There are many bands playing death metal - but yet so few who truly ARE death metal. It's a sacrilege of sorts to repeat the history of Sweden's UNLEASHED for their 7th studio album again and again. Should it need repeating, Johnny Hedlund formed the evil horde in 1989 after the demise of the legendary band Nihilist (the remains of which went on to form Entombed). Since the release of the first album Where No Life Dwells in 1991, UNLEASHED have been one of the most influential bands of the whole scene and every true death metal fan has seen them more than once live on tours with such like-minded brothers as Death, Morbid Angel, At The Gates, Cannibal Corpse, Entombed and Samael.

Here they are back in full effect to show once more who's still on the forefront of the never-dying scene. The new album Sworn Allegiance starts off with the hellspeed of "Winterland" and doesn't slow down till the classic and groovy midtempo neck-breaker "The Longships Are Coming", that deals with one of UNLEASHED's main topics, the ancient Viking godfathers, of which Hedlund says: "Lindisfarne is said to be the first evidence of a Viking attack in the year of 793. One can only imagine what it must have been like for the monks in the monastery when they realized what was coming their way. Praying to God for help didn’t help much…" But UNLEASHED are also showing a good sense of black humour in "Only The Dead" and are paying the ultimate respect to their fans with the hymn "Metalheads": "We have the most faithful and dedicated fans in the world. Catch Unleashed live and see for yourselves! death metal…by fans…for fans!"

Once more the mighty line-up of Johnny (Bass & Vocals), Fredrik (Lead Guitar), Tomas (Rhythm Guitar) and Anders (Drums) have created a diversified anthem of Northern glory. The powerful sound of Sworn Allegiance was mixed by Fredrik Folkare at Chrome Studios and mastered by Peter In de Betou from Tailor Maid Productions (Dimmu Borgir, Amon Amarth, Katatonia, etc.) and you better get down on your knees to hail the death metal warriors!