Retro Reviews - June 2026 Part One!

Yes, I'm still working my way through 1986, this time with some more obscure metal bands.  While I've reviewed many of them before, it is interesting to see them change and evolve through the decade.  It's very clear that metal was definitely expanding as the decade went on, as different bands had unique ideas of where to take the genre.  In any case, here's a handful of interesting albums from the middle of the 80s!

Cirith Ungol - One Foot in Hell

After the relatively successful King of the Dead (which I thought was decent, and an improvement over their debut), the band marched on with another slab of heavy/doom epicness and more Michael Whelan artwork on the cover.  While the lineup was the same, this third album definitely shows some interesting changes.

Right off, this is a much shorter album.  While King of the Dead surpassed 50 minutes, this one barely gets past the 35-minute mark.  The production is also a little cleaner on this one, and the songs do have a bit more energy, leaning more into epic metal with the occasional doomy moment.  Tim Baker's iconic voice wails as usual, which I've come to really enjoy, as it fits the story-telling of their lyrics.  The guitar solos have some interesting variety, not just doing typical 80s shreddy, but often mixing things up with melodic sections, or even having two guitars wailing over each other, which works weirdly well.  However, this shift into traditional metal territory does mean their songs aren't quite as impactful.  They're not bad at it, but when most of the choruses are just repeating the title over and over, it leaves me to wonder if some of these songs weren't given enough time to really develop, especially since many of them are shorter than what they've done before.

Overall, it's another decent album, but there have been some trade-offs.  While I do like the uptick in energy and the cleaner production, they do take a hit to their doomy atmosphere, which King of the Dead had in spades.  I liked the opener "Blood Iron" and the very Sabbathy "Doomed Planet," but "The Fire" and "100 MPH" don't feel as inspired.  The closer "One Foot in Hell" is classic Cirith Ungol, though.  It's a solid listen, as the band expands their sound, but those looking for classic doom metal might be a little disappointed.

Helstar - Remnants of War

Despite feeling their debut album was pretty lackluster (but not terrible), I decided to give their follow-up a shot as well.  Losing nearly everyone but singer James Rivera and guitarist Larry Barragan, this is quite the shake-up.  Nevertheless, they charge on ahead, this time picking up some thrash and US power metal elements.

The biggest change is in the song-writing, as conventional structures are mostly abandoned and many of these songs don't even have choruses.  Instead, they've chosen to focus a lot on tempo changes and shifting moods, even messing with the time signature from time to time.  The riffing is also more complex and the guitar solos shred all over the place.  Barragan and newcomer Robert Trevino play some pretty solid stuff all across this album.  The rest of the band play with energy, and the wails of Rivera work here, as they push into more dramatic territory, singing about wars and betrayal, nightmares and evil (and even have moments that sound like Cirith Ungol).

While this is certainly an improvement over the debut, as this is more interesting, it also tends to occupy the same space across the album.  There are more thrashy elements, and the change ups do help, but at the same time, the songs do feel interchangeable after a while.  The title track adds a nice touch of doom metal, and I liked the more melodic chorus of "Dark Queen," but otherwise, these tracks are a little too jumbled to really get into it right away.  Maybe if I give this a few more listens, it will click, but for now, it's some pretty typical US power metal, with plenty of noodles for guitar fans to enjoy.

Saint Vitus - Born Too Late

After trying to expand their sound with their sophomore effort, only to result in a mixed bag, their singer Scott Reagers decided to leave the band, so they picked up Scott "Wino" Weinrich.  As for the music, they go back the fuzz-heavy doom they had for their debut, but with a slight psychedelic haze over everything.

Yes, we're back into the plodding riffs and atmospheric tones of doom metal, and I think the band is better for it.  However, they keep the decent production around, as the band sound pretty good this time around.  Wino brings a great sense of drama and angst to the songs, especially since the lyrics have more grounded subject matter, like social isolation, mental illness, and drug addiction.  Dave Chandler's guitar riffs bring back a lot of classic Sabbath vibes, but with a lot more effects to warp the sound quite a bit, giving the songs a bit more of a jammy feel, especially when his solos sound as much like noise as they do music, which is not a bad thing here.

