Band's List Melodic Death Thousand Year War Defiance

Alaska has some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. It's covered with thick forests and huge mountains. There are lots of rivers teeming with wildlife. It's a good idea to carry a gun in Alaska, to stop the bears from kicking your ass. Thousand Year War are a kick ass death metal band from Alaska.

They were originally called Shadow Of Colossus. But they decided to change their name, too many people were bitching about it, because Shadow Of Colossus is also the name of a popular video game.

So they changed their name to Thousand Year War. This choice was influenced by the 100 years war. Which supposedly was a medieval war between France and French occupied England.

This album was meant to be a "fist in the face of a corrupt system and apathetic society." This album was recorded at Garden Studios in Anchorage, Alaska. Guitarist Hiram Lohr worked as a commercial fisherman, to help finance this unsigned album. Commercial fishing is a profitable but dangerous job in Alaska.

Because they couldn't find a skilled drummer in Alaska, they found Fredrik Widigs of Sweden, to do that job for them. His parts were recorded in Stockholm, Sweden. His drum playing is very skilled and has a very rich sound.

The vocals of Hiram Lohr alternate between the styles of Johan Hegg(of Amon Amarth) and Maurizio Iacono(of Kataklysm). Some of the guitar leads sound very flashy, in a style like Niklas Sundin(of Dark Tranquillity).

Of Tyrants and Men opens with very intricate and melodic guitar riffs. The guitar and bass playing on this song sound as sophisticated as some of the best songs by Dark Tranquillity. Thousand Year War is a very melodic song that sounds heavily influenced by Amon Amarth and Kataklysm. The Sea sounds like it has borrowed heavily from the Amon Amarth song, Warriors Of Asgaard. The guitar melodies are great, I like this song. Open Casket starts with a melodic rhythm like Iron Maiden, then it gets into some intricate guitar playing like Dark Tranquillity. It rocks with a cool rhythm. Warriors Of Deceit sounds like a cool viking metal song. There is some Iron Maiden influence in this song. Storm I Ride have some nice guitar melodies that remind me of Rock'n Rolf Kasparek(of Running Wild). No Gods No Masters shreds with a very choppy and heavy style. It sounds like Riger interspersed with Kataklysm. Spartacus rocks like some of Amon Amarth's most vicious songs. One Final Breath sounds like a mix of Dark Tranquillity(flashy guitar playing) and Amon Amarth.

This is a very mature album from a very young band. But it does sound like they mimicked the styles of other bands(especially Amon Amarth), because they haven't developed a style of their own yet. This is a very high quality recording and a top notch production. These guys have a lot of potential. Fans of Amon Amarth will probably like this album.

From the depths of the chilly and wondrous state of Alaska emerges the up and coming melodic death metal band, Thousand Year War. They must have frozen their asses off while composing the material for "Defiance", but this album is hot!

I must start by saying that these guys have put forth a strong message and uniqueness in their music that many metal fans out there could certainly appreciate. While listening to the tracks you'll definitely find that bands such and Amon Amarth, speckled with a little Iron Maiden have been influential, but at the same time, every song overflows with tasty melodic originality that makes one hunger for more. Each track has its own personality musically, but lyrically, all combine to solidify one message: In a crooked world filled with greed, immoral values, and corruption, we need to stand together, uncontrolled by any fellow man and fight for our freedoms and restore hope and faith to humanity. Holy crap! A band that DOESN'T sing about Satan!

The vocal style of Hiram Lohr (vocalist/rhythm guitarist), exhibits the standard "highs" and "lows" that we've come to expect from most any black/death metal band, but none the less, are done very well...I'd have to say they compare most to Johann Heg (Amon Amarth). Compared to the EP, self-titled Thousand Year War, you can certainly hear that though the vocals are similar, they have matured in nature, as has the music itself for "Defiance". In agreeing with a previous reviewer, for such a young band they have indeed put forth a very mature full length album. Everything about this album is done very well and professionally, the recording itself sounded amazing. The guitars are crisp with an infusion of melodic riffs, combined with thunderous and incredibly clean drums, complimenting every song with a trade mark sound. Any fans of Viking/death metal tunes will enjoy Thousand Year War.

Overall, I foresee a very bright and hopeful future for Thousand Year War. I look forward to watching them grow as a band and bring forth future albums that provide the same passion and uniqueness that you'll be introduced to on "Defiance". I would recommend that any fan of metal searching for some new tunes to listen to should check this band out.