Review: Firewind – Stand United

AFM Records (March 1^st, 2024)

Reviewer: Jason Hopper

Firewind are back with their tenth album ‘Stand United‘, and while I’ve followed and enjoyed parts of founding guitarist Gus G.’s other projects (my favorite being his involvement with Dream Evil). This is the first full length studio album I’ve listened to from the band. I reviewed their live album released last year based on some singles I heard, and I was mightily impressed (review here). I decided I needed to hear more from this band.

I preceded to dive down the Firewind rabbit hole and discovered what would be this album’s first single, the mighty ‘Destiny is Calling’. This is the very definition of catchy and melodic power metal! I could see why the band chose to release it a whole year before the album was released. A great song like this needs to be unleashed onto the world ASAP. I was fired up to review this album just based on that song.

Admittedly, I was a little disappointed to find that second single ‘Salvation Day’ was the album opener. It is one of the weaker tracks on the album. It’s not a bad song but it’s one of those “dime a dozen” songs that I’ve heard countless times. Its arrangement is very familiar and did nothing to excite me.

Track 2 is the title track and is much better. This should have opened the album and showcases Gus G.’s extraordinary ability to perform arpeggios all over the fretboard while still maintaining an appealing melody that is commercially viable.

With Track 3’s ‘Destiny is Calling’ the album really kicks off for me. Following track ‘The Power Lies Within’ slows the album slightly but in the best possible way. A thick and heavy groove with brawn making up for speed. Variations like this are critical to not making everything sound samey. The recently released third single ‘Fallen Angel’ is tremendous, with its melody change up coming out of the chorus and Gus’s slides across the fretboard a personal highlight of the track. The last track I want to highlight is ‘Land of Chaos’, my second favorite song on the album. Powerful would be an understatement.  For me this track has standout production that sounds stronger than in most other areas of the album (more on that later) with a ferocious guitar riff and singer Herbie Langhans putting in his best performance. The man sounds like he’s spitting venom here.

Not all songs can be winners though. ‘Chains’ has a laid-back metal feel with a keyboard undertone at parts, making it stand out from the other numbers here, but my issue is its weak chorus. It falls flat, relying on minor chord progressions that take away from the power within the verses.  As for the cover of The Romantics ‘Talking in Your Sleep’, it is…fine. I like when bands do outside the box covers but this one sticks a little too close to the original. I would have preferred something more experimental to make it more their own. Here it’s just a heavier version with nothing else to say.

Compared to other power metal bands, Firewind should sound as big as many of their contemporaries but sonically they are not as strong as they could be. I listened to all their live albums and compared those songs to their studio tracks. There is a ferocity to the band in a live setting that is not quite captured in the studio. I bought several singles online from the band, all of them live tracks. Producer Dennis Ward is well regarded in the industry, but perhaps the sound he captures is better suited to the melodic rock genre. Power metal this good needs someone who can bring that extra grit that would make their studio output sound as powerful as their live recordings.

I believe long time fans will consider this to be another winner. I’ve played this album repeatedly over the last few days and could easily see more than half this album making its way into their current setlist. They’re on tour in America in a few short months and would love to hear a majority of these songs played live. Grab a copy of the album for yourself or stream the hell out of it. Firewind is doing their part to keep metal alive and well.

Tracklist:

1. Salvation Day
2. Stand United
3. Destiny is Calling
4. The Power Lies Within
5. Come Undone
6. Fallen Angel
7. Chains
8. Land of Chaos
9. Talking In Your Sleep
10. Days of Grace