Grand Magus (Album)

Grand Magus
Grand Magus
	;
Studio album by Grand Magus
Released	November 5 2001
Recorded	March - April 2001 at Das Boot Studio in Stockholm, Sweden
Genre	Heavy Metal, Doom Metal
Length	47:07 (Original)
Label	Rise Above Records
Producer	Fred Estby, Grand Magus
Grand Magus chronology

Grand Magus is the eponymous debut studio album by the Swedish doom metal band of the same name. Recorded in 2000 following a demo and a split 7" Grand Magus would be released in the Fall of 2001 via English label Rise Above Records and later in North America via The Music Cartel.

The album's sound evokes classic heavy metal with hints of a doom metal sound, drawing influences from the likes of Black Sabbath, Mountain, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and Lynyrd Skynyrd.^[1] Grand Magus would receive positive reception at the time of release and has since gained a cult following as a classic doom album of the early 2000s.

Background[]

Following a worldwide deal with Rise Above Records signed circa Febraury 2001, Grand Magus would enter Das Boot Studio to record their debut album that March, finishing in April.^[2] Initially intending for an October release, Grand Magus would be released on 5 November 2001 in Europe and January 2002 in North America via The Music Cartel. A release party would be hosted at Eldorado/Alcazar on 3 November 2001 with Dozer. The band would follow with their first European tour the next year, alongside Orange Goblin and Roadsaw.^[3]

Grand Magus would attain significant critical acclaim upon release. Metal Hammer would honor Grand Magus as their album of the month in November 2001.^[4] Grand Magus would attain praise from numerous publications such as Ear Pollution,^[5] White Trash Devil,^[6] Bully Magazine,^[7], doom-metal.com,^[8] Planet Fuzz,^[9] Cosmic Lava,^[10] Metallus (8/10)^[11] and Metal shrine (5/5) among others.^[12] Sea of Tranquility would award a four star score to the re-issue, especially praising "Coat of Arms" and "Lodbrok".^[13]

Roadburn would also praise the album and offer a track-by-track rundown provided by the band, describing their album as "doom blues" and "black magick rock".^[14] In an interview with Bully Magazine, JB would state that "Lodbrok" is a Norse allegory of the story of Ragnar Lodbrok, along with a recurring theme of the oppressions of religion.^[15]

Grand Magus would also be released in Japan with two bonus tracks in "Tale of The Unexpected" and "Grand Magus", the latter song originally intended to be named "Magus" before a miscommunication led to the renaming. JVC Victor would re-issue the album in 2005 with expanded artwork and a third bonus track in a live version of "Gauntlet".

In 2006 Rise Above Records would re-issue the first album on CD with the two studio bonus tracks. Grand Magus would see it's first vinyl edition in 2010, with the Die Hard versions containing the two studio bonus tracks on a 7".

Tracklist[]

All songs written by Grand Magus.
Tracks 11 and 12 exclusive to Japan and later re-issues.

Grand Magus[]

1. Gauntlet (3:48)
2. Legion (3:54)
3. Never Learned (4:48)
4. Black Hound of Vengeance (5:00)
5. Coat of Arms (3:34)
6. Generator (5:32)
7. Wheel of Time (5:24)
8. Lodbrok (4:13)
9. Black Hole (5:00)
10. Mountain of Power (5:54)

Bonus Tracks[]

11. Tale of The Unexpected (3:59)
12. Grand Magus (3:41)

Personnel[]

JB - Guitar, Lead Vocals
Fox - Bass, Backing Vocals
Trisse - Drums, Backing Vocals
Fred Estby - Mellotron, Engineer, Mixing, Producer
Johnny Svensson - Cover Art, Layout

External Links[]

References[]

V·T·E Grand Magus
Current Members	Janne Christoffersson • Mats Heden • Ludwig Witt
Past Members	Fredrik Liefvendahl • Sebastian Sippola
Studio Albums	Grand Magus • Monument • Wolf's Return • Iron Will • Hammer of The North • The Hunt • Triumph and Power • Sword Songs • Wolf God
Misc. Releases	Demo Two Thousand • It's Over / Twilight Train

[1] Bully Magazine via Wayback Machine

[2] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[3] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[4] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[5] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[6] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[7] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[8] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[9] Grand Magus via Wayback Machine

[10] Cosmic Lava

[11] Metallus

[12] Metal Shrine via Wayback Machine

[13] Sea of Tranquility

[14] Grand Magus Official via Wayback Machine

[15] Grand Magus via Wayback Machine

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