I admit it took me a minute to get back into the right headspace for this, but once I did, I was grooving along quite well.  The title track that opens the album definitely captures the feel of the whole thing, as all the songs have a strong 70s style to it.  "Dying Inside" and "The War Starter" both express their Sabbath-inspirations very well.  While I don't think it's as good as Epicus Doomicus Metalicus by Candlemass (as I do love their epic sensibilities), but Born to Late shows a band really maturing as songwriters, creating a pretty solid stoner doom album.

Fates Warning - Awaken the Guardian

After stepping up their proggy chops with The Spectre Within, the band carried on, replacing guitarist Victor Arduini with Frank Aresti.  While they maintain their blend of prog and US power metal, they really push the technical chops of their playing on this one.

The first two tracks make it quite clear that this band has a concrete vision of what they want to be.  Noodly riffs, weird rhythms, mixed meter sections, atonal harmonies, and an atmospheric sense of being at the mercy of some mythological power.  The lyrics for the album definitely drift into myth and fantasy of a few different kinds, supporting this atmosphere.  Despite this, I think there is something wrong with the production.  While it's not muddy, it doesn't seem to gel together as well as I'd like.  The guitars are thick, providing a decent wall of sound, but the drums are rather dry in comparison, like they're playing in a different room.  And poor John Arch sounds like he's shouting from the end of a tunnel, often buried by the other instruments.  It's a shame because these are some decent (if highly complex) performances, and Arch's wails are quite solid this time around.  I just kinda wish the band wasn't so focused on trying to sound so technical at the expense of songwriting.

Still, there are parts that I liked.  "Fata Morgana" is probably the most conventional song, and I liked how it switched from verse to chorus with a different tone.  "Giant's Lore" had some interesting riffs, and the closer "Exodus," despite being a slower song, built up a decent amount of epicness.  I also get the idea that I will need to listen to this one a few more times to really wrap my head around what they're doing.  I don't know if I like this one more than The Spectre Within, but this album certainly shows a band willing to expand and explore their progressive elements.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Doomsday for the Deceiver

Despite being best known for where Metallica found Jason Newstead to replace Cliff Burton, this band had its own quiet run through the 80s as a thrash metal band kicking around the west coast.  While the band had a bit of a rocky start, they were able to stabilize in the mid 80s to record some demos, which led to being picked up by Metal Blade for their debut album (the only one Newstead played on for them) that's been considered an underground thrash classic.

Sonically, this is very much a fusion of what was going on in thrash metal in the 80s: the speed of Slayer, the sing-song vocals of Anthrax, the dark epicness of Metal Church and Metallica, the technical chops of Megadeth, and some Maiden-inspired guitar work for good measure.  Pretty much US power/thrash metal stone soup.  Unfortunately, there is a bit of sloppiness in the songwriting, as there are times where the lyrics are mushed together, and many of the riffs and transitions feel like the band is trying too hard to sound edgy and weird.  The performances are pretty tightly played, but almost too tight, like every note is played with tension as they want to get it right, making for a bit of an anxious listen.  The lyrical topics are all over the place as well, drifting from raunchy lyrics to drug abuse, and from infamous historical figures to Satan starting the nuclear apocalypse only to be beaten by a monster named "Flotzilla" (which explains what the cover art is about).  However, they also like their long intros, often blending acoustic and electric guitars in interesting ways.

For what it's worth, there is some good energy here, as the band is clearly playing with their heart on their sleeves.  I ended up liking their two long songs in the middle, being the title track and "Metalshock," as I felt they showed their proggy Maiden influences the most on those.  The rest of the songs play at a furious, near-unrelenting speed, to the point that it's almost too much.  Still, it wasn't a boring listen, and I'm certainly interested in where the band develops from here, as I'm loosely aware that they shift into more of a US power metal sound later on.

Retro Reviews - 1985 Edition Part 2!

