Going full force since 1997, it shouldn’t surprise many that Primal Fear are a reliable, well-oiled traditional power metal machine at this point in their career. Seven years removed from their first live record Live in the USA, the quintet deliver a second full-length stage representation, this time in front of a hometown Stuttgart audience. Only privy to the audio content prior to release, the set-list encompasses 15 songs across the vast discography available to air (the visual content includes “Running in the Dust” plus video clips and a tour documentary).
It’s inevitable if you capture any concert from a group with a twenty-year history, that certain favorites will probably crop up again – which is the case here, as the crowd would probably revolt without the supercharged “Nuclear Fire”, mid-tempo anthem “Final Embrace”, or dramatic “Fighting the Darkness” in the set list. Audience participation at key moments of choruses makes “In Metal We Trust” a thunderous Teutonic thrust early, Francesco Jovino laying down double kick/ accent parts as if his life depended on it while Alex Beyrodt and Tom Naumann twist twin harmonies to the heavens. Wisely adding in contrasting arrangements that prove more expansive in epic feel for “Seven Seals” and “When Death Comes Knocking” makes the faster, harder charging efforts that much more double barreled and satisfying. Ralf Scheepers continues his premiere status with the vocal golden touch – it can’t be easy to hit the eagle highs within “Metal Is Forever” towards the end of a headlining set as he does fifteen minutes in for “Angel in Black”, but he does with strength, conviction, and true belief.
Probably most valuable to the ardent Primal Fear follower, Angels of Mercy – Live in Germany illustrates the power of Priest-styled heavy metal that put in the capable hands of veterans does not have any chance of wavering in popularity for the foreseeable future.
Primal Fear – Angels of Mercy – Live in Germany (Frontiers Records)
OUR RATING :
8/10