By: Tordah

Posted: Oct 19, 2005

The Swedish power metal act Nocturnal Rites has been around for a long time now. So long that many people seem to have forgotten about their earlier albums which sound completely different from what they sound today. The debut "In A Time Of Blood And Fire" came out already in 1995 when some of the band-members hadn't even turned 18 yet. This album was released on the now defunct label Megarock Records and have been pretty much impossible to find until now. "Lost in Time – The Early Years of Nocturnal Rites" is a re-release of the band's first 2 albums with some bonus stuff thrown in for good measure. A re-release many Nocturnal Rites fans, including myself, have been waiting for a long time.

"In A Time Of Blood And Fire" shows a somewhat immature band playing some very catchy and melodic power metal. Nocturnal Rites managed to write memorable melodies and choruses that will get stuck in your head for a long time. Often I find myself having 'Lay Of Ennui', 'Sword Of Steel' or some of the other tunes in my head even though it's been months since I listened to the album. This is a very important aspect when it comes to the more melodic bands I listen to. Nothing is worse than listening to an album and not remembering a single riff or melody. That is not the case with "In A Time Of Blood And Fire". Vocalist Anders Zackrisson doesn't have the most powerful voice out there but he did a great job the time he spent in Nocturnal Rites. He knew what he was capable of doing and did exactly that. No forced high-pitched squeals or falsetto here.

I mentioned before that the band sounded a bit immature on this album. Well, they were quite young when they recorded the album and sometimes I think that some parts seem a bit out of place. The song-structures where not always the best but at the same time I think that's why I like this album so much. The music is somewhat messy but made with such honesty and passion that it doesn't matter if it's not perfect. They didn't have any money when they recorded this album but I think the production is very enjoyable and suits the music perfectly. Even the bass can be clearly heard in the mix and Nils Eriksson provides some cool bass-lines here and there. "In A Time Of Blood And Fire" is probably one of those albums you either love or hate. But if you like honest and energetic melodic metal then look no further.

The other album included on this re-release is their second album "Tales Of Mystery And Imagination", originally released in 1997. Here we see a more mature Nocturnal Rites. The song-writing is better, the musicianship is tighter and the songs are even catchier than before. This album contains some of my very favourite Nocturnal Rites songs such as 'Pentagram', 'Ring Of Steel' and 'Test Of Time'. The guitar-playing on this album is great and deserves to be mentioned. Usually many bands put in a generic solo just for the sake of having a solo in a track but that's not the case here. The solos here are well-written and complement the songs greatly. Compared to the debut "Tales Of Mystery And Imagination" is stronger in virtually every aspect. A solid album.

The bonus material on the CDs are demo versions of 'Lay Of Ennui' and 'Living For Today' and semi-acoustic remakes of 'In A Time Of Blood And Fire' and 'Winds Of Death'. These remakes were recorded in 2004 with the band's current vocalist Jonny Lindqvist. Here he gets a chance to show how powerful his voice really is. Very nice. There's also a 10-min video enhancement with a low-quality recording of the band playing 'Against The World' and 'Eternity Holds'. Overall, this is a fantastic package and well worth every cent I paid for it. It's nice that the fans finally have the opportunity to get these two classic albums for the price of one.

Rating: 9/10

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