Vanlade | Iron Age

by Justin Gaines
- News Editor/Senior Columnist –

They say you should never judge a book (or in this case, album) by its cover, but man is that hard not to do when you’ve got a cover like the one adorning Iron Age, the debut full-length from Kansas City traditional metallers Vanlade. Let’s see, we’ve got a buff metal dude raising a Flying V (and grabbing his crotch), a subservient (and buck naked) mermaid wench offering what one can only assume is a magic sword, and ominous storm clouds in the background. It’s a cover that might make the guys in Manowar blush, and sure enough it tells you exactly what kind of metal you’re getting with this one!

In case the message hadn’t quite sunk in, the brief introductory track warns listeners that there be metal ahead, and once the anthemic title track kicks in you know it for sure. Vanlade plays old school traditional heavy metal like it’s 1984 all over again. Vanlade obviously takes their inspiration from bands like Manowar, early Helloween, Helstar and Grim Reaper. There’s an uncanny resemblance to cult Canadian metal act Witchkiller, and at times you get a 3 Inches of Blood vibe. High-speed riffs, high-pitched vocals, heavy crunching rhythms and lyrics straight from sci-fi and fantasy are in abundance here, as are traces of thrash and power metal. The title track is an obvious highlight, as is the blistering metal assault of “Wings of Fire,” and closing track “Life By the Blade” offers a hidden surprise after the song ends. The only downside is that the production seems off, with the guitars and vocals sounding a bit thin at times.

Vanlade is traveling down a well-worn path here, but they do it well. Besides, if you’re into traditional heavy metal you probably aren’t looking for innovation. You’re looking for songs to bang your head to (and maybe to slay a dragon in the name of metal), and you’ll definitely get your share on Iron Age. Vanlade is a welcome addition to the growing worldwide revival of traditional heavy metal bands.

Genre: Heavy Metal

Band:
Cody Campbell (d)
Brett Scott (v)
Zach Coffey (g) (v)
Nick Poffenbarger (b)

Track Listing:

1. Intro
2. Iron Age
3. Evil’s Bane
4. Blood Eagle
5. Hypernova
6. Wings of Fire
7. Bound by Fate (the Rising Dragon)
8. Life by the Blade

Label: Stormspell

Website: www.facebook.com/vanlade

Hardrock Haven rating: 8/10

Rocka Rollas | Conquer

by Justin Gaines
- News Editor / Senior Columnist –

Swedish traditional metal warriors Rocka Rollas returned late last year with a new EP titled Conquer. The 4-song offering is intended as a preview of what’s in store on the band’s upcoming full-length Metal Strikes Back. If you caught the Rocka Rollas debut The War of Steel Has Begun, you probably already know that what’s in store is metal and lots of it.

Rocka Rollas is all about the old school heavy metal sound. Their very name is an obvious nod to Judas Priest, but you can tell Accept, Iron Maiden and Grim Reaper are other influences. You hear it in the rapid-fire riffs, killer solos and pounding rhythms of “Bloodbath” and the title track especially, and the ultra-melodic, ultra cheesy (in the best possible way) “Riding the Metal Storm” sounds like vintage Helloween. The vocals are powerful and dynamic, but not as high-pitched as on the debut, which is a plus. The absolutely blistering 2-minute instrumental “Steelwheeler” closes the EP in style, and when it’s done you’re absolutely left wanting more.

With just four tracks, it’s hard to get too excited about this EP, but Conquer does accomplish what it set out to do – namely, get you interested in Metal Strikes Back. Whether you’re a fan of the new wave of traditional metal bands like Air Raid, 3 Inches of Blood and Enforcer or the classic heavy metal bands that inspired those bands in the first place, Rocka Rollas is a band that’s well worth hearing, and Conquer is a good snapshot of the band’s sound.

Genre: Heavy Metal

Band:
Cederick Forsberg (g) (b) (d) (v)
Joe Liszt (v)

Track Listing:
1. Bloodbath
2. Conquer
3. Living the Metal Storm
4. Steelwheeler

Label: Stormspell

Website: www.myspace.com/rockarollas

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.25/10

Restless Breed | No Walls Can Hold – The Demo Anthology

by Justin Gaines
- News Editor –

When you consider the way the American heavy metal scene exploded in the mid ‘80s and then the thrash explosion of the late ‘80s, it’s obvious how some bands could be overlooked entirely by the larger metal scene, only to be rediscovered decades later. Ohio-based Restless Breed was one of those bands. With their combination of traditional heavy metal and speed/thrash styles, Restless Breed fell into the Vicious Rumors/Helstar/Metal Church mold, though they had a rougher, grittier vibe overall. They made some waves in the local scene and even scored a record deal, but like so many bands from that era Restless Breed never broke through to the next level, and their music went largely unnoticed… until now.

