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Year Of Release: 1999

This is the second album from Norwegian extreme metallers Bloodthorn. Tom (guitars) and Krell (vocals) are no longer just a happy twosome. They seem to have included more musicians in the band on a full time basis.

This album caught me by surprise. It represents a slight stylistic change for the band. The doom elements are almost completely on the backburner with a more black metal feel to the album. Musically there seems to be a lot more happening. While "In The Shadow Of Your Black Wings" was quite sparse musically, "Onwards Into Battle" is a lot more complex. I do not mean to say that the music is technical or that Bloodthorn have pulled a Theory In Practice on us. Simply that the music has many elements in it that took me a while to truly appreciate. For some reason this album reminds me quite a bit of Emperor and it is quite surprising that I still like this album simply because I do not like Emperor at all. The doom metal elements surface briefly on the album but on the whole this is a much more energetic and faster paced album than "In The Shadow Of Your Black Wings." The stylistic change may be credited to the inclusion of new blood into the band but since the music is quite engaging and good I for one am not complaining.

The songs on this album are all shorter and more focused and benefit from a crisp and clear production. The synth dominates proceedings at times and could probably have been lower in the mix. The other downside to this album is the woman who sings on it. She is probably the same vocalist who sang on the first album (same name different spelling) but somehow does not sound as good. Album highlights include "The Day Of Reckoning" with a wonderful melodic section midway through the song. Album closer, "The Brighter The Light, The Darker The Shadow" is another highlight and at 11:13 minutes is the longest song on the album.

Lyrically the album continues the concept of "Tower Bloodthorn" with a long and engaging storyline present in the sleeve. The packaging is top-notch (another digipak) and the artwork is even better than the stuff on "In The Shadow Of Your Black Wings."

Overall this album is a lot better than "In The Shadow Of Your Black Wings" which was not a bad album at all. Bloodthorn impressed with their debut and continue to impress with "Onwards Into Battle."

Overall Album Rating: 4/5