REVIEW: DRAGONSKULL, Chaos Fire Vengeance

 

DRAGONSKULL, Chaos Fire Vengeance (2025)

Eat Metal Records

Από πού μας έρχονται;

Οι Αθηναίοι Dragonskull είναι ένα σχετικά νέο σχήμα, με μόνο ένα ομώνυμο E.P. πίσω τους, και αυτό είναι το νέο τους άλμπουμ, που μόλις κυκλοφόρησε τον Μάρτιο που μας πέρασε.

Η μπάντα ακούγεται πολύ δεμένη στον ήχο που παρουσιάζει: κλασικό, από κάθε άποψη, Heavy Metal, με Epic στοιχεία να ξεχειλίζουν από παντού! Ένα ιδανικών αναλογιών μείγμα από οτιδήποτε έχει αγγίξει την ψυχή μας τα τελευταία σαράντα χρόνια και βάλε. Οι επιρροές είναι πολλές· διακρίνω μυρωδιές από Blind Guardian, Omen, HammerFall, Jag Panzer, Heavy Load, Ostrogoth, Manowar, Domine και, για κάτι από Ελλάδα, πολύ κοντά θα έλεγα τους έτερους πολλά υποσχόμενους Achelous.

Είναι αυτή η αίσθηση ότι μοιάζει αρκετά με πολλά αγαπημένα, πραγματικά σχήματα το απόσταγμα αυτού που ακούγεται στα οκτώ κομμάτια του CD!

Παραγωγή όπως πρέπει: από γεμάτη ως ογκώδης και, ταυτόχρονα, πολύ καθαρή.

Οι πέντε μουσικοί που αποτελούν το σχήμα είναι οι κύριοι Άρης Λάμπος στα φωνητικά, Χρήστος Μπριντζίκης και Πάνος Βλαχόπουλος στις κιθάρες, Θοδωρής Σταματιάδης στα ντραμς και Γιώργος Βουδούρης στο μπάσο.

Τα οκτώ κομμάτια έχουν τίτλους “Brethren”, “Dragon Riders”, “Skull Crusher”, “War Drums”, “Nampat”, “Skeleton Hand”, “Shield Maiden”, “Blood and Souls” και, αν και δεν το έχω εμπεδώσει καλά ακόμα, παρά τις αρκετές ακροάσεις, είναι ακριβώς αυτό που ψάχνεις άμα είσαι μεγαλωμένος με στοργή και αγάπη για τους κλασικούς αυτής της μουσικής.

English:

Where Did These Guys Come From?

The Athens-based Dragonskull are a relatively new band, with only one self-titled E.P. behind them, and now comes their new album, which was just released this past March.

The band sounds very tight in the style they present: classic Heavy Metal in every respect, with Epic elements overflowing from every direction! It is a perfectly balanced mixture of pretty much everything that has touched our souls over the last forty years and more. There are plenty of influences here; I can smell traces of Blind Guardian, Omen, HammerFall, Jag Panzer, Heavy Load, Ostrogoth, Manowar, Domine, and, for something from Greece, I would say they come very close to their fellow, highly promising Achelous.

That feeling that they sound enough like so many genuinely beloved bands is ultimately the essence of what comes through across the eight tracks on the CD!

The production is exactly as it should be: full-bodied to massive, yet very clean at the same time.

The five musicians making up the band are Aris Lampos on vocals, Christos Brintzikis and Panos Vlachopoulos on guitars, Theodoros Stamatidis on drums, and Giorgos Voudouris on bass.

The eight tracks are “Brethren”, “Dragon Riders”, “Skull Crusher”, “War Drums”, “Nampat”, “Skeleton Hand”, “Shield Maiden”, and “Blood and Souls” and, although I still haven’t fully absorbed the album despite several listens, this is exactly what you are looking for if you were raised with genuine love and affection for the classics of this music.

Τάκης "Ε-Μortal One" Γιώτης!

REVIEW: CIRCLE OF SILENCE - The Blackened Halo

 

CIRCLE OF SILENCE - The Blackened Halo (2011)

Massacre Records

If you can’t be original, at least you have to be passionate and armed with good ideas. This is the third release of the German power metal band CIRCLE OF SILENCE and, interestingly enough, it was also their first album for Massacre Records, following two independently released records, Circle Of Silence (2006) and The Supremacy Of Time (2008).

