Sleepbomb – Songs In The Key Of Conan

Sleepbomb
Songs In The Key Of Conan
Label: koolarrow records
Out: 5^th June 2026
Playing time: 01:16:30

The San Francisco-based Cinematic Doom Metal band Sleepbomb was formed in 2003. Apart from a hiatus between 2013 and 2015, the band has remained active to this day. However, their first releases did not appear until after their reunion. Since then, they have released five studio albums, three live albums, one EP and several singles. Their latest album, ‘Songs In The Key Of Conan’, was released in early June this year. It offers a musical reinterpretation of the classic film ‘Conan the Barbarian’, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in the lead role. It is therefore a concept album.

‘Forged In Steel’ already sets the tone. Calm, solemn sounds, underpinned by rhythmic drums. The guitar melodies are equally gentle. A purely instrumental track. ‘Blood On The Snow’ adds ethereal vocalises and a powerful bass line. ‘My Father’s Sword’ slows the pace down even further. As before, the vocalises sound very ethereal. Layers of keyboards create an epic atmosphere. This concept is consistently maintained throughout the rest of the album. Whether it’s “Wheel Of Pain”, “The Price Of Knowledge”, “Fangs Of The Serpent”, “Fear The Night” or even “Temple On Fire” – it remains calm, slowed down, ethereal. Sometimes with clear guitar melodies, sometimes with heavily distorted guitar passages. Accompanied again and again by layers of keyboards, occasionally bass lines. Instruments not typically associated with metal, such as the clarinet or horns, are also used.

Thanks to the varied instrumentation, each track sounds slightly different. But with sixteen tracks and a running time of over an hour and a quarter, the whole thing does start to feel a bit tedious. Furthermore, despite Claire Hamard being credited as the singer, there are no real vocal passages. And for music accompanying a film like *Conan the Barbarian*, I would have expected a bit more action, changes in tempo and heaviness.

Sleepbomb – A Gift of Crom: https://youtu.be/ase4gS14DvI?si=-HiGEFi-6zK37Yq9

Lineup:

Charles Hernandez – Guitars
Robert Johnson – Drums, Percussion
Tim Gotch – Bass, Synths

Contributing Musicians:

Claire Hamard – Vocals, Clarinet, Keyboards
Matt Pankuch – Horns, Percussion
K.R. Morrison – Percussion

Track list:

• Forged in Steel
• Blood on the Snow
• My Father’s Sword
• Wheel of Pain
• A Gift of Crom
• The Price of Knowledge
• Two Fools Who Laugh at Death
• The Serpent’s Eye
• All the Gods Cannot Sever Us
• Fangs of the Serpent
• Ascending the Steps
• The Tree of Woe
• Fear the Night
• The Pyre
• Live Forever
• Temple on Fire