7/10 in Musipedia of Metal
https://musipediaofmetal.blogspot.com/2020/07/reviews-rumahoy-lightbringer-of-sweden.html
The Lightbringer Of Sweden: Rise Of The Beast (Self Released)
Lars Eng founded The Lightbringer Of Sweden in back in 2017 he started it with the intention of emulating his influences such as Tobias Sammet, Kai Hansen and Adrian Smith. He tapped Wolf’s vocalist Niklas Stålvind to sing on the record he was writing however Niklas turned out to be a bit too busy to contribute to the album so Eng hit up Avantasia and Firewind singer Herbie Langhans to give his vocals to the single Skeletor and then it was decided he’d sing on the whole album. So to the album and it tells the story of The Lightbringer (The Devil) and his right hand Skeletor in their war with the angels.
It’s power metal with a speed metal thrust and some thrashier tones that does put you in mind of Tobias Sammet’s and Kai Hansen’s projects, from the opening riff fest of Fallen Angels through the big single Skeletor and big ballads like Heaven Has Fallen it ticks all the boxes for a heavier style of power metal, the songs have been skillfully written, produced and performed by Eng along with a supporting cast of Tobbe Jonsson (drums) Henrik Bergqvist (bass), Jonas Andersson (Lead Guitar) and some additional solos from Niklas Dahlin on Heaven Has Fallen & Shadows Of The Night.
The real trump card though is getting Langhans on vocals though, as I feel he does these songs more justice than Stålvind could have, his soulful delivery very similar to the bands that have influenced Eng. Yes he’s not Swedish but his vocals are ideal for this style of music even on One By One which does rip off Swedish rockers Europe quite liberally. A great metal album that has been a while in production, Eng understands the genre well and has written songs on this album that any power/heavy metal fan will enjoy. 7/10