The Mission

The Mission is a grand concept work on which Royal Hunt draws a very strongly narrative theme with thick, gorgeous keyboards and powerful metal riffs. Inspired by the sci-fi writer Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles, the whole album is tightly constructed around a story of migration to Mars. The songs vividly change their air from scene to scene, powerfully showing the grand drama’s progress with the sound itself. A record where John West’s powerful singing shines. From the development from the opener “Take Off” to the title track “The Mission” and the drama of “Surrender” to the powerful “Judgement Day,” every song is engaging, while cuts like “Exit Gravity” and “Metamorphosis” deepen the work’s grand world. André Andersen’s keyboards serve an important role, powerfully moving the very developments of the songs, not mere decoration. A truly band-like, large-scale record where a symphonic, gorgeous expanse and hard, powerful rhythm intersect. It beautifully draws a grand sci-fi concept with sure playing and dramatic songs. An extremely polished masterpiece displaying Royal Hunt’s outstanding skill as a concept-album author — a record to immerse in a grand story.