REVIEW: Froglord - Metamorphosis

Froglord, the amphibious stoner metal force hailing from the swamps of Bristol, are coming back with the much-awaited continuation of the story of Herman, The Man, and his journey to become Herman The Toad, in order to save the world and become the spiritual guide of the Frog Lord himself. The new album, aptly titled Metamorphosis, is the fifth instalment in The Tale of The Froglord, and consists of eight tracks that are all in keeping with the lore of the band, and a ninth one being a cover of the hit ‘Sweet Emotion’ by Aerosmith.

The tracks on the album are all unique in their own way. For example, the song ‘Herman’, which was also the first single from the album, is a catchy song about the protagonist and his mission that - whilst primarily leaning on the guitars and drums - uses a number of other sounds within the melody such as harmonica, that are not typical for the band’s songs or genre, yet adds more depth to the song. As we can hear in ‘Herman’, but also other songs such as ‘Mutation’, the vocalists often change their voices to compliment the music, playing around with tones, depth, clear vocals, and screams. In some instances, it is an important finishing touch, but in other cases, such as ‘Mutation’ and ‘Follow The Star’, it can get a bit overwhelming, especially when combined with such heavy drums and guitars.

Throughout the album, we hear a band that's not only using their own knowledge of the genre to their advantage, but also going beyond this as they're not afraid to experiment with different styles. This is shown very clearly in the fifth track on the album, ‘Cryptids’, which is also the most recently released and final single before the grand release. Froglord do always know how to execute their doomy riffs and gloomy lyrics to perfection, and this song is a notable example of it. Paired up with a catchy synth and tempo that makes you want to head-bang for the duration of the track, it guarantees a spectacular explosion within the crowd.

As the story of the all-mighty Frog Lord progresses further throughout Metamorphosis, we are getting closer and closer to the grand finale, in the form of the last original song on the album that concludes the transformation of Herman into his toad form, named simply ‘Emergence Of The Toad’. Utilising sludgy riffs and swift drums, the track is most certainly one of the strongest on the album. The vocals heard across the song fit the atmosphere well, giving us a serious and grand finale to Herman’s big alteration, allowing us to see how it all links into the rest of Froglord's discography and lore.

At the end of the album, the band decided to include a cover of Aerosmith’s classic song ‘Sweet Emotion’. The band give the song a very shiny new coat here, that causes it to fit in very nicely with the rest of their songs, yet managing to stay true to the original song in a combo that's likely to be an absolute fan-favourite. The combination of sludgy stoner metal and classic rock gave the band an opportunity to experiment with their limits, and they've made it well worth their time.

Metamorphosis is a complex album, continuing with the legacy of Herman The Man, that is well written both musically and within the band's own lore. Froglord have once again proved that they can play around with any music ideas and transform them into songs that are not just catchy, but also groovy and . Although the combination of different sounds and voices can sometimes be quite challenging, especially after listening to the album for a while, it is still a fascinating piece to listen to, and absolutely worth checking out if the cultof amphibious metal sounds like your cup of tea.

Score: 7/10

Metamorphosis will be released on May 2nd 2025.

Words: Katerina Stepanikova

Photos: Froglord