Legacy of Kings

Hammerfall

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 13, 1998)
• Original Release Date: October 6, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Nuclear Blast Americ
• ASIN: B00000C2IE
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #18,819 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Features guest songwriter Jesper Stromblad (In Flames), with this release Hammerfall ensures that metal is more alive than ever before. Nuclear Blast.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars METAL IS BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, April 28, 2004

By	Kull "the valusian" (Italy) - See all my reviews

After having seen our favourite musical style bashed down by thrashers who should test their skills wielding chainsaws and/or
other loud implement of destruction...after having 'heard' (??)
abominable crossovers with hip-hop and other sorts of filthy sources of noise, after having our ears maimed by death metal
vocalists (?) sounding like grizzly bears with troath carcinomas
FINALLY
The Gods smiled upon us bereaved followers of melodic power and brought us these fine viking raiders from sweden that singlehandedly resurrected good old melodic metal, re-created a 'scene' WITHOUT any kind of buck-greedy major behind them
and kickstarted Europe toward a bright new future of musical greatness unheard of since the days of Mozart and Beethoven!
Too enthusiastic you say?
OK!
Just imagine how I felt in the late 90s when the 'greatest'
musical novelty were ice-t and body count when I grabbed the FIRST HammerFall CD after having witnessed a metal festival in
Italy attended by (o joy! o joy!!) some 5,000 people...

THESE GUYS SOUNDED LIKE THEY HAVE BEEN NURSED AT THE SAME TEAT THAT NOURISHED JOEY DiMAIO (of immortal ManOwaR fame!!!!!).

I ADORE HammerFall and I admit it, call me unfair.

THEY RESURRECTED THE MUSIC I LOVE
I OWE THEM MUCH MORE THAN I COULD EVER RETURN TO THEM!
So this is my paycheck to them...apart from having BOUGHT (not downloaded...no no) EVERY SINGLE ALBUM they released.

This one came forth in late 1998 and I had bought it in Nov. even before Xmas as I could not wait for my presents to come in.

In July 1999 they went to Italy and I rushed to Milan to see them!

Their rendition of 'At the end of the Rainbow' sent nearly 10,000 people to the sky!

The Templars will survive, ALWAYS!

Do your ears a favour and buy it!

The guys need support from TRUE believers!!!!!!!

Paolo, Genoa.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What you'd expect...real good epic power metal, May 27, 2001

By	Mark R. Guglielmo "markgugs" (Wood Ridge, NJ United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

First thoughts: HUGE power drumming, great, classic riffing at nice speeds, and Helloween-like vocals (Kiske), melodies and harmonizing.

Ok, review over. Just kidding. It'd be selling Hammerfall short to just categorize them as another Helloween knockoff, though to be sure the influence is right smack dab in the middle of things. This was my first Hammerfall listen, and it's their second album. It was pretty much what I expected, which is to say, a very good example of what a modern power metal band should sound like.

The songwriting follows the K.I.S.S. school of thought. And no, I don't mean Knights in Satan's Service (ha ha). I'm talking Keep It Simple Stupid. Write some lyrics about battle and glory and be sure to throw some references to steel and metal in there. Add good speedy riffing and lightspeed soloing, stir in some chanting anthemic choruses, top off with big double-bass drumming and voila! Power metal!

"Heeding the Call" and "Legacy of Kings" are a great twofer to open things off, employing all the items above. "Let the Hammer Fall" brings Manowar to mind and the album has its finest moment with "Dreamland," giving the listener the all-important chance to sing along (just be careful, EXTREMELY silly lyrics ahead). "Remember Yesterday" is actually pretty solid for a by-the-numbers power ballad, and Hammerfall is smart enough to follow this up with two rockers in a row, "At the End of the Rainbow" and "Back to Back." Great melodies and hummable power sounds here. "Stronger Than All" is another of my favorite tracks on the disc, proving that sometimes simple IS better. In fact, the awesome drumming and killer riff in this song had my head banging and feet tapping more than any other here. I will say that "The Fallen One" as an album closer is LAME, so I prefer to pretend that "Warriors of Faith," with its great speedy guitarwork is the real closer.

All in all, a solid, if not original or spectacular, album that will please all followers of power metal. Heck, if you're not a fan, this might make you one. Get this.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HammerFall is absolutely fantastic!, February 16, 1999

By A Customer

HammerFall is obviously influenced by Helloween and Iron Maiden (and they sound a little bit like Riot too). If you told me this album was released in 1988 as opposed to 1998, I'd beleive you. This is powermetal at its best - definitely some of the most impressive, well-written stuff I've heard in a long time. HammerFall's style is a diamond in the rough of today's industrial/grundgy/modern rock scene of sheer garbage. If you think heavy metal died around 1991, HammerFall just brought it back to life in Legacy Of Kings - stuff like this is a lost art nowadays.