Review by Adam M on June 26, 2019.

Amon Amarth have been churning out their epic blend of melodic death metal for a while now.  They had started to be falling into a rut of putting out uninteresting albums compared to their best work.  This album, Beserker I believe is somewhat of a return to form for the band.  The albums With Oden On Our Side and Twilight of the Thunder Gods had this sort of heroic aspect that was mixed with melody to craft a really memorable experience.  I believe this album emulates this style more than their last few albums which have come up a bit short in my opinion. 

Songs like Raven’s Flight have the proper amount of catchiness and impact to become ingrained in your mind and these aspects are more omnipresent than on their previous few releases.  The band performs viking influenced melodic death metal and they have the more traditional aspects of their music in fine form here.  The songs bleed a viking trait that is very welcoming and adds to the music.  It still doesn’t equal their two fine works previously mentioned in this review, but it’s a nice kick back to good times.  You will feel good listening to Amon Amarth’s music and this is a trait that I feel was missing in recent releases.  The  passion is back and Amon Amarth is churning out quality melodic death metal again. 

What could be improved upon?  If the band wants to succeed in the future they could mix things up and attempt to be more progressive.  This will prevent them from becoming stale.  I was satisfied with this disc, but it’s not as good as the best melodic death metal releases I’ve heard this year by Bloodred Hourglass and Black Therapy.  Berserker is still a postive step in the right direction for the band.

Rating: 7.4 out of 10

Review by Felix on May 1, 2019.

Sometimes life is easy. Just get a good drink, put a black vinyl on the turntable and listen to a meaty piece of heavy metal. If there is no vinyl at hand, a CD can be taken as well. For example, a copy of the debut of Stormdeath which has been released by the fine label Witches Brew. The musicians of this underground entity do not hide that they like a pretty simple way of proceeding as well. The quartet originates from Sweden, but its stomping style has a rather Teutonic touch. Either way, Time to Destroy is an album that makes fun. Don't expect pompous song patterns or any form of bombastic equipment, but a unit that knows how to use the tried and tested tools and they perform an approach that has found its place between heavy / power metal and thrash.

A more than sufficient number of songs burst out of the speakers with a lot of pressure and spontaneity. Impulsive and double-bass driven, this is how pieces like "Accursed" speed along their straight highway. The powerful, warm and gapless sound sets the right frame and so many tunes shine in full bloom. Well, the band did not have the right touch when it came to the arrangement of the track list, because the rather weak numbers kick off this album. However, the hit rate is still quite remarkable and dynamic neck breakers like "Black Sorrow" ensure a fist banging mania, a headbanging euphoria or a skull splitting orgy - make your choice right now or listen to false metal for all eternity.

The musicians have given themselves rather ridiculous pseudonyms and this action remains a mystery to me, because their music spreads dark and fairly dangerous vibes, much more than trite names like "Predator" or "Evil Bastard". However, this is the only gimmick which is offered by this down-to-earth formation, if one neglects a slightly strange bass solo in the third track. The core competence of the Scandinavians is honest music and a song like "Dreamwalker" proves evidence in this context. It seems to be the heavy brother of Priest's "Nightcrawler" and connects a gloomy atmosphere at the beginning with a stormy ending. This is modern yet tradition-conscious, generic heavy metal at its best, even though the thrash elements prevail when it comes to the entire material. 

But details aside, Stormdeath just try to combine the best of both worlds and they are pretty successful in doing so. Even though the songs are not spectacular, experimental or overloaded with breaks, I would not call them predictable or primitive, by far not. These ruffians present a comprehensible style, no more, no less, and that's absolutely okay from my point of view. They also integrate catchy elements every now and then, for example the chorus of "Pay the Price" keeps sticking in the listener's mind. Therefore, it can be a good idea for everyone who likes handmade blue collar metal to check this album out. It will not change your life, but it invites you to a more than decent listening session.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10