The guys are certainly not original at all. Something that doesn’t bother me, especially when a band has enough inspiration, energy and good ideas to make the familiar sound enjoyable. And CIRCLE OF SILENCE have what I need in order to enjoy their album.

Their sound, I think, is more U.S.-metal oriented, in the way that BRAINSTORM sounds too, although the German identity of the band is still obvious. Having as their basis the 80’s monsters like IRON MAIDEN, JUDAS PRIEST and SAVATAGE, their music also carries influences from later power metal and heavier contemporary acts such as CAGE and ICED EARTH. There are also moments where the aggressive guitar work and rhythmic attack bring thrash metal into the picture, giving the material a harder edge than the term “power metal” alone might suggest. Contemporary reviews likewise pointed to a mixture of power, traditional heavy metal and thrash elements rather than a strictly formulaic approach.

The album is built around the two-guitar attack of Tobias Pfahl and Christian Sommerfeld, with Peter “Pit” Suppinger providing the necessary double-bass drive and Björn Boehm holding down the rhythm section. The production puts the guitars firmly in the foreground, while keeping the rhythm section powerful and clear. The result is a sound that suits the band's aggressive material particularly well.

Their singer, Nick Keim, is another important part of the band's identity. His voice is not the typical clean and high-pitched power metal delivery. Instead, he has a rougher, angry and more aggressive tone, something that gives an extra boost to the passionate playing of the band. His approach has been compared by contemporary reviewers to singers such as Peavy Wagner of RAGE, while his gritty delivery also gives the songs a more traditional heavy-metal character.

The album contains eleven tracks, beginning with the aggressive “Synthetic Sleep” and continuing through songs such as “Left To Die”, “Exception”, “21 Grams” and the title track “The Blackened Halo”. “Never Forget” brings another dose of aggression and thrash-flavoured riffing, while “Reflections” introduces a more restrained opening before returning to the band's heavier sound. The closing “Until The Worlds Collide” is one of the longer compositions on the album, helping to give the record some variation after the predominantly direct approach of the earlier tracks.

It is this directness that works in the band's favor. CIRCLE OF SILENCE do not seem interested in reinventing power metal or pretending that they have discovered something completely new. Instead, they take familiar ingredients, play them with conviction and give the songs enough energy and melody to make the formula work. For a listener who is already familiar with the genre, there will certainly be many moments that sound familiar, but there is also enough passion in the performance to prevent the album from becoming simply another anonymous power metal release.

It is hard for me to imagine that CIRCLE OF SILENCE, with their new album The Blackened Halo, will disappoint any fan who wants to listen to some good, straightforward and energetic power metal. Actually, this album made me curious about how their previous two releases sound. I will try to find them and check them out too.

Till then, this one will keep me good company.

Nick Parastatidis

REVIEW: BLACK N’ BLUE – Hell Yeah!

 

BLACK N’ BLUE – Hell Yeah! (2011)

Frontiers Records

The return of the Black N’ Blue attitude

Who would have thought that, after more than a decade of hard rock decadence during the '90s, so many of the melodic rock and hair metal bands of the '80s would return? By 2011, a remarkable number of established names from that era were making comebacks, and Black N’ Blue were among them. Hell Yeah! is the band's fifth studio album and, more importantly, their first full-length collection of new material since In Heat in 1988.

Released through Frontiers Records in 2011, the album arrived after a particularly long and complicated road back to the studio. Black N’ Blue had reunited in 2003, with vocalist Jaime St. James and original guitarist Jef “Woop” Warner beginning work on new material, but the recording process was interrupted when St. James joined Warrant as their lead vocalist in 2004. Work eventually resumed, and the band finally secured a deal with Frontiers.

The lineup retains much of the band's classic identity. Jaime St. James remains on vocals alongside Jef “Woop” Warner on guitar, Patrick Young on bass and Pete Holmes on drums, while Shawn Sonnenschein joins on guitar. Tommy Thayer, Black N’ Blue's original guitarist, was by then firmly established in KISS, having taken over the guitar position previously occupied by Ace Frehley.

