Swedish power metal titans Sabaton have once again teamed up with the folks at World of Warships to drop a massive new single and music video titled “Yamato”. This isn’t their first time hitting the high seas with developer Wargaming – you’ll likely remember their “Bismarck” collaboration back in 2019 – but they’ve gone all out for this one. This latest track arrives via Better Noise Music, hot on the heels of their 2025 album Legends, which was their first full-length effort for the label.
The song tells the story of the legendary Japanese battleship Yamato, a beast of a vessel unveiled in secret in 1941. It was the ultimate symbol of naval strength until its final, doomed mission to defend Okinawa in 1945. The music video, filmed in Belgrade last October, sees the band literally going down with the ship. To get the shots right, the guys faced some proper “suffer for your art” conditions, filming in ice-cold water while wearing weights under their clothes to make the sinking look real. Joakim Brodén mentioned that the track was actually written by their former guitarist, Tommy, before being “Thobbefied” once Thobbe Englund rejoined the ranks.
If you’re a gamer, there’s plenty to get stuck into as well. For the first time, a Sabaton-branded Yamato is available in-game, complete with voiceovers from Joakim and bassist Pär Sundström. You can even have “Yamato” or “Bismarck” as your battle soundtrack while you’re blasting away at enemy fleets. It’s a natural partnership, really – the band loves their history, and the game is essentially a digital museum with big guns.
While the band are currently busy with a massive North American run, we’re still waiting on confirmed UK headline dates for 2026, though they are heavily rumoured for some major festival slots this summer. We caught up with the band during their last big outing – you can check out our review of their Manchester show here to see what to expect when they finally head back our way.
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Header image by Steve Bright
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