Anthem Of The Peaceful Army

I've been a fan of these kids since they released their Black Smoke Rising ep last year. They are my favorite new band hands down. Led Zep comparisons are legit, but to me it is a homage and not a ripoff. Individually they've referenced a diverse, eclectic number of major influences including Willie Dixon who Led Zep was also hugely influenced by. They are all accomplished musicians and amazing songwriters.Now onto their new recording. I've listened to this in its entirety multiple times and each time it continues to grow more and more on me. On first listen, I was blown away more than I had been in years by the opening track, Age of Man. It was immediately obvious how much they have matured as songwriters and musicians in the short time since their From the Fires double ep. Their sense of melody is beyond their years. The entire album flows effortlessly from song to song, and by the last track I'm left wanting more.To put things in perspective, I've been an avid music lover for close to 50 years with a CD collection of over 20,000 titles. I rarely write reviews as it would become another full time job with the amount of new music I listen to each week. Music is obsession for me, and I do not simply state something is this good without the benefit of having heard many other new artists as well. This is the best new band I've heard in many, many years despite their uncanny resemblance to Led Zep. They simply write great songs, period. Do yourself a favor, and open your mind and LISTENwithout prejudice and I'm sure you'll be as blown away as I was. This will be without a doubt my album of the year.I would also like to mention that another great up and coming band called Bad Touch is definitely worthy of your time if you haven't heard their material yet. I would highly recommend you check them out.

When I initially heard “Highway Tune” last year, I almost mistook it for an unreleased Led Zeppelin tune. The similarities between “Highway Tune” and some of Led Zeppelin’s famous tracks such as “The Ocean”, “Communication Breakdown” and “The Rover” are hard to ignore. But Greta also had an intro which is strikingly reminiscent of Uriah Heeps “I Wanna Be Free”. So, I knew that they had a focus or inspiration which was beyond that of just Led Zeppelin. “From the Fires” was released last November. Even though it isn’t technically their debut album, for me it is. The first album had a lot of hits, but it did sound a lot like Led Zeppelin. Even when they claimed that “Black Smoke Rising” was supposedly their attempt to branch out of the Zeppelin sound, it was obvious I think to all of us, who had a large influence on them. For a while, I almost considered abandoning them, that they would not come out and directly state what I believed to be the obvious was frustrating to me. This album, which is officially their debut, by and large should completely absolve them of the Led Zeppelin rip-off/cover band claims. This group is not trying to rip-off Led Zeppelin nor are they trying to get famous by doing something which has already been done. After listening to this album, I immediately thought, Greta Van Fleet isn’t copying Led Zeppelin, but rather they are playing in the same spirit that Led Zeppelin played at. I honestly think, and I’ll risk being criticized by saying this, that Greta Van Fleet are children of Led Zeppelin, pupils of Led Zeppelin but not rip-offs of Led Zeppelin. They have been influenced but what they have produced on this album is completely original yet it sticks true to their influences. Now, I say Led Zeppelin but their sound is so diverse that it could be Rush, it could be John Denver, it could really be any significant contemporary artist of the late 1960s and 1970s. I like to think of them as individuals which looked at something which already was and created something new out of it. Just like Led Zeppelin did with the Blues, and just like Black Sabbath did with Led Zeppelin and Blue Cheer. With all of this said, I think if they continue along this path and keep reaching out and touching other influences, then the music they will create will last a lifetime and be played for a long time. But for now, let us just enjoy the music they have given us.

I loved their debut ep, but this album just failed to grab me the way the ep did. You can tell they are trying to shake the Led Zeppelin clone reputation with these new songs, but there just aren't enough full-on rockers on display here. Breathy mid-tempo tracks just don't do it for me like the rockers. Also, and this is no reflection on the music, but they seem to be taking themselves way too seriously with the flower child hippy cosplay fantasy. Seems borderline insincere (almost like their handlers were pushing them that way). I'm familiar with their back story, so maybe I'm way off here, but that's what it feels like to me. At this point I'm hoping the songs grow on me, but that kinda sucks as the eight tracks on the EP just plain knocked my socks off.

From the opener "Age Of Man" to "Anthem" this album is great for classic and modern rock fans.Some shiners are "Brave New World" and "Age Of Man." There are hard rockers, but also slowerish songs. It is a good pick if you like rock.Sadly, the first 15 seconds of my record are pretty scratchy (moment I opened it.) It isn't a deal breaker, but a small problem. This isn't Greta Van Fleet's fault, but it still dampers the experience.

