I was in my teens during the 80s and witnessed classic metal split into thrash and hair. Hammerfall is what you get if that split had never happened - classic 80s style heavy metal. Is it original? No. Is it fantastic? Depends on the song. Is it better than a lot of metal being put out today? Yes. My favorite is probably 'Blood Bound.' That's a cool anthem straight out of 1985. There's some good melodic solos on this record and they have an actual singer. Oh yeah, Cronos from Venom makes on appearance on the final track. Great to hear him again. He still sounds the same - which is a compliment. I guess you could call him a classic extreme vocalist but he doesn't sound cartoonish like the extreme vocalists of today. I like Legacy of Kings by this band better, though. If you like this, check out Blind Guardian. They have a similar style but their overall musicianship is leaps and bounds above Hammerfall.

I've long come to understand that originality has never been Hammerfall's strong side. To this day, their first album, Glory to the Brave, and perhaps their second one, Legacy of Kings, are the only ones I consider essential listenings, and only for power metal fans that is. Nothing wrong with not being original or groundbreaking, I love many bands that repeat themselves, but with Hammerfall, I just can't get over the 'cheese' factor.

That said, Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken (kinda cheesy title, even by Hammerfall standards, no?) is an okay album, and that's saying a lot. The music is exactly like what you'd expect to hear from them. Lots of melodic guitar lines with fast, double drum bass, high pitched vocals (sometimes too high though) and the typical victorious lyrics to round things up. As the band's previous studio release, Crimson Thunder, this one was also produced by Charlie Bauerfeind (Blind Guardian) and has a similar overall vibe. One exception is that the guitar work tends to go back to their Glory to the Brave minus the speed; that's a shame because it's the speed on Glory what made that disc so powerful compared to their other releases.

Most of the songs are quite midtempo and rarely see the 5 minute mark. Vocalist Joacim Cans proved to me that he can make a killer singer with his solo disc and I still stand by the opinion that his solo album is a better effort than all Hammerfall discs combined. However, on this album, Cans tends to sing higher than his range allows and the outcome isn't all that impressive. The vocals in the beginning of "Fury of the Wild", especially in the verses, sung over childishly weak riffs is abysmal. I also can't stand some of the horrid backup vocals on tunes like "Hammer of Justice" and "Born to Rule", which are otherwise quite solid compositions. I especially like these pieces cause Cans delivers the lyrics in a relatively more aggressive manner, rather than the happy-go generic Euro power tunes. As always, there is the mandatory ballad "Never, Ever" that, though good, doesn't do much for me. Hammerfall ballads have never appealed to me for some reason, but I find the chorus of this song particularly cheesy. The melancholy continues on the little instrumental piece "Imperial", which is just acoustic guitars that go slightly over two minutes.

The highlight of the album is the opening track "Secrets"; it's one of the fastest and most energetic tracks with tasty lead guitar work and memorable melodies. This album would have been more to my liking if they'd continued to write such songs that focus on heavy riffs, outstanding vocals, gripping choruses and somewhat more interesting drumming. I don't understand why they didn't make more use of Anders Johansson's abilities, since he has already proven everyone what a monster player he is. We still get to hear a little drum fury on "The Templar Flame", but it's not enough. I also highly anticipated the 12-minute 'epic', "Knights of the 21st Century", because of Venom frontman Cronos' contribution. Unfortunately I was terribly disappointed that the song is perhaps even slower than most of the midtempo tunes. Moreover, this is by no means a duet as some have claimed. Cans and Cronos hardly sing anything together. The song begins with groans from Cronos and after about three minutes Cans begins to sing. Somewhere in the middle, there's a brief melody they share and then it goes back to Cans doing more Euro power metal vocals, except less passionately. At around the 10-minute mark, we are offered a two minute silence before Cronos makes his way into the track one last time whispering something, and the album is over.

Hammerfall fans will dig Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken just fine. Also, I believe most power metal fans will find something that appeals to them. However, for those of you expecting something different, heavier, more energetic or simply a return to Glory to the Brave, you may want to look elsewhere.

For years the only good metal has been black and death metal. Finally there is reason to listen to rejoice. This is Classic metal reborn. Definatly worth 5 stars

Having come late to the Templars of HammerFall, I did not experience the exhilaration with which many people met "Glory to the Brave" and "Legacy of Kings", but that may make me a more objective observer, and one who doesn't suffer from HammerFall burnout. I notice that I'm in the minority, but I find "Crimson Thunder" and "Chapter V" the strongest HammerFall albums.

Firstly, Joacim Cans' vocal performance is in my view his best so far. The production may help as well, as the reverb levels seem to be set perfect, and his voice doesn't sound thin like on "Renegade". There is more power behind his performance and this makes all the difference in portraying a mighty feel for the album.

The rest of the production is also impeccable, but they had mostly attained that by "Crimson Thunder".

Songwriting wise, I have heard criticisms of them ranging from being too stagnant to too cheesy; but these are traits that can be defined conversely as consistent and fantastical. I would rather have the cheesiness of metal warriors than of the 'best part of waking up' vocals of Evergrey cheesiness, but I digress.

The opener "Secrets" is a fairly typical Hammerfall song, but is entertaining. The album's strongest moments begin with the second song, "Blood Bound", and continue to the best song on the album "Fury of the Wild". This is an unbelievably catchy tune which you will be singing to yourself for days. This continues to another mighty chorus-driven tune, "Hammer of Justice", which kills.

Weak parts include "Born to Rule" and "The Templar Flame", these are songs that I just don't see the point of.

But "Knights of the 21st Century" is a plodding yet rousing epic; a slow paced rock song with an anthemic, potent chorus. This is a killer song and yes, as everyone knows, it features Cronos. He sounds kind of silly though; especially in the intro. But the verses make up for it because it is a nice novelty to have him guest on this track.

Don't listen to the naysayers, if you like the HammerFall formula of catchy, heavy tunes, in the same approach as Crimson Thunder but with better songwriting, pick this up.

I took a chance on this from the 30 second clip. I was not disappointed. Good riffs and lyrics. Good rhythm and tempo. If you liked the older metal from the early to mid 80's, you'll like this(and I don't mean the hair metal).