While 2022’s King Of The North was Wolfheart’s most inspiring victory to date, the Finns unleash a raft of unexpected reinforcements on its follow-up. Straight from the exhilarating bombast of opener Ancient Cold, Draconian Darkness sees the quartet stand tall. A legion of strings and clean choruses are used to turn the melodeath anthems of Burning Sky and Death Leads The Way into full-blown rallying cries. Though Grave and the sublime The Gale might not have the extravagant technicality of countrymen Wintersun, their opulent moments still achieve the desired heroic peaks, with Tuomas Saukkonen’s gruff roar delivering triumphant clouts on the descent. ■■■■■■■■
FOR FANS OF: Wintersun, Amon Amarth, Brymir