LADY BEAST – II review

 LADY BEAST – II

Inferno Records

http://ladybeast.bandcamp.com/

Inferno Records I think does pretty much a good job at finding female fronted metal bands and when I use this term I don’t mean in the modern way, but in the  80’s way. You know, when bands like ZED YAGO, CHASTAIN and WARLOCK ruled. LADY BEAST who are hailing from the U.S. and whose debut I have already presented here is such a band; A band that sounds like coming straight from the 80’s with Deborah Levine reminding us of the good old days, but also telling us that classic heavy metal will never die.

THE COVER: Do you love sword and sorcery stories? Then you’ll probably like this cover which shows some really nasty warriors with swords in their hands and dressed in skeleton like armors. Above them you can see a not so good looking, but really pissed off witch fighting them. It is a theme that we are used to seeing in different variations on heavy metal covers, but still we love them. The cover is nice and in a way fits the sound and some of the lyrics of the band.

MUSICAL STYLE: I have already mentioned above that LADY BEAST sound like a band coming from the 80’s and that is true. Their sound is dipped in the 80’s and especially draws influences from the so important N.W.O.B.H.M. scene, but they are not stuck there. Actually these gals give their own personal touch to their influences and transform them to compositions that carry the identity of LADY BEAST’s sound.

COMPOSITIONS: The new album includes 9 new songs which lyrically cover many different themes from historic to fantasy and of course some praising the greatest way to live your life which is no other than heavy metal. The compositions of LADY BEAST are balanced between the melodic lines that are catchy and get stuck into your mind (at least most of the songs) and the heavy rhythm section that gives to the melodies an extra boost. The compositions here are made in the way that 80’s metal bands composed songs. They made it sound good on CD, but it was also ideal for live stages where people can participate and sing along. Finally the voice of Deborah Levine reminded me of Marta Gabriel (CRYSTAL VIPER). I think that this is a release that I can recommend to people who also like bands like SLOUGH FEG, COLOSSUS and BIBLE OF THE DEVIL.

CONCLUSION: There is no doubt that we live in the era that traditional heavy metal is back for good. Also there are many bands out there playing this kind of music and some of them do it better than others. I think that LADY BEAST are one of those bands that are better than others because they respect their influences, but they don’t reproduce them. They actually give them their own personal touch and that is exactly what heavy metal sound needs in order to continue to live.

Nick “Verkaim” Parastatidis