Review ENFORCER ‘Nostalgia’

Enforcer, that means the full power of heavy metal since 2004 when Olof Wikstrand started the band. 15 years ago the guys released their debut album ‘Into the Night’ and thus belong to the established metal bands of the new millennium. Nevertheless, you still get the feeling that Enforcer is a young band that is just getting started. One reason for this might be the overwhelming energy of the guys.

This energy is also what makes the new album ‘Nostalgia’ a real treat. Four years after ‘Zenith’, Enforcer haven’t lost any firepower and off they go with ‘Unshackle Me’. The opener follows the intro ‘Armageddon’ which signals a trip back in time to the 80s. With the integrated keyboards I had to think a little nostalgically of the early Pretty Maids, even if Enforcer are far from being musically close to the Danes. The song is a good start into the album and pulls you, with its catchy melody; also immediately under its spell.

Liveliness, that is a good description of the new Enforcer album and the fast ‘Coming Alive’ is a good representative for the untamed metal of the Swedes. It gets a bit more cliche with ‘Heartbeats’. Melodies and structure of the song are very reminiscent of the 80s when hairspray became more important than denim and leather. Nevertheless, this little musical excursion of the band also sounds great and one feels reminded of one’s youth.

With ‘Demon’ and ‘Kiss of Death’, however, Enforcer go full steam ahead again before the calmer title track with its embedded ‘My Way’ references emphasizes the band’s independence.

The throbbing ‘No Tomorrow’ rips you out of your dreams and also the lightning-fast ‘At the End of the Rainbow’ makes fun and put you in a good mood already at the first listen. The guys shift up another gear with ‘Metal Supremacia’ followed by the hammering ‘White Lights in the USA’. There is also intense riff power on ‘Keep the Flame Alive’ and it is the snappy ‘When the Thunder Roards (Crossfire)’ that is the final chapter of a great album.

‘Nostalgia’ is a journey to the first heyday of heavy metal and at the same time is a dynamic and lively presenter of today’s metal. Headbanging is a lot of fun here. Enforcer also represent in 2023 a lot of passion and devotion for metal and live it from start to finish. More authenticity is not possible.