To give more exposure to their work and try for a professional recording deal, a short live performance was recorded and sent to the Dutch label, Vic Records.HammerFall soon received a deal and spent the whole of the following year writing the album Glory to the Brave. The album was initially released in the Netherlands and obtained positive feedback; it is also worthy of notice that the band'smascot, the knight Hector, first appeared on the cover of this album. As HammerFall grew in popularity, the time available for members of the band to dedicate to other projects became limited. Jesper and Glenn were committed to In Flames and Fredrik was committed to the thrash metal band Beyond. Thus, the HammerFall's line-up soon underwent changes. Stefan Elmgren assumed the lead guitar and Patrik Räfling assumed the drums (they joined the band in the end of 1997 after the release of Glory to the Brave album) and Fredrik decided to remain in the band until a suitable replacement for him was found. This happened in May - 1998, when bassist magnus Rosen joined the band. Stefan Elmgren played some of the guitars on the Glory to the Brave album (like the acoustic guitars on "I Believe") but only as a guest performer, not a member of the band.
