METAL QUEST

METAL QUEST places HAGANE’s adventure concept at the center and compresses the uplift of melodic speed metal into a focused EP from the renewed lineup. From the opening “Embark on a Quest,” the story sets off: the twin guitars cut with a bright edge, the rhythm section pushes the music forward, and the vocal melodies shift the scenery like pages in a fantasy tale. As “Black Diamond” and “We are The Knight” show, the band does not need heavy symphonic decoration to sound dramatic; the riffs stay sharp and the choruses land immediately. The Japanese-tinged “月光 -TSUKIKAGE-” adds contrast, and “The Rising of the Shield” lifts the energy again toward the close. Keeping HAGANE’s established brilliance while turning it into harder, more forward-driving power, it is a compact but complete statement, true to the steel (hagane) in the band’s name.