Amazing album

This band seem to really divide opinion, some reviewers hating them and others singing their praises. I just trust my own judgement as music is a very personal thing. There seems to be a childish and fashionable anti-rock thing going on at the moment, which I simply don't get. There have been some notable reviewer bashings of rock bands who turned out to be absolutely superb household names. Whether GVF are superb enough to endure and develop is not certain, but give them a chance on their first album!I heard them on the radio before I knew anything about them and I liked what I heard enough to make a mental note of the band name and explore more. They seemed to have similarities to Led Zeppelin and Rush, which happen to be among my favourite bands, and being a fan of 60's/70's rock, I found myself being attracted.Having listened through the album (vinyl), I do think they are very good at what they do. I don't think they are copying anybody especially, but the style of their music and the vocals are inevitably going to invoke comparisons. The album does not showcase great variety but I enjoyed it and felt that every track earned its place on the disc, so I am pleased to have this album in my collection as it stands. A real test for the band's enduring talent will be to see how they develop in style and what follows on from this. I hope they have what it takes.The vinyl version plays with very low surface noise, without faults and seems well mastered.

The most important album since Appetite for Destruction ! Forget those sad music journalists,Zeppelin often got ridiculed by the press as well !Just give your ears some real pleasure and enjoy the ride .

A la sortie en Mai 2017 de "Black Smoke Rising", j'étais je crois le premier à commenter cet EP en soulignant la très très très grande "proximité" entre Greta Van Fleet et Led Zep, et bien que déjà très emballé, j'indiquais attendre la suite pour me forger une opinion plus objective. Le second, "From The Fires" sorti Novembre 2017, confirmait cette impression.Aujourd'hui arrive enfin le "full length album" tant annoncé et attendu. Mon premier ressenti après trois écoutes est une très grande satisfaction, mon deuxième ressenti est la surprise de constater que bien que très légitime, la comparaison avec le dirigeable est un peu moins marquée sur cet "Anthem Of The Peaceful Army". Et c'est très bien ainsi car à trop attendre du Led Zep de la part de GFV, on finirait par trouver cela décevant, ennuyeux et on les qualifierait finalement de clones sans inspiration. C'est bien le contraire durant cet album, car certes le son très 70' se rapproche de celui de Led Zep, certes Josh Kiszka possède un timbre rappelant parfois celui de Plant et certes les compos ont une architecture complexe comme pouvaient l'avoir celles de LZ, mais globalement, l'ensemble ne me paraît pas aussi Zeppelinesque que sur les deux premiers EP et je discerne même quelques effluves du Flower Power de la belle époque.L'album s'ouvre sur "Age Of Man", morceau au tempo plutôt lent et quelque peu planant et se conclut sur un "Anthem" qui aurait eu sa place à Woodstock. Entre, une alternance de titres un peu plus enlevés tels "The Cold Win", "When The Curtain Falls" ou le fabuleux "Lover, Leaver" (à mon sens déjà un classique pour le groupe, particulièrement la version rallongée de 3mn dispo sur le Net), de ballades guillerettes telle "You're The One", moins guillerettes telle "Brave New World" et de titres mid-tempo.Incapable de ressortir un titre plus qu'un autre tellement l'ensemble est qualitativement homogène.Musicalement parlant, le son est propre et net, guitariste (excellent), bassiste (excellent aussi) et batteur (plus qu'excellent, John "Bonzo" Bonham doit avoir le sourire là où il repose) offrent au chanteur un accompagnement de haute volée.Pour conclure, cet album est pour moi une très grande réussite sans aucun bémol, il confirme tout le bien que je pensais du groupe et cerise sur le gâteau, il ne tombe pas dans le plagiat Led Zep tel qu'on aurait pu l'imaginer.L'Elysée Montmartre est complet depuis longtemps, une nouvelle date est fixée à Mars 2019, cette fois au Zénith de Paris, moi j'y serai!Bravo!

I'm blown away by this album. I'd heard if you like Zep or Rush then I'd like this but make no mistake, this is uniquely Greta van Fleet, this is simply wonderful and they are going to be massive. The guy does sound a bit like Plant but vocally stronger and more extreme - I hope his voice lasts for many, many more albums. Opens with the Age of Man which is very powerful and I couldn't believe what I was hearing when it was played on Planet Rock, all the tracks are superb, but I think Watching Over will be a classic of it's time......as in legendary......

