“Carolus Rex” is the album with which Sabaton reached the best point of their career. Released in May 2012 by Nuclear Blast, it tells the rise and fall of the Swedish empire — an era few associate with Sweden, the country of ABBA and neutrality. The Swedes showed that power metal can also tell stories: here we have choirs, keys with an orchestral sound and melodies that stick from the first listen.
Country: Sweden
Genre: Power Metal
For fans of: Powerwolf, Blind Guardian, Falconer
The listen
“Lion From the North” opens the record with a more warlike sound than we were used to: dense guitars, keys and Joakim Brodén barking orders with his heavy voice. Then come “Gott Mit Uns” and “1648,” two fast tracks with the band’s trademark choruses, while “A Lifetime of War” is a charged ballad with a dark mood. The sound recalls classic names of the genre like Blind Guardian, but Brodén’s heavy voice gives Sabaton their own stamp.
The story the record tells begins with Gustavus Adolphus, the “Lion of the North,” passes through the Thirty Years’ War and reaches Charles XII and the elite Caroleans. After the defeat at Poltava in 1709, Sweden’s imperial period ends for good — and “Ruina Imperii” says it clearly: “it will never come again.” The Swedish version of the record ties in even better with these stories: the Swedish lyrics are more substantial and moving than the English ones, which stay flatter.
Peter Tägtgren’s production is big and full, and the songwriting is the record’s strongest point: melodies and choruses that stay with you, without needing to hit repeat. “Carolus Rex” is considered Sabaton’s masterpiece — and most agree it is the record they never managed to surpass, however good the following ones were. Even their compatriots, Amon Amarth, don’t have an album considered such a reference point.
See also
Sabaton – Legends · Urakka – The Bridge