And Hell Yeah! wastes very little time reminding the listener why Black N’ Blue belonged to the American hard rock scene of the '80s.

The album explodes with the kick-ass rocker “Monkey”, immediately followed by the hard and heavy “Target”, two of the strongest songs on the record. The production is considerably more modern than the band's original albums, but the basic ingredients remain intact: chunky guitar riffs, straightforward hard rock structures, catchy choruses and the loose, slightly sleazy attitude that characterized Black N’ Blue.

Next comes the mid-tempo “Hail Hail”, built around a large arena-style chorus that makes the band's intentions perfectly clear. This is Black N’ Blue returning to their established musical territory rather than attempting to reinvent themselves. The album's own producer, Jef “Woop” Warner, described the record as a return to the band's classic sound, combining elements from their previous albums while retaining a heavier character.

There is plenty more to discover throughout the album. The fast “C’mon” delivers another dose of energetic hard rock, while “So Long” brings a more melodic side to the record without abandoning the band's identity. “Falling Down” and “Candy” continue the balance between heavier guitar-driven material and more accessible melodic writing.

Then comes “Hell Yeah!”, the title track and one of the album's most immediately memorable numbers. It carries exactly the kind of uncomplicated, celebratory hard rock attitude suggested by its title, while St. James' vocals give the song the personality associated with Black N’ Blue from the beginning of their career.

Interestingly, Hell Yeah! also contains several short, humorous interludes, including “Jaime's Got the Beer” and “Trippin'”, which reinforce the band's deliberately unpretentious attitude. The standard album closes with “World Goes Round”, while some editions include additional material such as “I Smell a Rat” and a hidden track.

Black N’ Blue had originally emerged from Portland, Oregon, before moving to Los Angeles and becoming part of the early-'80s Hollywood hard rock scene. Their debut appeared on Geffen in 1984, followed by Without Love in 1985, Nasty Nasty in 1986 and In Heat in 1988. The latter two albums were produced by KISS bassist Gene Simmons, adding another important connection between Black N’ Blue and the wider American hard rock establishment. The band's catalogue eventually exceeded one million sales in the United States.

That history makes Hell Yeah! more than simply another reunion album. There is a genuine sense of continuity here. The band does not attempt to disguise its roots or follow the production trends that had transformed melodic hard rock during the years between In Heat and this release. Instead, the record concentrates on what Black N’ Blue did best: direct riffs, memorable refrains, energetic performances and a good-time rock 'n' roll atmosphere.

It is also significant that the album was not created immediately after the reunion. Some of its material had been developing since 2003, with the project going through years of delays before finally appearing in 2011. That long gestation period gives Hell Yeah! an unusual place in the band's discography: it is simultaneously a product of a reunited band and a document of musicians who had carried their musical identity through more than two decades of change.

Hell Yeah! therefore works best when approached for what it is: a straightforward Black N’ Blue record made for listeners who still appreciate the sound, attitude and melodic hard rock spirit of the '80s. It is not trying to rewrite the band's history. It simply picks up where that history was interrupted and brings the Black N’ Blue attitude back to the front.

After a last studio album in 1988, that alone makes Hell Yeah! a noteworthy comeback — and for fans of classic American hard rock, there is plenty here to turn the volume up for.

Essential tracks: “Monkey”, “Target”, “Hail Hail”, “C’mon”, “So Long”, “Hell Yeah!”

Chris  Kappas

REVIEW: BATTLLEROAR, Codex Epicus

 

BATTLLEROAR, Codex Epicus (2018)

Cruz del Sur Music

Η επιστροφή των Τιτάνων

Το τελευταίο χρονικά άλμπουμ της μπάντας, που αν και έχει βάση την Αθήνα, είχε πάντα στο δυναμικό της ερμηνευτές από το εξωτερικό. Ο Gerrit Mutz, από το προηγούμενο Blood Of Legends, παραμένει στο μικρόφωνο, συνεχίζοντας τον μύθο αυτού του επικού Power Metal ονόματος.

