What's a Gloryhammer?
Long Live the Kingdom of Fife!
2023
Recorded 11-1-2023 between 5:26 and 5:34 PM EDT
Comments: Coughs ain't fun, but this band is awesome.

Goblin King of the Darkstorm Galaxy
Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards
2015
Recorded 11-2-2023 between 5:31 and 5:33 PM EDT
Song Meaning: This song, sung from the perspective of Zargothrax, follows him as he journeys to the Darkstorm Galaxy to retrieve aid from the Goblin King. The King gives him ancient magic crystal, which will unlock the Chaos Portal to Hell in the dwarven caverns beneath Dundee. Using the portal, Zargothrax and the Chaos Wizards will be able to unleash the Elder God Kor-Virliath onto the universe.
Comments: I originally recorded this a day earlier (like I said in the intro recording), but I didn't like how it came out, so I posted that one as a "single" and then rerecorded the song because my voice is much better today. (In case you didn't know or couldn't tell, I write the comments after recording the song, while I listen to it to make sure it sounds good.)
Single Version (posted 11-2-2023)

Legend of the Astral Hammer
Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards
2015
Recorded 11-2-2023 between 5:38 and 5:41 PM EDT
Song Meaning: (Chronologically, I think this is set at the same time as "Goblin King.") Prince Angus McFife XIII, descendant of the legendary liberator of Dundee, is defending the Moon from goblins and dragons when he learns of Zargothrax's escape. The Prince of Fife then vows to defeat him with his Astral Hammer, the renamed Hammer of Glory, which has been passed down through his family since the 10th Century.
Comments: This is an awesome song to sing! The chorus was a bit hard at times, and you can tell that because my pitch changed a couple times, but I think I did pretty good. Also, in the original version of the song, there's no "ohhhhhh" between that verse of the bridge before the final chorus. It's a heavenly chorus-type sound over the keyboard, but I personally think what I did was cooler.
Single Version (posted 11-5-23)

The Hollywood Hootsman
Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards
2015
Recorded 11-2-2023 between 5:52 and 5:54 PM EDT
Song Meaning: Angus journeys around the Earth to gather allies, heading to California to seek out the aid of the barbaric Hootsman, who fought alongside Angus McFife I long ago. It's also theorized that this song is a tribute to Arnold Schwarzenegger, as it mentions him finding fame in Hollywood and being "the greatest movie star who ever walked the land." In addition, referring to him as the king of California could be a reference to Arnold's time as the state's governor.
Comments: HOOTS! HOOTS! HOOTS! (Blame the Halloween candy. I just had my second mini Hershey's bar for the day...)

Questlords of Inverness, Ride to the Galactic Fortress!
Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards
2015
Recorded 11-3-2023 between 3:37 and 3:40 PM EDT
Song Meaning: After joining forces with the reformed Space Knights of Crail, now led by Ser Proletius and Ser Regulon (this happened in "Victorious Eagle Warfare"), the group cross paths with the Questlords of Inverness, and together, they all make their way towards Mars for the final showdown against Zargothrax and his demons. As far as who they are goes, the only information available is the lyrics of the song (and bear in mind that there's a whole fandom for the band and its lore). I found a Reddit post where someone asked the same question as me, and there's one comment I particularly like where a user named Jpiter suggests that they're "a group of elite cavalry (think Cossacks) that only help the king when it's really necessary." The song also states that they're traveling through time, so they're probably also time travelers of some sort.
Comments: This was both the hardest and my least favorite song to record. I didn't know the song that well compared to the others, but I based the list of songs for this blog on the Gloryhammer songs I listen to practically every day (in the same order), and since this one was one of them, I felt I should include it. The only part I'm really good at singing is the bridge, which isn't too hard, but Thomas Winkler really high notes for most of the song (namely the intro/outro and chorus), and I was fighting a voice crack every time I sang those parts. My least favorite part of the song itself is the second chorus, 'cause it was just crap. (Or as LegendarySi would say, carp.) On the bright side, now I can move on to the stuff I've been looking forward to, especially the next song.

