Band:	Dragonland
Album:	The Power Of The Nightstar
Style:	Symphonic power metal
Release date:	October 2022

01. The Awakening
02. A Light In The Dark
03. Flight From Destruction [feat. Tommy Johansson]
04. Through Galaxies Endless
05. The Scattering Of Darkness
06. A Threat From Beyond The Shadows
07. Aphelion
08. Celestial Squadron
09. Resurrecting An Ancient Technology
10. The Power Of The Nightstar
11. Final Hour
12. Journey's End
13. Oblivion

The first new Stratovarius album in 7 years. The first new Blind Guardian album (excluding the Twilight Orchestra record) in 7 years. Now, the first new Dragonland record in 11 years: I can only assume that power metal fans are ecstatic over the release calendar in 2022.

It’s not been tumultuous line-up changes that have curtailed the progress of Sweden’s symphonic power metal cult heroes Dragonland in the past decade; with the exclusion of Morten Sørensen on drums (replaced by Johan Nunez of Firewind), everyone that appeared on 2011’s Under The Grey Banner is returning for The Power Of The Nightstar. Perhaps instead it’s been what the remaining members have been distracted by, in particular Olof Mörck, as 2011 was the year of Amaranthe’s debut and subsequently rapidly ascending popularity. Whatever the reason for the prolonged absence (and I’ve not found promo material or interviews explaining it yet), Dragonland are back, and they’re making up for lost time with a bulky 66-minute power metal sci-fi odyssey well set to please their eagerly anticipating fanbase.

Despite the hiatus, the group are picking up where they left off; the gradual shift towards a more bombastic, cinematic and symphonic approach throughout the 2000s is continued here, as Jacob Hansen’s predictably pristine production amplifies the various vocal harmonies, keys arrangements and theatrical storytelling poured liberally into The Power Of The Nightstar. There’s enough snippets of narration (which, to be honest, remind me of Ziltoid on tracks such as “Final Hour”) to get a sense of how narrative-focused the lyrics are, as Dragonland bring to life a story of a people searching the stars to find a new home; also aiding on this quest are a few guest vocalists, although the only one that I could see credited in the promo blurb is Mörck’s Amaranthe bandmate Elize Ryd (who is no stranger to Dragonland appearances) on climactic epic “Journey’s End”.

Moving past the trimmings and to the musical core, The Power Of The Nightstar holds few surprises. With 13 tracks (2 of which function as introduction/interlude pieces), there’s enough content here to afford some variety, meaning that one can get a fix of full-pelt, double bass-rolling, POWER METAL tracks such as “Flight From Destruction” and “A Threat From Beyond The Shadows”, as well as the still-lively yet more moderately paced anthems like “Through Galaxies Endless” and “Resurrecting An Ancient Technology”. There’s perhaps a greater tendency towards the former, as this is a consistently high-energy record. On top of that, you get the dalliances with occasional different sounds on a story-dependent basis, such as a few vocoders and other sci-fi sound effects on “Celestial Squadron”. Perhaps the most impressive point about The Power Of The Nightstar is that, in spite of all of this high-octane action, a contender for the record’s strongest song is perhaps its slowest, the Evergrey-esque semi-ballad closer “Oblivion”.

One reason that song stands out, and why The Power Of The Nightstar is such an accomplished power metal record, is that Jonas Heidgert brings his A game on this record; as much as he can soar when needed, there’s a mid-ranged depth and gravitas to his voice as well that gives conviction to what are ultimately quite cheesy lyrics. Beyond Heidgert, the band member who probably gets the most opportunities to stand out is keyboardist Elias Holmlid; on top of all the symphonic flairs and sci-fi layers he’s tasked with adding to the mix, there’s plenty of opportunity for neoclassical soloing in the vein of his compatriot in Stratovarius, Jens Johansson, including a particularly ear-catching opening gambit on, and subsequent solos within, “Flight From Destruction”. Holmlid is so prominent that he arguably outshines the guitars, but that duo do still get their moments in the sun.

In terms of the quality of its content, The Power Of The Nightstar is one of those albums that comes after a prolonged absence where, although it doesn’t sound like a decade’s worth of work, it’s the kind of album you would want to announce your return within after being away for so long. It delivers exactly what you want for this style, with choruses that are memorable without being simplistic (see “A Light In The Dark” and “A Threat From Beyond The Shadows”), songs that offer bombast without undermining their metallic weight, and musicianship that is impressive without being excessive. There’s no songs that are especially clamouring for my approval, but if I was to point towards which ones made the biggest impressions on me, the aforementioned “A Threat From Beyond The Shadows” is good fun, “Journey’s End” has the growth and emotional peaks to justify its length, and “Oblivion”, as already mentioned, serves as a very effective denouement, allowing the record to mellow out after climaxing on the penultimate song.

Power metal fans have had to learn to be patient, with many of its leading bands taking their sweet time in recent years (and some of those that haven’t have arguably left their fans wishing that they did), but they’ve been paid favourably for that patience in the past year or so. Dragonland continue that momentum with a very respectable comeback; now, those fans just have to hope it won’t be such a long wait until the next time.