by Dan Skiba
— Contributing Writer —
Anvil is set to release its 19 th album through AFM Records, entitled Impact Is Imminent, on May 20, 2022. Those who love the band do so because Anvil is “the” classic case of you know exactly what you’re going to get when you plop down your money. For those who haven’t been introduced to the band, Anvil is a “must know” when assembling the history of Heavy Metal, influencing countless bands including the Bay Area Thrash scene back in the 1980’s. If anything, Anvil represents true dedication to the genre through thick and thin … money never mattered as long there were tasty riffs and passionate solos to be cranked out. As such, for decades Anvil has personified the blue collar, nuts and bolts, “ugly” (in a good way) side of Metal. No hair spray or fancy duds in the Anvil camp to be sure … and that’s just fine by them.
Impact Is Imminent follows the no frills, in your face script remarkably and it ROCKS from start to finish. Filled with plenty of up-tempo songs with fast double bass drumbeats, this album will test the druthers of any subwoofer setup. Lips Kudlow’s vocals come through with typical over-annunciation, but of course it works well and his deliberate signing style cuts through the otherwise frenetic pace found in the majority of the tracks. Songs that seem to particularly stand out are the opener “Take A Lesson” due to its immediate punch, “Lockdown” – the band’s tribute of sorts to COVID-19, and the closing track “Gomez”, which is a fun and refreshing Bluesy/Jazzy instrumental.
The only downside to Impact Is Imminent is the similarity between many of the tracks. Again, if you’re an Anvil fan you’ve come to expect that redundancy, but if you’re new to the band and give this album a listen, after a while you may be wondering if you accidentally hit the “repeat” button. As a result, Impact Is Imminent isn’t a masterpiece per se, but it IS a very solid Traditional Metal album that fans of the band and genre are bound to enjoy thoroughly.
Genre: Metal
Band:
Lips Kudlow – Vocals & Guitar
Robb Reiner – Drums
Chris Robertson – Bass
Tracklisting:
1. Take a Lesson
2. Ghost Shadow
3. Another Gun Fight
4. Fire Rain
5. Teabag
6. Don’T Look Back
7. Someone to Hate
8. Bad Side of Town
9. Wizard’S Wand
10. Lockdown
11. Explosive Energy
12. The Rabbit Hole
13. Shockwave
14. Gomeze
Label: AFM Records
Online:
https://www.facebook.com/anvilmetal/
Hardrock Haven rating: 
(8 / 10)
Wrong track listing!!