Forse troppo uguali agli Zeppelin.Forse caldi come i Black Crowes.Forse troppo bravi per essere ignorati.Mai come in questo caso i dubbi generano certezze.Lasciate perdere qualsiasi pregiudizio e ascoltate bene questo disco. Non fatevi troppe domande.La buona musica non va analizzata con la testa ma ascoltata con il cuore.E qui di emozioni ce ne sono davvero tante.Bravi, bravissimi !!!

Every song and lyrics are a winner. It makes me feel the true energy and excitement I only get when listening to classic rock bands who have the gift of songwriting. That magic. I have been listening to this looped for weeks and it gets better the longer you listen. I’m addicted. They’ve got the magic Led Zeppelin has. Sure they sound the same but who cares, everyone moans nobody is as good since Led Zeppelin, well because they had the balance perfect. So why complain that a band comes along to channel that vibe and create great new songs as of Zeppelin never went away? If the music sounds amazing and makes you feel like music had once again returned after a long absence on earth, rejoice and be ecstatic. This is the first full album and incidentally they wrote 75% in 2 weeks ! These guys know what they’re doing. And they’ll get better and better.

Mit dem von ihnen selbst als 'Double EP' bezeichneten FROM THE FIRES hatten sie 2017 zu Recht für fast uneingeschränkte Jubelstürme gesorgt, und nun ist also das erste echte Album der vier 'Great White Hopes' der Rockmusik seit gut zwei Wochen auf dem Markt.Der Titel ANTHEM OF THE PEACEFUL ARMY beinhaltet drei wichtige Schlüsselworte: 'Anthem' (Hymne), 'peaceful' (friedlich) und 'Army' (Heer). Ja, Greta van Fleet schreiben Rockhymnen für alle (!) Generationen. Ja, sie stehen für eine friedliche Lebenseinstellung, für love and peace. Und ja, sie stehen für ein ganzes Heer an Menschen, welche immer noch an die ebenso simple wie Völker verbindende, freiheitliche Philosophie des Rock’n‘Roll glauben möchten.Ihre musikalischen Einflüsse stammen, wie bei so vielen aktuellen Bands, hauptsächlich aus den sechziger und siebziger Jahren des letzten Jahrhunderts. Und auch wenn sie es selbst stets sanft bestreiten, so sind die Hard-, Blues-, Folk- und Progressive-Rock-Heroes Led Zeppelin natürlich ihre größten Vorbilder, während andere sich an AC/DC, Thin Lizzy, Rainbow oder sonst wem abarbeiten.Leadsänger Joshua Kiszka kräht selbstbewusst wie der neue junge Hahn, der den alten Chef auf dem Hof (Robert Plant) ebenso ablösen wie in Ehren halten will. Sein Vortrag ist noch nicht so differenziert wie der des 'Vorgängers', erinnert jedoch trotzdem in geradezu unheimlicher Weise an eben selbigen.Gitarrist Jacob Kiszka orientiert sich wie selbstverständlich an Led-Zep-Chef Jimmy Page. Bassist und Keyboarder Samuel Kiszka, der das Brüdertrio komplettiert, hat (auch) John Paul Jones studiert, und Schlagzeuger Daniel Wagner klingt teilweise, als ob er John Bonhams ebenso gewaltigen wie virtuosen Drumstil schon mit der Muttermilch aufgesogen hätte.Und doch gibt es auf dieser Platte noch einiges mehr als nur Led Zeppelin-Referenzen zu entdecken. Der gut sechsminütige Opener "Age of Man" macht da gleich den Anfang. Sanfte Mellotronklänge schweben anfangs durch den Raum, ehe Josh mit heller Stimme einsteigt, dann geben Gitarre und Schlagzeug die Vorgabe für ein geradezu episches Stück, das durchaus von frühen Uriah Heep, Yes oder auch einer Band wie Rush inspiriert sein könnte, ohne aber deren oftmals gleichsam klinische Kälte zu verströmen. Fantastisch!"Watching Over" ist ein schleppender, leicht bluesiger Track, dem auch Anhänger von Creedence Clearwater Revival, Free und Bad Company einiges abgewinnen könnten.Mit "Brave New World" bereisen Greta van Fleet ein ähnliches Territorium, fügen aber romantische, geradezu artrockige Elemente hinzu.Das finale "Anthem" ist trotz seines Titels zunächst keine Hymne, sondern bietet lockeren akustischen Westcoast-Pop, ehe dann nach knapp dreieinhalb Minuten immerhin ein vielstimmiger Chor einsetzt und den Song zu einem fröhlich-feierlichen Ende treibt. Led Zeppelin hätten so etwas nie gemacht.Selbstverständlich gibt es aber auch genügend Titel, die jedem Led-Zep-Album zur Ehre gereicht hätten: "The Cold Wind", "When the Curtain Falls" (beginnend mit einem sehr ähnlichen Akkord wie "A Hard Day's Night" von den Beatles), "You're the One", "Mountain of the Sun".In "The New Day" zitieren die Jungs gar direkt und augenzwinkernd Zep's "Over the Hills and Far Away", das sie bestimmt tausend Mal gehört haben dürften.Ein ganz eigenes Ding ist das fantastische, sechsminütige "Lover, Leaver (Taker, Believer)" mit einer seltsamen, unverständlichen Backgroundstimme, die aus einer politischen Rede stammen könnte. Auf der CD-Version fehlt dieser Part allerdings, und der Song ist wesentlich kürzer. Why ever.Die 200 (!) Gramm schwere Vinyl-Ausgabe klingt makellos und weist auch nach mehrfachem Durchhören keinerlei Gebrauchsspuren auf. Allerdings ist sie eher leise ausgesteuert. Der Lautstärkeregler sollte also unbedingt nach rechts gedreht werden, um in den vollen Klanggenuss zu kommen. Die Produktion von Marlon Young, Al Sutton und Herschel Boone ('The Rust Brothers') ist klar, differenziert und … ja: liebevoll.Ein hübsches Textblatt ist dem Album beigefügt. Leider besteht das kitschig-spacige Einfach-Cover aus recht dünnwandiger Pappe, die an AMIGA-LPs aus den achtziger Jahren erinnert. Außerdem gibt es keinen Download-Code, der heutzutage eigentlich obligatorisch sein sollte. Und nicht einmal die AutoRip-Funktion von Amazon ist für das Album aktiviert. Das ist sehr schade. Doch für Letzteres kann die Band ja nichts.ANTHEM OF THE PEACEFUL ARMY ist ein ebenso kraftvolles wie verspieltes Debüt. Unverkrampft und völlig unbeeindruckt von allen Erwartungen hauen Greta van Fleet hier mal eben zehn künftige, allesamt selbst komponierte Rockklassiker 'raus. Obwohl man ihre Songs schon hundert Mal zuvor irgendwo gehört zu haben meint, schaffen sie perfekt den Spagat zwischen glorreicher Vergangenheit und enthusiastisch-versiertem Hier und Jetzt.Diese Scheibe bietet jedenfalls ein großes Vergnügen für alle, die auf harte und zugleich sehr eingängige Rockmusik stehen.Das Album startete in den USA und Deutschland sensationell auf Platz 3 der Charts. In vielen weiteren Ländern ging es in die Top Ten. Sie sind die jungen Rockstars der Gegenwart. Ob ihnen auch die Zukunft gehören wird, bleibt vorsichtig-optimistisch abzuwarten.

