Glass Hammer returns to the world of the Dreaming City with the follow-up album, “SKALLAGRIM — INTO THE BREACH.” The album continues the tale of the thief with the screaming sword, a “desperate man” who lost his lover and his memory.
“It’s over the top and meant to be,” comments Glass Hammer’s Steve Babb. “But it’s relevant as well,” he continues. “There’s always a deeper story hidden within every concept album we’ve ever done. This one is no different.”
“There is plenty of the ‘classic’ Glass Hammer sound on the album, but also some electronic pieces as we’ve done in the past. Our new vocalist fronts most of the songs, which is a little different for us, but I think fans will approve. They’ll hear a lot of metal-influenced prog, something we really love of late. Fans never know what to expect from us, what new direction we’ll be going in. But I’ll tell you upfront, there is far more hammer than glass on our 2021 release!”
The video not only shows off the new album cover but a new lead vocalist as well. Singer, Hannah Pryor, joins Steve Babb, Fred Schendel, Aaron Raulston, and GH session guitarists Reese Boyd and Brian Brewer for the band’s twenty-first studio album.
My own first opinions are of music that broods with an ancient, primeval power, Glass Hammer raising the (heavy) bar to even greater heights on an album that is sure to be a monster success from this evergreen band.
Band photo credit: Julie Babb.