The Power Within | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 15 April 2012 | |||
Recorded | October – December 2011 | |||
Studio | Thin Ice Studios, Virginia Water, England | |||
Genre | Power metal | |||
Length | 50:11 62:05 (digital and vinyl editions) 65:41 (Japanese edition) | |||
Label | Electric Generation (UK) Roadrunner (US) 3Wise (Australia) Victor (Japan) | |||
Producer | Herman Li, Sam Totman, Frédéric Leclercq | |||
DragonForce chronology | ||||
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Re-Powered Within | ||||
Singles from The Power Within | ||||
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The Power Within is the fifth studio album by British power metal band DragonForce,released in April 2012. [1] It is the first DragonForce album to feature vocalist Marc Hudson. [2] "Cry Thunder" was released as downloadable content for Rock Band 3 .
DragonForce announced a complete remix and remaster of the album in April 2018 titled Re-Powered Within which was released on 4 May 2018. [3]
DragonForce revealed details about the album on their Facebook page on 2 February 2012 and later on the official website. They released the album cover,track listing,and release date and also announced four different editions that would be released:CD,digital download,LP and a limited edition box set. As of September 2014 the album is unavailable for digital download with no explanation given by any member of the band.
Herman Li stated:
"The last two years have been the most fun we ever had making an album. Through writing,jamming and touring together,we have built this incredible energy and it has been fully captured on the new album. This time around we've really brought our metal-side to the surface and made some of the best music of our career. From the fastest song we've ever recorded to the slower songs,and some things you would never expect from us,this is by far the most diverse DragonForce album yet. This is an exciting new era for DragonForce with Marc joining the band-- so we figured this was an ideal time to take full control of our own destiny and establish our own record label for Europe. It's all hands on deck running it,but a great buzz!"
The Power Within also marks a turning point for DragonForce lyrics:being less related to fantasy and exploring other subjects. [4]
"Fallen World" was streamed for free on Metal Hammer's website on 18 February 2012. The song later became a free downloadable track on 8 March 2012. [5] [6] At 220 beats per minute (bpm) [7] it was the fastest song ever released by DragonForce [8] and it held this title until 18 August 2014 when the band's sixth album Maximum Overload was released with the track "The Game" which is even faster (240 bpm). [7]
"Cry Thunder" was streamed for free on RCRDLBL's website via SoundCloud on 30 March 2012 by the band's North American label Roadrunner Records. [9] However,the download function of SoundCloud was disabled.
The music video for "Cry Thunder" was released on DragonForce's YouTube account on 29 March 2012 and was shown on www.noisecreep.com and made available to download via iTunes on 3 April 2012. [10]
A music video for the song "Seasons" was released on 14 September 2012. It featured scenes from the album recording,live and backstage performances and behind the scenes footage of the "Cry Thunder" video shoot.[ citation needed ]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 74/100 |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
About.com | [11] |
AllMusic | [2] |
Brave Words &Bloody Knuckles | 8/10 [12] |
Classic Rock | [13] |
The Guardian | [14] |
Rock Hard | 8.5/10 [15] |
Spin | 6/10 [16] |
Ultimate Guitar Archive | 8/10 [17] |
The Power Within has received positive reviews. [18] At Metacritic (which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics) the album received an average score of 74,based on 5 reviews. [18] It sold 5,800 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at No. 74 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. Their previous album Ultra Beatdown opened at No. 18 with first week sales of 24,000 back in September 2008. [19]
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Holding On" | Sam Totman, Herman Li | Totman | 4:56 |
2. | "Fallen World" | Totman | Totman | 4:08 |
3. | "Cry Thunder" | Totman, Li | Totman | 5:16 |
4. | "Give Me the Night" | Totman, Frédéric Leclercq, Li | Totman, Leclercq | 4:28 |
5. | "Wings of Liberty" | Totman, Li | Totman | 7:20 |
6. | "Seasons" | Leclercq, Totman, Li | Leclercq | 5:03 |
7. | "Heart of the Storm" | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:42 |
8. | "Die by the Sword" | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:36 |
9. | "Last Man Stands" | Totman, Li, Leclercq | Totman | 5:07 |
10. | "Seasons" (Acoustic Version) | Leclercq, Totman, Li | Leclercq | 4:26 |
Total length: | 50:18 |
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
11. | "Power of the Ninja Sword" | Totman | Totman | 3:36 |
Total length: | 53:54 |
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
12. | "Cry Thunder" (Live rehearsal) | Totman, Li | Totman | 5:13 |
13. | "Heart of the Storm" (Alternative chorus version) | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:41 |