Technically their second album (if you count the collection of two eps making up the exellent 'From the fires').That first outing was so good this was bound to be inferior.But it isn't.It's a superb take on classic rock - the first track even sounds a bit prog-like with mellotron sounds.It has no right to be this listenable and convincing from such a young band.Nothing else to say - can't imagine a better album arriving in 2018.

Pese al gran hate que está recibiendo este grupo, este es un gran vinilo (y disco en general) y recomiendo su compra para todo aquel que esté dudando en si darle una oportunidad.Esta valoración va con toda la intención, ya que, al parecer, a todo el mundo le encantó la maqueta que lanzaron, mezclando canciones propias y covers (en mi opinión espectacular también) y los alababan diciendo que sonaban como Led Zeppelin. Argumento que ahora se convertido en la mayor arma de flagelación para los críticos más incisivos.Estos chavales tienen apenas 20 años y han conseguido un sonido muy notable para su edad. Sí, claro que tienen canciones que no son perfectas y su sonido es mejorable, pero es un primer disco con canciones espectaculares que merecen ser escuchadas (Watching Over, Brave New World, por ejemplo).Los escuché en directo en Alemania, en el Rock am Ring, sin conocerlos siquiera y al llegar a casa necesitaba saber más de ellos. Espero que lleguen lejos, saquen más música y ayuden a esta indústria, cada día más en decadencia. Y que la crítica no los devore y los hunda (y sigo sin entender bien por qué, ¿aprovecharle de la viralidad de un grupo con talento para que tu artículo cargado de odio llegue más lejos?).Un saludo y larga vida al rock.

