FRIJGARD is one of those really satisfying bands whose trajectory has been steadily upwards since their demo days. With each album, FRIJGARD’s songwriting has matured and their sound has become crisper and heavier. Very early on they dropped the keyboards—always a wise move for a Metal band. Lyrically, they’ve moved from Pagan themes to historical wars and now to sci-fi...
There are a lot of surprises with “Chapter Zero.” The first is just how good a vocalist Sandro is. His vocal styling is guttural, but clear and articulate. You won’t need a lyric sheet for this album. You can understand every word Sandro growls out. The second is how effortless this band can jump from melodic to thunder blasting to mosh-inducing riff grinding. This band shifts gears as smoothly as Harley Fat Boy, and twice as fast. The final surprise is that the album is all in English. This might annoy purists—previous FRIJGARD albums have been in German, including their demo—but you can’t fault a band for trying something new.
“Chapter Zero” is packed full of standout tracks. http://www.metal-temple.com