DragonForce is a power metal band from the UK formed in 1999, releasing nine studio albums across the bands twenty five year career to date. The band have made extreme power come speed metal their signature sound, with every album displaying super fast guitar work and galloping rhythms – 2019’s ‘Extreme Power Metal’, a perfectly titled album to sum up the band’s phenomenally fast style. And since then, there’s been a whole host of album releases to lay claim to DragonForce‘s “kings of extreme speed metal” crown…albums such as ‘Emperor Rising’ (Krilloan), ‘Under The Veil Of Madness’ (Ascension), ‘The Identity Of Discord’ (NACARBIDE), ‘Infinity’s Wings’ (Skyblazer), ‘Intergalactic Battle Tunes’ (Sculforge), and ‘Mosaic’ (Theocracy) – each and every one of these releases coming close to dethroning DragonForce…
…close – but close ain’t good enough! With the release of the band’s ninth album ‘Warp Speed Warriors’ (emerging in 2024), DragonForce are back to reassert themselves as the undisputed and undeniable “kings of extreme speed metal”. And across forty-seven blistering minutes and nine songs, the band have no trouble in reassuring their vast fanbase that the crown remains firmly and squarely on the head of the British metallers – ‘Astro Warrior Anthem’ launching the album skyward at an incredible rate of knots! DragonForce are back, and making an immediate impact of the most emphatic nature, ‘Astro Warrior Anthem’ travelling faster than the speed of fucking light to rock the head back and forth of every single listener on the planet! And maybe, a few listeners off the planet too, for the band’s music is simply out of this world!
So how do you follow such a superb opening gambit? With another superb offering that’s how – DragonForce keeps the pedal pressed firmly to the metal with the out-and-out power metaller ‘Power Of The Triforce’. The energy level here is off the fucking charts, the band roaring louder than the roar of someone stepping on a Lego brick barefoot! And that’s a loud roar, believe me, I’ve been there many times when my children were younger, the little so and so’s forever leaving their toys lying around! And without breaking their stride, DragonForce trot on with the mid-tempo anthemic ‘Kingdom Of Steel’, a much more elegant nature descending upon the album, the band effortlessly switching from a high pace to a slower one as if it’s the most natural thing in the world! And for the British metallers, I’m sure it is! After all, it’s what they do – and if only we knew it, how DragonForce do it, you can bet, we’d be doing it as well! Just not as well, for the band are power metal masters of the highest calibre.
And switching back to blistering speed, ‘Burning Heart’ scorches the earth with phenomenal intensity, DragonForce proving once and for all they are the definitive “kings of extreme speed metal” – the band delivering a sing a long-able chorus that everyone everywhere is gonna sing, shout and scream at the tops of their voices! ‘Warp Speed Warriors’ is simply getting better and better – and we’re only a third of the way through! ‘Space Marine Corp’ maintains the album’s breathtaking pace, marching forth with a tonne of get up and go, and a sizzling hot military feel! So much so, that the band include a superb military cadence here – a military cadence is a “traditional call-and-response work song sung by military personnel while running or marching”. Now this is surely gonna go down a fucking storm in a live arena, so y’all better start practising now…
“Up in the morning with the rising sun
(Up in the morning with the rising sun)
No time to rest ’til we kill all the scum
(No time to rest ’til we kill all the scum)
My atomic blaster is bigger than yours
(His atomic blaster is bigger than yours)
I’ll show you mine if you show me yours
(He’ll show you his if you show me yours)
If you see us coming better get on your knees
(If you see us coming better get on your knees)
‘Cause we are Primaris Space Marines
(‘Cause we are Primaris Space Marines, hoo-rah)”
…got it? Good – on with ‘Warp Speed Warriors’ we go, DragonForce hitting the sweet spot with the stunning ‘Doomsday Party’, and a smile-inducing atmosphere that’s simply outstanding! The energy driving ‘Doomsday Party’ is incredible, the bounciness phenomenal, the band putting the likes of Battle Beast, Beast In Black and Metalite very much in the shade with regards to a pop music, power metal blend. The instrumental ‘Prelude To Darkness’, is a sub one minute eerie yet tension-fueled lead into the feisty ‘The Killer Queen’ – and the return of the band’s extreme speed metal leanings! However, the band constantly alter the tempo and pace to keep listeners on their toes, changing direction across metal territory a fair few times before ‘The Killer Queen’ runs its course.
And bringing the album to a close, DragonForce pounds the ground hard with the wall shaking, building crumbling ‘Pixel Prison’. Displaying more force than what was required to power the Large Hadron Collider in Cerne, Switzerland during 2012’s “splitting the atom” experiment, ‘Pixel Prison’ is pure power metal at its finest, DragonForce rounding off ‘Warp Speed Warriors’ in fantastic form – the regular version that is! For there is a limited edition double CD version of the album featuring bonus songs and a host of special guest musicians…
…the first bonus song is a cover of pop singer Taylor Swift’s ‘Wildest Dreams’ (taken from Swift’s ‘1989’ album released in 2014). And what a cover! The original runs for three minutes and forty seconds – DragonForce‘s version runs almost a minute quicker! And yes readers, quicker is correct, for ‘Wildest Dreams’ (the DragonForce version) isn’t shorter, it’s just that the British metallers have stepped heavily on the accelerator to deliver a souped-up version!
Also on the bonus CD, you’ll find alternative versions of three album songs – ‘Astro Warrior Anthem’ featuring additional vocals by Matthew K. Heafy (Trivium), and additional guitar work from guitar sensation Nita Strauss (touring guitarist for Alice Cooper and Demi Lovata), ‘Burning Heart’ featuring additional vocals by Alissa White-Gluz (Arch Enemy), and ‘Doomsday Party’ featuring additional vocals by Elize Ryd (Amaranthe). The final song on the bonus CD is an instrumental version of ‘Power Of The Triforce’.
Overall, an energy-driven power metal rampage featuring blistering speed, a sky-high infectious level and tonnes of head bang ability.
TRACKLIST
Astro Warrior Anthem
Power Of The Triforce
Kingdom Of Steel
Burning Heart
Space Marine Corp
Doomsday Party
Prelude To Darkness
The Killer Queen
Pixel Prison
Wildest Dreams (Taylor Swift cover)
Astro Warrior Anthem (feat. Matthew K. Heafy & Nita Strauss)
Burning Heart (feat. Alissa White-Gluz)
Doomsday Party (feat. Elize Ryd)
Power Of The Triforce (instrumental)
DragonForce: Facebook
Release Year: 2024
Label: Napalm Records
Category: Album
Country: UK
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire and Metal-Roos.
