Anniversary Series - 1984!

I have to tell you that this is probably one of my favorite years.  So many good albums came out this year that it will be tough to condense it down into one article, but I've tried.  Metal is really growing, not only with the popularity with the pop stuff, but thrash also slowly building in the background.  Meanwhile, rock music was taking a bit of a backseat, but there were still some very good releases this year.

Things start off massive with Van Halen's 1984, dominating the charts with songs like "Panama," "Jump," and "I'll Wait."  It may have startled some fans with the synth riffs, but the songs won pretty much everyone over.  And right after that, Judas Priest shows up with Defenders of the Faith, a solid follow up to the massive Screaming For Vengeance.  Other big albums at the start of the year include Whitesnake's Slide It In, Saxon's Crusader, Europe's Wings of Tomorrow, and Scorpions' Love at First Sting, with the titanic hits "Rock You Like a Hurricane," and "Big City Nights."

This year would also feature a lot of debut albums, with some albums being better than others.  Bon Jovi's self-titled debut only shows hints of their future successes, Grave Digger's Heavy Metal Breakdown barely holds together, and even celebrated thrashers Anthrax started with the uneven Fistful of Metal.  However, the good debuts include Lee Aaron's Metal Queen, Savatage's The Dungeons Are Calling, Queensrÿche's The Warning, Autograph's Sign in Please, and Ratt's Out of the Cellar, blowing up radios with their big hit "Round and Round."  The rest of that album is quite good, too.

Metal continues to evolve as the year goes on.  We have some early efforts in doom metal with Trouble's Pslam 9, and Saint Vitus' debut, ensuring that Sabbath-y slow, ominous riffs wouldn't go out of style.  Cirith Ungol would have their own take on epicness with King of the Dead.  Yngwie J. Malmsteen, after trying to make it with Steeler and Alcatrazz, introduces the world to neo-classical metal with Rising Force.  Of course, the big winner is thrash metal, featuring two massive albums: Metal Church's self-titled debut, and Metallica's Ride the Lightning.  Both are excellent examples of blending melody with aggression, making them some of my favorites.

Metal would continue to dominate the year as it goes on.  Twisted Sister told us "We're Not Gonna Take It" on Stay Hungry, Dio would sing about the Last in Line, and Iron Maiden would cement their metal supremacy with Powerslave, going on a massive world tour.  Manowar would end up releasing two albums this year: Hail to England and Sign of the Hammer.  Towards the end of the year, Dokken put out Tooth and Nail, expanding their sound into their own brand of pop metal.

With all this metal going on, what about rock?  Well, like I said, it was in the background, occasionally popping out with some good songs.  .38 Special started the year with Tour de Force, Queen got experimental with The Works, Rush continued their synth-based sound on Grace Under Pressure, Steve Perry went solo with Street Talk, and Bill Squier showed Signs of Life.  The big story, however, was Deep Purple's Mark II reunion, recording Perfect Strangers, which is an interesting blend of 70s and 80s styles.  

As the year came to a close, there were more big albums.  The Alan Parsons Project would release two this year, Ammonia Avenue and Vulture Culture, which would be their last two efforts to follow the mainstream popularity of Eye in the Sky.  Then, at the very end, Foreigner would come back with Agent Provocateur and the big ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is." While rock may have been fading at the time, it certainly wasn't going out without a fight!

As you can see, this was a massive year.  Be sure to check out the playlist below for more awesome music, and if you think there's still something I may have missed, let me know in the comments below.  I know 1984 is a year I keep coming back to, and maybe when I come around on these Anniversary Articles again, I'll have even more to talk about!  Until then, rock on!  \m/

Retro Reviews - April 2024!

I'm finally getting around to releasing some articles again, and it feels good.  This will be the first of the Retro Reviews, focusing on older albums and leaving the New Releases as their own things.  This time, we're definitely getting into some classics, and while they may not have been incredible, they all had their stamp on rock and metal for their time.

