A pretty gutsy and atypical choice choice for a single... bo
John. N | Big Run, PA USA | 11/08/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I must say I am quite impressed that Hammerfall didn't release another obvious made-for-radio single in the vein of "Hearts on Fire" or "Blood Bound". Seriously, while those were good songs in their own right and time another song like that and the third time would have definitely not have been a charm.
"Natural High" itself is quite a departure from the tunes mentioned above, much darker and sinister in nature than any of the band's previous singles. While "Blood Bound" and "Hearts on Fire" were driven forward more or less by the lyrics, "Natural High" is much more guitar driven than it is lyrically - you probably won't find yourself suddenly singing the chorus. Unfortunately, it's that part of the song that runs into trouble: while it's far from being weak like some of the song choruses on the new album, it does suffer from a slight awkwardness in how the lyrics and music come together. Nevertheless, while it's not the best single they've had it gets the job done.
Hammerfall once again give the listener a karaoke version of the title track, just like on the 2005's Blood Bound single. Unfortunately, there is just little to no reason for this to even be on here considering there is no sing-along contest this time. I could see using these as bonus tracks for the Japanese/Asian releases since karaoke type tracks and albums are usually made for and accepted by such markets.
"The Fire Burns Forever" is a pretty typical Hammerfall song in just about every way imaginable, I guess it can be a pretty uplifting track if you think about it, but why such a song would ultimately be chosen as a theme by/for their country's Olympic team is beyond me - sounds more like a PR move than anything else. Supposedly, this version of the song has an additional background singer but it's barely any different that the one on the album - in other words no big deal. The live version of "Raise the Hammer" is a extra track taken from the shows that band recorded for their 2003 live album "One Crimson Night". It's an OK addition but "In Memoriam" still remains my favorite Hammerfall instrumental by far.
Speaking of "The Fire Burns Forever", this is the video that is included on this disc - not the one for "Natural High" that is listed above; the track listing on the single itself is correct. I must say that this mix-up really didn't make me happy because I bought this single mainly for the Natural High video and I could honestly pass on the Fire Burns Forever clip. I guess that's partly my fault by not confirming the track listing at the band's official website.
In the end unless you want the video for The Fire Burns Forever and the two other tracks - which are totally expendable unless you MUST have every Hammerfall song/clip in existence - it' probably be best to skip this appetizer and just go the main course."
Track Listings (5) - Disc #1