Threshold (album) explained

Threshold
Type:	studio
Artist:	HammerFall
Cover:	HammerFall - Threshold.jpg
Released:	18 October 2006
Recorded:	2006, Lundgård Studios, Denmark
Genre:	Power metal, heavy metal
Length:	50:30
Label:	Nuclear Blast
Producer:	Charlie Bauerfeind
Prev Year:	2005
Next Year:	2007

Threshold is the sixth studio album by Swedish power metal band HammerFall, released on 18 October 2006.^[1] The album entered the Swedish charts at number one, staying on the chart for eight weeks.^[2] It was the band's first number 1 album since Renegade in 2000.^[3] It is currently the last HammerFall studio album with guitarist Stefan Elmgren and bassist Magnus Rosén, as Rosén left the band in 2007 and Elmgren left in 2008.^[4]
The cover artwork was created by Samwise Didier.

The guitar solo of "Howlin' With the 'Pac" is essentially a reworked version of the one from "Hearts on Fire". As with several songs on the previous album, the song "Dark Wings, Dark Words" is inspired by A Song of Ice and Fire.^[5]

Music videos

• The song "Natural High" was made into a music video depicting Hector the Knight battling vampires in a decrepit castle; he managed to kill most of the vampires with his hammer, but one of them escapes, leaving Hector by himself. The video itself is a montage alternating between the band and the action, which is shot in live-action and complemented with CGI.^[6]
• The song "The Fire Burns Forever" was also made into a music video.^[7] The band recorded it with some of the Swedish participants in the European Athletics Championships.^[8]

Single "The Fire Burns Forever"

"The Fire Burns Forever" was also released as a single and only available as a download between 6 August and 6 September 2006, exclusively at the ITunes Store and Nuclear Blast Musicshop. Hammerfall and the athletes also performed "The Fire Burns Forever" at the official opening of the Championships on 6 August in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Personnel

• Joacim Cans – lead vocals
• Oscar Dronjak – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, programming
• Stefan Elmgren – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards, programming
• Magnus Rosén – bass
• Anders Johansson – drums

Backing vocals by Oliver Hartmann, Rolf Köhler, Olaf Zenkbiel, Mats Rendlert, Joacim Lundberg, Markus Sköld, and Johan Aremyr

Chart positions

^[9]

• Sweden: #1
• Germany: #15
• Austria: #30
• Switzerland: #32
• France: #192

External links

• Lyrics at Darklyrics
• Official band website
• Album information

Notes and References

1. Web site: Threshold | Hammerfall - Official Webpage . 28 August 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131203140754/http://www.hammerfall.net/releases/albums/threshold/ . 3 December 2013 .
2. Web site: Threshold in Swedish charts. swedishcharts.com. 20 July 2009.
3. Web site: Swedish charts archive. 9 January 2010.
4. Web site: Magnus Rosén. magnusrosen.com. 23 May 2018.
5. Web site: HammerFall - Threshold - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives. metal-archives.com. 23 May 2018.
6. Web site: Hammerfall – Natural High (Official Music Video). https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211219/sDTmKNl3e6Q . 2021-12-19 . live. Nuclear Blast Records. 22 September 2006. 23 May 2018. YouTube.
7. Web site: Hammerfall – The Fire Burns Forever (Official Music Video). https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211219/Y9BwjlSLFFM . 2021-12-19 . live. Nuclear Blast Records. 24 June 2008. 23 May 2018. YouTube.
8. Web site: Hammerfall Reveal New Album Details. 23 May 2018.
9. Web site: swedishcharts.com - HammerFall - Threshold. Steffen. Hung. swedishcharts.com. 23 May 2018.