I used to love poppy, ultra-processed power metal. Blind Guardian basically killed that whole scene for me when I discovered them and realized power metal could have riffs, but a part of me still remembers what I loved. A part of me won’t let it go. And like a shadow from the past, Sweden’s Shadowborne arrived with their debut Heaven’s Falling. Led by vocalist Eira Shadowborne and accompanied by keyboardist The Warden, guitarist The Oathbearer, bassist The Keeper, and drummer The Warbringer,¹ Shadowborne seek to make their mark on the genre with fantasy storytelling, monumental hooks, and shiny, bloopy synthesizers. With groups like Twilight Force, Fellowship, and Brothers of Metal reminding me in recent years that there’s still room in my heart for things campy and glossy, and catching some nostalgia pangs to boot, I decided to give Shadowborne a fair shake. But does Heaven’s Falling spell a new rising star in power metal, or are Shadowborne just another curd in the cheese wheel?

Heaven’s Falling is an uncomplicated debut for Shadowborne: ten tracks,² thirty-five minutes of dramatic, anthemic, and highly polished power metal. Shadowborne pivot between two modes on Heaven’s Falling: folky, Brothers of Metalesque jaunts like “Hold the Door” and “The Wall” and synthy, pop-hooked 80s LARP à la Battle Beast on songs like “Stranger to Myself” and “Wolf and the Queen.” Oathbearer does the Sabaton thing and riffs in sync with Warden’s synth stings on “High and Low” while Warbringer lays out mid-paced marches, barring one diversion into speed on “Custodians.” Production-wise, Heaven’s Falling is bright and loud, and nothing sounds particularly real, especially the wispy clean guitars (“End of the World”) and Warden’s toothless gang vocals (“Hold the Door”). It’s the kind of metal that Beast In Black can, and likely do, write in their sleep. Simply, anyone familiar with the Europower scene over the past fifteen(ish) years will know what to expect from Shadowborne.

And if you know Europower, then you know that Chorus Is King. Heaven’s Falling hits its stride with every chorus, accomplished by the phenomenal pipes of Eira Shadowborne. Evoking the likes of Ylva Eriksson (Brothers of Metal) and Noora Louhimo (ex-Battle Beast), Shadowborne belts and croons with power and charisma, sounding thoroughly in charge across Heaven’s Falling. Album highlights “Heaven’s Falling (Dragon’s Hymn)” and “Raven” demonstrate Shadowborne at her best, pouring copious heart into their strong melodies and itch-scratching layered harmonies. Beyond Shadowborne’s battle cries, there’s a commitment to bigness across Heaven’s Falling that contributes to its catchiness. Whether stomping away in “Wolf and the Queen” or waxing melodramatic balladry on “The End of the World,” Shadowborne fill as much sonic space and layer parts as hard as the music can take before bursting. Shadowborne the band is built around Shadowborne, the singer, and Heaven’s Falling is shaped around letting her shine in its biggest moments.

Heaven’s Falling’s greatest strength, however, comes with a price. Like much chorus-centric music, Heaven’s Falling suffers from a severe case of Boring Verse Syndrome (BVS).³ Most songs default to banal chugging and space-filling synths with little flair or variation. Even Shadowborne’s lines aren’t nearly as engaging in the verse, sounding somewhat thin on “Stranger to Myself” and “The End of the World.” As a result, Heaven’s Falling feels somewhat hollow. Where songs do feel fleshed out, like “Custodians” with its propulsive tempo and “Raven” with its darker verse contrasting its bright chorus, plus an Amon Amarth march in the intro, they stand out drastically. Oathbearer’s solos in particular could’ve cooked longer, as they’re slick, proficient, and wickedly fun across the board but also far, far too brief to leave a lasting impact. A great chorus is good to have, and Shadowborne can deliver them, but Heaven’s Falling needs great whole songs to be a great whole album.

What holds Shadowborne’s debut down is what holds much of the genre back: entrapment within genre tropes. Heaven’s Falling is loaded with talent and vim, and a lot of these hooks are going to be stuck in my head for a long time. But between the BVS, flaccid production, and played-out approach to power metal on Heaven’s Falling, Shadowborne have crafted a record that simply can’t stand out. Maybe Shadowborne just needed to prove to themselves they could write an album, and their sophomore will be more adventurous. Or maybe this is exactly what they wanted to write. Either way, fans of power metal may like what they’ll hear, but they’ll certainly have heard it already.

Rating: Mixed
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps MP3
Label: Scarlet Records
Websites: bandcamp.com/heavens-falling | facebook.com/Shadowborne
Releases Worldwide: June 19th, 2026

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