GRIMGOTTS – “The time of the wolfrider” (2024)

Any time a conversation about GRIMGOTTS was sparked it only came with positive comments, which peaked my interest enough to see what all the buzz was about. After listening to the brand new album of the UK Symphonic Power Metallers, all I can say is that they well deserve the praise their name comes with. Let’s take it from the start. The band was created as a fun internet project in 2015 before materializing into a complete entity as time progressed. The members are Power Metal fans that run the group as a side activity, so they play what they would like to hear and have a good time first and foremost. We do not have yet another group trying to check industry boxes just to grow their numbers and today we will be talking about their 4th album!

If the name of the band being a reference to the Wizard bank of Gringotts (Harry Potter universe), or the cover featuring a wolfrider wielding a runic axe, do not make it clear, the lyric themes revolve around fantasy. The music supports this direction creating references to contemporaries like TWILIGHT FORCE, RHAPSODY OF FIRE and similar others. We are talking about a new-ish band, so I want to get some things out the way. Firstly, the production values are very strong which is essential for that kind of music and I mention this because it is not a given for artists in their early steps. I adored the fact that guitars are not mixed in a way that makes them feel weak or supportive, but on the centerpiece creating a heavy sound.

To take it a step further, what I heard does not point to a band that is within their first decade. The technical expertise of the members is unquestionable, with my favorite ingredient being the drumming of Mo Abdelgadir and the guitars of David Hills that nail everything, especially the playful leads that exist in abundance. Combined with the great orchestrations, all songs are a treat for fans of the genre. As for the fantasy themes, I view them as adventures and the songs capture this adventurous spirit with success, as there is variety within tracks with many surprises. Let’s take ‘An amber dawn’ as an example since it is the opener, after the second chorus the band goes crazy with an epic and bombastic bridge! Something similar happens on ‘Return to the sea’ and this only scratches the surface.  

Vocals are very important as always, so we have two aspects. The first is the choirs that are as good as you expect, the genre has perfected their use over the years so no need to dwell more. The other is the vocals of Andy Barton who stands on solid ground and is great for fleshing out the band’s vision, it is not the strongest or most mind-blowing aspect of the record, but there is nothing lacking either. 

“The time of the wolfrider” represents a very niche sub-category of Metal that if you do not enjoy, things will not change now. If you have reached that far though, I assume you belong in the target group of GRIMGOTTS so the news is very good. They deliver a record “love letter” for any fantasy Metal follower that is very fun and enjoyable. It is evident that they have a great time listening to that kind of music and did an excellent job in creating something that triggers the exact same feelings. We need bands like them not because they will reshape the musical landscape, but for the simple fact that they do what they do well and give fans a new opportunity to pick up our shields, sharpen our sword and head for another adventure!

82/100

Pavlos Pavlakis