Κώστας Τζώρτζης και Μιχάλης Κοντογιώργης στις δύο κιθάρες, Σωτήρης Τσακαλόγλου στο μπάσο και Γρηγόρης Βλάχος στα ντραμς, εδώ η σύνθεσή τους, με τον αχανούς αίγλης Mark Shelton (RIP) από τους Manilla Road να χαρίζει για μία τελευταία φορά, πριν χαθεί στο φως της Βαλχάλα λίγο καιρό μετά, τη φωνή του, συμμετέχοντας ξανά στους φίλους του Battleroar.

Δε χρειάζεται άλλος λόγος για να περιγράψει την επική Metal μουσική τους. Αυτά που ξέρετε: μεγαλειώδες ύφος, διθυραμβικές κιθάρες, στιβαρό rhythm section, παραγωγή καθαρή όσο δεν πάει, κομμένη με διαμάντι σε ύμνους όπως τα We Shall Conquer, Sword of the Flame, Chronicles of Might, The Doom of Medusa, Palace of the Martyrs, Kings of Old και Enchanting Threnody.

Και καλό σας ταξίδι σε έναν άλλο μαγευτικό, μυστηριώδη αλλά και βάρβαρο κόσμο, όπου το σπαθί και η αφήγηση κυριαρχούν.

English:

The Return of the Titans

The band’s latest album to date comes from a group that, although based in Athens, has always featured vocalists from abroad in its ranks. Gerrit Mutz, who also appeared on the previous Blood Of Legends, remains behind the microphone, carrying on the legacy of this epic Power Metal name.

Kostas Tzortzis and Michalis Kontogiorgis handle the two guitars, Sotiris Tsakaloglou the bass, and Grigoris Vlachos the drums. This is the line-up here, with the legendary Mark Shelton (RIP) of Manilla Road lending his voice one final time, before passing into the light of Valhalla some time later, once again joining his friends in Battleroar.

No further explanation is really needed to describe their epic Metal. You already know what to expect: majestic grandeur, triumphant guitars, a rock-solid rhythm section, and a production as crystal-clear as it gets, diamond-cutting its way through anthems such as We Shall Conquer, Sword of the Flame, Chronicles of Might, The Doom of Medusa, Palace of the Martyrs, Kings of Old and Enchanting Threnody.

And now, have a safe journey into another enchanting, mysterious yet savage world, where the sword and the tale reign supreme.

Τάκης "Ε-Μortal One" Γιώτης!

EUSAPIA Release New Single “Relapse”

 

American post-black metal project Eusapia have released their new single, “Relapse,” the lead track from a two-stage release that will conclude with the song “Mercy” on December 21.

Recorded in the band’s home studio and mixed and mastered by Somnium Recording, “Relapse” combines elements of progressive depressive suicidal black metal (DSBM), post-rock and blackgaze. The track explores themes of addiction and isolation within the Pacific Northwest.

Eusapia have also announced that a portion of the proceeds from their physical merchandise will be donated directly to regional overdose prevention and low-barrier harm-reduction initiatives.

Formed in Washington State in 2013 and emerging from the foundations of the solo project Somnium, Eusapia operate as a studio-focused blackened post-metal project based in the Cascade Mountains. The current lineup features Somnium (bass/vocals), Cleopatra the Alchemist (guitars/vocals), Deenie (drums), and guitarists Chazdyn and Frank Keeler.

The band’s recent discography includes the Formless EP (2024) and Thin Cities / Desert Festival EP (2026).

REVIEW: THE RODS PROJECT, Hollywood

 

THE RODS PROJECT, Hollywood (2015)

High Roller Records

Αυτό δεν ήξερα τι είναι.

Είναι το χαμένο άλμπουμ των The Rods; Γιατί γράφει και Project μετά; Πιο εμπορικό σίγουρα, αλλά πραγματικά μελωδικό, αμερικανικής σχολής Heavy Metal, με μια κάπως Adult Oriented Rock συνθετική δομή στα κομμάτια του.

Για την ιστορία, γράφτηκε το ’86 και δεν ξέρω τι παίχτηκε ή με ποια λογική τους βγήκε τόσο... μελωδικό και με πολλά πλήκτρα σε σημεία. Το άλλο άλμπουμ τους, το Heavier Than Thou, κυκλοφόρησε επίσημα τότε σε κλασικές Heavy Metal γραμμές. Επίσημα, η HR το κυκλοφόρησε το 2015, νομίζω, για πρώτη φορά.