Yup, another slab of albums from 1985, this time focusing on sophomore releases from bands with two words in their names (I didn't plan that, but that's what happened).  Did these bands succeed in expanding and improving their sound, or did they fall in a slump?  This is the question I asked as I checked out this handful of heavy metal releases, and got some interesting results!

Saint Vitus - Hallow's Victim & The Walking Dead (EP)

This band is one of the classic doom metal bands that helped establish the genre with a sound very reminiscent of 70s Black Sabbath (if their name wasn't a major clue).  I listened to their first album years ago, and found it delightfully Sabbath-y, despite the muddy production.  However, now that I'm working on listening to a bunch of albums for my Top 5 articles, this ended up on the list as something I wanted to follow up on.  Unsurprisingly, it's another chunk of Sabbathy metal riffing and energy, but they mess around with the formula more.

The major thing that's different is that they push into some faster song-writing, with some mixed results.  "White Stallions" is not bad, but the title track is a sloppy attempt at speed metal.  "War Is Our Destiny" shifts its tempo around, starting slow, picking up speed, then shifting back down for the lyrics.  Of course, they retain their Sabbath inspirations on songs like "Mystic Lady," "Just Friends (Empty Love)," and "Prayer for the (M)asses," so the doom hasn't disappeared.  It just seems like they were trying to push their sound in a few different directions to see what their limitations were.  As a consequence, some of the atmosphere is gone, making it hard to just soak into the songs like with their first release.

I saw that Hallow's Victim is often paired with an EP that came out the same year titled The Walking Dead, featuring "White Stallions" again, a song called "Darkness," and the title track, which goes 11 minutes.  "Darkness" goes for more uptempo energy with triplet chugging, but feels a bit sloppy as well.  However, "The Walking Dead" is a plodding doom epic.  It does get a little repetitive, but it's also the song with the strongest sense of atmosphere compared to the rest.

Overall, I think their first album is better, but I can see that this band was trying to blend some new ideas in to see where they could go with their sound.  While I don't think this album and EP are bad, their certainly clunky.  Those looking for more classic doom will find bits and pieces to like, but may not connect with the material as a whole.  

Fates Warning - The Spectre Within

After their first album was a bit of a mess (though some decent US power metal), Fates Warning really come out swinging for their follow-up, establishing a stronger prog metal sound.  This second album is definitely an improvement, retaining what worked before and refining into something that sounds pretty distinct and powerful.

The new level of progressive comes right at the start with "Traveler in Time" with a bunch of mixed meter elements and some pretty curious melodies and harmonies.  The album maintains this proggy attitude throughout, and it feels like a bit of a missing link between early Savatage and Dream Theater's first album, with a heavy dose of Maiden-style riffing and soloing.  Seriously, the guitar work on here is impressive, as Jim Matheos and Victor Arduini really work their fingers off!  All of this would be fine if it weren't for the lyrics.  While John Arch is a great singer, the words feel like they're off by half a measure, not really lining up with the songs' phrasing, so the lyrics sound like rambling as much as singing.  Maybe it's just an attempt to be strange and unique, but the results can feel jarring.  The album ends with the nearly twelve-minute "Epitaph," which is their first attempt at a prog epic, and it's not bad.  I don't think it completely earns its length, as I think some of it is padded just to make it longer, but it was a solid closer.

"The Apparition" and "Kyrie Eleison" were the tracks that stood out the most to me, having some very strong Iron Maiden and Metal Church energy.  Considering the album as a whole, it definitely feels like a band in transition, trying some things to see what works and what doesn't.  However, unlike the Saint Vitus album above, this is clearly a step up for the band.  It's clear that they were settling into their own unique sound with this album, while having some excellent and unique guitar work.

Grave Digger - Witch Hunter

After checking out their latest album, I figured I should dig back into Grave Digger's past.  I listened to their debut years ago, and I thought it wasn't bad, despite being pretty sloppy.  With the follow up, they've definitely tightened up their song-writing and their chops, but once again, they focus on just having a lot of energy to make up for their flaws, and it mostly works.

