Customer Reviews

Devil's Ground

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Primal Fear is a band that has taken the influences of Judas Priest,Accept and Helloween and added a few more layers of molten steel to create they're modern day yet ever so classic metal.
Devil's Ground is Primal Fears's 5th record.And other than the first,which is smokin' and was a huge surprise,it is their best.
One reason is because they've added a few new elements.Like some string sections in The Healer.An excellent track,one of their best.
Of course the majority of the record is fast and furious "Painkiller" type metal.Anyone that knows this band knows they're not breaking any new ground here.Just heads up Tradtional Metal.Though they have taken it to a better level in the studio sonically.Making crystal clear blaring recordings that just sound awesome cranked through some decent speakers!
High points on the disc for me are Wings of Desire,The Healer,Suicide & Mania,In Metal and Sacred Illusion.
And Devil's Ground itself is not even a track,it is an ominous spoken word passage about Hell that seems more like something from a Dimmu Borgir album than Primal Fear.
So if you're a fan you'll be very pleased with this CD.If you've never heard of Primal Fear but you're into bands like Priest,Accept,Gamma Ray,Dream Evil or Helloween.You should definitly check this out.

Five albums in, and these guys have put out another complete metal album. I've been a fan since the first album and I know that when a new one is released (five in 6 years!) I will not be disappointed. If you in any way call yourself a fan of the genre of heavy metal and you don't own this or any other of their albums, go break out your George Michael "Faith" c.d.s. The only other band out there right now that is this consistent is HammerFall. I'ts almost impossible to choose one of Primal's albums from my collection now because they are all excellent. A blind purchase for anyone with any metal taste. Why this band isn't bigger in the U.S. is a travesty. Oh, I know why, because everyone's busy listening to Puddle of Dung....Peace.

When I listen to Primal Fear I hear mostly Judas Priest with elements of Halford, Iron Maiden and maybe a little Dio thrown in there as well. I love all those bands so to me that is not a bad thing at all. They are definitely old school power metal with some speed metal thrown in for good measure. I just wish there were more bands today like Primal Fear that played this style of metal. My personal favorites on this disc are Suicide and Mania, Visions of Hate, Sea of Flames, and Heart of Brave. I'm not all that crazy about metal anthems. I don't think its necessary to sing about the greatness of heavy metal. You either think its great or don't. That being said, as metal anthems go, Metal is Forever is better than most. Track 12 with the spoken message about hell doesn't really add anything to the album but doesn't necessarily take anything away either. Even though I would have liked to see how great Ralf Scheepers would have been with Priest, in a way I'm glad he didn't get the job. Otherwise we might not have Primal Fear. Sometimes things happen for a reason. Overall a solid effort definitely worth picking up.

Its just awesomely solid.
Metal is Forever is a great openee. Suicide and Mania is just plain sick, this one gets the repeat on my player alot. Straight ahead in your face riff and the chorus is just so..... metal. The Healer, Suicide and Mania, Colony 13, and SoulChaser are the best songs on the cd. But all are above average solid metal butt kicking. Heart Of A Brave has an excellent chorus as wel. While I dont think this one is as melodic as Black Sun which i love, it still gets more player time. i didnt think Sacred illusion was the best song as others have stated but each his own. Sea Of Flames is so Judas Priest in its smash your face in kinda way that its sick.

Primal Fear does not pretend to reinvent the wheel. They celebrate all things heavy metal and do a damn awe-inspiring job! Lead off track "Metal is Forever" is one rambunctious kicker of a tune, kind of a cross between high-octane Judas Priest and Restless and Wild era Accept. There are no real surprises on the disc, which may disappoint some fans, nonetheless the album positively roars. With Tom Naumann back in the fray on guitar, Devil's Ground pounds with a little more panache than the last album Black Sun. New drummer Randy Black does a rather smashing job, also. The only other addition to the Primal Fear sound seems to be the addition of orchestral backing to tracks such as "Visions of Fate" and "The Healer." It does add to the fullness and vitality of the songs. Things get really Priesty come "Sea of Flames" with its Painkiller-esque drum intro and guitar riffs...and I wholeheartedly approve! One weakness of the record (I agree with the other reviewer) is the hokey spoken word outro which only serves as a distraction at the end of a rip-roaring ride through metaldom. The guys made one tiny error- so what! One other small comment- I would have liked to have seen the track "Sacred Illusion" (the best song on Devil's Ground) as the first song. It kinda languishes in the middle part of the record when it would have really been able to shine at the beginning. Devil's Ground kicks major booty. And I have 3 copies myself because I can't get enough! Support Primal Fear for they ARE metal personified!! David J Newman 2004