Το “Mississippi Queen” των ’70s Rockers, Mountain, είναι η ενδιαφέρουσα διασκευή που υπάρχει στο CD.

Μαζί με τα “Prisoner of Love”, “Love Is Pain”, “Tokyo Rose”, “All American Boys”, “Heat of the Night”, “Don’t Take It So Hard” και “Money”, είναι... όλα τα λεφτά ενός δίσκου που με εξέπληξε ευχάριστα, όσο κι αν το ύφος του δεν παραπέμπει στους μεταλλικούς ογκόλιθους των συνηθισμένων The Rods.

Άμεσα συγκρίσιμο με το Turbo των Judas Priest ή και το Fight for the Rock των Savatage, που επίσης κυκλοφόρησαν τότε και με ανάλογο κυνήγι της εμπορικότητας, αλλά τα νικάει και τα δύο στα σημεία — και με διαφορά!

English:

I had no idea what this was.

 

Is this the lost album of The Rods? And why does it have Project added to the name? Definitely more commercial, but genuinely melodic, American-school Heavy Metal, with a somewhat Adult Oriented Rock approach to the songwriting.

 

For the record, it was recorded in ’86, and I have no idea what happened or what logic led them to make it so... melodic, with quite a lot of keyboards in places. Their other album, Heavier Than Thou, was officially released at the time along classic Heavy Metal lines. Officially, HR released this one in 2015, I think, for the first time.

 

“Mississippi Queen” by the ’70s Rockers Mountain is the interesting cover version included on the CD.

 

Along with “Prisoner of Love,” “Love Is Pain,” “Tokyo Rose,” “All American Boys,” “Heat of the Night,” “Don’t Take It So Hard” and “Money,” these are... worth their weight in gold on an album that pleasantly surprised me, even though its style is far removed from the metallic juggernauts we normally associate with The Rods.

 

It can easily be compared to Judas Priest’s Turbo or even Savatage’s Fight for the Rock, both of which were also released around that time and followed a similar pursuit of commercial appeal. But this one beats both of them where it counts — and by quite a margin!

Τάκης "Ε-Μortal One" Γιώτης!

REVIEW: SPLIT HEAVEN - Street Law

 

SPLIT HEAVEN - Street Law (2011)

Pure Steel Records

Latin America has given us some very good Heavy Metal releases through the years, and the scene continues to produce interesting bands. One problem for a major part of the international metal audience, however, has traditionally been that many of these bands use their native languages in their lyrics, while distribution outside their home countries can also be limited. Mexico’s SPLIT HEAVEN are one of the bands that managed to overcome part of this barrier, with their traditional Heavy Metal approach and English-language lyrics giving their music a wider international appeal.

“Street Law”, released by Germany’s Pure Steel Records in 2011, is an important step in the band’s early development. SPLIT HEAVEN had already established themselves in the Mexican underground, and their 2009 victory in the Mexican Metal Battle earned them the opportunity to represent their country at Wacken Open Air. The Pure Steel connection subsequently gave the band considerably wider exposure beyond Mexico.

Musically, the band moves along the traditional Heavy Metal path, incorporating melodic Speed Metal elements and an unmistakable 1980s influence. Personally, I would say that their influences come mainly from the U.S. Metal scene, and bands such as LIZZY BORDEN, LEATHERWOLF and FIFTH ANGEL seem particularly relevant when trying to place their sound. At the same time, “Street Law” belongs to the wider early-2010s revival of traditional and Speed Metal, when a new generation of bands was once again looking toward the energy, guitar work and direct songwriting of the 1980s. Contemporary reviews similarly placed SPLIT HEAVEN within this old-school Heavy/Speed Metal movement.

Having listened to the band’s previous material, I have to admit that here SPLIT HEAVEN sound more inspired and more assured. The songs are built around strong riffs, nice melodies and a dynamic production that allows the guitars, rhythm section and vocals to display their character without making the album sound unnecessarily polished. Tracks such as “Time Warrior”, “Street Law”, “Lonewolf” and “Night of the Jaguar” represent the energetic side of the album, while the melodic elements keep the record from becoming a simple exercise in retro Metal.

