By Jonny Bakes
Forlorn Hope cropped up on my radar a good few years ago and I was fortunate to catch them at Power Metal Quest Fest back in 2019. Drawn in by their incredibly enthusiastic performance and a laser focus on the Napoleonic wars, resulting in them being dubbed as “Sharpe Metal” I decided that this was a band to keep an eye on as their sound matured. Five years have passed since my first experience, and the release of the only full length album to date, ‘Over The Top’, so it’s certainly time to pull out another big release with the first part of their sophomore album ‘Valour’.
The meticulously researched historical stories are back, I’m glad to say! Although Forlorn Hope have now set their sights further than the Napoleonic Wars and have instead opted for a cross-generational theme to offer some variety (much like Sabaton achieved with ‘The Last Stand’) whilst keeping something that is distinctly British. ‘Valour’ weaves the tales of a number of individuals who have been awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious decoration awarded for valour in the presence of the enemy and has been awarded over 1,000 times since its introduction during the Crimean War (yet only a handful have been awarded since the Second World War) so there’s plenty for the band to get their teeth stuck into. And for this first part of ‘Valour’ we are treated to five stories of individual valour from conflicts such as the Zulu War, World War Two and an account of the very first recipient of the Victoria Cross during the Crimean War!
‘Valour’ is as much a piece of music as it is a very important history lesson and is something that is best enjoyed in two parts. First, get completely lost in the blend of NWOBHM (there’s a clear Iron Maiden influence in both the music and the subject matter) and power metal. It’s a blend that I think has grown stronger since the release of ‘Over the Top’ and has more depth and better production which delivers something pretty epic. But once you’ve listened through a couple of times, the next part is to go away and dive into the stories behind each song and you’ll uncover some tales of extreme valour, with perhaps the most powerful being the story of William “Billy” McFadzean. The 20 year old was unloading and priming grenades in a WWI trench when the box fell and two had their pins dislodged… without hesitation he threw himself upon the grenades losing his life but saving the lives of everyone else in that crowded trench, for which he was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.
Musically, ‘Valour’ is a pretty epic beast. Pairing catchy melodies with blistering drums and a hefty dose of synths paints a rich tapestry with which to express the stories therein. Chris Simpsons’s vocals remain at the high end of the scale and while he may not quite have the power and depth of someone like Bruce Dickinson (hey, not many people do!) his vocals are well mastered and work well with the music. He delivers catchy vocal hooks with passion and energy which helps you get absorbed into the music and you’ll find yourself unconsciously singing along before you’ve finished your first playthrough. If you were to strip Iron Maiden and Sabaton back to their early beginnings and combine them together whilst putting an entirely British focus on the imagery, I reckon you’d have a pretty close approximation of what Forlorn Hope have set out to achieve here.
‘The Last Ride’ is possibly my favourite track on this album, and also happens to be the final one (or should I say, it marks the halfway point of the album) that tells the tale of two officers who valiantly attempted to retrieve the Queen’s Colour of the regiment during a disastrous battle during the Zulu War. It’s a war that I don’t think gets as much attention as some of the “sexier” wars (although Michael Caine’s performance is a notable exception!) so it’s great to see another example on ‘Valour’. ‘The Last Ride’ follows the solemn ‘Greater Love Hath No Man’ which makes its raw energy even more impactful as the song gallops into your ear holes. It expresses a real frenetic energy depicting these officers running for their lives in pursuit of their goal that had me absolutely hooked – in fact I’ve kept coming back to this since finishing the album!
Well, considering how much I’ve had to say about a five track half an album, it’s pretty safe to say that Forlorn Hope have completely sold me with ‘Valour – Part 1’ and I’m looking forward to seeing what part two has to offer. It is a musical history lesson of military tales that deserve greater attention and is enough to draw in even the most disinterested of people. Hell if my A Level history lessons had been like this then I might have actually completed it!
For fans of Iron Maiden, Saxon, Sabaton and Hammerfall and any other bands you can think of in that ilk, and also just for you history nerds out there (if you somehow don’t already fall into one of those fanbases!) It’s a solid 8/10 album for me – it’s far more polished than ‘Over The Hills’ but I think Forlorn Hope could still go further and develop greater depth and a bigger persona that will come with more experience and exposure – something that I hope that ‘Valour’ unlocks for them!
- ‘Valour‘ is out now.
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