Powerwolf – Interludium Review

The band has been putting out quite a few compilations and collaborative-type releases over the past few years, and that trend continues with Interludium, which has a little bit...

Released By: Napalm Records

Release Date: April 7th, 2023

Genre: Power Metal

Links: https://www.powerwolf.net/

 

Line Up:

Attila Dorn – Vocals

Matthew Greywolf – Guitar

Charles Greywolf – Guitar

Falk Maria Schlegel – Organ

Roel van Helden – Drums

 

Tracklist:

Disc 1:

1. Wolves of War

2. Sainted by the Storm

3. No Prayer at Midnight

4. My Will Be Done

5. Altars on Fire

6. Wolfborn

7. Stronger than the Sacrament

8. Living on a Nightmare

9. Midnight Madonna

10. Bête du Gévaudan

 

Disc 2:

1. Werewolves of Armenia – Wind Rose

2. Reverent of Rats – Mystic Prophecy

3. Dancing With the Dead – Annisokay

4. Call of the Wild – Rage

5. Venom of Venus – Ad Infinitum

6. Stossgebet – Eisbrecher

7. Fire and Forgive – Electric Callboy

8. Armata Strigoi – Warkings

9. We are the Wild – Lord of the Lost

10. Night of the Werewolves – Unleash the Archers

 

Disc 3:

1. Wolves of War (Orchestral Version)

2. Sainted by the Storm (Orchestral Version)

3. No Prayer at Midnight (Orchestral Version)

4. My Will Be Done (Orchestral Version)

5. Altars on Fire (Orchestral Version)

6. Wolfborn (Orchestral Version)

7. Midnight Madonna (Orchestral Version)

8. Bête du Gévaudan

 

It’s no secret that German power metal band Powerwolf is one of my favorites in the genre, with releases such as Bible of the Beast, Blessed & Possessed, and The Sacrament of Sin all being among my favorite albums of all time. So every time the band puts something out I take interest, even if it’s not a full-length album or anything of the sort. The band has been putting out quite a few compilations and collaborative-type releases over the past few years, and that trend continues with Interludium, which has a little bit of everything for hardcore fans of the band, including a few entirely new tracks, some rare releases and b-sides, a disc full of covers from other bands, and a set of the orchestral version of the first disc. I’ll mainly be focusing on the new stuff, as well as some brief mentions on the cover tracks, particularly some of the ones with more unique twists, while I don’t have much to say on the orchestral versions, except that they’re well done, just not really my thing.

The main disc of Interludium features four new tracks, as well as six rare tracks, ranging from b-sides to tracks released on splits with other bands, and a couple of stand-alone singles. I’ll be focusing mostly on the four new tracks, but I will briefly go over the other six, as well. This doesn’t need a fully detailed review, since it’s not a full-length album, so there won’t be as much buildup here as normal. Fans of the band should know exactly what to expect by now, and all the band’s strengths are on full display here, as always. The band’s sound has changed very subtly over the years, so much so it can be hard to tell new and old tracks apart, though I’d say in general the newer tracks tend to have more folk and symphonic elements, and perhaps a bit less of the gang vocals. One thing that’s true of all the band’s music, though, is their use of a church organ instead of keyboards, which is one of the signature elements that help them stand out, along with the amazing voice of Atilla Dorn, who mixes his classical training along with some intense metal vocals.

The opening track “Wolves of War” is one of the new tracks, and it has a very clear folk influence to it right from the intro, with a very beautiful folk melody, eventually giving way to guitars and drums. The track never fully speeds up, but it moves at a pretty fast pace and is very light and melodic, even by Powerwolf standards, while still having a slight heaviness to it. The chorus is huge and very catchy, and I especially enjoy the instrumental section in the middle where the folk influences are on full display. Overall, it’s an excellent track and one of my favorites here. Next is “Sainted by the Storm”, released as a standalone single last year. It’s a more mid-paced track, and it’s highly enjoyable the whole way through, with the chorus being the biggest highlight.

The next new song is “No Prayer at Midnight”, and it’s a very classic Powerwolf-sounding track, with the guitars and organ driving the sound. It moves at a fairly subdued pace during the verses, before speeding up for a big, epic, and catchy chorus. While the band has very subtly evolved over the years, this very much feels in line with their classic tracks, and would fit in well on any of their albums in between Bible of the Beast and Sacrament of Sin. It’s followed by another very classic-sounding track in “My Will Be Done”, which has some especially effective gang vocals at one point towards the end, as well as a surprisingly heavy section.

