Night Demon
“Empires Fall”
Century Media
Released : April 3, 2020
Yes! As Beavis and Butthead would yell when a cool music video would play on their show.
It has been three long years since Night Demon released any new music – and finally the wait is over. The boys have been too busy scouring the world. Spreading the gospel of traditional heavy metal. Now that the borders of the world have shut down, it would seem Night Demon had no choice but record two new tracks for the masses.
Well, a new song and a scorching cover track anyway. Who’s keeping score though. Take it and run!
The title track, Empires Fall, is a great new song from a classic genre. One that I doubt will ever feel stale. There is a seriously strong Iron Maiden feeling on Empires Fall. An obvious NWOBHM influence.
With a roll of the toms, it begins. Instantly going into a riff that could be found on a Holy Grail record. It soon breaks down into a beautiful piece of acoustic classical guitar. Then back to full-frolic and a kick-ass solo. Empires Fall contains every aspect you could want on a modern traditional heavy metal track. Full of speed and energy, galloping riffs and a sing-along chorus.
See also : Cirith Ungol “Forever Black” Review
The Oh-oh-ooohhh segments come courtesy of guest musicians Lars Fredrickson and Matt Freeman of Rancid, of all bands, and James Paul Luna of Holy Grail. As awesome as Rancid are, I still found it amusing to find them on a Night Demon release. Fun though. Who doesn’t love Rancid!
A cover of Le Griffe’s “Fast Bikes” adorns the B side. I’ll admit, I wasn’t aware of this band prior to the cover. Thanks to the digital world, I was able to track it down fairly easily and check out the original too. Turns out, both versions are great.
Night Demon’s version is more potent. As you might expect. It stays fairly faithful to the original track. They’ve added more hooks into an already catchy song. Updated riffs and better production values bring the song into a new era, without compromising its original structure. The opening riff is so good – pure old school. It satisfies my soul. It’s easy to see why a band such as Night Demon would want to jam this song. And easy to understand why it makes sense to have a copy near by.
You’ll be singing these words all day after a few listens. Trust me on this one. I am. “Give me a fast bike, and a long dry ride. Who needs a women? You’re better on your own.”
Score yourself a copy of Empires Fall here. Available in digital formats as well as nice 7″ vinyl.
For Fans Of : Holy Grail, Iron Maiden, Haunt
Track listing :
01. Empires Fall
02. Fast Bikes
