Review by Jack on April 10, 2002.

A very, very promising third chapter from Metalium. The outstanding take on lyrics that these guys have put together is quite impressive. According to the flyer that came with this promo record; the concept story behind all three Metalium records (including this one; “Hero Nation”) is about the Metalian who travels to all these different locations in the world “experiencing adventures, tortures or successes”. Metalian is a hero whose experiences are reincarnated through historical/mythical figures from around the globe, some examples of this include: Nero, El Cid, Rasputin, Odin, Joan of Arc and Romeo and Juliet. What this means for us is a highly interesting, yet overblown take on a lot of moments of crucial world history. Ambitious, but the lyrical concept ultimately pays off for Metalium as they can draw upon such solid facts and warp them into an interesting historical interpretation/story.

Musically, Metalium does not deviate to far from the norm in fantasy power metal. What one can come to expect from acts like Rhapsody and Metalium is little variation in a very tried but very proven formula, and ultimately this will never change between records, so one must give up hope of a resurrection and/or new perspective in fantasy power metal. “Hero Nation” is a good album though, and moaning about trends and styles in power metal is not going to do this record any justice.

Crunchy guitar riffs laden with solid power metal vocals from Henning Basse with a special guest appearance from Don Airey (Black Sabbath, Whitesnake and Ozzy Osbourne) on keyboards truly make “Hero Nation” a dependable listen on the eardrums.

Technically there is no possible reason to fault Metalium, they are all extremely accomplished musicians. But with the amount of bands looking to grab on the coattails of acts like the aforementioned Rhapsody and Metalium I would like to see Metalium try and make a sudden left turn at the fantasy power metal crossroads and see where they might end up.

One other interesting note is that the last track on “Hero Nation” (imaginatively titled ‘Hero Nation’ too) contains a secret track towards the end (at 7:00 minutes). The secret track is a cover of the boxing hymn for the most successful boxing champion in Germany, who has been undefeated since 1978 called ‘Heart of the Tiger’. Metalium were asked to give it the ‘rock touch’. If you remember movies like ‘Kickboxer’ and ‘Bloodsport’ and the silly piano songs on the beginning of the title lead ups, ‘Heart of the Tiger’ is one of those pretty much. I love ‘Kickboxer’ and ‘Bloodsport’ so for it me it makes a nostalgic, fun listen.

Bottom Line: Interesting lyrics and faultless technical skills displayed by Metalium make this record great, but a lack of originality and adhering to safe formulas cut these All-stars down to size somewhat.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Originality: 5
Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 8
Overall: 6.5

Rating: 6.9 out of 10

Review by Jack on April 10, 2002.

A very, very promising third chapter from Metalium. The outstanding take on lyrics that these guys have put together is quite impressive. According to the flyer that came with this promo record; the concept story behind all three Metalium records (including this one; “Hero Nation”) is about the Metalian who travels to all these different locations in the world “experiencing adventures, tortures or successes”. Metalian is a hero whose experiences are reincarnated through historical/mythical figures from around the globe, some examples of this include: Nero, El Cid, Rasputin, Odin, Joan of Arc and Romeo and Juliet. What this means for us is a highly interesting, yet overblown take on a lot of moments of crucial world history. Ambitious, but the lyrical concept ultimately pays off for Metalium as they can draw upon such solid facts and warp them into an interesting historical interpretation/story.

Musically, Metalium does not deviate to far from the norm in fantasy power metal. What one can come to expect from acts like Rhapsody and Metalium is little variation in a very tried but very proven formula, and ultimately this will never change between records, so one must give up hope of a resurrection and/or new perspective in fantasy power metal. “Hero Nation” is a good album though, and moaning about trends and styles in power metal is not going to do this record any justice.

Crunchy guitar riffs laden with solid power metal vocals from Henning Basse with a special guest appearance from Don Airey (Black Sabbath, Whitesnake and Ozzy Osbourne) on keyboards truly make “Hero Nation” a dependable listen on the eardrums.

Technically there is no possible reason to fault Metalium, they are all extremely accomplished musicians. But with the amount of bands looking to grab on the coattails of acts like the aforementioned Rhapsody and Metalium I would like to see Metalium try and make a sudden left turn at the fantasy power metal crossroads and see where they might end up.

One other interesting note is that the last track on “Hero Nation” (imaginatively titled ‘Hero Nation’ too) contains a secret track towards the end (at 7:00 minutes). The secret track is a cover of the boxing hymn for the most successful boxing champion in Germany, who has been undefeated since 1978 called ‘Heart of the Tiger’. Metalium were asked to give it the ‘rock touch’. If you remember movies like ‘Kickboxer’ and ‘Bloodsport’ and the silly piano songs on the beginning of the title lead ups, ‘Heart of the Tiger’ is one of those pretty much. I love ‘Kickboxer’ and ‘Bloodsport’ so for it me it makes a nostalgic, fun listen.

Bottom Line: Interesting lyrics and faultless technical skills displayed by Metalium make this record great, but a lack of originality and adhering to safe formulas cut these All-stars down to size somewhat.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Originality: 5
Musicianship: 8
Atmosphere: 7
Production: 8
Overall: 6.5

Rating: 6.9 out of 10

Review by Alex on May 15, 2020.

I was not expecting much from newly formed Nôidva at first glance, but reading just enough about them and better yet, coming to find that they hail from the quality black metal capital, Finland, gave me a change of heart judging by the region's track record for consistency in the sub-genre. I've heard their debut Windseller enough to tell you that the music on the record hits like a powerful gust of frostbitten breeze. The 6 songs you'll get on the album are without doubt some of the best black metal you'll hear from a newly formed unit plying the format and you get that traditional Finnish sound affiliated with so many great bands from the nation.

The first encounter had with Windseller, one could say that something appeared to be shorting. I couldn't quite pin-point or identify what it was at the beginning, but with enough repeated listens it would be revealed. It's not a deal-breaker of any sort but the vocals could be a bit better, those mid-ranged snarls/screams are not the most convincing but at the same time I get the feeling they were intentionally done that way as to be an integral addition to the music rather than dominate the music. Either-way they don't hurt the songs given the instrumentation is significantly strong, thus posing as a compelling enough feature of Windseller.

In addressing the music itself, you could say that the entire thing plays like one hypnotizing serenade to a cold winter night. Opening with a mid-paced heavy metal attitude, title track 'Windseller' sets off with much conviction and a serious emphasis on memorable song structures. Melodious riffing, soothing keyboard synth and agile drumming form the building-blocks of Windseller that would be expanded upon as time progressed on the record. 'Followers of the North Star' shared the same sentiments as the opening track; however, scaled back on a minor degree in the usage of keyboards and acoustic guitars, in turn focusing more on a more pagan-esque though somewhat Immortal ("At the Heart of Winter") influenced form of second wave black metal especially with the usage of those high mid-ranged power chords.

Though having a very strong side A, Windseller would go on to offer its moment of glory on the B side via 'Into Polar Nights' and 'Eclipsed by Goathi's Blood', both of which deliver the best compositions on the album through their indicative Goatmoon acknowledgements. The music on these songs arrive at a true potential or perhaps what Nôidva had been aiming for from the onset; a collective multi tonality.

Hopefully Windseller could be followed up and surpassed in the future by Nôidva, provided the will and means to do so remains intact. Having been acquired by Purity Through Fire, I trust all will be well. Windseller is a riff and keyboard bonanza, a chilling though mellifluent session of black metal.

Rating: 8.4 out of 10