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Ossian are one of Hungary's most beloved long-running Metal bands, existing since 1986 and cranking out a jaw dropping 24 fucking albums of their unique brand of energized Heavy Metal in that time. They've had the kind of highs and lows you'd expect from a band that long-running and active, ranging from opening for Iron Maiden to having their singer come out drunk on stage and become the Hungarian proverb for a piss poor performance ("singing like Paksi") after a disastrous live performance in 2001 that led to several line-up changes. Their latest album, A reményhozó, certainly doesn't come close to either high or low, but it's a good album nonetheless.

If you're here expecting some good old-fashioned up-tempo Heavy Metal made with a professionalism that only decades of experience can attain, then you've come to the right place. Comparisons are tricky, for while they have a clear Maiden influence in the melodic work, there really aren't any bands they directly imitate. They just sound like themselves, which is both the greatest strength and weakness of this album: you know EXACTLY what to expect on this album. Thankfully, that means you know you'll be getting a collection of songs are catchy, highly melodic, and powerful while still retaining a good bit of passion and depth to them. Like all their albums, this one is sung exclusively in Hungarian, so I couldn't tell you what they're on about, but when they rock this hard, I couldn't care less.

This isn't their best album, and there certainly isn't anything terribly deep going on here, but it's a damn good time that proves these dinosaurs still have plenty of life in them yet. Recommended.