BERGFRIED – Romantik III
Release Date: 24th October 2025
Label: High Roller Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Black Metal, Speed Metal.
FFO: Tower, Phantom Spell, Smoulder, Century.
Review By: Mark Waight
Perhaps unsurprisingly named because it is Austrian-Hungarian duo BERGFRIED’s third album “Romantik III” is also their debut release for Germany based High Roller Records. Following on from “Romantik I” (2022) and “Romantik II” (2023) this third outing completes the fascinating metal trilogy with a genre bending genre blending twist to deliver a true grandstand finale.
BERGFRIED is Erech von Lothringen (all instruments) and Anna de Savoy (vocals) with guest appearances from Maria Nesh (Red Eye Temple), Sarah Kitteringham (Smoulder) and Davide Moras (Elvenking) all serving to enhance the mix on this excellent recording.
Spreading its “Dark Wings” and ruffling a few feathers along the way, the superb opening track soars higher and at a much quicker pace than I had ever anticipated, completely whetting the appetite and desire to hear more. The song is much lighter and airier than its title at first indicates, instantly giving you an unexpected lift and boosting your interest further.
Catchy and retro infused song “Fallen from Grace” will almost certainly have you singing-along way before the end of this funky, fun and 80s inspired classic rock tune. Harder and heavier, next up “Queen of the Dead” is pure heavy metal theatre at its finest, so buckle up and enjoy this breakneck speed roller coaster ride with a big nod to the likes of Meatloaf pumping through its veins and running deep within its DNA.
Melancholy, emotional, almost rock ballad-esque “For the Cursed” is an absolute banger of a tune. This slow burner builds up the intensity and energy steadily throughout without ever fully letting go, hence keeping you firmly on the hook and drooling for more. Firing on all cylinders once more, “Gates of Fate” burns all in its wake with Anna de Savoy’s vocal range getting a full on, eye watering and jaw dropping workout of epic proportions – let’s rock!
As “Serenades” go this one is in a completely different league from the usual fare, it’s quick, it’s sharp and has an irresistible ABBA like aura about it, sensational stuff! Awesome track “Tears of a Thousand Years” certainly rolls back the years to the days when rock ruled the airways, and will assuredly bring a tear or two to your eyes as the memories come flooding back once more. How I long for a return to those long-lost days of my youth!
I don’t know about “Star-Crossed Love”, but I am completely in love with BERGFRIED’s musical prowess at this point, this beautiful duet is intoxicating, captivating and totally engaging as well as being an absolute belter of a song too. The to die for guitar solo is simply divine! After all this excitement I, for one, will be coming “Back for More” in the future and hopefully BERGFRIED will be too as they bring the house down with this superb sing-along and epic hard rocking curtain closer to a standing ovation!
“Romantik III” is an immensely enjoyable and thoroughly absorbing album with a fabulous feel-good factor deeply engrained within every single composition despite the dark sounding titles. You simply don’t get that every day, especially with something marketed as black metal leaning because “Romantik III” is way much more than that, fully embracing a wide scope of other genres, too. BERGFRIED have conspired to create an absolute cracker of an album here, and hopefully with a fair wind behind them, they will reap the richly deserved rewards for “Romantik III” along the way! Very highly recommended!
(4.5 / 5)