Universe on Fire
Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards
2015
Recorded 11-3-2023 between 3:48 and 3:50 PM EDT
Song Meaning: It is unclear who this song is about. Some sources suggest that it's about Zargothrax and his desire to rule the galaxy (which would explain why the chorus mentions wanting to set the universe on fire), the good guys (like Angus) are the only ones who ride dragons, which the protagonist is mentioned riding in the first verse. Personally, I think it's Zargothrax, because "Heroes (of Dundee)," which comes right after this, is very clearly about Angus and co. heading to Mars for the battle. However, according to one Reddit user, the CD booklet says the last three lines of the second verse (everything after "Charging my solar gun and prepare for epic fight" and before the pre-chorus) are the only part's sung from Zargothrax's perspective.
Comments: Easily my favorite song from Space 1992 to sing. I love the intro and how it sounds, and the chorus is just (insert chef's kiss). What's this? "Apocalypse 1992" is next on the list of recordings? This day just got better...

Apocalypse 1992
Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards
2015
Recorded 11-3-2023 between 4:02 and 4:07 PM EDT
Song Meaning: This is the closing track on the album. It's about the epic battle on Mars between Angus McFife, the Space Knights of Crail, the Questlords of Inverness, and the Hollywood Hootsman and Zargothrax, the Chaos Wizards, and their demon horde. The opening narration describes the armies assembling in the skies above the planet while Zargothrax heads down to Earth to visit the caves under Dundee, where he puts the Goblin King's crystal into the Chaos Portal and recites an incantation, activating it and initiating the summoning of Kor-Virliath. The heroes and villains of the story battle, with the forces of justice being led into the fight by the Space Knights. Then, the dwarves of Aberdeen arrive, but are swiftly killed by the demons and wizards. Zargothrax monologues about his plans, and Ralathor arrives from the caves bearing important news. He tells the Hootsman of Zargothrax’s plan, which prompts the barbarian to reveal that he is, in fact, a cyborg powered by a neutron star. Knowing the only way to save the galaxy will be to destroy Earth, he flies to Fife and blows his nuclear heart up, imploding his home world and everyone on it, as well as the Chaos Portal. The force of the blast tears a rift in space-time known as the Terrorvortex of Kor-Virliath, which Zargothrax weakly pulls himself through. Angus follows him, setting up the story for the next album.
Comments: Always fun to sing that song. My favorite part is definitely everything between "From the caves beneath Dundee" and the final chorus. Also, fun fact, apparently Christopher Bowes mimes both the spoken intro and outro and the keyboard parts of this song during live performances. There's a live video one of the concert attendees posted, and in the comments, someone spoke about how it was mimed, and another guy replied and said they saw them live and Bowes knocked over the mic on his keyboard, but the intro didn't stop...
Single Version (posted 10-15-2023)

Terrorvortex Catch-Up
Long Live the Kingdom of Fife!
2019
Recorded 11-3-2023 between 4:14 and 4:19 PM EDT
Comments: I actually really like the whole alternate reality concept, as cliché as it is. (Come to think of it, it's kinda like the plot of the Ice Chapter of Ninjago season 11 with Zane and the Never-Realm. Oh hey, the first episode of that chapter aired 3 months after the release of Terrorvortex!)

Hootsforce
Legends from Beyond the Galactic Terrorvortex
2019
Recorded 11-3-2023 between 4:37 and 4:39 PM EDT
Song Meaning: After recharging the Hammer of Glory, Angus McFife XVIII returns to Fife. The resistance gathers aboard the DSS Hootsforce, a flying submarine captained by Sub Commander Ralathor, and they set course for Cowdenbeath, where they will make their final stand against Zargothrax, the Deathknights of Crail, the goblin horde, and the mind-controlled people of Dundee.
Comments: I really enjoy singing the pre-chorus before the second chorus. It feels really out of place in the song to me (don't know why), but it's just so cool at the same time. (Holy crap, it's time for the last song. I really did this all in one day? Thank you, school administrators, for the half-day.)
Single Version (posted 11-5-2023)

