HammerFall - Infected

tohostudios wrote:

I gave up on Hammerfall about 3 albums ago; to samey for me. However, I've been reading some great reviews of this new one.

I am at that point now. I havent really enjoyed much of their stuff lately and while I will concede my own tastes have changed, I dont think Hammerfall has been great since Renegade.

Your taste have changed exact33, sad but true because the last two HAMMERFALL albums have been very good. I am happy mine music taste never changed the last 20 years, i still love my 80s album, 90s albums and the cd/lps of the last 11 years.

krokus wrote:

Your taste have changed exact33, sad but true because the last two HAMMERFALL albums have been very good. I am happy mine music taste never changed the last 20 years, i still love my 80s album, 90s albums and the cd/lps of the last 11 years.

I will agree to a point about my power metal tastes but i think that whereas Hammerfall used to be a leader in the genre, they are not even close now. I have wanted to really enjoy the last three albums but they have left me feeling flat...

I just cannot make myself like Hammerfall. They're not bad, or horrible, they are most certainly heavy metal (yay!) - but that's just not enough. I used to think they were somewhat cool and had good songs, but that was in like 98 when there weren't that many other bands I knew that were new and sounded like them. I still have Legacy of Kings, but haven't listened to it in awhile. I remember liking it at first, but I grew bored of it. I think a spin would be in order.

I still applaud them for doing what they love.

Lari wrote:

I just cannot make myself like Hammerfall. They're not bad, or horrible, they are most certainly heavy metal (yay!) - but that's just not enough. I used to think they were somewhat cool and had good songs, but that was in like 98 when there weren't that many other bands I knew that were new. I still have Legacy of Kings, but haven't listened to it in awhile. I remember liking it at first, but I grew bored of it. I think a spin would be in order.

I still applaud them for doing what they love.

I do too. I think they have continued to be true to what they do.

exact33 wrote:

Lari wrote:

I just cannot make myself like Hammerfall. They're not bad, or horrible, they are most certainly heavy metal (yay!) - but that's just not enough. I used to think they were somewhat cool and had good songs, but that was in like 98 when there weren't that many other bands I knew that were new. I still have Legacy of Kings, but haven't listened to it in awhile. I remember liking it at first, but I grew bored of it. I think a spin would be in order.

I still applaud them for doing what they love.

I do too. I think they have continued to be true to what they do.

Same here.

What I find odd is that some bands repeat the same sound over and over and I still love them. Others do the same thing and I call them "samey". I can't explain it.

AC/DC and Hammerfall essentially do the same thing; release a new album replicating the sound that made you popular in the first place. I like AC/DC but I find Hammerfall boring.

Go figure.

I think the difference is AC/DC albums don't bore you after repeated listens. They just sound samey, but even after 20 years you have to nod and say "well, that's a good song, dangit!".

Actually I'm not a hundred percent sure that's true either. It's not like I could put Back in Black close to my player anytime soon. But at least it took a lot more repeats to get tedious to listen to.

In the end it's just a matter of taste. If you love Hammerfall, good for you. I love Axxis. Equally repetitive and probably even more simplistic. Not to mention twice as cheesy. Works for me. And who can tell me otherwise?

Yeah, musical tastes can be impossible to quantify.

I often can't explain why I like or dislike a band; it's just how I feel.

I'm really enjoying this new album. I think it is way better than the last 2 or 3 HammerFall albums... and that is coming from someone who liked them as well.

exact33 wrote:

I will agree to a point about my power metal tastes but i think that whereas Hammerfall used to be a leader in the genre, they are not even close now. I have wanted to really enjoy the last three albums but they have left me feeling flat...

Bingo. I was totally on board the HammerFall train for the first couple of records, but they've been spinning their wheels in the same groove for quite a while now. I got tired of buying the same bread in a different wrapper every other year.

tohostudios wrote:

What I find odd is that some bands repeat the same sound over and over and I still love them. Others do the same thing and I call them "samey". I can't explain it.

AC/DC and Hammerfall essentially do the same thing; release a new album replicating the sound that made you popular in the first place. I like AC/DC but I find Hammerfall boring.

Go figure.

Same with me. I dig Motorhead and the Ramones, both of whom have basically remade the same album a dozen times over, and it didn't bother me at all. But with H.F. and a lot of the other Euro Power Metal bands that cropped up around the same time (i.e. Iron Savior, Primal Fear, etc.), the formula got really old, really quick for me. One or two albums from each of those bands is really all I'm ever gonna need.

I was supposed to review this album but I passed. It literally is very boring and seems as they are going through the motions.

Hammerfall has always sucked...

I like Hammerfall. I didn't actually discover them for myself until Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken It's a good album. Born to Rule is a killer track.

Fat Freddy wrote:

exact33 wrote:

I will agree to a point about my power metal tastes but i think that whereas Hammerfall used to be a leader in the genre, they are not even close now. I have wanted to really enjoy the last three albums but they have left me feeling flat...

Bingo. I was totally on board the HammerFall train for the first couple of records, but they've been spinning their wheels in the same groove for quite a while now. I got tired of buying the same bread in a different wrapper every other year.

tohostudios wrote:

What I find odd is that some bands repeat the same sound over and over and I still love them. Others do the same thing and I call them "samey". I can't explain it.

