MAJESTICA – “Power train” (2025)

I waited for this album with extreme anticipation that I had not felt for a long time, with the reason being the group’s last record “A Christmas carol”. It captured the essence of Charles Dickens’ story in such a way that it translated to music in a magical way and the whole product felt like a complete and unique piece of art. “Power train” moving away from the conceptual storytelling meant that the new songs could go either direction, but the singles that teased the album promised that the magic will still be present. 

At this point and considering that the roots of the band go as back as the debut of REINXEED in 2008, fans already know what to expect from this record. The fact that Tommy was a member of SABATON until recently, means that there will be some similarities, which is made evident from the title track that opens the album. Fortunately, there is no effort from the band to actually sound like a lesser version of SABATON, references are contained and not overused. On the other hand “Megatrue” came a little too close to HAMMERFALL, but apart from that the rest of the record allows the identity of MAJESTICA to shine in a great way.    

The vocals of Tommy are exceptional once again and I have to admit that he is one of the few male vocalists of today’s Power Metal scene that do not play it safe and go wild with his performance. At a point or two he may hit a note a little too high but that’s part of the charm. 

The tracklist hides a few treasures as well like ‘A story in the night’ which in my book has all the ingredients to become a true Power Metal classic! Verses, pre-chorus, chorus, the orgasmic solo section, all are perfection and perhaps we are talking about one of the best songs that will be released this year. If you have listened to it before since it served as one of the singles prior release, do not go in expecting each song to sound like that, as you may create the wrong impressions about the album and it would not be fair. Not when almost all other tracks can stand on their own. 

MAJESTICA invite us to board their train, which will take us out of reality in a 50 minute journey full of melodic, heavy, positive music. To that I say yes and I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Is it a good moment to include them in the pantheon along with the best bands of the genre? It is up to you to decide that, however if you still enjoy discovering new Power Metal with all its cliches, this album is a must listen. 

If I had to choose between this and “A Christmas carol” I believe I would choose the second but that is not necessarily a bad thing. It is not a requirement for a group to deliver their best album with each entry, it is also very subjective in the end. “Power train” is a great record and nothing can change that.  

83/100

Pavlos Pavlakis

100: Godsent

90s: Excellent

80s: Very good

70s: Good

60s: Enjoyable

50s: Uninspired

40s: Bad

0s -30s: Unlistenable