I do not think that it is exaggeration to say, at least in Europe, that Sweden's Sabaton are one of the biggest metal bands around. Whilst metal has always been a popular genre in Europe, very few bands break into something akin to the mainstream - particularly those of the European melodic persuasion. There are a handful of notable exceptions, however, and Sabaton is one of them. It does not seem that long ago that I was watching the band with a couple of hundred other people at The Hub in Plymouth, but when I see them again next year they will be playing Wembley Arena for the second time. This rise in popularity is nothing short of remarkable, but the band have certainly earned it. Over the past decade or so at least, they have been one of the hardest-touring bands out there - whether this be on their own terms or opening for some of the genre's legends (particularly in America). Sabaton have always excelled in a live setting. Their relatively uncomplicated music is designed to whip crowds into a frenzy, and their presentation has always been slick. The band's stage show has grown with them, to the point where Sabaton feel like true arena headliners at this point. Bigger bands have struggled to make the transitions to arenas purely from a 'show' perspective, but Sabaton's theatricality make them ideal candidates for the world's biggest stages - including the likes of the famous Wacken Open Air. The band's stage show and energy would be for nothing, however, if they did not have the songs to back it all up. Thankfully, though, Sabaton have crafted many a memorable song over the years - most of which stick in the brain after only a couple of listens. Despite this, however, I think that it is fair to say that Sabaton have a sound which they stick to rigidly. You always know what you are getting when a new Sabaton album is released - which can be both a good and a bad thing in my opinion. I like Sabaton a lot and have listened to all of their albums many times, but if I think about them objectively it is my view that a slight staleness has crept in over the past couple of releases. This has never really bothered me, as these albums still included enough strong material to keep me listening, but there is often a tightrope being walked - with each album being only ever a handful of weak tracks away from being a pale imitation of what came before. The balance between strong and weak material has generally fallen in the band's favour, however, but I do feel that their newly-released tenth studio album, The War to End All Wars, comes the closest (with the exception 2007's Metalizer, the band's long-delayed 'debut' album which was finally released after they had already established themselves with two other albums) to disappointing. The War to End All Wars is something of a direct follow-up to 2019's The Great War (which I reviewed here), and contains 11 further tracks detailing stories from the First World War - which did make me wonder if the new material was comprised as leftovers from the band's previous writing sessions.
Thankfully, The War to End All Wars does not seem to be made up of leftovers - but it is also probably their least consistent release since Metalizer. In my opinion, Sabaton need to shake things up a little and push themselves from a creativity perspective - as there are songs here that recycle previous ideas in a big way. There are riffs, melodies, and lyrics here that are very similar to Sabaton songs past; and this is the first album of theirs where I have found myself somewhat agreeing with their detractors. That being said, however, there are still some very strong songs here - and the album does open and close in a somewhat novel way. Clearly inspired by the 'History Edition' of their previous album, The War to End All Wars opens and closes with cinematic, spoken word pieces that have the odd traditional chorus and guitar solo. I have not quite made my mind up yet as to whether I think this works or not. The first of these pieces, Sarajevo, opens the album. I like the idea of narration, but for me it is overused here - and the song ends up sounding a bit like an audio book with a Sabaton soundtrack. The song does have a great scene-setting vibe to it though, at least early on. After a minute or so, however, it feels like it is about to explode into the first song proper - but instead a sluggish chorus kicks in, which is followed by more narration. Some more brevity would have likely worked in Sarajevo's favour, and for me the piece outstays its welcome - undoing the great early scene-setting. The War to End All Wars does not tell a narrative story either, which makes the bookending of the album in story-heavy spoken word pieces seem a bit pointless - especially as The Great War did not make use of the formula and told similar tales. Thankfully, however, the first proper song, Stormtroopers, is much better. It very much sounds like classic Sabaton, but it is a high-energy track that roars out of the gate from the off. The riffing of guitarists Chris Rörland and Tommy Johansson ensures that this energy is whipped up from the start - whilst drummer Hannes Van Dahl lays into his two bass drums throughout much of the song. The song's verses actually have quite an old-school Sabaton vibe to them, and there is much less of an emphasis on keyboards - which is welcome, as they have become rather dominant of late. Frontman Joakim Brodén sounds as good as ever vocally, too, with his deep voice ringing out during the verses - whilst the chorus is very melodic despite containing plenty of crunch. Dreadnought follows, and slows the pace down to create a creeping, heavy vibe - which again actually recalls some of the songs on the band's early albums. The main riff sometimes comes a little too close to Deep Purple's Perfect Strangers for comfort, but this helps to give the song a neo-classical vibe - and injects some creeping melody into what otherwise is a very muscular song. Another criticism that the band sometimes face is that they are just not that heavy for a metal band, but songs like Dreadnought show that Sabaton can inject some weight into their music - whilst still ensuring that their trademark melodies are present.
