Julien Vasseur
France

Julien Vasseur

Power, progressive, symphonic and folk editor. Conservatory-trained, left for a Blind Guardian show and never went back. The flamboyant one.

Power Metal Progressive Metal Symphonic Metal Folk Metal

Julien studied composition at a French conservatoire until a Blind Guardian concert made the decision for him. He has spent the years since writing about the parts of metal that care about arrangement: power metal, progressive metal, symphonic and folk, dressed for the occasion in velvet and rings.

He reads scores, he counts bars, and he will tell you exactly which key change a chorus depends on. His articles are long, technical when they need to be, and dry in their humour. He has strong views on choirs.

Reviews by Julien Vasseur

10 reviews · average score 8.4 out of 10

Hansen — Born with a Hammer 8.0

Hansen

Born with a Hammer

2026 · Power Metal

Ten years away, and the range is real even where the sequencing is not.

Julien Vasseur Sep 19, 2026

Green Carnation — A Dark Poem, Part III: The Messiah Complex 8.5

Green Carnation

A Dark Poem, Part III: The Messiah Complex

2026 · Progressive Metal

A final cadence worth the year of waiting, if you waited.

Julien Vasseur Sep 12, 2026

Kamelot — Dark Asylum 7.0

Kamelot

Dark Asylum

2026 · Power Metal

The orchestra wins every argument, and the guitars stopped having them.

Julien Vasseur Sep 5, 2026

Xandria — Eclipse 7.5

Xandria

Eclipse

2026 · Symphonic Metal

Beautifully engineered clockwork and a superb singer, circling a sky already mapped

Julien Vasseur Aug 26, 2026

Helloween — Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I 9.0

Helloween

Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I

1987 · Power Metal

The first true map of power metal, and only half the continent

Julien Vasseur Aug 23, 2026

Opeth — Blackwater Park 9.3

Opeth

Blackwater Park

2001 · Death Metal

Still water over a drowned forest, and every tooth still sharp.

Julien Vasseur Aug 19, 2026

Blind Guardian — Nightfall in Middle-Earth 8.8

Blind Guardian

Nightfall in Middle-Earth

1998 · Heavy Metal

Eleven songs of genuine grandeur, and eleven fragments that are not songs.

Julien Vasseur May 23, 2026

Evergrey — Theories of Emptiness 8.0

Evergrey

Theories of Emptiness

2024 · Power Metal

Swedish progressive metal titans Evergrey are set to release their fourteenth studio album, Theories of Emptiness, on Ju...

Julien Vasseur Jun 8, 2024

Kalmah — Kalmah 8.5

Kalmah

Kalmah

2023 · Power Metal

Despite its low profile on mainstream end-of-year lists, Kalmah's self-titled album is a remarkable addition to their di...

Julien Vasseur Sep 14, 2023

Therion — Leviathan 9.0

Therion

Leviathan

2021 · Death Metal

Listening to Therion’s early releases, which were a mix of death and doom metal with symphonic elements, I was curious a...

Julien Vasseur May 6, 2022

Articles by Julien Vasseur

Herman Li and Sam Totman of DragonForce playing guitars live at the Forum, London, November 2019 Genre Histories

Guitar Hero and Power Metal: The Song That Crossed the Atlantic

Sep 28, 2026

Sabaton, the five members standing in a city alley, 2025 Explainers

What Genre Is Sabaton?

Sep 25, 2026

A festival crowd seen from behind, fists and horns raised, the lit stage and pyrotechnics beyond them Explainers

The Power Metal Underground and Its Fans

May 28, 2026

Gamma Ray guitarists Kai Hansen and Henjo Richter playing side by side under red and amber stage light Explainers

The Visual Language of Power Metal: Covers, Logos and Symbols

May 21, 2026

Grave Digger singer Chris Boltendahl with his fist raised and the microphone at his mouth, the guitarist beside him under red stage light Explainers

What Power Metal Sings About: Dragons, Battles, Faith and the Stars

May 14, 2026

Rhapsody of Fire guitarist Roby De Micheli playing live, lunging forward with a green guitar, the band's backdrop banner behind him and the drummer and keyboard player in the background Explainers

How Power Metal Is Recorded: The Studios, the Producers and the Sound

May 7, 2026

The five members of Angra standing together in leather jackets for a studio group portrait, the singer crouched at the front with one hand held out Explainers

How Power Metal Is Built: Harmony, Speed, Instruments and the Voice

Apr 30, 2026

The five members of Symphony X standing shoulder to shoulder in a black and white studio portrait, all in dark clothing Explainers

The Power Metal Subgenres and Its Family Tree

Apr 23, 2026

The five members of Unleash the Archers standing in a row on a gravel path under a wooden trestle bridge in a forest Essential Albums

The Essential Power Metal Albums

Apr 16, 2026

The four members of Blind Guardian standing in a row in front of a rusted metal wall for an official press portrait Essential Albums

The Power Metal Bands and Groups You Need to Know

Apr 9, 2026

Rata Blanca's singer and guitarist playing at the front of the stage under red and white lights, a wall of amplifiers behind them Explainers

Power Metal Around the World: The Regional Scenes

Apr 2, 2026

Yngwie Malmsteen mid solo with his scalloped Stratocaster, one finger raised to the crowd, his name lit on the screen behind him Genre Histories

Hall of the Mountain King: When Savatage Borrowed from Grieg

Apr 1, 2026

Michael Schenker on stage with his black and white Flying V, one hand raised to the crowd, a wall of amplifiers behind him Genre Histories

Accept, Scorpions and the German Roots of Power Metal

Mar 31, 2026

The five members of Crimson Glory against a corrugated metal wall, wearing the silver mouth masks the band has used since its first records Genre Histories

Transcendence and the High Point of US Power Metal

Mar 29, 2026

The five members of Judas Priest standing on the empty floor of a stadium in front of the stage, tour banners carrying the Painkiller sleeve art behind them Genre Histories

Painkiller and the Power Metal Question

Mar 28, 2026

The five members of Primal Fear sitting together on a black sofa in a red lit studio room Genre Histories

From the Grunge Years to the Charts: Power Metal Since 1990

Mar 26, 2026

The five members of Jag Panzer in black leather, lit against a dark backdrop for a black and white studio portrait Genre Histories

Ample Destruction and the Sound of Early US Power Metal

Mar 25, 2026

Dave Murray playing guitar and Steve Harris playing bass side by side at the front of a festival stage Explainers

Is Iron Maiden Power Metal?

Mar 24, 2026

The five members of Kamelot standing together in a candlelit gothic interior for an official band portrait Explainers

US Power Metal vs European Power Metal

Mar 23, 2026

Ronnie James Dio in a black and white photograph, sitting on the front wing of a limousine at night with a lit tree behind him Explainers

Is Dio Power Metal?

Mar 22, 2026

Phil Anselmo singing barefoot at the microphone while the guitarist leans into a solo in the foreground, the band name burning on the screen behind them Genre Histories

Pantera's Power Metal and What the Phrase Meant in 1988

Mar 21, 2026

A festival crowd with arms and horns raised in the foreground, the lit stage beyond them and fireworks bursting overhead Explainers

Why Power Metal Belongs to Europe

Mar 20, 2026

The five members of Fates Warning posed on a rooftop at dusk, one crouched at the front, air handling units behind them Genre Histories

American Steel: US Power Metal, the Heavier Branch

Mar 19, 2026

Peavy Wagner of Rage close to the camera on stage, pointing at the crowd, his bass strap over his shoulder Genre Histories

From Speed Metal to Power Metal: The Bridge

Mar 18, 2026