''Threshold'' is the sixth studio album by Swedish

power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within a symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in co ...

band

HammerFall HammerFall is a Swedish power metal band from Gothenburg. The band was formed in 1993 by ex- Ceremonial Oath guitarist Oscar Dronjak. They have released thirteen studio albums. History Early days (1993–1996) HammerFall was formed when g ...

, released on 18 October 2006. The album entered the Swedish charts at number one, staying on the chart for eight weeks. It was the band's first number 1 album since ''Renegade'' in 2000. It is currently the last HammerFall studio album with guitarist

Stefan Elmgren Stefan Elmgren (born 17 May 1974) is the former guitarist of the Swedish power metal band HammerFall from 1997 to 2008. History Before becoming a member of HammerFall, he was the guitarist in the band Highlander. Elmgren has also worked with his ...

and bassist

Magnus Rosén Klas Magnus Rosén (born 1963 in Gothenburg) is a Swedish musician. He was the bassist of Swedish band HammerFall from 1997 to 2007. Magnus Rosén started to play bass when he was 15 years old. after playing bass for three years he went on hi ...

, as Rosén left the band in 2007 and Elmgren left in 2008.
The guitar solo of "Howlin' With the 'Pac" is essentially a reworked version of the one from "Hearts on Fire". As with several songs on the previous album, the song "Dark Wings, Dark Words" is inspired by

A Song of Ice and Fire ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' is a series of high fantasy novels by the American author George R. R. Martin. Martin began writing the first volume, ''A Game of Thrones'', in 1991, and published it in 1996. Martin, who originally envisioned the ser ...

. The cover artwork was created by

Samwise Didier Sam "Samwise" Didier (born 1971) is an American artist. He served as senior art director at Blizzard Entertainment, having been with the company since 1991. As the art director for the flagship games of the ''Warcraft'', ''StarCraft'', and ''Di ...

Track listing

Music videos

*The song "Natural High" was made into a music video depicting Hector the Knight battling vampires in a decrepit castle; he managed to kill most of the vampires with his hammer, but one of them escapes, leaving Hector by himself. The video itself is a montage alternating between the band and the action, which is shot in live-action and complemented with CGI. *The song "The Fire Burns Forever" was also made into a music video. The band recorded it with some of the Swedish participants in the

European Athletics Championships The European Athletics Championships is a biennial (from 2010) athletics event organised by the European Athletic Association and is recognised as the elite continental outdoor athletics championships for Europe. Editions First held, for me ...

Single "The Fire Burns Forever"

"The Fire Burns Forever" was also released as a single and only available as a download between 6 August and 6 September 2006, exclusively at the ITunes Store and

Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast Records is a German record label with subsidiary, subsidiaries located in Germany, the United States and Brazil. It was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Donzdorf. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label moved on ...

Musicshop. Hammerfall and the athletes also performed "The Fire Burns Forever" at the official opening of the Championships on 6 August in

Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...

, Sweden.

Personnel

Joacim Cans Joacim Cans (born 19 February 1970) is a Swedish singer, best known as the lead vocalist of power metal band HammerFall. He is the only member aside from founder and guitarist Oscar Dronjak to appear on all of the band's albums. Cans attended ...

– lead vocals *

Oscar Dronjak Oscar Fredrick Dronjak (born 20 January 1972) is a Swedish guitarist and founder of the power metal band HammerFall. Prior to the success of HammerFall, he also played and released albums with the death metal acts Ceremonial Oath and Crystal Age ...

– rhythm guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, programming *

– lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, programming *

– bass * Anders Johansson – drums Backing vocals by

Oliver Hartmann Oliver Hartmann (born 28 June 1970 in Rüsselsheim, West Germany) is a German heavy metal vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and producer who performed in various acts, either as guitarist, solo or choir singer. He is best known for his role as ...

Rolf Köhler Rolf Köhler (24 May 1951 – 16 September 2007) was a German singer and record producer. Career Köhler initially achieved commercial success performing under the pseudonym Marc de Ville in the late 1970s. As Marc de Ville, he recorded a few s ...

, Olaf Zenkbiel, Mats Rendlert, Joacim Lundberg, Markus Sköld, and Johan Aremyr

Chart positions

* Sweden: #1 * Germany: #15 * Austria: #30 * Switzerland: #32 * France: #192

References

External links

Lyrics at Darklyrics

Official band website

Album information
{{Authority control 2006 albums HammerFall albums Nuclear Blast albums Albums produced by Charlie Bauerfeind