#14 - Top of 2016

Sellsword- ... And Now We Ride (Independent)

In number 14,  we are introduced to Sellsword, an epic heavy metal band coming from "the barren plains" of Yorkshire. They  released their debut album "... And Now We Ride" in 2016 independently, and it is truly one of the best albums of epic metal music to come out of the UK for ages! After the mood is set with the intro "...and Now We Ride", "The Warrior" gives the listener the first taste of epicness, while the "Battleground" gives a heavier note! The mix of epic and heavy elements is successful thanks to the lead vocalist's powerful voice (Stuart Perry), the melodic riffs (by Henry Mahy and Jacek J. Mazur) and heavy drums (Alex Brandsen)! The epic element is present throughout the album  with a number of highlights including the amazing "Rise and Take Command", the "Against the Wind" (with its awesome sing-along chorus!), the riff-based "Ashen Hand" and "The Siege"! The record concludes perfectly with the interesting and more theatrical "Meet Your Maker" in all its over-10-minutes glory! In its mission to conquer the world, this Mercenary metal band is bound to capture the interest of all power metal fans with their debut album! Hopefully this is only the first quest of this band of Barbarians!

93/100

Below is the lyric video for the song "Against The Wind".