The singer once again performs with passion, and his English sounds very good, something that further helps the songs communicate their ideas beyond the band’s Mexican origins. The material also benefits from the fact that SPLIT HEAVEN do not try to complicate their music unnecessarily. The emphasis remains on riffs, melodies, guitar solos and straightforward Heavy Metal songwriting, which gives “Street Law” an immediate character.

Another interesting aspect of the album is precisely its geographical origin. At a time when much of the international Heavy Metal revival was being associated with Northern Europe, releases such as “Street Law” demonstrated that the traditional Metal spirit was equally alive in Mexico. SPLIT HEAVEN were not simply reproducing a European formula; they were taking the language of classic Heavy Metal and Speed Metal and expressing it through their own scene and experience. Their appearance at Wacken after winning the Mexican Metal Battle was also an indication that the Mexican underground had begun receiving greater international attention.

The album was released internationally by Pure Steel Records on 29 April 2011, with the label issuing it on CD, and it runs at roughly 37 minutes. That relatively compact running time suits the material well: “Street Law” gets to the point, delivers its riffs and melodies and does not overstay its welcome.

If you want to listen to a good Mexican Heavy Metal band and discover a sound that was not yet as familiar in the contemporary Heavy Metal scene as it is today, then you should check out “Street Law”. SPLIT HEAVEN offer traditional Heavy Metal with Speed Metal energy, strong melodies and an evident love for the classic era of the genre. It is the kind of album that can keep you company for a long time!

Nick Parastatidis

REVIEW: INSIDEAD - Chaos ElecDead

 

INSIDEAD - Chaos ElecDead (2011)

Massacre Records

If this is thrash metal, then I am a belly dancer…

It is not particularly easy to place Chaos ElecDead under a single genre heading, and even the “modern thrash metal” tag attached to the album seems to describe only part of what INSIDEAD are attempting. This is not necessarily a problem in itself. After all, refusing to follow a strict genre formula can sometimes lead to interesting and genuinely individual results. The difficulty here is that the mixture does not ultimately develop into a distinctive identity.

INSIDEAD combine elements of groove metal, alternative metal/rock, modern thrash and the melodic death/thrash approach associated with the Gothenburg scene. There are also moments where the harsher vocals recall bands such as EKTOMORF and SEPULTURA, while the arrangements occasionally move towards the metalcore/deathcore vocabulary that was becoming increasingly prominent when the album was recorded. The result is therefore less a clearly defined style than a collection of contemporary metal influences brought together within the same framework.

The problem is not that the band crosses stylistic boundaries. The problem is that the individual elements rarely come together in a way that gives the songs a strong personality of their own. There are some good riffs, aggressive passages, melodic ideas and occasional solos, but too many of these moments feel interchangeable rather than part of a clearly recognizable INSIDEAD sound. The album can certainly be energetic, but energy alone does not necessarily create memorable songwriting.

This becomes more apparent as Chaos ElecDead progresses. Several songs rely on similar rhythmic and vocal approaches, and the constant movement between heavier, melodic and more modern sections does not always provide the variety one might expect. Instead, much of the album eventually feels repetitive and monotonous. Tracks such as “No I.D.”, “Blood 4 Blood” and the title track contain ideas that could have formed the basis of stronger compositions, but these moments are not consistently developed into songs with enough character to remain memorable.

And this is perhaps the most frustrating aspect of the album. INSIDEAD were clearly not inexperienced musicians. The band had been active for years before Chaos ElecDead, had already released a promo CD, and had built considerable live experience, including appearances at Rockwave Festival and Wacken Open Air after winning the Wacken Metal Battle competition in 2009. The debut was also given a professional production, with R.D. Liapakis handling production and mixing/mastering duties alongside Christian Schmid at Prophecy and Music Factory Studios in Germany.

Released by Massacre Records on April 29, 2011, Chaos ElecDead contains nine songs and runs for roughly 36 minutes. The production gives the material the necessary weight and clarity, and the musicians are obviously capable of handling the technical demands of the music. In fact, contemporary reviews also pointed out the band's competent instrumental work and the presence of some effective riffs and choruses.