They say artists borrow and great artists steal. Whether or not Greta van Fleet will be called great remains to be seen.We have here the young lads' first album proper after two EPs. The foursome has it where it counts; if you are going to ride on the coat tails of Led Zepplin, you can't be second rate when it comes playing your music. These boys are anything but second rate, as anyone who has heard them can attest. This is a strong debut album. They have clearly progressed from their previous releases. The song writing is solid. The musicianship is first class. This is an album that will be no stranger to my turntable.This is a band definitely keeping an eye (or an ear) on. It is easy to dismiss them as Led Zeppelin imitators (the new Kingdom Come?). Other bands have started off in the shadow of a giant and went on to do their own thing. Greta van Fleet deserves the opportunity to do the same.

Brilliant band, lot of people will compare them to Led Zeppelin, but that commonality is only on their style of music. How they sound is truly unique and refreshing. I haven't bought an album in a very long time, but after hearing their song "When the curtain falls" a couple of times on the radio, I had to know who they were and what other music they had produced. Though none of the other songs on the album produce that same goosebumpy feel as "When the curtain falls", they still leave a pleasant feeling on my mind after hearing them. I'm glad I bought the album and glad I've found a new band to closely follow.In order for the whole album to have been a five star, we need more songs that fully showcase not only the fantastic sharp rock vocals of the singer with upernova energy, but also more of that great guitar rifts and thundering of drums.

Really enjoyed the debut EP so couldn’t wait for this. Unfortunately they seem to have lost some of the spark, I found this album to be very samey, nothing really stands out. You’ve got the same mix of modern / bluesy Rock, with a huge dose of Led Zep (including folky Zep encountered on latter albums) but this time out it seems to feel even more derivative. There are some great bands giving the 70’s Rock thing a new focus but this album isn’t amongst the best. Try some Kadaver or Blues Pills instead. Not a bad album just not very interesting in my opinion. Keep an eye on these lads though as they’re only young and I’m sure they’ve got a great album in them.

Arrivatomi a casa in pre-ordine con due giorni di anticipo rispetto alla data di uscita, dopo diversi ascolti, ho trovato quest'album un ottimo prodotto, registrato e confezionato con cura, che, sebbene non presenti un sound né rivoluzionario né innovativo ai massimi livelli, presenta alcune punte di eccellenza tra cui "Watching Over", la creativa "Lover, Leaver (Taker, Believer)" e l'ambiziosa "Brave New World", mentre il resto del materiale è senza dubbio pescato a piene mani dai successi discografici dei Led Zeppelin, ma è in generale di buonissimo livello, se rapportato specialmente alle mediocri produzioni Rock dell'ultimo decennio. In sostanza, un ottimo lavoro che rappresenta un buonissimo punto di partenza per un gruppo che, se manterrà intatta la propria già forte identità artistica, innovandola con scelte assennate e non dettate dal facile successo, farà certamente molto ben parlare di se negli anni a venire.

I'm a bit late to the party.I knew of Greta Van Fleet a couple of years ago, but never bothered to buy anything from them because I buy very few CDs these days, mostly going for video games instead.However, I recently plumped for their debut album as I thought it about time, and I'm not disappointed at all. It's a great debut album from an exciting new group. Of course they sound like Led Zeppelin, but I don't see that as ANY disadvantage, particularly as there are precisely ZERO Led Zeppelins about at the moment.the only thing I would say as a negative for this album is that it feels a bit safe. I've also got their debut EP and that is slightly more impressive. Not only for the number of tracks included, but the quality of songs too. That's not to say these are bad in any way, I just think that edges it in comaprison.But on the whole, "anthem" is a great purchase. A well-welcomed breath of fresh air in a time of sanitised, dull, boring, mass market music. I look forward to hearing what the future holds for them and I cross my fingers that "second album syndrome" is something they don't suffer from.A worthy purchase, and needs to be accompanied with their EP "from the Fires".

To my ears, the opening track sounds more like Yes than Led Zeppelin (despite the reference to lands of ice and snow) but overall they sound like Greta van Fleet. An accomplished first 'full' album. I look forward to hearing more from them.