Lee Aaron - Metal Queen

Declaring herself to be metal royalty might be pretty bold, especially with Lita Ford and Doro probably being better known, but maybe it's one of those first-come-first-serve things.  In any case, this Canadian rocker sought to plant her flag in the growing metal scene of the 80s with this album and succeeded to some degree.  I admit I didn't know what I was getting into with this, as I checked it out kind of on a whim, but it turned out to be a pretty nice, if average, chunk of radio-friendly metal.

It's biggest problem is that the songwriting is kind of generic, with lots of metal clichés, and a big, poppy production much like the glam metal of the day.  The guitar work is solid, but nothing really outstanding.  The album really does hang on Lee Aaron's vocals, and fortunately, she's pretty good.  She's got a nice bit of grit, and has this Dio style of reaching for those epic notes and wails.  "Lady of the Darkest Night" and "Deceiver" are solid rockers, while "Got to Be the One" and "Steal Away Your Love" have a slower, more dramatic feel.  However, "Shake It Up" is pretty cheesy, trying to be a danceable metal song, and the closer "We Will Be Rockin' " isn't much better.  While I've definitely heard worse from the decade, and it certainly has its charm, it's hard to feel like this isn't much more than a novelty at best.

Motörhead - Bomber

Motorhead is one of those bands that was really influential, but never really got a ton of attention or massive success like their contemporaries.  While I've enjoyed some of their songs, I admit I haven't spent much time with their albums.  So here I am, picking up their third, as I've listened to the first two before.  Unsurprisingly, it's a pretty consistent chunk of rock and metal, though it does have a few rough spots.

The album starts off well with "Dead Men Tell No Tales," an anti-drug song that has some good energy and chugging.  However, the album kinda drags after that.  The songs aren't bad, but they don't really have much beyond the Motörhead grit.  Things pick up again with "Stone Dead Forever," featuring a fun rock jam at the end, "Step Down" is a mean bluesy piece with guitarist Eddie Clark doing the singing, and "Bomber" is an energetic rocker that closes the album well.  Motörhead really does have their distinct style, one they've never felt the need for change.  Basically, what I'm saying is that you know what you'll get with this band when you pick up one of their albums (much like with AC/DC), and there's something to be said for a band that's honest with itself and its fans.

Saxon - Saxon

Going from their latest to their first is quite the jump, I must say!  However, in an effort to flesh out my Anniversary Article from last month, I figured I should check out some classic NWOBHM metal.  While I've enjoyed Saxon's stuff here and there, I have never checked out their debut.  While it's a little rough around the edges, and has a stronger 70s rock vibe, the band definitely started off well with some catchy songs.  

Things start off well with "Rainbow Theme" being an instrumental start to "Frozen Rainbow," an epic that teases the grandeur the band would reach for throughout their career.  However, the rest of the album is definitely more rock 'n' roll focused, with plenty of 70s energy.  "Big Teaser" and "Still Fit to Boogie" fall into a kind of AC/DC, party rock vibes, "Judgement Day" has some solid riffing, and "Militia Guard" ends on another epic, though it's weirdly upbeat for the tragic story it's telling.  Biff Byford's singing is iconic from the start, despite how young he sounds here, and the rest of the band were clearly ready to push themselves into the new wave of metal they were in.

While it may not be a strong album (and quite short at under 30 minutes!), looking back on it now, it's hard not to see it representing the shift in rock music at the time.  Still retaining the bluesiness of the 70s, but stepping into the chugging metal of the 80s, it's very much a time capsule of what was going on and where things would be going.  On its own, it's a solid collection of rock songs

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I'm gonna try and step things up more for this blog, as there are a lot of albums I want to listen to, especially classic ones, so keep an eye out for more of these Retro Reviews.  I've got another Anniversary Article coming at the end of this month, featuring one of my favorite years for rock and metal.  Until then, rock on! \m/

New Releases - April 2024!

