, Sweden’s Grand Magus enjoy a lofty perch in the Appreciation Pantheon. I’m a rabid fan of their early works, especially their Iron Will and Hammer of the North outings. Their blend of traditional, doom, and epic/true metal had enormous scope and bite, inspiring the listener to great deeds of high adventure. JB Christoffersson has been one of my favorite vocalists for more than 2 decades and I’m a sucker for what Magus do. That being said, their last few albums have been varying degrees of underwhelming, devoid of the fire and brute brimstone of earlier works. 2019s Wolf God was only so-so and I all but forgot it existed after reviewing it. It was an album that sounded like a band stuck in a rut and going through the motions. After 4 years, I hoped a refreshed, refocused Grand Magus would arise to seek wengeance and wictory. Will their 10th full-length Sunraven be the tip of the spear of a Magus resurgence? Pray for warjo.
The first thing that struck me about Sunraven besides the totally badass artwork was the short runtime (35 minutes) and tight song lengths (most in the 3-minute window, none cracking the 6-minute mark). Could this be the sign of a revitalized war machine? Opener “Skybound” comes off the longship swinging with the burly, beefy riffs one expects from Grand Magus and JB sounds large and very much in charge. The song is punchy, direct, and most importantly, badass. It’s full of macho gravitas and it sounds like the work of the band that gave us Hammer of the North. That’s all I could ask for. “The Wheel of Pain” is heavier and doomier, with massive riffs flowing like molten lava from the speakers, and the epic sound is bold enough to resurrect the Hyborian Age where men were rampaging beasts. This is the stuff I’ve been longing for since 2012! Song after song boldly strides forth brandishing the Argus-meets-Visigoth master metal sound I love and it’s as if the band found the Fountain of Manowarter and enjoyed of deep dranks. “Winter Storms” is a mighty mid-tempo saga about snow storms and inner strength that hits just right and increases testosterone levels by 666%. It reminds me of Rose Tattoo’s classic cut “Branded” due to JB’s vocal pacing and placement and that makes it even cooler. This one will be blasted with every snowfall this winter.
In a surprising development, things get heavier as Sunraven unspools. “Hour of the Wolf” is one of the best things Magus have done in forever, brimming with aggressive, churning riffs and chest-thumping vocals full of piss and uric vinegar. Dramatic guitar lines merge with heroic chanting and the word “epic” barely sums up the results. Where has this shit been the last 10 years? The two-song run covering the Beowulf saga (“Grendel,” “To Heorot”) is a masterful way to wind down a righteous return to the throne of trve metal, and closer “The End Belongs to You” is especially powerful with crunching, strident riffage and fist-pumping energy aplenty. It will infest your apeish mind with the need to swing a war hammer and you should not resist. The best news is that there’s zero filler here, which can’t be said for the last few albums. Every song is at least very good and a few are great. And at 35 minutes, it all happens in a dizzying blur leaving you eager to hit the replay gizmodo.
With vastly improved writing focused on the battle-forward edge of the Magus sound, Sunraven lets the power trio flex their musical muscles. JB sounds born again hard, his valorous baritone sounding regal and commanding. He’s still a great vocalist and he adds his macho magic to every song (especially “The Black Lake”). His riffing is much more dynamic and energetic this time too, lustily channeling NWoBHM and flirting with proto-speed metal. There are even traces of Viking metal seeping in with grand results (“To Heorot” in particular). His solos are slick and full of feeling and everything sounds Mjolnir worthy. Ludwig Witt is his reliably thunderous self behind the kit, pounding the war drums for all he’s worth like Manowar’s late, great Scott Columbus, jacking everything up to the next level, and Fox Skinner rounds out the sound with his ace bass work and backing vocals.
Sunraven is the album I feverishly hoped to get from Grand Magus. It’s a grand return to prime form with the fire firmly back in the Balrog. This is the best Magus outing since 2012s The Hunt and it gives me a warm feeling in the war regions and makes my back hair confrontational. Grab your sword, dust off the war helm, and get in the ship, loser. We’re doing Viking gangsta shit! MAGUS!!
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 264 kbps mp3
Label: Nuclear Blast
Websites: grandmagus.com | facebook.com/grandmagusofficial | instagram.com/grandmagusband
Releases Worldwide: October 18th, 2024
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