Album Review: MAJESTY - Rebels

01. Path To Freedom

02. Die Like Kings

03. Rebels Of Our Time

04. YOLO HM

05. The Final War

06. Across The Lightning

07. Fireheart

08. Iron Hill

09. Heroes In The Night

10. Running For Salvation

11. Fighting Till The End

I recently saw Majesty play live in Wolverhampton supporting Battle Beast (see review here), so based on their show, I decided to check out their latest release, Rebels.

I did a little homework on Majesty after the show, and unsurprisingly they describe their music as True Metal. In case that wasn't Metal enough, they briefly changed the name of their band to Metal Force, before changing it back to Majesty a couple of years later. It was probably a wise idea in fairness. Now with ten studio albums, and despite an even larger number of ex band members, Majesty appear to be on the rise, and are becoming a major player in their genre.

When I saw them live, the first bands they instantly reminded me of were Manowar and Virgin Steele, and as a fan of both of those bands, I'm pleased to say that their recorded work here sounds very much like them too. Not close enough as to be an imitation, but enough for Majesty to wear their influences on their sleeves, yet maintain a sound that is clearly their own.

For me, I think that the thing that sets them apart is that they're a little more fun. Their over the top love of True Metal (in other words Traditional Heavy Metal with occasional bursts of Power Metal accompanied by lyrical themes of fantasy, rebellion, and proclamations of a loyalty to Metal) could be seen by some as naive and juvenile, but personally I love it. It's pure escapism, and sometimes there's nothing better than turning the speakers up to eleven and listening to songs like YOLO HM. Yes, the HM does stand for Heavy Metal. It also contains the lyrics:-

"We live as Metal Outlaws and show them we're not dead, Let's proudly post on YouTube when we bang our fucking Head" For real.

The album is great throughout, but personal favourites include Rebels Of Our Time, which has a 'Manowar - Warriors of the World' vibe about it, Fireheart, which is easily as good as anything Saxon have done in the last ten years, and the more 80's tinged and synth-heavy Heroes In The Night.

Rebels is great fun, and musically impressive. Majesty clearly love their Metal and they do what they do very well indeed. Long may they reign!