Unfortunately, good musicianship and a polished production cannot compensate for the lack of a convincing overall direction. The album sounds like a band still searching for the precise point where its various influences should meet. That search produces a few worthwhile ideas, but too often the ideas remain just that—ideas—rather than becoming compositions with a strong and individual identity.

There is nothing fundamentally wrong with attempting to combine different generations of metal, but Chaos ElecDead illustrates the danger of trying to accommodate too many influences without establishing a sufficiently distinctive musical personality. For me, the few good ideas are ultimately buried beneath a result that is confusing, repetitive and far too typical of the modern metal landscape of its time.

Not an album I would return to.

Nick Parastatidis

REVIEW: THE RODS, Heavier Than Thou

 

THE RODS, Heavier Than Thou (1986)

Passport Records

Εξώφυλλο που περιγράφει τον ήχο απολύτως

Με τράβηξε η απεικόνιση στο CD αυτό, το τέταρτο (ή πέμπτο;) των θρυλικών The Rods από τη Νέα Υόρκη, μετά από άλμπουμ που ακουμπάνε τον μύθο, όπως το ομώνυμο ντεμπούτο τους, το τεράστιο Wild Dogs και τη βαριά συνέχεια του Let Them Eat Metal. Το επόμενο, λοιπόν, δεν θα μπορούσε παρά να είναι ανάλογο!

Ένα σχήμα, λοιπόν, με αυτά τα ιστορικά άλμπουμ λίγα χρόνια πίσω του, φτάνει εδώ, το 1986, πραγματικά σε ένα άλλο επίπεδο. Το U.S. Metal βρίσκει στα κομμάτια του δίσκου την ηχητική του απεικόνιση ή, αλλιώς, το λήμμα στο λεξικό — μπορεί να έχει και τη φωτογραφία αυτού του έργου των τεσσάρων μουσικών: Shmoulik Avigal στη φωνή, Carl Canedy στα ντραμς και τα πλήκτρα, Craig Gruber στο μπάσο και David Feinstein στις κιθάρες και τα φωνητικά.

Είναι καθαρά ένα άλμπουμ των μέσων της δεκαετίας του ’80, που συνθετικά πατάει στο παλιό Hard Rock, αλλά κλείνει πολύ περισσότερο προς το NWOBHM. Δηλαδή, ακολουθεί τα χνάρια της μισής και παραπάνω σκηνής της εποχής του.

Τα Make Me a Believer, Angels Never Run, Crossfire, She's Trouble, Born to Rock, η διασκευή στο Communication Breakdown των Led Zeppelin και το Cold Sweat and Blood είναι τα ατού αυτού του δίσκου, με το τελικό συμπέρασμα να είναι ότι εδώ η πρώτη εικόνα είναι απολύτως αντιπροσωπευτική.

Κάτι που, βέβαια, δεν ισχύει πάντα!

English:

An Album Cover That Perfectly Describes the Sound

What initially drew me to this CD was its artwork. This is the fourth (or fifth?) album by legendary New York band The Rods, following albums that had already begun to approach legendary status, such as their self-titled debut, the massive Wild Dogs, and the heavy follow-up Let Them Eat Metal. So, naturally, what came next could hardly be anything less!

By 1986, with those historic albums already a few years behind them, the band had genuinely reached another level. U.S. Metal finds its sonic representation in the songs on this record—or, put another way, this could well be the dictionary definition of the genre, complete with a photograph of the four musicians responsible: Shmoulik Avigal on vocals, Carl Canedy on drums and keyboards, Craig Gruber on bass, and David Feinstein on guitars and vocals.

This is unmistakably a mid-’80s album. Compositionally, it has its roots in classic Hard Rock, but it leans much more heavily toward the NWOBHM, following in the footsteps of a large part of the scene of its era.

Make Me a Believer, Angels Never Run, Crossfire, She's Trouble, Born to Rock, the cover of Led Zeppelin's Communication Breakdown, and Cold Sweat and Blood are the album's highlights. The final conclusion, then, is that in this case, first impressions are absolutely representative of what lies within.

Which, of course, isn't always the case!

Τάκης "Ε-Μortal One" Γιώτης!