Valley Of The Damned

Dragonforce | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sanctuary
• ASIN: B000LX1B5O
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #653,349 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Tracks: 1. Invocation of Apocalyptic Evil 2. Valley of the Damned 3. Black Fire 4. Black Winter Night 5. Starfire 6. Disciplines of Babylon 7. Revelations 8. Evening Star 9. Heart of A Dragon. Made in the USA. UPC 823107408421

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Epic. Euphoric. Exceptional metal., June 11, 2005

By 

PowerMetalFan (Somewhere.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Valley of Damned (Audio CD)

If you are searching for a metal band who will make you feel uplifted and full of an undescribable "epic joy" then I can recommend two bands (as well as many others, but they are slightly less amazing):

Rhapsody (www.mightyrhapsody.com)
and ... Dragonforce!

Dragonforce's "Valley of the Damned" will have those of you who love "Lord of the Rings" (JRR Tolkien) as well as fast, powerful, epic metal, in a trance.

You will listen to this album and sometime next year you will finally turn it off. It's just that good.

So anyone searching for a real piece of EPICNESS should be shot if they didn't check out Dragonforce's "Valley of the Damned", as well as Rhapsody (notably their album "Tales from the Emerald Sword Saga").

Dragonforce's other album "Sonic Firestorm" keeps with the epic sound, but incorporates much more speed and technical ability, so if you enjoy speed metal, go for that instead.

Or... GET BOTH! And fly, you fools!

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Speedy, March 15, 2004

By 

"aiylyn" (Washington, Mi United States) - See all my reviews

Considering that Dragonforce are about to fling a new slab of breakneck-paced melodic metal at the world, I figured it was high time I put down my thoughts on the debut, after having a year to take it in. Obviously, the most striking feature is their sheer speed, matching the velocity of most thrash bands, but infusing it with a keen melodic sensibility. These choruses are some of the catchiest I have ever heard. The production is very top heavy; a little scratchy on the ears at high volumes, but I suspect that the material translates well into a live setting. The guitar solos shred so hotly I'm surprised Herman Li's guitars don't burst into flame; but, they can be over the top with the flash and pomp. They can write some great hooks, but the songs are not varied enough to make this a truly special experience; it holds on for a long time provided you don't listen to it too much so that it stays fresh. If they can exert more range in their tempos and dynamics in the future, they could easily top this respectable, but not great, debut full length. I've got my fingers crossed.

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the fastest power metal out there!!!, January 31, 2004

By 

Matt Stoessel (Tolland, CT USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

I don't think this world has yet seen a faster band....... At least in power metal. First off, I want to state that this band sounds a bit like Rhapsody + Lost Horizon. Valley of the Damned reminds me more or Lost Horizon's first album - Awakening the World. And boy did that CD ever "awaken the world"! There are next to no keyboards on this album (Valley). Many of the songs are about 6:15 long, but the first track is the shortest I've ever heard at 0:13. You are getting your money's worth for 9 tracks. The title track is a wonder - one of a couple over 7 minutes. Revelations was released as a demo when the band's name was Dragon Heart. That song is also pretty good. Every song except for thae ballad, Starfire, is hyper speed. By that I mean about the speed of Father Time by Stratovarius. Imagine the speed of Rhapsody's fastest songs and Skylark's fastest songs with an even faster bass. That's how fast this band plays!

So how good actually are these 8 songs? I love 2, 3, 4, 6, and 9. Revelations isn't as good as these, in my opinion. Starfire is so hard to get into because its so much slower than the other songs! I'd say that its an okay ballad. Track 8 is like Starfire in quality.

I don't think the production for this album is that great, but the writing talent makes up for it. Think of how we still love Images in Worlds by Dream Theater (is that what its called? Can't remember.......). Its because of how good it is - not the production. I would recommend Dragonforce to about anybody. There aren't any bands who sound like Dragonforce. Some power metal bands I've heard include Hammerfall, Helloween, Brainstorm, Blind Guardian, Grave Digger, Primal Fear, Sinergy, Manowar, and Falconer, to name a few. Nobody sounds like Dragonforce.

When you get the time, go read some of my other reviews and say if they helped you or not.