ALBUM REVIEW: Eternal Flame – NorthTale
Whatever the opinion on power metal, the genre is currently gaining traction again. Hoping to fuel the fire further, NORTHTALE release their second album, Eternal Flame. The follow up to 2019’s Welcome To Paradise, this five piece vow to be “heavier than traditional power metal”. With a run-time of almost 65 minutes across 12 songs, NORTHTALE pull from ANGRA and Keeper-era HELLOWEEN.
The opening song of an album is a litmus test of how the rest of the record is going to go. Only Human’s blend of power metal and classic heavy metal serves as a strong indicator Eternal Flame is going to be a good listen. “This is our quest for freedom” belts Guilherme Hirose over a bed of pummelling drums from Patrick Johansson. Hirose’s voice is exquisite in its tone and range, yet the gravitas of some of NOTHTALE’s material begins to elude him. The slower Wings Of Salvation leaves no room for error with its simplistic piano and vocal opening. It’s here we hear the material running away from Hirose in places. When the full band accompanies his vocals however, some control is regained until his vocals are dominated by Billy Hudson’s guitar.
Wings Of Salvation is also the first instance of the band fusing power metal and orchestral sections together. Strings sit under the guitars and lift them to another level, mirroring the lyrical content. They mark clear movements within each section of the song, really telling the story of this salvation. Where this sought to inspire and be uplifting, the use of the orchestrals in Future Calls serves as a backbone. A song about following your destiny when you hear the call, this demands a strong leader. Enlisting the help of Kai Hansen (HELLOWEEN/GAMMA RAY) on vocals, NORTHTALE hit their stride. The instrumental feels more balanced as there isn’t a battle for our aural attention. So much so that the strings blending into the guitar solo mean they can feed into each other and form a solid mainframe for a highlight of the album.
The tonal shift Future Calls brings is one which would have served NORTHTALE well had they maintained it for the rest of the album. Midnight Bells is much darker with its crushing intro. The tolling of the bells usher in a reverberating sense of doom within the full band accompaniment. However, it loses steam with the introduction of the vocals. Adjusting the sound and speed for a melodic vocal delivery comes at the detriment to the song. They try to recover the power after the second chorus but it never fully gains traction.
From the offset, it’s clear this group is the brainchild of just one man, guitarist Billy Hudson. With a rap sheet including the likes of DORO, U.D.O, and TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, it’s undeniable Hudson is a phenomenal guitarist. Yet, Hudson’s keenness to expose us to his virtuosity becomes overwhelming very quickly. Only Human’s speedy yet technical solo is faultless. As the album progresses however, a tendency for guitar domination forms. This comes at the expense of many things, yet mostly to The Land Of Mystic Rites, a showcase of traditional Brazilian music. At first, the blend of Brazilian wind instruments works well with power metal guitars, but the fragile scale tips as it becomes an exercise in Hudson’s guitar skills rather than a homage to his native country.
To encapsulate Eternal Flame, it is a frustrating listen at times. Opportunities to fully lean into themselves pass them by. The delicate balance between genre blending is tipped one way far too often which breeds a bigger problem. The disconnect within these musicians becomes obvious as there is a power struggle for which element should be at the forefront. It’s a shame that this is the case as NORTHTALE could be a formidable force within power metal if they presented a united front.
Rating: 6/10
Eternal Flame is out now via Nuclear Blast Records.
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