This is pure 80s German metal, equal parts Accept and Judas Priest, with faster tempos and a harsher attitude, providing mainly by Chris Boltendahl's iconic gritty voice.  The guitar work by Peter Masson is furious and aggressive, and the rest of the band pound out these songs with gusto.  "Witch Hunter" takes a bit to get into with the long intro, but settles into some solid, horror-themed metal, and "Get Away" is a great speedster.  However, some of the other songs tend to have some strange transitions.  "Get Ready for Power" wants to have this anthemic chorus, but the half-tempo approach doesn't match the rest of the song's speed.  "Fight for Freedom" and "Friends of Mine" also have some jarring shifts, going from melodic and slow to thrashy and aggressive on the turn of a dime.  Their cover of Alice Cooper's "School's Out" is quite tame in comparison to the rest of the album.  Of all things, though, I ended up liking the ballad quite a bit.  "Love Is a Game" might seem pretty cliched, but Chris actually croons on it, and he sounds surprisingly good.  I also like that descending riff under the chorus.

Overall, it's a bit of a mixed bag of an album, but most of it falls on the good side, largely because of the energy the band pushes.  This album is an improvement over their debut, and you can tell they're having a lot of fun playing these songs.  Chris gets in some good wails and the solos are often satisfyingly shreddy, making it a bit of a gem that is better for its lack of polish.  Sometimes metal just needs to be metal, and this album shows how that works.

Armored Saint - Delirious Nomad

While I thought their first album was solid, if a bit generic, Armored Saint carried on with a rather quick follow-up, like the other bands in this article.  They ended up getting a producer who worked on Ozzy's first few albums, resulting in an album that has a lot of polish and tight songwriting.  

It really does feel like a blend of what Judas Priest and Ozzy were doing in the early-to-mid 80s, aiming for a more polished heavy metal sound without going full-on glam metal.  John Bush remains a great singer, bringing a lot of swagger to these songs, and there's some solid riffing and soloing.  "Over the Edge" has an interesting bluesy-groove, and "Aftermath" has some curious transitions to different levels of intensity.  Unfortunately, the rest feel very typical for 1985, and I'm surprised that this stuff wasn't put on MTV at the time, as it would have fit right in quite well.   The lyrics do stick to darker subject matter, like revenge, madness, nuclear apocalypse, and isolation, so maybe that kept them out of glam territory at the time.

Honestly, this album feels rather ahead of its time, sounding like some of the later 80s pop metal, like Skid Row, Tesla, and Winger (as there are a few proggy touches).  Like their first, this is by no means a bad album.  Featuring well-written, well-performed songs, you could certainly do a lot worse than many albums that came out at this time.  However, I can't deny that little of it sticks in my mind once I've finished listening to it, making for a bit of a middling release.

Retro Reviews - October 2024!

For reasons outside the scope of this blog, I've been jamming a lot of albums from 1984 as they're celebrating a 40th Anniversary.  This includes a bunch of metal album debuts that I've never heard of before, so I figured I'd pull them together into another Retro Reviews article for fun!  Here's some of the stuff I've been checking out lately.

Fates Warning - Night on Bröcken

While this band is known for being pioneers of progressive metal, I've never really heard them before.  I get the impression that this album is not the best place to start, as even the band's guitarist is reportedly not a fan of this work.  From what I read, this was sort of a demo that got upgraded to an album, so it didn't get the polish it deserved. However, every band has to start somewhere, and this isn't necessarily a bad one, sitting in the space between NWOBHM and melodic thrash that defines so much of 80s US power metal.

I see a lot of folks say this sounds a lot like Iron Maiden, and I do hear it here and there, but the riffing and singing feels closer to Judas Priest to me (with a chunk of Metal Church for good measure).  The production is a little flat (perhaps because it was first a demo), but I can tell the performances are solid, and there is some decent guitar work in both the licks and solos.  The two instrumentals provide some variety, but they feel more like finger exercises than songs.  The dark fantasy and horror lyrics do come across as more cheesy than shocking, but otherwise, they're mostly fine, though sometimes it feels John Arch is rushing through them to get them to fit in the phrasing.  

