Lord of the Sky

Though arguably still not a fully codified trend, by the mid-90s it could be plainly stated that the explosive cries from the metal wilderness were snowballing into the beginnings of the movement that has since been dubbed the 2nd wave of European power metal. In many respects, it was an entirely organic phenomenon that came about through the tenacious efforts of German dissenters from yesteryear in Blind Guardian, Helloween, Gamma Ray, Running Wild, Grave Digger and a few others that would inspire the eventual 2nd cannon blast from Sweden that was Hammerfall in 1997's Glory To The Brave. However, even in the southern fringes of Europe a few years earlier there were rumblings from the underground that led to a correspondingly vibrant scene in Italy. Though spearheaded by prog-infused acts like Labyrinth and Secret Sphere and accompanied by a nascent symphonic niche pioneered by Rhapsody (Of Fire), there was a healthy contingent of mainline power metal acts that took to the subject of sword and sorcery with a grittier approach, with Salerno-based quintet Heimdall being among the highly potent yet largely under-appreciated early movers and shakers.

The visual of a golden haired Nordic deity wielding a mighty blade before a bridge leading up to the cosmos that is likely a depiction of the band's namesake betrays a correspondingly lofty sense of ambition that is at the heart of Heimdall's largely forgotten 1998 debut Lord Of The Sky. For a fold of new arrivals to the scene, the instrumentalists rounding out the equation pack enough chops to rival most power/prog bands, with the dueling leads of Fabio Calluori and Carmelo Claps (the latter also manning the keyboards in Tony MacAlpine-like virtuoso fashion) channeling various classic heavy metal and neo-classical names from Malmsteen to Tipton & Downing to masterful results, while Gianni Canu's bass work often gets noodle-happy enough to rival his six-string slinging compatriots and the kit work of Nicolas Calluori is a marvel of precision and speed between the obligatory double-kick work and a number of more nuanced grooves. Together, the musical web that these four weave rivals the technical flair of Vision Divine's subsequent 1999 eponymous debut, but is stylistically a curious blend of heavier offerings in line with Hammerfall and Steel Attack, with a dash of the folksy elements of Blind Guardian and Falconer.

Ironically enough, the odd one out is vocalist Claudio Gallo, whose performance can best be described as a curious amalgam of Lars F. Larsen's mid-ranged bellow and a semi-competent emulation of the higher-pitched wails typical to the Italian scene of the day. The resulting blend of this unusual vocal timbre choice in a standard power metal context is akin to having Sacred Steel's Gerrit Mutz or Spiral Tower's Alex Koch sing for Blind Guardian. In every respect, Gallo's contribution marks a weaker link in an otherwise nearly flawless chain, yet in conjunction with the low-fi production quality and reverb-steeped mix that tends to go with a late 90s album under the banner of Elevate Records (see contemporary albums by Wild Steel, DGM and Secret Sphere for greater context), it carries a sort of unique underground charm that could be likened to a heroic amateur warrior from Thebes fighting alongside four seasoned Spartan soldiers. A few sour notes here and there not withstanding, the contributions of numerous backing session singers during the chorus sections do well to bolster Gallo's performance where it's most needed, and he does occasionally manage to eek out a few moments of intrigue in a sort of second-rate Eric Adams fashion during some of his high notes.

As a complete opus, Lord Of The Sky is a highly engaging musical affair that brings more of an old school epic metal quality to the late 90s Euro power concept album; a sort of Manilla Road sense of working class grit to go with the Helloween meets Stratovarius instrumental high-hinks, so to speak. There is definitely a strong Wagnerian influence on things as the lyrical tale of Norse mythology centered around the keeper of Bifrost, both in the extended intro "Halvor" and outro "Epilogue" that bookend the album as well as the dense keyboard segments that often paint over the rest of the songs, functioning as an Aesir-like counterpoint to the campfire acoustic balladry that recurs in a similarly frequent fashion, with "Under The Silent Moon" and "Sunset" both channeling the woodland minstrel feel heard on the softer moments of Blind Guardian's Somewhere Far Beyond to masterful results and Gallo's voice proving particularly well suited for the called for crooning approach. The noted Romantic Era largess that goes with longer fair like "The Island Of Ancient Stone" and "The Challenge" makes for a theatrical experience that transcends the uneven character of the production, bringing the synchronicity of early 80s Manowar and Omen influences and the Euro power template at play to a head.