Primal Fear comeback and metal is brought into my ears once more. This band doesn't take, they give. At all times is metal made for you. Don't pass up this opportunity to be yourself metal. Heavy is right, but melody also take its place. A cd worth owning for many moons. Get import and you will have treat of three songs bonus. Live metal forever & now!!!

I love Primal Fear band! This CD was missing in my library and I like it very much. Especially The Healer is my favorite song. The only and the biggest disappointment was the cover. I didn't suppose Amazon will send damaged cover - almost 1/4 of title page is completely missing!!! As it was properly wrapped in the plastic and the box is ok, I suppose some mistake must have been taken during the primal packaging. I don't complain Amazon for breaking it but I supposed Amazon's quality control should be better during completing the package. I cannot return it or change it because of the delivery costs and processing complications (I'm living in the Europe). But the band is great!

"Devil's Ground" is the 5th studio album by German melodic/power metal band "Primal Fear" originally released in 2004. The line up features founding members singer extraordinaire, Ralf Scheepers, bassist Matt Sinner, established guitarist Stefan Leibing, new entry Canadian drummer Randy Black (ex-"Annihilator") while also marking the return of original guitarist Tom Newman.

"Devil's Ground" was conceived and recorded in the process of pushing the band's creativity into new (to the members) musical territories, a vision that would also be applied on the following two albums "Seven Seals" and "New Religion". Essentially, "Devil's Ground" is the established heavy/melodic style that "Fear" forged during the late 90s featuring razor-sharp riffs, blinding lead guitar, high pitched vocal attack, devastating rhythm section, all under the catchiest melodies and largest choruses' one could ask for. So songs like "Suicide and Mania", "In metal" and "Heart of A brave" are prime demonstration of their sound; still they go a few steps further by introducing the mid tempo-symphonic epic "The healer", one of their lengthiest tunes featuring probably the longest chorus the band has ever written. In addition the lyrical themes shift considerably towards religion and spiritualism delivering some rather agonizing moments on songs like "Suicide and mania" and "Colony 13". "Devil's ground" spawned a new "Primal Fear" hit song, "Metal is forever" and was the first album to be supported by two promo videos for "Metal is forever" and "The healer".

Overall "Devil's Ground" stands as another stellar addition to the band's catalogue that took the first step in a course that would later deliver albums like "Seven Seals"(2005) and the monumental "New religion"(2007). A guarnateed purhcase for anyone who enjoyed "New Religion".

Ive just recently dicovered Primal Fear and i have to say that these guys are about as good as it gets! They kick my ass on a daily basis! METAL RULES!

Primal Fear's fifth full length album, "Devil's Ground" (2004), is not quite at the same level as their two previous releases Nuclear Fire and Black Sun.

The album opens with the triumphant "Metal Is Forever", followed by the incredibly catchy "Suicide and Mania". More excellent tracks follow, e.g., "Visions of Fate", "Sacred Illusion" and "In Metal". Overall, this album IS great.

However, there are two big problems:

1.) The title track. "Devil's Ground" is a two minute dramatic reading, with heavily processed vocals. Had they pared this down to a thirty second intro to a full blown title song, it could have been great. Instead it's dreadfully dull and completely disposable. What a poor way to close the album.

2.) "The Healer". This epic ballad is actually a good song, somewhat reminiscent of Queensryche's "The Mission" (from Operation: Mindcrime). But "The Healer" proves you can have too much of a good thing. There is a rest at the 4:36 mark, and had they actually ended the song here, it would have been brilliant. Instead the song drones on for another two minutes, while they repeat the one minute long chorus yet again and repeat the intro as an outro. This extra two minutes accomplishes nothing except to pad out the running time and perhaps annoy the listener.

A computer and an audio editing program could easily fix these two problems. However, I have to review what Primal Fear actually released, and as is "Devil Ground" rates only four out of five stars. I still recommend this album, but suggest you buy Nuclear Fire and Black Sun first.