AC/DC and Hammerfall essentially do the same thing; release a new album replicating the sound that made you popular in the first place. I like AC/DC but I find Hammerfall boring.

Go figure.

Same with me. I dig Motorhead and the Ramones, both of whom have basically remade the same album a dozen times over, and it didn't bother me at all. But with H.F. and a lot of the other Euro Power Metal bands that cropped up around the same time (i.e. Iron Savior, Primal Fear, etc.), the formula got really old, really quick for me. One or two albums from each of those bands is really all I'm ever gonna need.

for me in general the whole pm scene is so so inundated. It used to be all I listened to but now, thanks to several from this board, my tastes have changed. I still enjoy a good galloping power metal cd but I dont get all excited at all the b-list bands now.

JBall_Z wrote:

I like Hammerfall. I didn't actually discover them for myself until Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken It's a good album. Born to Rule is a killer track.

Same here, I bought the album when it came out and it was my introduction to the band. I think what makes them get old faster than some other bands is that not just the music is rehashed, but like 90 percent of the lyrics also. Motorhead and the ramones write about way cooler sh!t than hammers and templars.

Great point Stender! Even though I don't pay much attention to lyrics, when it's the same themes over and over and over it wears thin in a hurry.

kmorg wrote:

I'm really enjoying this new album. I think it is way better than the last 2 or 3 HammerFall albums... and that is coming from someone who liked them as well.

Thats good news

kmorg wrote:

I'm really enjoying this new album. I think it is way better than the last 2 or 3 HammerFall albums... and that is coming from someone who liked them as well.

I'M THERE WITH YOU. I'M LISTENING TO THE ALBUM RIGHT NOW (WITHOUT THE DESTRACTION OF WORK LIKE THE FIRST TIME I HEARD IT-YEAH, IT'S SLOW TOWARD THE END OF THE DAY) AND I'M JUST HOOKED!

Got it in the mail today. The only other HammerFall album I own is Masterpieces so I can't compare this to their other original material but I like it.

More in the heavy metal vein and less power metal than I was expecting, and that's a plus in my book. I wonder how much of a hand James Michael had in this slight change in direction? I love the zombie theme to the album and a few of the songs.

Still waiting on my copy in the mail.

Metal Misfit wrote:

Got it in the mail today. The only other HammerFall album I own is Masterpieces so I can't compare this to their other original material but I like it.

More in the heavy metal vein and less power metal than I was expecting, and that's a plus in my book. I wonder how much of a hand James Michael had in this slight change in direction? I love the zombie theme to the album and a few of the songs.

I don't think James Michael had much influence in the songwriting. To my understanding, the drums/guitars/bass was recorded in Sweden by Pontus and Oscar while only the vocals were recorded in the US with James Michael.

Even though there has been a change in the style, about half of the songs are still similar to HammerFall's old style: BYH, One More Time, Send Me A Sign, Dia De Los Muertos, 666, and Immortalized all sound like classic HammerFall to me.

I like it; then again, I'm a fan of almost all of Hammerfall's albums, except maybe Threshold. However, I could see why people wouldn't like it.

I only enjoyed The Outlaw and Dia.
I dont know what it is with these guys, they just keep releasing the same thing all the time, haha.

Spiner202 wrote:

Metal Misfit wrote:

Got it in the mail today. The only other HammerFall album I own is Masterpieces so I can't compare this to their other original material but I like it.

More in the heavy metal vein and less power metal than I was expecting, and that's a plus in my book. I wonder how much of a hand James Michael had in this slight change in direction? I love the zombie theme to the album and a few of the songs.

I don't think James Michael had much influence in the songwriting. To my understanding, the drums/guitars/bass was recorded in Sweden by Pontus and Oscar while only the vocals were recorded in the US with James Michael.

Even though there has been a change in the style, about half of the songs are still similar to HammerFall's old style: BYH, One More Time, Send Me A Sign, Dia De Los Muertos, 666, and Immortalized all sound like classic HammerFall to me.

I'm not sure there is much change at sll compared to the previous album. I've read the reviews stating this also, and on the first spins I was of the same mind. But then I revisited the last album, and the only change I found was in the production. Now, the albums prior to that was pretty different.

kmorg wrote:

Spiner202 wrote:

Metal Misfit wrote:

Got it in the mail today. The only other HammerFall album I own is Masterpieces so I can't compare this to their other original material but I like it.

More in the heavy metal vein and less power metal than I was expecting, and that's a plus in my book. I wonder how much of a hand James Michael had in this slight change in direction? I love the zombie theme to the album and a few of the songs.

I don't think James Michael had much influence in the songwriting. To my understanding, the drums/guitars/bass was recorded in Sweden by Pontus and Oscar while only the vocals were recorded in the US with James Michael.

Even though there has been a change in the style, about half of the songs are still similar to HammerFall's old style: BYH, One More Time, Send Me A Sign, Dia De Los Muertos, 666, and Immortalized all sound like classic HammerFall to me.

I'm not sure there is much change at sll compared to the previous album. I've read the reviews stating this also, and on the first spins I was of the same mind. But then I revisited the last album, and the only change I found was in the production. Now, the albums prior to that was pretty different.

I agree; there's a change between eras, but not necessarily between the albums.
(also, kmorg, one more post and it'll be you 11,111th post! )