Arch Enemy - Blood Dynasty (2025)Release ID: 58635
Arch Enemy return in 2025 with Blood Dynasty and I find myself rather impressed by what's on display here. For starters, when I reviewed Deceivers a few years ago, I heavily criticized it for its lack of originality. To me, Deceivers sounded liked a greatest hits compilation instead of a new album. In 2025, Arch Enemy are at least putting in some much asked about effort. Blood Dynasty shows off a full range of emotions throughout the runtime and it does lead to success...most of the time. It took a while for me to start enjoying the record since the opener "Dream Stealer" has an aura of progressive songwriting as it quickly modulates back-and-forth between about three different ideas that do not compliment one another. "Illuminate the Path" was a little better, but Alissa White-Gluz's clean singing comes out of nowhere and the whole track loses momentum after that. "March of the Miscreants" is when the album picks up and Arch Enemy do a solid enough job of keeping that intensity up until the final moments. Songs like "Vivre Libre" are better constructed for Alissa's clean singing, while "Paper Tiger" takes liberties from classic hard rock/heavy metal. And while it might sound extremely goofy at first, after the second or third listen, I really enjoyed it as a fully developed interlude.
While nothing on this album screams at me (besides Alissa herself I guess) that Arch Enemy are going above and beyond in the world of melodic death metal, I cannot deny that Blood Dynasty is quite a bit of fun. It still sounds like Arch Enemy, but it isn't status quo Arch Enemy in the same way that Will To Power and Deceivers were, and I greatly appreciate that.
Best Songs: March of the Miscreants, Blood Dynasty, Paper Tiger, A Million Suns
Well, time for Arch Enemy revisit #2! Metalheads already know these Swedish melodeath innovators well in their 3-decade 12-album career. Longtime fans would've already witnessed the darkness of Johan Liiva, the venom of Angela Gossow, and the fury of Alissa White-Gluz. As for the instrumentalists, Michael Amott (guitars), Sharlee D’Angelo (bass), and Daniel Erlandsson (drums) still stand as a talented trio since the Liiva era. And their powerful melodeath sound continues in the insane new album Blood Dynasty!
With this album, you can expect many rebellious anthems appearing all around. Joey Concepcion from Michael's brother Christopher Amott's band Armageddon has stepped in after Jeff Loomis left to reform Nevermore. The guitarwork once again has that blend of melodic and technical in the arrangement. And there are some different surprises to be found in the album while the band still focuses on what they truly are. We all know how diverse Alissa is in the vocals compared to Angela. Alissa can go from growling fire to mezzo-soprano water, the latter you can also hear in her time with The Agonist and her guest vocals in Kamelot. Perfect for this heavy/melodic mix!
All you know and need to know about Arch Enemy is in "Dream Stealer", a thrashy anthem, with some of the most furious vocals Alissa has done since joining the band over 10 years ago. Her vocals reach climatic heights in the chorus of triumph. On the other hand, the slower while still blazing "Illuminate the Path" has a more melodic chorus while leveling up the vocal dynamics with her cleans. The guitar work almost sounds straight out of the Liiva era, with the B tuning and all. "March of the Miscreants" has more extreme riffing to break the mainstream chains, continuing the midtempo pace in the typical melodeath sound of their homeland. The sound continues rolling with more speed in "A Million Suns". Then we have the rapid-fire monster "Don't Look Down".
The filler interlude "Presage" is the only track I would consider out of place here. The title track is one of the catchiest anthems by the band, almost rivaling the Gothenburg 3 with the solid leads of the guitar duo that is Amott and Conception. Another anthem "Paper Tiger" can get your attention with the instrumentation and vocals. Then we have something quite different, a cover of a French power ballad, "Vivre Libre", originally by Blaspheme. There's no melodeath, not even in the vocals. Gluz sounds very much like an angel have descended from Heaven to go to a rock/metal concert. Perhaps the most Guardians-esque track Arch Enemy has done! Punching through with heavy might again is "The Pendulum" that swings around in melodeath fire while having some potential on the radio. "Liars & Thieves" is a swift banger while having some power metal-ish melodies, all before making a dramatic exit.
The deluxe edition comes a couple bonus tracks, originally recorded with Loomis before his departure, with B-tuned guitars, starting with "Break the Spell" which has highly melodic/technical leads and background symphonics similar to Kalmah. "Moths" is a heavier track, almost having a bit of the metalcore of Like Moths to Flames. The Japanese deluxe edition has one more bonus track, a cover of Death's "Evil Dead". Y'know, that Death track also covered by DragonForce and Warbringer. Sadly, it has the same problem as DragonForce's cover, not fitting well with the other two bonus tracks. Maybe it would work better as part of the standard edition.
All in all, Blood Dynasty is an filled with fresh new anthems and high-quality throwbacks to their earlier sound from 20 years ago and beyond. The late 90s and early 2000s were when this band along with Amon Amarth and Soilwork were really just hitting it off with their melodeath. I'm glad Arch Enemy can restore that classic sound in this new album. With every newfound clear waterfall, to quote one of their other songs, there's blood in the water!
Favorites: "Dream Stealer", "Illuminate the Path", "March of the Miscreants", "Blood Dynasty", "Paper Tiger", "Vivre Libre", "Liars & Thieves", "Break the Spell"
