Nuclear Blast
2012
(Swedish Version)
1. Dominium Maris Baltici
2. Lejonet Fran Norden
3. Gott Mit Uns
4. En Livistid I Krig
5. 1648
6. Karolinens Bon
7. Carolus Rex
8. Ett Slag Fargat Rott
9. Poltava
10. Konugens Likfard
11. Ruina Imperii
(Enlish Version)
1. Dominium Maris Baltici
2. The Lion From The North
3. Gott Mit Uns
4. A Lifetime Of War
5. 1648
6. The Carolean's Prayer
7. Carolus Rex
8. Killing Ground
9. Poltava
10. Long Live The King
11. Ruina Imperii
Sabaton are back again and with them this time they're brought a rather grand concept that I've not heard covered musically. Carolus Rex is the tale of Charles XII of Sweden and the Swedish Empire. As such Sabaton also has recorded the album in Swedish as well as in English. Seemed like a good move to me as I felt the Swedish language would just give the concept a certain feel of authenticity. Certainly sounded good to me when Falconer did an album in Swedish recently. With that in mind I'll be reviewing the deluxe version with both languages as a whole.
After listening to both the English and Swedish versions of this album I've come to the decision there really is room for both and the deluxe version is the way to go. If you want that extra feel of Swedes singing about Sweden then that version works well. If however you want to understand the lyrics and get into it that way then the English version sounds good too. If I had to pick one version it would be the Swedish. With that said, there are certain songs where the vocal melodies work better for English just as there are songs where they work better in Swedish. Gott Mit Uns sounds better to me in English, but Lejonet Fran Norden is the superior version of that song in my opinion. I guess you'll just have to listen to both versions. I will.
Language aside, Sabaton have put together a pretty good album here. I do think it gets a little bogged in the concept at times and leans Sabaton away from their strengths a bit. This one seems very epic and overblown. Granted the band has always been to a degree, but this doesn't get quite as good of a fusion between heavy riffs and epic flair that Coat Of Arms had. I found the songwriting on that one very good and enjoyed the heavy, war vibe that songs like Midway brought to the table. This one just seems a little lighter and more about the pomp. Comes off a bit like fantasy metal at times and doesn't seem quite as powerful to me. Overall though, the epic flair isn't bad at all and this album just has sort of a different personality for the band. Well worth it if you like your warrior metal over the top. To me this screams to fans of bands like Manowar.
Overall, this album is interesting, a pretty good listen, but not quite as good as what came before it to me. Worth listening to for sure and I'd recommend it to fans. For new listeners I'd say get Coat Of Arms or Primo Victoria first.
Highlights: Gott Mit Uns (English), Leojenet Fran Norden, Carolus Rex (Swedish)
Rating - 3.5/5
1. Dominium Maris Baltici
2. Lejonet Fran Norden
3. Gott Mit Uns
4. En Livistid I Krig
5. 1648
6. Karolinens Bon
7. Carolus Rex
8. Ett Slag Fargat Rott
9. Poltava
10. Konugens Likfard
11. Ruina Imperii
(Enlish Version)
1. Dominium Maris Baltici
2. The Lion From The North
3. Gott Mit Uns
4. A Lifetime Of War
5. 1648
6. The Carolean's Prayer
7. Carolus Rex
8. Killing Ground
9. Poltava
10. Long Live The King
11. Ruina Imperii
Sabaton are back again and with them this time they're brought a rather grand concept that I've not heard covered musically. Carolus Rex is the tale of Charles XII of Sweden and the Swedish Empire. As such Sabaton also has recorded the album in Swedish as well as in English. Seemed like a good move to me as I felt the Swedish language would just give the concept a certain feel of authenticity. Certainly sounded good to me when Falconer did an album in Swedish recently. With that in mind I'll be reviewing the deluxe version with both languages as a whole.
After listening to both the English and Swedish versions of this album I've come to the decision there really is room for both and the deluxe version is the way to go. If you want that extra feel of Swedes singing about Sweden then that version works well. If however you want to understand the lyrics and get into it that way then the English version sounds good too. If I had to pick one version it would be the Swedish. With that said, there are certain songs where the vocal melodies work better for English just as there are songs where they work better in Swedish. Gott Mit Uns sounds better to me in English, but Lejonet Fran Norden is the superior version of that song in my opinion. I guess you'll just have to listen to both versions. I will.
Language aside, Sabaton have put together a pretty good album here. I do think it gets a little bogged in the concept at times and leans Sabaton away from their strengths a bit. This one seems very epic and overblown. Granted the band has always been to a degree, but this doesn't get quite as good of a fusion between heavy riffs and epic flair that Coat Of Arms had. I found the songwriting on that one very good and enjoyed the heavy, war vibe that songs like Midway brought to the table. This one just seems a little lighter and more about the pomp. Comes off a bit like fantasy metal at times and doesn't seem quite as powerful to me. Overall though, the epic flair isn't bad at all and this album just has sort of a different personality for the band. Well worth it if you like your warrior metal over the top. To me this screams to fans of bands like Manowar.
Overall, this album is interesting, a pretty good listen, but not quite as good as what came before it to me. Worth listening to for sure and I'd recommend it to fans. For new listeners I'd say get Coat Of Arms or Primo Victoria first.
Highlights: Gott Mit Uns (English), Leojenet Fran Norden, Carolus Rex (Swedish)
Rating - 3.5/5
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