🎶 Garde
🌎 The Netherlands
📀 Harbinger of Revenge and War
® Heidens Hart Records
📅 01/11/2025

GARDE is a strange case of a band, having been around since 2000 but only released their first album, “Harbinger Of Revenge And War” last November. Essentially, they are a musical project consisting of Danish guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Arjan Peeks (BLACKDEATH, CULTUS, HEERVADER, etc.) and British singer Dan Capp (SOLSTICE, HAMMER OF THE GODS, etc.).

“Harbinger Of Revenge And War” is an ode to BATHORY from the early2000s, with Viking Metal standing out. The 5 songs on the album, which are approximately 40 minutes long, have all the characteristics of this genre, including epic moments, mid-tempo aesthetics, heavy drums and some unique riffs. GARDE are not reinventing the wheel, nor is that their goal. They want to make their mark and they manage to do so using all the tools mentioned above. The truth is that the songs could have been 1-2 minutes shorter and perhaps one more could have been added so that “Harbinger Of Revenge And War” would cross the EP – Album border. The highlights of the album include the unique, melodic introduction of “A Gathering Of Blood” (and the album as a whole) with the acoustic guitar, as well as the almost 10-minute “Fallen Heroes” that starts off with a sweet and somewhat depressive melody, full of emotion to explode after about 2 minutes. The structure of the song brought to mind images of Vikings who initially mourn their lost comrades and then set off on another war campaign to furiously avenge their death.

In general, we are talking about an interesting debut, especially for fans of the genre. It’s an album that creates images, it has the right atmosphere, although I would have liked a greater variety in the compositions and perhaps more memorable moments. However, I hope this is the beginning of a more stable recording path for GARDE.

★ 7.5/10
✍🏻 Kostas Boudoukos