Alestorm/Elvenking/Glyph - Ace Of Spades, Sacramento, CA 04/24
By Jeffrey Easton
Power Metal is a broad term in the history of heavy metal, but it is still alive and well in the year 2024 and tonight it was well represented by three amazing acts. Alestorm has been a force to be reckoned with for two party filled decades and shows no sign of slowing down and having sold out Ace Of Spades, their fans are not allowing that. They took out the long running Italian stalwarts Elvenking and the fast up and coming Glyph for a tour that will not be forgotten.
Opening the night to a packed house, the fans showed up early, were newcomers Glyph, a band notoriously stating they are from another planet. Made up of seasoned musicians of other bands, they assembled on another world and delivered a massive punch with their debut album Honor. Power. Glory. The studio record is a hard-hitting statement for power metal combining forceful melodic vocals and that distorted to hell sound that rings legendary power metal. Allowed a long set, they flourished by delivering most of their debut with R.A. Voltaire commanding the stage like a veteran with decades under his belt. Storming the stage, they opened with the title track to their debut and the crowd was sold, by the time When The World Was Young and Defy The Night was played through, you would have thought they were the headliners by the appreciation of the LOUD people in attendance. This band has a future!
Elvenking is one of the longest running bands in the sphere of folk..power..neo classical heavy metal. Having dropped 11 studio albums in the last 20 plus years, they are a constant presence. Mixing so many influences in what they record they keep themselves on an island by themselves, dropping different textures into what they record keeps the fans wanting their next record. Hitting the stage, they opened with Rapture, The Hanging Tree and Bride Of the Night from their new magnum opus, Reader Of The Runes: Rapture, the second installment of their Runes series. The roar was so loud you almost forget you are in a club and have entered an arena, their fans pack a punch. Damnagoras entered the stage, beset with antlers, to lead the choir through the next hour of damnation and it was on. Rapture is a powerful statement and a massive standout if not on this record but their career. They revisited their deep catalog, belting out Elvenlegions, Moonbeam Stone Circle, Pagan Revolution and The One We Shall Follow with power and menace. Elvenking are a proficient, musically gifted band and are not to be missed.
Alestorm are a massive party band but are dead on with their music. Out on Tour for their new EP Voyage Of The Dead Marauder, they put together a package of metal that was guaranteed to sell out everywhere they went and prove that metal is still to be reckoned with. When the lights went down, Ace Of Spades went nuts and Alestorm stormed the stage. Opening with Keelhauled and No Grave But The Sea, they reestablished their pirate motif that has caried them for years and it must be noted that there was a huge inflatable duck on stage and Christopher was in traditional Scottish dress, that's metal. The new EP was represented by Uzbekistan and Voyage Of The Dead Marauder, two excellent tracks from this massively great EP. Diving further they broke out Magellans Expedition and Under Blackened Banners and I will say, no mattery if Its Keelhauled, the new stuff or Megallans, they stay true to their core sound, deliver what they do best and what keeps them in sold out venues, everywhere. The crowd was in on their pirate idea as so many came dressed like pirates, which shows dedication, like the KISS of the pirate power metal world. They aren't your typical band, but do you want that for every band? You need different and Alestorm are that and they deliver every time out.
Alestorm Official Site
Elvenking Official Site
Glyph Official Site
By Jeffrey Easton
Power Metal is a broad term in the history of heavy metal, but it is still alive and well in the year 2024 and tonight it was well represented by three amazing acts. Alestorm has been a force to be reckoned with for two party filled decades and shows no sign of slowing down and having sold out Ace Of Spades, their fans are not allowing that. They took out the long running Italian stalwarts Elvenking and the fast up and coming Glyph for a tour that will not be forgotten.
Opening the night to a packed house, the fans showed up early, were newcomers Glyph, a band notoriously stating they are from another planet. Made up of seasoned musicians of other bands, they assembled on another world and delivered a massive punch with their debut album Honor. Power. Glory. The studio record is a hard-hitting statement for power metal combining forceful melodic vocals and that distorted to hell sound that rings legendary power metal. Allowed a long set, they flourished by delivering most of their debut with R.A. Voltaire commanding the stage like a veteran with decades under his belt. Storming the stage, they opened with the title track to their debut and the crowd was sold, by the time When The World Was Young and Defy The Night was played through, you would have thought they were the headliners by the appreciation of the LOUD people in attendance. This band has a future!
Elvenking is one of the longest running bands in the sphere of folk..power..neo classical heavy metal. Having dropped 11 studio albums in the last 20 plus years, they are a constant presence. Mixing so many influences in what they record they keep themselves on an island by themselves, dropping different textures into what they record keeps the fans wanting their next record. Hitting the stage, they opened with Rapture, The Hanging Tree and Bride Of the Night from their new magnum opus, Reader Of The Runes: Rapture, the second installment of their Runes series. The roar was so loud you almost forget you are in a club and have entered an arena, their fans pack a punch. Damnagoras entered the stage, beset with antlers, to lead the choir through the next hour of damnation and it was on. Rapture is a powerful statement and a massive standout if not on this record but their career. They revisited their deep catalog, belting out Elvenlegions, Moonbeam Stone Circle, Pagan Revolution and The One We Shall Follow with power and menace. Elvenking are a proficient, musically gifted band and are not to be missed.
Alestorm are a massive party band but are dead on with their music. Out on Tour for their new EP Voyage Of The Dead Marauder, they put together a package of metal that was guaranteed to sell out everywhere they went and prove that metal is still to be reckoned with. When the lights went down, Ace Of Spades went nuts and Alestorm stormed the stage. Opening with Keelhauled and No Grave But The Sea, they reestablished their pirate motif that has caried them for years and it must be noted that there was a huge inflatable duck on stage and Christopher was in traditional Scottish dress, that's metal. The new EP was represented by Uzbekistan and Voyage Of The Dead Marauder, two excellent tracks from this massively great EP. Diving further they broke out Magellans Expedition and Under Blackened Banners and I will say, no mattery if Its Keelhauled, the new stuff or Megallans, they stay true to their core sound, deliver what they do best and what keeps them in sold out venues, everywhere. The crowd was in on their pirate idea as so many came dressed like pirates, which shows dedication, like the KISS of the pirate power metal world. They aren't your typical band, but do you want that for every band? You need different and Alestorm are that and they deliver every time out.
Alestorm Official Site
Elvenking Official Site
Glyph Official Site
