I must admit that I have been a long-time fan of this band, listened to all their albums, nevertheless the group helped me become introduced to other German heavy bands that emerge in the early 80s, along with such acts as Helloween, Running Wild, and Accept, but I still find myself able to review the albums with fairness. Although shockingly there may be many metal fans unfamiliar with Grave Digger, this January 27, 2009 release on Napalm Records was their 13th full length album (however as of 2024 they have released 21 records), what I didn’t include were the EPs, Live, or Compilations; that filled their extensive career of traditional metal. While not a concept album the songs all deal in some manner with criminals, mortality, and ultimately death which makes it a unique listening adventure.
The album is filled with basic heavy metal songs, the standard four-minute, (aside from one song that clocks in near six-minutes) giving just what a fan wants, sometimes a lengthy song works for example Guns N’ Roses’ “Paradise City” or some of Iron Maiden’s incredible songs, if it makes its points in the straightest direction then fine no need for extra choruses. Only a few songs grab my attention for a repeat play but does harken back to the classic style. It starts with a short introduction track entitled “The Gallows Pole” before continuing the theme into the true first song, and same name as the album, “Ballad of a Hangman” does well, followed by an incredibly good second track, “Hell of Disillusion.” The fourth song “Sorrow Of The Dead” continues the previous track’s intensity with bit of speed metal layered into it, which works well with Chris’ generating low-level growling, but nothing like black metal, rather staying in the solid vein of heavy metal. It followed the pattern early on to limit any major variation on developing experimentational progressive metal of venturing to other subgenres of the metal culture. They stay with what they know, and what the fan base enjoys. Although they have the inclusion of a strange long-song that borders on a ballad-sounding, with a solid riffing at the start of “Lonely The Innocence Dies,” it contains quite a bit of raw emotion seeping with the vocal tracks. Chris Boltendahl delivers the suffering tone; nut knows his vocal limitations which assist by Veronica Freeman (vocalist of Benedictum.) Then after this song the sound returns to the metal pounding of drums with “Into the War” a catchy track. Another one that snagged my attention “Funeral for a Fallen Angel” opens with a tinge of acoustic guitar classical work, which reminded me of Sepultura’s “Kaiowas” and the pounds into that intense metal. The last song “Pray” has a bit of an uplifting tone, a fitting conclusion of the album, which hints of old school Judas Priest meets Primal Fear throughout it is the lyrics note of leaving this world behind and suggest as reincarnation to try to better next around. Oh, for the curious the artwork on the cover is by legendary artist Gyula Havancsák, who has done many of their before this release and since then.
*Note, the limited-edition digipak included a bonus cover song “Jailbreak” originally by Thin Lizzy and gave it is cool classy rendition.
Track Listing:
The Gallows Pole
Ballad of a Hangman
Hell of Disillusion
Sorrow of the Dead
Grave of the Addicted
Lonely the Innocent Dies
Into the War
The Shadow of Your Soul
Funeral for a Fallen Angel
Stormrider
Pray
Band Members:
Chris Boltendahl – Vocals
Thilo Hermann – Guitars
Manni Schmidt – Guitars
Jens Becker – Bass
Stefan Arnold – Drums
Overall, the album is not breaking new ground it simply delivers a 41-minute album that any longtime fan of the band wants and deserves. Grave Digger primarily stays overseas, as their breakthrough in the United States never truly materialized to a grandiose scale; nevertheless, if you prefer straightforward traditional heavy metal then this is a solid effort from a tried-and-true band with killer riffs and pounding drums,
Baron’s Rating: 4.0/5.0
Band Links:
https://www.facebook.com/gravediggerofficial
https://www.instagram.com/gravediggerband/
https://twitter.com/GRAVEDIGGERclan
Label Links:
https://www.facebook.com/napalmrecords
https://napalmrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/napalmrecordsofficial/
https://twitter.com/napalmrecords
https://label.napalmrecords.com/
Gyula Links:
https://www.instagram.com/havancsakgyula/
https://www.facebook.com/hjulesdesign/