14. | "Avant La Tempête" (Instrumental) | Instrumental | Leclercq | 2:00 |
Total length: | 1:05:48 |
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Holding On" | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:55 |
2. | "Fallen World" | Totman | Totman | 4:08 |
3. | "Cry Thunder" | Totman, Li | Totman | 5:14 |
4. | "Give Me the Night" | Totman, Leclercq, Li | Totman, Leclercq | 4:27 |
5. | "Wings of Liberty" | Totman, Li | Totman | 7:23 |
6. | "Seasons" | Leclercq, Totman, Li | Leclercq | 5:07 |
7. | "Heart of the Storm" | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:43 |
8. | "Die by the Sword" | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:36 |
9. | "Last Man Stands" | Totman, Li, Leclercq | Totman | 5:09 |
10. | "Seasons" (Acoustic Version) | Leclercq, Totman, Li | Leclercq | 4:26 |
11. | "Power of the Ninja Sword" | Totman | Totman | 3:37 |
12. | "Heart of the Storm" (Alternative Chorus Version) | Totman, Li | Totman | 4:43 |
13. | "Avant La Tempête" (Instrumental) | Instrumental | Leclercq | 1:59 |
Total length: | 1:00:27 |
Chart (2012) | Peak position |
---|---|
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [22] | 53 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [23] | 45 |
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [24] | 16 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [25] | 31 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [26] | 43 |
UK Albums (OCC) [27] | 18 |
UK Independent Albums (OCC) [28] | 7 |
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC) [29] | 1 |
US Billboard 200 [30] | 74 |
DragonForce are a British power metal band from London. The band was formed in 1999 by guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman, and are known for their long and fast guitar solos, fantasy-themed lyrics and retro video game-influenced sound. The band themselves refer to their music as "extreme power metal".
Sonic Firestorm is the second studio album by British power metal band DragonForce, released through Noise Records on 11 May 2004. It is the first album to feature bassist Adrian Lambert and drummer Dave Mackintosh. The reissue of this album was released on 22 February 2010, along with a remixed and remastered version of the band's first album, Valley of the Damned. The re-release also came with the bonus track "Cry of the Brave", which was a Japanese bonus track on the original release.
Valley of the Damned is the debut studio album by British power metal band DragonForce. In 2000, while the band was still known as DragonHeart, a demo of the same name was recorded and sent to Noise Records, subsequently gaining the band a deal with the label. It was then re-recorded in late 2002 and released as a full-length studio album on 25 February 2003, following the band's obtainance of the deal with Noise and change in name to DragonForce. The album was set to be remastered and released with a bonus DVD on 24 September 2007, but was subsequently delayed and eventually released on 22 February 2010, along with the re-release of the band's second album, Sonic Firestorm.
Inhuman Rampage is the third studio album by British power metal band DragonForce, released first on 28 December 2005 in Japan, and 9 January 2006 elsewhere, through Victor Entertainment and Roadrunner Records, respectively. Its first single, "Through the Fire and Flames", has received rock radio and Fuse TV airplay, and has appeared as a playable track on the video games Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Rock Band 3, and Rocksmith 2014 Edition – Remastered. It is the band's first album to feature harsh vocals, which were recorded by Demoniac vocalist Lindsay Dawson; the album is also the last to feature bassist Adrian Lambert, who left the band in 2005 and was replaced by Frédéric Leclercq before the album's release.
ZP Theart is a South African singer, songwriter and the former lead vocalist for the British power metal band DragonForce and American rock band Skid Row. Theart was also hired by Riot Games for the voice of Karthus in the songs "Deathfire Grasp" and "Last Whisper" by the metal band Pentakill.
Demoniac were a New Zealand heavy metal band, formed in Wellington in 1993 by singer and bass player Lindsay Dawson, guitarist Sam Totman and Drummer Steve Francis. They later moved to London, UK. Their unusual musical style has been labelled "blackened power metal". Three of the members went on to form DragonForce.
"Through the Fire and Flames" ("TTFAF") is a song by British power metal band DragonForce. The song is acclaimed as the most successful song by the band. The song was the lead single and opening track from DragonForce's third album, Inhuman Rampage. It is known primarily for its rapid twin guitar solos by Herman Li and Sam Totman.
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Marcus Hudson is a British singer, mostly known for being the current lead singer of the London-based power metal-band DragonForce.
"Cry Thunder" is a song by British power metal band DragonForce. It was released as the second single from their fifth album The Power Within. Its music video was released in Spring 2012. So far "Cry Thunder" is DragonForce's most popular song with vocalist Marc Hudson.
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