Diamonds (album)
| Diamonds | ||||
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| Enforcer studio album | ||||
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Publication |
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admission |
2009-2010 |
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| Label (s) | Heavy Artillery / Earache Records | |||
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Format (s) |
CD, LP |
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Title (number) |
10 |
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running time |
39:34 minutes |
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| occupation |
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Rikard Löfgren |
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Studio (s) |
Leon Music, Karlstad |
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Diamonds is the second album by the Swedish heavy metal band Enforcer . It was released on May 24, 2010 on the record label Earache Records for the European market, and one day later in the USA on Heavy Artillery.
Emergence
Diamonds is the band's first album to feature bassist Tobias Lindqvist. Joseph Tholl switched from bass to guitar since the previous album Into the Night . The album was produced and recorded by Rikard Löfgren in the Leon Music studio in Karlstad from November 2009 to January 2010. As with Into the Night , he was also responsible for mixing and mastering .
“ Diamonds is referring to opening up a bigger perspective, or at least that's what we think, haha. The word sounds majestic to me, and that's what I like about it. "
While some of the pieces of music on the predecessor came from the time the band was founded, when they were still a solo project by singer Olof Wikstrand, Diamonds only contains new compositions. The other musicians got involved, only Live for the Night and Take Me to Hell were written by Wikstrand on their own. Roll the Dice was the first song that the band completed including lyrics. Katana was created from riffs that Adam Zaars used in a previous band, the lyrics were written by Tomas "Witchfinder" Ericsson, who is active as a singer and guitarist with the Swedish heavy metal band Helvetets Port. Running in Menace, on the other hand, is based on a demo version that Jonas Wikstrand presented to the other band members a few days before the album was recorded. The title song Diamonds is mostly instrumental, only towards the end you can hear Vanja Renberg, singer of the Stockholm band The Vanjas. The lyrics to the track Walk with Me are inspired by the TV series Twin Peaks .
Track list
- Midnight Vice - 3:16
- Roll the Dice - 3:13
- Katana - 6:01
- Running in Menace - 3:46
- High Roller - 3:22
- Diamonds - 3:33
- Live for the Night - 2:37
- Nightmares - 4:33
- Walk with Me - 5:59
- Take Me to Hell - 3:13
This track list is identical for all editions of the album listed below, bonus tracks do not exist. In the record editions , the separation of the two sides is between the songs High Roller and the instrumental piece Diamonds .
Versions
The American record company Heavy Artillery, where Enforcer were under contract at the time of release, licensed the album to the British label Earache Records for better distribution in Europe .
- Heavy artillery
In the USA the album was released as a CD in a jewel case and as a record ( picture disc ), the latter limited to 500 copies.
- Earache Records (first edition)
In Europe, the album was released on CD in both digipak and jewel case packaging, and a poster was included with the first orders in the Earache Records online shop. In addition, four differently colored record versions were available, each with a different limitation:
- Orange-red halved (limited to 100 pieces)
- Diamond Clear : Transparent (200 pieces)
- White (300 pieces)
- Black (400 pieces)
According to the label, the total print run of 1000 copies sold completely in the first week after publication.
- Earache Records (reissue)
Therefore, the album was released again in October 2010 by Earache Records in a total of 1000 copies on vinyl. In this new edition, the band photo was mirrored horizontally on the cover . There are the following colored vinyl versions chosen by the band themselves:
- Nightmare : black and white marbled (limited to 100 pieces)
- Hellish Red : Black on Red (200 pieces)
- Midnight Sun : Red on Yellow (300 pieces)
- Black : Black (400 pieces)
- Download
At the same time as the CD was released, the album was also released on the online music services iTunes Store and amazon.com .
Record cover
The record cover shows a photograph of the five band members, Olof Wikstrand reaches for an oversized diamond above him . The cover is framed by a border in which the band logo and the title of the album are placed at the top and bottom. The motif is kept in red and yellow tones, the image background is monochrome black. The design of the cover and the booklet was done by guitarist Adam Zaars under his pseudonym Bells of Death.
“Placing ourselves on the cover was a bit daring, but also logical for us. That was the first thing we agreed on about the album cover. That we hold up the diamond came to us when we put one and one together. "
reception
The album received positive reviews in music magazines. In Rock Hard, for example, Andreas Himmelstein awarded eight out of ten possible points, and the album was also listed among the ten best of the month. Online magazines also gave positive ratings, such as powermetal.de (9/10 points), metalnews (6.5 / 7) and Stormbringer (4/5). The band's style has been compared to NWoBHM bands like Iron Maiden , Diamond Head and Tygers of Pan Tang , as well as speed metal bands like Exciter and Savage Grace .
Outcouplings
Several songs on the album were used on vinyl singles , some on special occasions. On the occasion of a UK tour with the Canadian band Cauldron, a split single called Nightmare over the UK with the song Midnight Vice as a contribution was released by Enforcer. For a split single with Volture , limited to 200 copies , Enforcers contributed the track Take Me to Hell . For Record Store Day 2011, a 500-limited split single with bullet was released , which contains the song High Roller .
In addition, the label compilation New Noise Attack from Earache Records was released in 2011 , which has the song Midnight Vice as its first track .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Talita: ENFORCER REVEALS 'DIAMONDS' ALBUM COVER (English). Earache News. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ↑ Talita: ENFORCER: 'DIAMONDS' TRACK-BY-TRACK (PART 1) (English). Earache News. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ↑ Talita: ENFORCER: 'DIAMONDS' TRACK-BY-TRACK PART 2 (English). Earache News. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ↑ Talita: ENFORCER - 'DIAMONDS' OUT NOW IN EUROPE (English). Earache News. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ^ Andreas Himmelstein: Review Dynamit , rockhard.de. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ↑ Holger Andrae: Enforcer - Diamonds , powermetal.de. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ↑ Michael Bambas: Enforcer - Diamonds , metalnews.de. Retrieved September 20, 2011.
- ^ Robert Fröwein: Enforcer - Diamonds (CD) , stormbringer.at. Retrieved September 20, 2011.