No Walls Can Hold – The Demo Anthology collects the various Restless Breed demo recordings on one disc. Since there were some overlapping songs on the band’s three demo releases (1987’s After the Holocaust, 1989’s No Walls Can Hold and 1989’s All Did Fall), No Walls Can Hold doesn’t have all of the recordings, but they do have all the Restless Breed songs. As to those songs, expect a lot of speed metal riffing, heavy rhythms, raw, gruff vocals (with a few highs) and angry lyrics. It’s not always pretty, and some of these songs sound extremely dated now, but there’s a great energy here, and plenty of material for old school headbanging.

Like the rest of the releases in Stormspell’s “Red, White and Heavy” demo series, the sound quality on No Walls Can Hold is a bit rough, and not up to the typical Stormspell quality level. It has been cleaned up as much as the source material allows, and honestly the raw feel tends to match the style of music and make it sound that much more authentic.

Restless Breed isn’t going to appeal to everyone, but the ones that do get it are going to love it. No Walls Can Hold is for the die-hards, the serious collectors of cult heavy metal who don’t mind a few rough diamonds.

Genre: Heavy Metal, Speed Metal

Band:
Sam DelGreco (b)
Bill Boyle (d)
Mike Ulery (g)
Mike Tonn (g)
Dave Cowgill (v)
Art Taylor (g)
Mike Fournier (d)

Track Listing:
1. Metamorphosis/No Walls Can Hold
2. In Sanity (You Suffer)
3. Outside In
4. All Did Fall
5. Matter Over Mind
6. Seven Seals of Fate/The River Runs Red
7. Those That Never Were
8. Unleash the Beast
9. One Final Scream
10. The Real World
11. After the Holocaust
12. Don’t Let the Night Fall
13. War Child

Label: Stormspell

Website: http://www.sumthinfierce.com/RestlessBreed.html

Hardrock Haven rating: 7.75/10

Stutz | 3CD Box Set: Killer, Marching Into Hell & Keep Runnin’

by Justin Gaines
- Senior Columnist –

The Stormspell label may be best known for their high quality collections of rare and previously unavailable thrash metal, but every once in a while they’ll come up with a real gem from the melodic hard rock era. They did it a few years back with their Sergeant reissues, and they’ve done it again this year with their comprehensive 3-disc box set by the band Stutz. If you’re scratching your head right now and wondering who the hell Stutz is, the band was active in the Ohio scene throughout the ‘80s, and their albums are all but impossible to find and have never been released on CD previously.

However overlooked and unknown they may be, Stutz has a sound any child of the ‘80s will find familiar. The band’s early material had a somewhat bluesy, melodic rock sound that brings to mind Y&T and maybe TKO and Rail, but as the decade progressed the band took on a harder rocking, more metallic edge. Remember when Don Dokken was supposed to take over the lead vocal spot for the Scorpions? Stutz’s 1986 album Tearin’ Up the Night sounds like the lost album those guys never got the chance to make. There are traces of Leatherwolf, King Kobra, TKO, Aldo Nova and a lot of other great ‘80s bands throughout this 3-disc set, and that instant familiarity isn’t the only great thing about Stutz’s sound. The band had a great balance between hard rocking guitars and infectious melodies, and strong vocals. Some of their early recordings are a bit too quirky and synth-driven, but for the most part this is first class melodic hard rock.

Here’s what you get in the set: Disc 1 is titled Killer, and includes the band’s 1983 album Made in USA, the 1981 Blowin’ My Mind single and a pair of bonus tracks. Disc 2 is titled Marching Into Hell, and includes the band’s 1986 full-length Tearin’ Up the Night as well as four bonus tracks. Disc 3 is titled Keep Runnin’, and is a collection of the remaining previously unreleased Stutz recordings. All told you’re looking at 43 vintage melodic rock tracks that have never before been released on CD. The songs have all been digitally remastered, and when you consider the source material it’s nothing short of amazing that they sound this good. There are also new cover illustrations for each disc, and they’re all pretty memorable. Stormspell has earned their reputation for reissues that look as good as they sound, and this is no exception.

