Dawn Of Destiny is a power metal band from Germany formed in 2005, releasing eight albums during their career to date – with 2022’s ‘Of Silence’, the band’s eighth…
…featuring a colossal thirteen songs over an incredible sixty-three-minute run time! For the new album, Dawn Of Destiny meld symphonic metal with power metal, and even weave traits of the classic traditional metal style into their sound, with the result of an emphatic and cinematic listening experience that’ll keep you fervently hooked from start to finish! And I’ll admit right now, I hadn’t actually heard – or indeed heard of – the band until now. And now that I have, I’ll definitely be seeking out their back catalog to understand how they’ve developed and grown into the majestic metal force they are now. For ‘Of Silence’ is a glorious surprise – despite the slow burn build-up of the eight-minute opening song ‘We Are Your Voice’ – but as soon as it finds its stride, fucking hell! The album is a ripper! My interest is not lost for the entire hour, as the band swings this way and that, touring the genres of power, symphonic, and traditional metal with total aplomb. But back to ‘We Are Your Voice’ – slow-burning intro, majestic build-up, and a cracking meld of symphonic power metal with a razor-sharp traditional metal edge. And featuring female and male vocals too! What an absolutely sparkling, tension fuelled opening salvo…
…full of surprising twists and turns. Just where do we go from here? To the buzzing guitar sound of the iconic NWOBHM! The band pummelling the senses with a barrage of traditional heavy metal as ‘Judas In Me’ is very quickly into its stride – parading an intensity that wasn’t present during the opening song. Again, a mix of female and male vocals spar back and forth with the lyrics, ‘Judas In Me’ invoking some serious head banging among listeners everywhere. Picking up energy and pace, the band storms on with the power metal pomp of ‘Childhood’ – featuring vocalist Chris Harms from Gothic metallers Lord Of The Lost. The speedy nature of ‘Childhood’ will continue the head banging of the previous song – with added vigor and purpose! The variation across the opening triple has been incredible, with the band continuing to surprise and shock. I just haven’t got a fucking clue where the band is going from song to song – and I get a feeling that I’m gonna be surprised a few times more before the end of the album. And by crikey, the pace remains at full tilt, as Dawn Of Destiny gallop hard with ‘Say My Name’, the classic “foot on the monitor” feel of traditional heavy metal rising high in the air. What an album – and we’re only four songs in!
Adopting the mighty anthemic style of metal, the band march on with the savagely majestic ‘White Mystery’, sprinkling their root sound with a little folk…yes, folk! ‘White Mystery’ also features gear changes and tempo shifts, to become a blistering power metal rampage. And what was that? Harsh vocals! Cor blimey Dawn Of Destiny, you’ve got more shocks and surprises than the ghost train ride at a fun fair! The sound of the NWOBHM makes an emphatic return as ‘Not The Way It Is’ powers on with a heaviness not heard so far. A heaviness that is matched by the band’s symphonic power metal roots – a perfect combination that somewhat puts the power-driven heavy metal of legends, Judas Priest, in the shade. The intensity of ‘Not The Way It Is’, is much higher than everything that has gone before, and I’m beginning to feel like we have an Album Of The Year contender right here! Only halfway through I know – but keep this up Dawn Of Destiny and ‘Of Silence’ is a certainty to make my shortlist.
And with a staggering turn, the album shoots off in the hymn-like direction, with a flawless symphonic vocal performance from the band’s lead singer Jeanette Scherff. Absolutely stunning – ‘Little Flower’ mixing ballad and hymn-like tendencies with the feel of a rousing concert closer, the kind of closer that has the entire audience up on their feet clapping and cheering. Simply superb stuff. And here we go again – energy levels rocket right off the scale with the fast-paced and male vocal-led ‘Burning Heart’. The melodious intent is incredible, the power metal pomp full of pizzazz, the band baring their teeth and careering on at a mildly aggressive pace – Dawn Of Destiny continuing their unrelenting pursuit to surprise me in as many ways as possible. And believe me, I have been surprised more times while listening to ‘Of Silence’ than any other album in an incredibly long time! Simply breathtaking.
And OMG! The band land back in the anthemic metal territory with ‘Silence’ – more majestic and more elegant than ever! The concert closing feel of earlier has just been upgraded – it’s now emphatically cinematic, with angelic yet powerful vocals, and a mid-song sing-along that is just beyond perfection. And even before the album ends, I’m now gonna place ‘Of Silence’ on my shortlist for Album Of The Year. With a slightly darker feel than anything heard so far, ‘Run’ builds and builds to become a hustle and bustle barrage of heavy metal. Mid-tempo, mid-paced, yet very heavy, Dawn Of Destiny continues to mix up the metal styles to produce some amazing effects. The phenomenal intensity the band imposed when the album began remains unbroken, the band marching on with the melodic metal mastery of ‘The Curse’. The infectious and catchy nature that Dawn Of Destiny sews into everything they produce is truly masterful, the band a freakish force that I wish I’d discovered years ago! But hey – I’ve discovered them now…
…and I’m so happy! And the buzz-sounding guitars of the legendary NWOBHM make a dramatic return, as ‘Inner Voice’ boldly marches forward with an increased heaviness – taking the album back in the direction of the anthemic style of metal. The glory and epic styles too! For ‘Inner Voice’ is a staggering foot stomp of superb quality, the band unrelenting in their monumental march to glory. What a fantastic journey ‘Of Silence’ has been – but every journey has to come to an end, and so does this album, with the seven-and-a-half-minute epic ‘This Is Our Legacy’. From the atmospheric keyboard-led intro to the barnstorming fire and brimstone that is later let loose, ‘This Is Our Legacy’ maintains the intensity, energy, and pizzazz the band has displayed across the entire album. And if ‘Of Silence’ is to be the band’s legacy, what an incredible legacy it would be. However, I really doubt we’ve heard the last of Dawn Of Destiny – a phenomenal band with a fair few years ahead of them yet.
Overall, an incredibly infectious and entertaining journey, full of surprises, twists, and turns, ‘Of Silence’ is a superb album.
TRACKLIST
We Are Your Voice
Judas In Me
Childhood
Say My Name
White Mystery
Not The Way It Is
Little Flower
Burning Heart
Silence
Run
The Curse
Inner Voice
This Is Our Legacy
Dawn Of Destiny: Facebook
Release Year: 2022
Label: El Puerto Records
Category: Album
Country: Germany
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire, and Metal-Roos.
