We all know that when it comes to modern hard rock that H.E.A.T. are one of the bands to go to and throughout the years, they have released some very catchy albums. More recently, their former vocalist Erik Grönwell may be more famous for being the new vocalist in Skid Row but he has joined forces with fellow ex-H.E.A.T. member Jona Tee to create some power metal in the shape of New Horizon as they the band released their debut album ‘Gate of the Gods’.
Those who might be expecting Grönwell to be particularly limited by a sleazy, hard rock rasp will be suddenly surprised to see that this guy casts off the shackles of hard rock and takes to power metal like a duck to water. Because of this, ‘Gate of the Gods’ is a superb album, yes it takes the listener by surprise and fuck me, it is good. Through tracks such as ‘Stronger Than Steel’, ‘Stardust’ and the epic Babylonian flavoured title track, New Horizon hit their old-school heavy/power metal stride with an album which massively appeals to fans of Helloween, Iron Maiden and early Edguy whilst also touching on HammerFall with the chest beating power of Manowar.
‘Gate of the Gods’ is a great place to start for this project. It doesn’t break any new boundaries, but it does keep it true to the heavy/power metal cause with some fantastic musicianship and songwriting which hopefully see this band grow and become something more than just a side project.