It’s obviously a leap of faith to take a chance on a box set from a band you’ve never heard of, but if you’re a serious fan of the ‘80s melodic hard rock sound, this Stutz set is well worth the gamble. It’s like a tour of the decade’s melodic rock evolution on three discs.

Genre: Melodic Rock, Heavy Metal

Band:
Billy Dillinger (b) (v)
VZ-Rizer (d)
Jerze Razz (g)
Ajax Stone (k) (v)
Jake Banshee (v) (g)

Track Listing:

Disc 1 (Killer)
1. Starking
2. I Am Gone
3. Playing With My Heart
4. Baby Baby I Do
5. Think Pink
6. Somehow I Knew It
7. She Keeps On Lovin’ Me
8. Killer
9. Wishin’ the Night Would Last
10. Just One Moment
11. Blowin’ My Mind
12. Let’s Do It Again
13. Champion
14. Tuned to the Night

Disc 2 (Marching Into Hell)
1. Prelude
2. Marching Into Hell
3. Prophecy
4. Searching
5. Love Struck
6. Flame In Your Heart
7. Stand Up
8. Tearing Up the Night
9. Give Me a Woman that Rocks
10. Killer
11. Make Love
12. Shot Down
13. You Know I Know
14. Playing With My Heart (1988)
15. Just One Moment (1988)

Disc 3 (Keep Runnin’)
1. Somewhere in the Night
2. Christine
3. Lies
4. That’s Enough When You Are Young
5. Shot Down (alternate version)
6. Killer (1988)
7. Bullets of Love
8. Keep Running
9. Can’t Stop Loving You
10. Danger Danger
11. Could Be Good, Could Be Bad
12. Double Shot
13. Come On Let’s Go
14. Girls Love to Be Loved
15. Heaven
16. So You Think You’re in Love

Label: Stormspell

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.5/10

Air Raid | Danger Ahead

by Justin Gaines
Staff Writer –

Swedish traditional heavy metal band Air Raid makes their debut this year with an EP titled Danger Ahead. Following in the footsteps of fellow Swedes Wolf and Enforcer, Air Raid falls into what has been called the New Wave of Traditional Metal – an emergence of newer bands with a decidedly old school heavy metal sound.

Air Raid’s sound has its roots in the obvious places – Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Accept and maybe a bit of Mercyful Fate. You can’t go wrong with those influences, and as a result, Danger Ahead is a very satisfying EP. It’s got a great twin axe attack, fantastic melodies, and a crushing heaviness to the rhythms that you don’t always see from a lot of newer traditional metal bands. Between that and the heaviness and power in Michael Rinakakis’s vocals, this is a very muscular, hard-hitting collection of songs. If you don’t bang your head and raise your fist to the metal assault of “Annihilation” and “Midnight Burner,” then you may need to rethink this whole metal thing. And who could forget the awesome battle anthem “The Metal Cult?”

The EP also includes the band’s 2-song 2011 demo as bonus tracks. The songs – “Traitor’s Gate” and “Fight Street” – sound like they could have been taken from some forgotten early ‘80s Neat Records 7” release. They’re straight-up, old school NWOBHM all the way, and close out the EP with a bang.

There may only be seven songs on Danger Ahead, but there’s enough pure metal awesomeness to fill multiple albums. Whether you’re a disciple of the classic bands named earlier, or newer bands like Skull Fist, In Solitude, White Wizzard and the like (or better yet, both), you have to check out Air Raid. It doesn’t get much better than this!

Genre: Heavy Metal, Traditional Metal

Band:
Johan Karlsson (g)
Andreas Johansson (g)
Robin Utbult (b)
David Hermansson (d)
Michael Rinakakis (v)

Track Listing:
1. When the Sky Turns Red
2. Annihilation
3. The Metal Cult
4. Midnight Burner
5. Free at Last
6. Traitor’s Gate (demo 2011)
7. Fight Street (demo 2011)

Label: StormSpell

Website: http://www.facebook.com/AirRaidOfficial

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.75/10