Six Foot Six – Beggar’s Hill

Six Foot Six
Beggar’s Hill
Label: Scarlet Records
Out: December 8^th, 2023
Playing time: 49:15

Sweden and Power Metal. Not much more needs to be said about that. And here is another band from this Scandinavian country – Six Foot Six. The band hails from Gothenburg. And the singer is a well-known one – Kristoffer Göbel, the former frontman of Falconer. “Beggar’s Hill” is already their third album. The drums are also played by another well-known musician, Snowy Shaw. The album was produced and mixed by the band themselves. Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Metallica are cited as references. That promises a lot.

The Swedes really let rip right from the opener “Raise The Dead”, with heavy riffs and distinctive guitar melodies. And Kristoffer Göbel’s vocals fit the Power Metal perfectly. A song to bang along to. The bass makes the subwoofer literally bounce. “Tears” is then slower and much more rhythmic. But with hardly any less pressure. The chorus almost invites you to sing along. “Voices Inside” starts with acoustic guitars before melodic electric guitars can be heard again. The mid-tempo sound provides the first small point of rest. Only in the chorus does the Double Bass provide a little drive. The title track “Beggar’s Hill” turns out to be a power ballad. Once again, beautiful melodies take centre stage. “Analogue Man” starts off as a ballad. Later, the riffs provide a lot of pressure in the mid-tempo range. And again, and again these sing-along choruses. Probably one of Six Foot Six’s trademarks. Towards the end, there are spoken words in the band’s native language. “Riding The Tide” is characterised by frequent Double Bass and hard riffs, but without drifting into the speed range. In contrast, “Fire Will Burn” tends more towards the high-speed range. At the end is the song trilogy “A Templar’s Tale”. Part 1 is called “The Prodigy” and is in the highly melodic vein. Do I need to emphasise that the chorus here also tempts you to sing along? “The Siege” is the ballad of the album, acoustic guitars accompany the calm vocals. Synth strings emphasise the contemplative mood. In the second part, however, things temporarily become much heavier. All contemplativeness is over in this section. “The Homecoming” ends the album with hard riffs and a much higher tempo.

With “Beggar’s Hill”, the Swedes have put out a more than solid album. Each of the ten songs has hit potential. This is exemplary celebrated Power Metal. When it comes to references, I would actually narrow it down to Judas Priest. Maiden are too prog-heavy and Metallica too much of a thrash band to be used as a comparison.

Six Foot Six (feat. Snowy Shaw) – Raise The Dead: https://youtu.be/zflzmT9O2JU?si=vTZjepWjdt4mpeYb

Lineup:

Kristoffer Göbel – Vocals
Christoffer Borg – Guitar
Markus Gustafsson – Bass

Track list:

• Raise The Dead
• Tears
• Voices Inside
• Beggar’s Hill 
• Analog Man
• Riding The Tide
• Fire Will Burn
• The Prodigy (A Templar’s Tale pt. 1)
• The Siege (A Templar’s Tale pt. 2)
• The Homecoming (A Templar’s Tale pt. 3)