Night on Bröcken is the debut studio album by the American progressive metal band Fates Warning, released in September 1984 through Metal Blade Records.
Goldmine described the sound as "a classy brand of traditional heavy metal".
The title of the album is apparently a reference to the Brocken, a mountain in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, which is traditionally associated with witches (Walpurgis Night), most famously in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust (1806–1831). The reference becomes apparent on two original album covers that "were scrapped prior to major distribution"."Night On Bröcken". fateswarning.com. Archived from the original on April 17, 2011. Retrieved January 28, 2020. The spelling is a typical example of a "metal umlaut".
Reissues Night on Bröcken has been reissued several times. The first edition, featuring the original cover art, was released only on vinyl"Fates Warning – Night On Bröcken". Discogs. Retrieved March 17, 2015. and cassette."Fates Warning – Night On Bröcken". Discogs. Retrieved March 17, 2015. A CD edition with new cover art was released in 1988."Fates Warning – Night On Bröcken". Discogs. Retrieved March 17, 2015. A double compilation album, packaged together with The Spectre Within (1985), was released in 1992."Fates Warning – Night On Bröcken / The Spectre Within". Discogs. Retrieved March 17, 2015. A remastered edition of Night on Bröcken was released in 1994,"Fates Warning – Night On Bröcken". Discogs. Retrieved March 17, 2015. followed by another in 2002; the latter containing four bonus tracks and restoring the original cover art, albeit with a different font."Fates Warning – Night On Bröcken". Discogs. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
Critical reception
Robert Taylor at AllMusic awarded Night on Bröcken two stars out of five, calling it "A very humble beginning for this excellent progressive band" but stopping short of actually recommending it for fans of progressive metal: "Metal fans will find this too close to Iron Maiden, and progressive fans should skip this altogether."
Track listing
Personnel Fates Warning John Arch – vocals, production Jim Matheos – guitar, production Victor Arduini – guitar, production Joe DiBiase – bass, production Steve Zimmerman – drums, production
Additional credits mixed at Track Record, Los Angeles Bill Metoyer, Brian Slagel – mixing Doug Clark – engineering
References