The Greek quintet Battleroar was founded in Athens in 2000. Their musical influences mainly come from eighties’ American and European heavy metal bands, like Omen, Manowar and Jag Panzer. To Death And Beyond, their third studio album, is once again released under Cruz Del Sur Music. Alright, I’ll bite. Could the music be just as cheesy as the name?

Actually, Battleroar doesn’t sound bad at all. For example, on ‘Oceans Of Pain’, the main riff consists of non-stop strumming with some fast pull-offs in it. Add to that the mid-paced drums with a lot of double bass and… the result is really not as feeble as it may sound. The only thing that got on my nerves sometimes were the vocals, which are stretched for way too long at various points in songs. To add to the epic feeling, the interlude in ‘Oceans Of Pain’ is a lively violin part accompanied by fast clean guitar riffs. Followed directly by a decent guitar solo, this makes for a nice – although long - fade-out.
Furthermore, melodies are recognizable and even catchy at some points. Although the vocals do tend to kill the catchiness because of the stretched parts which become increasingly annoying with each song. On the other hand, there are some vocal harmonics which sound really good. The vastness of Battleroar’s music lies in the fact that they incorporate large musical parts that slide from metal to easy-listening and back.

Although there has been done some unnecessary stretching in songs – both musically and vocally – the music is solid and bears the mark of the band’s influences, like Manowar. Don't expect anything groundbreaking, but if you’re into epic music and are willing to indulge in a relatively new band, you’re welcome to give Battleroar a go.