But at the end of the day, where this album truly seals the deal is during the more moderate scaled bangers where flash and flair are the primary emphasis, ergo when the more typical influences of this band's adopted style and nation of origin enjoy the greatest level of prominence. The blistering trifecta of kinetic majesty that are "Canticle Of Heimdall", the riveting and hopelessly infectious title anthem "Lord Of The Sky" and the pummeling speed metal fest "Bifrost" prove the tip of an incredibly well-formed iceberg, given both this album's early and inevitably obscure disposition. Naturally one would be remiss to neglect the technically charged, up tempo cruiser "Warriors Of Many Ages Past" and the choir heavy banger "Fall Of The Bridge", rounding out a highly consistent epic story that is large in scope yet reasonably accessible for those that don't mind a less polished take on a 90s power metal production. That's really this album's greatest strength and weakness, it's pure grade 2nd wave cult that is maybe a few degrees above that of Skylark's early albums on the ladder of appeal to those who aren't card-carrying Euro-power fan boys. A great effort for what it sets out to be, which is basically something that blurs the lines between Hammerfall and Ironsword, which is definitely not for everyone.

Heimdall’s 1998 debut sure has plenty of problems – for example, the production is fairly weak, the songs are mostly generic Blind Guardian-styled compositions, and the singer is roughly one notch above “atrocious”. Despite all this, however, I often find myself enjoying the record. It’s certainly not great, not by a long shot, but for what it is, it’s decent stuff.

Being an Italian band Heimdall draw immediate comparisons to the countless other Italian power metal acts out there. We have lots of double bass drumming, epic guitar melodies, lyrics inspired by mythology and fantasy, and a singer who tries (and mostly fails) to be wrap everything up with an epic, operatic performance. The first thing you’ll surely notice is this singer, Claudio Gallo. He usually sings in a mid-range voice but also tries to hit plenty of higher notes, something which he just does not have the voice for. Also, his switches from mid-ranged crooning to high-pitched screams seem to happen at the most random of times, places where you wouldn’t expect it. He’ll be happily singing along on a given verse and then, for maybe the last word of that verse only, switch to a shudder-inducing wail that is way out of his range. Furthermore, his accent is simply terrible. Read the lyrics along with him and your reaction might be something along the lines of, “That’s what he said???!!!”.

As for the music, well, it generally fares better. Drums and guitars are well-played but hampered by the poor production that puts the drums a bit too high in the mix. The bass is pretty much relegated to a background role, so don’t expect much from it. If you can accept the fact that Heimdall aren’t going to win any awards for originality then the music can be fun to listen to. Take the title track for instance – nothing too special but quite fun nonetheless. The multi-layered vocals on the chorus are a nice touch, and the various guitar melodies are usually interesting. Gallo sings his heart out, and is generally tolerable here – just don’t try to pay attention to what he’s saying. “The Island of Ancient Stone” is also a pretty solid track with its similar multi-layered chorus vocals. Actually most of the songs feature this sort of multi-layered vocal approach in certain spots, something which helps the songs greatly by not relying only on Gallo to provide the melodies by himself (a scary thought). In general the songs are a little less “happy” than your average melodic power metal, perhaps more akin to something like Blind Guardian’s “Somewhere Far Beyond”, just not nearly as good.

Again, nothing here is overwhelmingly special. What we have is a moderately enjoyable album that is fun in spurts. This thing is guaranteed to not change your opinion of power metal if you don’t already like it, but if you do, there is worse stuff out there than this solid mix of Blind Guardian and generic Italian power metal. Get past Gallo’s sometimes hideous vocals and you might find yourself enjoying this album a bit more than you’d think.