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I rather liked Brothers of Metal's debut, Prophecy of Ragnarök, from 2018 so I was excited to see the follow-up, Emblas Saga, show up in my review queue. I've always got room for power metal, especially the crunchy, briskly paced stuff from northern Europe. On first blush, Emblas Saga is very similar to Prophecy of Ragnarök, a fact that has its pros and cons. On the plus side, it sounds great. Crunchy riffs give way to tasteful leads, the mix of gritty male and clear female vocals works very well and how can you go wrong with songs about Norse mythology? The focus on the offspring of Loki is an angle I've yet to hear and a nice departure from the more typical way a lot of bands take on the subject matter. Singer Ylva Ericksson is a gem and has a voice at ease belting out an anthemic chorus ("Powersnake") or weaving an enchanting melody ("Weaver of Fate" and especially the beginning of "Emblas Saga"). The main "con" for Emblas Saga is that it sounds a lot like its predecessor, and perhaps not quite as original. If you told me it was a new Sabaton record with lots of guest female vocals, I wouldn't question you right away. I like Sabaton, so that is meant to be a compliment in a lot of ways, but it does mean Brothers of Metal haven't yet forged a sound of their own yet.

With Emblas Saga, Brothers of Metal have another solid release that power metal fans should be checking out with no hesitation.