While it still has some softer, radio-friendly tracks that tend to be divisive upon the fan base, it is heavily outnumbered by the raw, cerebral, head-banging metal tracks that fans love.For Denmark's Volbeat, the truly classic rock era existed from 1953 to about 1986: from Chuck Berry and Elvis to the heyday of punk rock and thrash metal, with periods in between where rockabilly, surf, glam, and hard rock flourished. In all, Servant of the Mind is a fantastic return to form for Volbeat. It still has that hard, heavy, unique sound that put Volbeat on the map. You can definitely tell with some tracks (hell, 'Say No More' sounds like straight Metallica), but it's not so much to where it sounds unoriginal. Some people say with this album the band sounds too much like their influences, but I disagree. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it also contains what I think is Volbeat's longest track to date, 'Lasse's Birgitta,' which clocks in at just about eight minutes. 'Temple of Ekur,' the opening track, is as well. 'Shotgun Blues,' one of the promotional singles, is fantastic.

It still has some of those radio-friendly, melody-heavy tracks ('Wait a Minute My Girl,' 'Dagen For'), but they are easily outnumbered by the head-banging, powerful tracks that set Volbeat apart. It immediately jumps out as a much heavier, more cerebral record than their previous two outings. You can view Servant of the Mind as a return to form for Volbeat. It had too much emphasis on a softer, more melodic and radio-friendly sound instead of the head-banging, metal/rockabilly sound the band became famous for. I don't get the hate behind Seal the Deal, I loved it. But some people say the band has fallen off with its past few albums. Their first few albums, from SSS to Outlaw/Shady, were incredible. I've always described Volbeat as 'Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley meets Metallica.' And there aren't a lot of bands out there able to do that, let alone do it as well as Volbeat has for the past sixteen years.

One of the main things that drive not only me but many others to Volbeat is their incredibly unique sound.

Volbeat album review