HAMMERFALL – NORTHCOTE THEATRE – 17.01.2025
Review: Craig Eriksson. Photos: Jason Rosewarne.
Last night, us hard rock ‘n’ roll soldiers in attendance felt like our souls had been transported to Valhalla as we rocked out to Swedish power metal rockers Hammerfall at Northcote Theatre, Melbourne.
Hammerfall played an absolute killer show that led their warriors in to battle and glory. We had all become Vikings for the evening and were body slamming each other, headbanging and running wild in the circle pit that just kept growing in size throughout the show. The eventful mayhem within the circle pit was a sight for sore eyes.
By the end of the show, fans came out bruised and battered along with sore necks from all the headbanging, grinning with excitement and licking their wounds. It was an evening of traditional (vintage) hard rock at its very best.
Power metal band Silent Knight from Perth, Western Australia were the opening support band, clearly influenced by bands like Megadeth, Iced Earth, Helloween, Gamma Ray and Iron Maiden. Their music is best described as aggressive speed with solid riffs and soaring vocals and their songs are about self-empowerment and sorcery.
Valhalore were on next and us lads had seen them last year support Blind Guardian. Valhalore are a symphonic folk metal band from Brisbane. Blending elements of Celtic rock with melodic death metal, folk and power metal. This band delivers a bit of everything and their unique Celtic sound is driven by Sophie Willis, who plays tin whistle/flute which inspires us metalheads to break into a jovial jig.
Hammerfall are a power metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden. They formed back in 1993 and the band members are:
Oscar Dronjak – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1993-present)
Joacim Cans – Lead vocals (1996-present)
Fredrik Larsson – Bass (1994-1997, 2007-present)
Pontus Norgen – Lead guitar, backing vocals (2008-present)
David Wallin – Drums (2014-present)
Hammerfall came out on stage like gladiators entering a Colosseum with the crowd erupting with a deafening roar. It had been 10-years since they last hit the shores of Australia and the fans were pumped. They launched straight into AVENGE THE FALLEN from their 2024 album of the same name. A powerful anthem full of heavy riffs, soaring vocals and thunderous, relentless drumming. They also played THE END JUSTIFIES, FREEDOM and HAIL TO THE KING providing fans with a nice taste from the Avenge The Fallen (2024) album.
The drumkit that Wallin played was robust consisting of double-bass drums, Zildjian cymbals, 3-toms config and DW5000 pedals. This gave their music a huge sound and provided a powerful heartbeat to their power metal songs and anthems.
Hammerfall played a wonderful mix of their back catalogue much to the delight of their fans. There were several songs about hammers, going in to battle and coming out victorious. Their songs are spirited and uplifting and make you feel strong and undefeatable. Throughout the evening their music reminded me of other favourite bands I enjoy like Accept, Helloween, Manowar, The Scorpions and Dio.
HEEDING THE CALL from Legacy of Kings (1998) was next and is a fast and furious, anthem-like song creating a wild frenzy in the theatre. LET THE HAMMER FALL also from the 1998 album had Dronjak swinging his hammer-shaped guitar like Thor during this song.
Hammerfall’s stage craft and choreography is second to none, with each band member synchronising well with each other as they played their guitars and headbanged along to the music. Each of them connected well with fans, revving them up and injecting them with pure adrenaline and excitement. Oscar changed guitars throughout the show and interacted non-stop with his band members and the audience. Joacim is a wonderful, charismatic frontman and his vocals are flawless.
HAMMER OF DAWN (2022) commences with a Celtic intro and then the band members sing the melodic anthem chorus: “Thunder, lightning, Hammer, fighting, Battle dawning, Vengeance coming” with their army of fans all pumping their fists in the air and singing along. RENEGADE from their same-titled 2000 album was another fist-pumping sing-a-long.
LAST MAN STANDING (1997) and THE END JUSTIFIES (2024) were my two favourite songs of the night. Joacim’s vocals were outstanding in these two songs and he absolutely shined, making a huge impression on the crowd tonight.
(WE MAKE) SWEDEN ROCK (1998) was a huge sing-a-long anthem by the Swedes.
The encore included more crowd favourites HAIL TO THE KING and HEARTS ON FIRE.
This was a concert not to be missed. Fans in attendance showed their love, passion and appreciation for Hammerfall throughout the show with their involvement and applause. If you can get to one of their upcoming Australian shows, just do it!
AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2024
Saturday 18 January 2025 – SYDNEY – Manning Bar
Sunday 19 January 2025 – BRISBANE – The Triffid
HAMMERFALL SET LIST:
Avenge the Fallen
Heeding the Call
Any Means Necessary
Hammer of Dawn
Freedom
Renegade
Hammer High
Last Man Standing
Fury of the Wild
Chapter V: The Medley
Let the Hammer Fall
Threshold
Glory of the Brave
The End Justifies
(We Make) Sweden Rock
Encore:
Hail to the King
Hearts on Fire
