Digital single · self-released · 27 May 2026 · lead single from The Neverending Story (out 15 October 2026)
There's a particular comfort in hearing a guitarist play straight to his strengths. "The Ember Saga," the lead single from OLA ENGLUND's third solo outing The Neverending Story, is exactly that — the Swedish guitarist, THE HAUNTED mainstay and Solar Guitars founder doing what he does better than most: writing riffs that hit hard and stick.
The track runs on a main guitar theme that sits right out front, singing over a bed of heavy rhythm work that periodically tightens into the faster, palm-muted chugging Englund has made his signature. Instrumental metal lives or dies on whether the lead writing can carry a song without a vocalist, and here it does — the melody leads, the riffing supports, and the two trade off cleanly throughout.
Just past the minute mark, Englund pulls everything back for a clean, dreamy interlude that lets the track breathe before the heaviness rolls back in. The main solo lands around 3:30 to tie it off.
Tonally, this is closer to his debut Master of the Universe than to Starzinger: the electronic textures that ran through the latter are gone, leaving a leaner, more straightforward, guitar-driven piece. Whether that's a deliberate reset or simply where the album landed, it suits the fantasy-and-retro-gaming framing Englund has built around the record.
As a single, it's a solid and promising opening move — enough to make the case for The Neverending Story without showing the whole hand. We'll hold off on a score until the full album is in front of us, but on this evidence, it's looking good.
Links
Listen to "The Ember Saga"
Pre-order The Neverending Story
Official website
Promo provided by Metal Devastation PR.