The Fires of Ancient Cosmic Destiny
Legends from Beyond the Galactic Terrorvortex
2019
Recorded 11-3-2023 between 4:55 and 5:02 PM EDT
Song Meaning: This song, the closing track on the Terrorvortex album, details the events that occurred during the final battle against Zargothrax. It's broken up into five parts, with Part I being titled "Dundaxian Overture." Part II is "The Battle of Cowdenbeath," III is "Return of the Astral Demigod of Unst," IV is "The Knife of Evil," and V is "Transmission." Part I is just the intro to the song, but II and III are where the action happens. In Part II, the Hootsforce arrives in Cowdenbeath. The resistance disembarks, ready to fight. The gates of the Fortress of Crail open, releasing the Deathknights of Crail, led by Grandmaster Dreadlord Ser Proletius, riding atop of undead eagles. Behind them are Zargothrax's armies, and the battle begins. Ralathor fires the Hootsforce's arsenal of nuclear missiles, vaporizing the Deathknights. However, the solar conjunction is nigh, and Zargothrax gloats about his impending ascension to godhood. Part III starts, beginning with the arrival of the Hootsman. As it turns out, when he blew himself up to destroy Earth at the end of Space 1992, the energies of the Terrorvortex merged him with the fabric of this alternate reality, sending him back in time and turning him into that Earth's god. This explains why the people of Fife worship him as a god, and why Angus keeps hearing mentions of him. (Like in the name of the submarine.) Reunited with Angus, the two warriors cleave through their enemies, making their way towards Zargothrax. Angus gives the Hootsman the Hammer of Glory, and with it, he kills Zargothrax. As the dark wizard crumbles away, however, Angus realizes he has been stabbed by the Knife of Evil, marking the beginning of Part IV. Knowing he will soon be corrupted like Proletius and the Space Knights were, the great prince of Fife climbs up the mountain of Schiehallion, throwing himself into its volcanic fires. (I presume that these are the titular "fires of ancient cosmic destiny," as it was likely Angus' destiny to die like this. Also, in real life, Schiehallion is just a mountain northwest of Dundee, but like the other locations in Gloryhammer songs, it's been embellished.) We have a reprise of the intro, and the song slowly fades out. Part V begins, and it's very eerie. A transmission is sent, as is a Morse Code message, which translates to "Activate Zargothrax Clone Alpha 1." The clone is being sent back in time to the year 1022, which allows both Zargothrax and Angus (or rather, a descendant of him) to appear on the next album.
Comments: This song reminds me so much of Lord of the Rings, and I love that. It's really epic, which is perfect for the stuff the lyrics are about, and it would've been so cool if they made a music video for it. (The fanmade one is good, though.) In terms of my favorite part, I think it's Part II, just because I like singing the verses and the "For the king of space" part. Going back to the whole song, I like how Zargothrax interrupts parts of it to explain the story, and also when the Hootsman says his spoken part. I can picture him leaping into the air and crushing Zargothrax with the Hammer of Glory, anime-style, whenever I sing or hear it. And for those wondering, yes, I put "Activate Zargothrax Clone Alpha 1" into a Morse code translator to play it in the recording. In the song, I think it's sped up, but still, it was pretty cool to do.
Single Version (Parts II and II only; posted 10-21-2023)

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I hope you liked that! I might do another Gloryhammer singing blog when I hear songs from the other albums, but now, I'm moving on to Iron Maiden. I didn't expect to get this one do so quickly, but I had a half-day on the 3rd, so after school and brunch with my grandma, I just went straight to recording. The quick finish is also why I decided to post this in November even though I had already posted the November blog, since, once I finish something, I can't wait too long to show it to others. Truth be told, the quick finish and early release is also partly because I'm really excited to start working on the Iron Maiden blog and get it out earlier (it's scheduled for January, but I may post it in December since that month's blog is the one you're reading right now). After all, I have 32 songs and 2 medleys all planned out, and all of which I can't wait to sing. Anyways, I'll let you go now. See you on the Iron Maiden blog!