The final two new tracks are grouped right next to each other. First is “Altars on Fire”, another very folk-infused track, with the main melody, in particular, having a strong folk, feel to it, and the track is also one of the most symphonic and cinematic sounding tracks here. It moves along at more of a marching pace throughout the verses, and of course, the chorus is huge, super catchy, and has a very anthem-like feel to it, like many Powerwolf classics. Lastly, we have “Wolfborn”, the fastest-paced of the new tracks, and another track where the organ is very noticeable, setting the tone early on and staying quite prominent throughout. Verses move at a frantic pace, while the chorus is somewhat slowed down, but still quite intense, and it has some pretty fantastic vocal melodies.


Rounding out this portion of the set, “Stronger than the Sacrament” and “Living on a Nightmare”, are two more very classic sounding, speedy power metal tracks, with the latter being a bit heavier, while the latter is more melodic, but both are excellent tracks and show off the band’s sound nicely. Perhaps the one somewhat oddball track here is “Midnight Madonna”, a slower-paced, somewhat radio-friendly track, where the organ is perhaps more prominent than on any other track on the album. It still maintains the band’s signature sound, but it has a slight pop feel to it, especially during the chorus, which is super light and catchy. Closing things off is “Bête du Gévaudan”, a french sung version of “Beast of Gévaudan”, one of the highlights from the band’s most recent full-length album, Call of the Wild.

The second disc features covers of tracks from different Powerwolf albums, by a bunch of different bands. I won’t go into much detail on most tracks, but I will break down my personal favorite, as well as a few I find to be rather unique and different. First up, Wind Rose offers up their unique brand of “Dwarf Metal” to “Werewolves of Armenia”, the oldest track to be covered here, coming from Bible of the Beast. It turns out, dwarfs and werewolves may just be a dynamite combination, if this track is any indication, as the band’s unique blend of power, symphonic, and folk metal work very well in giving the track a unique feel, including some extended soft portions which work out quite well, while still maintaining everything that makes the original special. It’s far and away my favorite track on this entire set, even over Powerwolf’s tracks, which is saying a lot! Other bands I’m familiar with include Mystic Prophecy, Rage, Ad Inifinitum, Warkngs, and Unleash the Archers, each of whom presents their take on tracks such as “Reverent of Rats”, “Call of the Wild”, “Venom of Venus”, “Armata Strigoi”, and “Night of the Werewolves”. These are all very good covers and are pretty much what fans of each band would expect.

On the more surprising side of things, we’ll start with Annisokay, who delivers a metalcore take on “Dancing with the Dead”. The track alternates between heavy guitar work and bouncy keyboards, with lots of digital effects used in place of the organ. I quite like it from an instrumental perspective, as it’s certainly a unique take on the track, and the clean vocals are also quite nice. Sadly, the band’s attempt at including a metalcore breakdown in the second half doesn’t work too well, and the occasional use of screamed vocals is a massive flop, at least to my ears. Still, it’s a pretty solid cover and a unique spin on the track. A few tracks later, Eisbrecher present their unique take on “Stossgebet”, which was already somewhat of an oddball among Powerwolf’s discography. This version is a very electronic-based, industrial metal spin on the track, sounding somewhat similar to Rammstein at times, which I find quite interesting. I think the band picked the right track to fit their sound, and they pulled it off very nicely.

Swinging back to the metalcore side of things, Electric Callboy delivers perhaps the most radically different sounding cover to be found here, with “Fire and Forgive”… They completely change the main riff into a core breakdown, while injecting trance keys into the main melody, but they also play around with the tempo quite a bit, alternating between speedy passages and slow passages during the verses, and then completely slowing down for a very catchy, somewhat pop-infused take on the chorus. The clean vocals are excellent here, and even the screamed vocals are pretty solid. Out of the two core-influenced covers, I greatly prefer this one. Lastly, we have Lord of the Lost, whose cover of “We Are the Wild” isn’t too shocking in and of itself, as the track stays at roughly the same tempo as the original and the main melody is left intact, but it does bring in some of their gothic metal atmosphere, as well as occasional harsh vocals from Chris Harms, who sounds fantastic throughout the track.

Interludium is a fan’s first kind of release, meant to give Powerwolf fans something to enjoy while waiting for their next full-length album. On that end, I’d say there’s quite a lot to enjoy here, with the new tracks and rare tracks all being excellent, while the covers from other bands range from excellent to maybe not quite on point, but at least fascinating. Newcomers would likely enjoy the first disc more, as it does have enough of a smooth flow to it to work as a proper album, though I’d still recommend starting with any of the three albums I mentioned in the opening paragraph, or even Call of the Wild, to get the best first impression of the band. For longtime fans, though, this release may not be essential, but it’s still highly recommended.

 

Ratings: 8/10

Written by: Travis Green

My Global Mind – Staff Writer

Travis Green is a Canadian based writer for My Global Mind, with a particular passion for power metal, as well as an interest metal in all its forms.

 

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