I don't know if this is vital listening, as it is pretty standard stuff for the time, but it also doesn't make any real mistakes, either.  Fans of deeper classic metal cuts will probably dig it, but prog metal fans will likely see it as merely a stepping stone to what the band would become.  As for myself, I liked "Misfit" not only for having some good energy, but for telling an interesting story as well.  Overall, I'd say it's a cut above the standard for 1984, but not by much.

Armored Saint - March of the Saint

Another band I mainly know by reputation (and that singer John Bush joined Anthrax later), Armored Saint fall into that US Power Metal style that was really starting to build by this time.  

I read that the production was shinier than the band wanted, as the producer treated them as more of a glam band.  However, a chunk of this material wouldn't be out of place on Ratt first album, particularly the songs "Can U Deliver," "Seducer," "Envy," and the power balled "Take a Turn."  That doesn't mean the songs are bad, just not perhaps what I expected with cover art like that.  For what it's worth, the clean production makes the performances very clear, the band clearly have a lot of synergy, the guitars carry the energy well with their riffs and noodly licks, and the harmonies on John Bush's voice are great.  The title track is a good opener, starting with some Mussorgsky before into a metal anthem, "Munity on the World" has decent metal gallop, and "Glory Hunter" has some early-Manowar-like epicness.  

Overall, the album kinda falls into the cracks.  Too polished and catchy for the underground and too gritty and sleazy for mainstream.  However, solid performances and tight song-writing keep this one just above average, especially as the album improves quite a bit in the second half.  It certainly makes me curious about the rest of their albums, as I know they didn't pursue MTV-style success.  A good start, even if some of the songs are a bit forgettable.

Hexx - No Escape

At first, this may seem like another also-ran from a decade full of bands trying to make it big.  Hexx never did get much attention at the time, but this album turns out to be pretty satisfying.  Once again, it feels like a blend of glam (I thought of Ratt again) and US power metal, like Metal Church, but I feel like the songs are well-written and the band's performance is tight and solid.

While they would not have him for long, the singer Dennis Manzo actually reminds me of Joey Tempest from Europe, and I mean that in a good way.  He has a soaring quality that really elevates these songs.  They aren't bad, but perhaps average for the era, but the execution is spot on.

As for standout tracks, "Invader" has some very good energy, "The Other Side" sounds like something from a classic Dio album, and "Beware, the Darkness" gets into more of a story-telling vibe with the dynamics.  The rest of the album is solid, but it is quite short, barely clocking at over 30 minutes.  Still, I think it's a shame that this album didn't get more attention at the time as others did, but that makes it all the more unique of a find, I suppose.  Definitely a gem if you're a fan of old-school metal!

New Videos - April 2019 Part 2!

Like I promised, I'm listening to more and more stuff!  I might be able to get one more article out by the end of the month, but this set of videos should tide you over in the meantime.  Let's get rocking!

Arch / Matheos is a side project that features a number of Fates Warning members past and present.  With this lead single, we get a very technical, but power piece of prog metal that really soars!

One more Alan Parsons single before the new album.  Definitely staying with the ballad vibe, but I think this one is stronger than the other two.  I think it's the classic symphonic touches that help make this song sound better.

Epic symphonic metal with Chilean vocalist Caterina Nix.  While the new album won't have former Stratovarius shredder Timo Tolkki, they plan to move forward with the project, and if this song is anything to go by, we should be in for some good stuff!

First Signal is back with a pounding piece of AOR.  Seriously, these drums sound powerful!  And the rest is just as good, with lots of melodic hooks and a big, driven chorus.  Solid piece of melodic rock!

Jack Slamer is something of a psychedelic, bluesy, hard rock band, and they really pound it out with this one.  For those who like their rock to be driven, hard, with a bit of flair.

Let's finish off with a great piece of heavy/power metal!  Here we have Diviner really crushing it, with some great riffs and melodies from the guitars, and epic vocals from Yiannis Papanikolaou!!  This sounds amazing!