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Freeplay: Sons of Vikings
By Geoff Page
gpage2@mscd.edu

Sons of Vikings Heavy Metal 2007

Some people remember the glory days of heavy metal when the emphasis was on being as epic and majestic as possible.

South France’s Sons of Vikings are determined to bring back these glory days of heavy metal, chock-full of cheesy, high-pitched vocals, lyrics about Vikings and plenty of ambitious guitar solos. This may seem like a joke, but as far as song structure and musical content goes, these guys are dead serious.

The first track is “Heavy Metal,” which verges on self-parody, but nonetheless is stunning. The second the music starts, Sons of Vikings whisks the listener away to a magical, fantasy land where the Vikings rule and dragons and mythological creatures are fact. It is fast, upbeat rock with soaring vocals and dominating riffs.

“Descent” is a larger-than-life ballad meant to entice the listener to turn off the lights in the room and wave a lighter around. It is actually a very relaxing track even though it gets a little bit heavy about halfway through.

“Blind Love” begins with a slow guitar which is the calm before the storm of speed that bombards the track. The pace is upbeat, the guitars are shredding and the music is heavy, but Sons of Vikings places an emphasis on the musicianship and the accessibility of the music, not on being heavy for the sake of being heavy.

“Sons of Vikings” is about as extreme as this album gets. It kicks off with the lead singer screaming “Sons! Sons! Sons of Vikings” and a brutally fast drum beat, and proves to be the most satisfying moment of this album. In an ode to themselves and what they are trying to accomplish the Sons of Vikings declare on this track that they are a serious band with serious intentions.

This album may not be the most cutting edge or innovative heavy metal album out there but in terms of nostalgia and tradition Sons of Vikings can compete with the best of them. In terms of classic heavy metal, there really isn’t a new band playing this style any better.