Stormtroopers and Dreadnought make up for the album's strange start, but for me things then take a dip in quality with The Unkillable Soldier - which is one of the songs here that sounds like a rehash of the band's past. The song's opening is also jarringly heroic following two heavy tracks, which somewhat starts things off on the wrong foot, but what lets the song down for me is its chorus - which sounds like so many of the band's other choruses mashed together. I am pretty certain that some of the melodies used have just been lifted from other songs - and the lyrics contain a number of cliché phrases that the band have flogged to death at this point. It sounds like a song that has been written by a computer that has analysed the rhythm and syntax of all of the band's previous albums with the aim of creating the most Sabaton-sounding of songs. This dip in quality is short lived, however, as Solider of Heaven is much better. The synths that were largely absent from Stormtroopers and Dreadnought are back here in a big way, and the song actually has a bit of a Beast in Black vibe - but toned down to fit in with Sabaton's usual crunch. Van Dahl's drum beats have a real groove to them throughout, whilst the pulsing basslines from Pär Sundström propel everything forward. The guitars are generally mixed into the background here, although Rörland does deliver a memorable, melodic solo, with the song instead focusing on strong grooves, Brodén's rhythmic vocal patterns, and synths. This is not really a vibe that Sabaton have attempted so blatantly previously, but it works well in my opinion - and is an example of the creativity that I wish the band would have played with more on this album. The following song Hellfighters, despite being better than The Unkillable Solider, is sadly another dip in quality. I really like its opening riff, which has something of a melodic thrash vibe thanks to its creepy note choices, but the song overall is one of the weaker cuts here. It is another song that goes for a heavier sound - but its mid-paced approach is neither the break-neck excitement of Stormtroopers nor the doom of Dreadnought. It is a bit of a nothing song for me as a result, with even Brodén's vocal melodies falling flat. The chorus is one of the band's least memorable offerings in my opinion, and it is quite forgettable as a result - despite the great riff. Race to the Sea is much better, however, despite it essentially just being Sabaton 101. It is so much more interesting melodically than The Unkillable Solider, though, and this is largely down to Brodén's vocal efforts. There is nothing in the song that has not been heard before on a Sabaton album, but the vocal melodies are certainly very memorable - and his stabbing synths help to give the song a bit of an edge on what has so far largely been a pretty heavy album. The chorus is one of the album's best too, and it goes for that mid-paced Accept-esque vibe that Sabaton have regularly conjured up - with plenty of big gang vocals.
The rest of the album is largely made up of strong songs, too. Lady of the Dark is one of the most heroic-sounding pieces here, but it lacks the overly-cheesy vibes that plagued The Unkillable Solider. Its opening riff is another memorable one, too. Despite my general reservations regarding Sabaton's stagnating sound, it is clear that Rörland and Johansson have made an effort to construct some different-sounding riffs this time. Sadly, though, these riffs are only generally heard a handful of times during each song - rather than being main building blocks. This is typical of power metal, but Sabaton could make a riff-based approach work well for them - with Lady of the Dark's riff not really ever being capitalised on. Despite this, however, the song is still memorable - with its stop-start riffing and a strong chorus that is packed with vocal harmonies. The Valley of Death is another song that turns the clock back, and it is a fast-paced tune in a similar vein to Stormtroopers - but with more of an emphasis on big keyboards and heroic melodies. It is less heavy-sounding as a result, but there is still a great energy created throughout the song. The only thing that puts me off it a little is the fact that the great opening main riff is extremely similar to the one from White Death - which was featured on 2010's Coat of Arms. Once this similarity has been accepted, however, The Valley of Death becomes another memorable song - with a ridiculously melodic chorus and one of Rörland's best guitar solos to date. For me, though, the band have saved one of the best to last - as Christmas Truce is exactly the sort of thing that I want to be hearing from Sabaton at this point in their career. The epic power ballad is very much classic Sabaton in style, but it sounds just that much bigger - and the arrangement is more complex than is typical for the band. Sabaton have done ballads previously, but it is not something that they attempt regularly. For me, though, Christmas Truce is easily their best ballad to date - and is packed with plenty of emotion, as well as soaring melodies. It builds slowly from Brodén's piano and stark vocals, but soon morphs into a powerful rocker by the time the first chorus kicks in - which has something of a folk metal vibe. Throw in a very melodic guitar solo from Johansson and a keyboard-heavy instrumental bridge; and the song comes together perfectly. It is a piece that sees the band pushing themselves whilst still staying true to their core sound - something which needs to happen more often in my opinion. The album then comes to a close with Versailles, which is extremely similar to Sarajevo in structure and in sound. All of the points that I made about Sarajevo apply here too, but the longer form does work better in the context of a closing statement than it does as an opener in my opinion - as it has something of a end-credits vibe. It helps you to reflect on the album, too, and for me The War to End All Wars is both Sabaton at their best and their worst. The overall heavier nature of the album generally works in the band's favour, but it is perhaps telling that some of the best moments here hark back to the band's first few albums - with less focus on synths. On the flip side, however, there are also some of the band's most derivative songs on this album which detract from those which are genuinely excellent - giving it overall a rather middling sheen.
The album was released on 4th March 2022 via Nuclear Blast Records. Below is the band's promotional video for Christmas Truce.
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