Release Date: March 6th, 2026
Label: Reaper Entertainment
Genre: Power Metal
Links: https://www.facebook.com/metaldefacto/
Line Up:
Esa Orjatsalo – Guitar
Sami Hinkka – Bass
Atte Marttinen – Drums
Benji Connelly – Keyboards
Aitor Arrastia – Vocals
Tracklist:
Sengakuji Temple
Across the Milky Way
Gojira
My Plastic Escape
(Suzume no Mure / Flock of Sparrows)
Fury and Beauty
The Wanderers Truth
Pen is Mightier Than Sword
Lighter Than a Feather
Wheel of the Rising Sun
Every band needs a mission statement. Every business needs one, and these days, every band needs to be a business if it’s going to thrive. Thankfully Metal De Facto have a mission statement: simply “Make Power Metal Great Again”. Thankfully that’s a baseball cap I could get behind.
It’s also the driver behind the band’s latest album, a direct sequel to their 2024 album, continuing their exploration of Japanese mythology and history. Formed by Sami Hinkka (current bassist for folk-metal giants Ensiferum) and Esa Orjatsalo (ex-Dreamtale), the pair met while Esa was working as a guitar tech for Ensiferum. Clearly a bond was made as this is the second album of theirs I’ve reviewed, and it’s clearly an escape for Sami as the music is worlds away from his work with Ensiferum.
While ‘Imperium Romanum’ from 2019 focussed on Rome’s history, Japan’s history goes much deeper and is of course much older. As a result, Parts 1 and 2 of ‘The Land of The Rising Sun’ are required to really engage with the material. Part 2 is a direct narrative continuation of the previous album. While Part 1 set the scene with mythology and Samurai codes (‘Amaterasu’), Part 2 delves deeper into specific legends and historical events. Take the 47 Ronin story that was teased at Part 1’s end—this album features ‘Sengakuji Temple’, the 47 Ronin’s resting place.
My personal favourite is ‘Gojira’. It’s the perfect accompaniment to the ‘Godzilla’ movies, and the lyrics perfectly capture the size and scale of the “Mighty Gojira”. I don’t think any other music style could do the big guy justice honestly. It’s epic, over the top, has perfect subject matter and just…shreds.
The rhythm sections and solos are tight; there’s not even a nanosecond for anything else to be slotted in. Aitor Arrastia’s vocals are a major upgrade—he has a high, soaring range fitting the genre perfectly, and when we think about bands like X-Japan, high is something we expect from the land the album is named after (even if he is Spanish!).
Ratings: 8/10
Reviewed by Adrian Hextall
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