Welcome back to the CD Odyssey where we have had a month of reviews without metal, but that dismaying trend ends here.
Disc 1950 is…Attero Dominatus
Artist: Sabaton
Year of Release: 2006
What’s up with the Cover? “Hey, mister - looking for a gate to a fantastical alternate dimension?”
“Um…I’ll take the next one thanks. This one looks dangerous and frankly, the entryway is a bit pokey.”
How I Came To Know It: I’ve been a late-blooming but ardent Sabaton fan since 2019. This album was just me digging ferociously through their back catalogue.
How It Stacks Up: I now have ten Sabaton albums. I like them all, and “Attero Dominatus” is better than most – I rank it at #3.
Ratings: 4 stars
Behold the majesty and the ferocity of Sabaton, masters of Battle Metal!
Although there are many sub-genres of metal “Battle Metal” is not one of them, but if it were, Sabaton would be its patron saint. This Swedish power metal band like powerful riffs, crashing drums, bombastic vocals and tying it all together, lyrics about history and battles. A lot.
If you can get over that, you won’t like this record. Sabaton’s obsession with historical events (particularly events involving armed conflict) is intrinsic to who they are as a band. If you are listening through gritted teeth hoping for some other topic to arise, you’re just hurting yourself.
If stories about battles are OK with you, then “Attero Dominatus” is some of Sabaton’s best work, and well worth your time. Only their second record, they are already well established in their sound, with every song thundering down on you like an anthem. It is my favourite record featuring the original twin lead guitars of Oskar Montelius and Rikard Sunden and drummer Daniel Mullback (all of whom left after 2012). Like Sabaton’s neutral stance to history, I like both the original and later lineups.
Some power metal bands are obsessed with playing fast and technical. Sabaton are incredibly polished and tight, but they have a thump that is the envy of their peers. A big part of this is the vocals of Joakim Broden. His voice is low and powerful, eschewing head-voice contortions for a big booming vocal that lends gravitas to lyrics that, in lesser hands, could come off stilted and overly literal.
This album also consistently delivers some the finest guitar riffs in Sabaton’s impressive catalogue. Even the songs I liked slightly less still featured killer fist-pumping guitar bits.
Sabaton don't shy away from any conflict, but World War Two is an oft-visited theme. "Rise of Evil” is particularly grim as it recounts the story of the rise of Nazism in thirties Germany. Choosing a more ponderous tempo than many other songs on the record, there is a deliberateness to the song, fed by Mullback’s heavy drum hits and a double guitar riff. It evokes an army on the move, a society in upheaval, and a descent into darkness. It is intentionally discomfiting and the track’s title frames the moment for what it was – the rise of evil.
Fortunately, the album’s title track provides a welcome thematic bookend to “Rise of Evil”, as it tells of the last days of Nazi reign as Berlin falls. Here, Mullback’s drumming switches from deliberate thump to a fast-paced and front-end loaded roll, providing a sense of urgency as the long and violent conflict finally finds an end.
This being only the second record from Sabaton, they are not 100% converted to historical songs. The record’s final track, “Metal Crue” is a lighthearted celebration of heavy metal bands. The lyrics work overtime to include reference to a long list of metal band names that came before (I think there are about 20 dropped names in just 3:45 of running time). Technically this is a sort of history of metal, so maybe the boys stay on theme after all. Not the record’s best song by any stretch, and admittedly a bit silly, but also quite a lot of fun.
My copy of “Attero Dominatus” is the “re-armed” release, which has five bonus tracks, most of which I was glad to have. The highlight is a cover of Warlock’s “Fur Immer” which is majestic and masterful (and has me wanting to check out vintage Warlock records as well). The other bonus content isn’t as good, but good enough to not wreck the original record’s energy.
Overall, this is easily my favourite of Sabaton’s early work, and stands equal alongside some of my perennial favourites released later in their career. If you are a fan of Battle Metal, then this record is a must have. If you aren’t, congratulations on getting to the end of the review, but here your journey is likely to end.
Best tracks: Attero Dominatus, Rise of Evil, In the Name of God, Back in Control
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