Finally, here's the first of the New Release review articles, now that I've split them from the classic ones.  Hopefully, this will help keep things more organized as I move forward.  Starting this off this year was a solid trio of classic heavy metal by bands who have been there since near the beginning.

Saxon - Hell, Fire and Damnation

While part of me wants to debate the need for an Oxford comma in the title, it is very impressive that this is Saxon's 25th studio album, and by the sounds of it, nothing can stop them, because this album just plows ahead without looking back!  These Brits have started the year with some excellent traditional metal.

Despite the religious imagery in the cover art and title, most of this album focuses on a number of historical topics, ranging from the Battle of Hastings, through the travels of Marco Polo, up to pirate radio stations off the coast of England.  With such diverse topics, the music keeps things pretty safe and formulaic, but when the formula is this solid, why mess with what works?  The album is chock full of chunky riffs, anthemic choruses, and pure NWOBHM power.  The title track stands out, setting the tone for the album, as well as "Fire and Steel," "Kubla Khan and the Merchant of Venice," "1066," and "Super Charger," which is a solid closer.  While not all the tracks are great, the album is very consistent across its run time.  Honestly, if you're a fan of classic, old-school metal, and you somehow haven't checked out Saxon, I recommend you fix that immediately!

The Rods - Rattle the Cage

Here's a band that's been around as long as Saxon, though they took a considerable break from the late 80s to 2010.  Despite their long history, this is only their 10th album, not that it matters all that much, as they're clearly keeping things old-school.  While I've featured them before on the blog, this is my first time really sitting down and jamming one of their albums.  

While I was expecting classic metal, I was surprised to hear a good chunk of 70s blues rock as well.  Much of the album takes things at mid-tempo, focusing on solid, simple riffs and straight-forward lyrics.  The album does start a little sluggish, but things pick up with songs like the title track, "Metal Highways," and "Shockwave," with "Cry Out Loud" being a good mid-tempo epic,with an anthemic chorus.  Freddy Villano may be the new guy in the band, but his bass tone is definitely chunky, providing some excellent bottom-end to these songs.  David "Rock" Feinstein's solos turn out to be melodic and typical, but they serve the songs well, and honestly fit right in with what they're doing.

Which ends up being a bit of a double-edged sword.  While these songs are catchy and have some good grooves, they really don't seem to be pushing themselves, instead of settling in for their own brand of cruise control.  Naturally, these guys aren't going for something big and innovative, aiming for a spot between British-Steel-era Priest, Motorhead, and Deep Purple (especially when those organs kick in).  However, part of me of me feels like it's going to get lost by the competition.  Not all the songs hold up, but it's decent, and you'll be headbanging through most of it, like I did.

Judas Priest - Invincible Shield

Let's finish things off with the titans themselves.  I can't believe it's been six years since Firepower, which was a pretty solid album, if maybe a little long.  However, it definitely retained much of the Painkiller spirit, and made for a highlight of 2018.  As for this new one, I get the feeling that they're aiming for a stronger 80s vibe, with the bright colors and synths.  While I enjoyed the first two singles, later ones left me a little lukewarm.  Now that I've listened to the album as a whole, they really are carrying on where they left off, continuing their ironclad legacy.

Honestly, this album is pretty consistent.  While some songs stand out more than others, these veterans just plow on through, riff after riff, wail after wail, and there are no low points.  The highlights for me was the opener "Panic Attack" with the synths and mixed meter, the title track with the strong energy and a nod to the classic song "Sinner," "Trial By Fire" with the anthemic 6/8 groove, and "Sons of Thunder" that's a short and sweet burst of classic metal power.  If there is a problem, it's that the album might be a bit too long and some of the songs might blend together in the mind (especially with the Deluxe Edition, as those three songs don't add much).  Still, the standard of quality makes this a massive album, and while I know it's early, I could see this squeaking in to my Top 5 for this year!