{"id":50727,"date":"2015-12-05T09:10:59","date_gmt":"2015-12-05T14:10:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=50727"},"modified":"2015-12-05T09:10:59","modified_gmt":"2015-12-05T14:10:59","slug":"tank-valley-of-tears-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2015\/tank-valley-of-tears-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Tank | Valley Of Tears<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Alexandra Mrozowska<\/span>
\n– Sr. Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"VALLEYA bizarre but common situation in the world of Rock these days is to have two (or more) versions of the same band. Each of them is usually launched by the former member(s) of the original ensemble after its unfortunate split. That\u2019s what happened to Tank, who in their glory days were one of the most important representatives of the NWOBHM scene. After the smoke cleared, the band\u2019s axemen Mick Tucker and Cliff Evans were apparently not really eager to try job retraining and so they ended up launching their version of Tank. A somewhat younger counterpart to it emerged years later, led by the band\u2019s original founder and bassist\/singer Algy Ward. <\/p>\n

By 2013, marked by release of Ward\u2019s album under the Tank moniker \u2013 Breath Of The Pit<\/em> \u2013 the Tucker\/Evans version of the band had already two studio albums under their belt as well as the live DVD release. As 2015 slowly comes to an end now, one couldn\u2019t have found the widely announced Ward\u2019s Tank album Sturmpanzer on the shelf of any music store. (And, if one\u2019s to believe the said musician\u2019s official website and its information given in Day-Glo green, it should be finished soon for 2016 release). The Tucker\/Evans incarnation of Tank, on the other hand, is as prolific as ever. Their most recent release \u2013 Valley Of Tears<\/em> \u2013 saw the light of day this year via the biggest Polish Rock\/Metal label Metal Mind Productions. <\/p>\n

For the listeners familiar with previous efforts of this particular version of Tank (2010\u2019s War Machine<\/em> and 2012\u2019s War Nation<\/em>) it should come as no surprise it\u2019s a different kind of thing now music-wise. However, those who skipped a dozen years in the post-split history of the band should be aware Valley Of Tears<\/em> is hardly an updated version of Filth Hounds Of Hades<\/em> or even Honour & Blood<\/em>. It\u2019s closer to what\u2019s been recorded with Doogie White on board stylistically \u2013 Hard Rock bordering on Melodic Metal with classic inclinations. However, it\u2019s sufficient to check out the opening title track of the album to know it wasn\u2019t an idle talk in all the press announcement. Thing are really getting heavier and more contemporary here, and ZP Theart\u2019s addition behind the microphone has been an energy booster for the entire ensemble indeed.<\/p>\n

From the album\u2019s eponymous opener and its follow-up \u201cWar Dance\u201d to \u201cLiving A Fantasy\u201d, the majority of tracks on Valley Of Tears are powerhouse Hard Rock\/Metal anthems embroidered with a generous dose of the twin lead guitar attack. There\u2019s also certain melodic charm to them, too \u2013 utilizing the old school formula but with a modern twist. Perhaps it would have been a slight exaggeration to call \u201cEye Of A Hurricane\u201d or \u201cHold On\u201d the earworms even with their catchy choruses. On the other hand, you could have easily imagined a roaring crowd of thousands singing along to them on some big outdoor festival\u2026 The same goes for a Melodic Hard Rock touch in \u201cMake A Little Time.\u201d \u201cHeading For Eternity\u201d and \u201cWorld On Fire\u201d have, on the other hand, nearly a Speed Metal flavor to them. A nod and a wink of sorts to ZP Theart\u2019s tenure in DragonForce? Not entirely so, as the instrumental final track \u201cOne For The Road\u201d is no slowdown too. As for ballads on the album, there are none. The idea behind it was probably to keep the engine running at full throttle throughout the entire album \u2013 which worked well \u2013 but a single piece of balladry wouldn\u2019t have done any harm either. <\/p>\n

Tank\u2019s Valley Of Tears<\/em> is a classy, well-crafted Melodic Metal album. Certainly, it doesn\u2019t really keep a Punk-ish legacy of the early Tank and doesn\u2019t sound akin even to the latter works of theirs. But it\u2019s no drawback for the listener, with the exception of the traditionalists maybe. Juicy, rich guitar work with some blazing solos and the right balance between power and melody is what Tank currently stands for. And last, but not the last \u2013 a tremendous set of pipes behind the vocal lines, a probable highlight of the entire new effort of theirs. Highly recommended. <\/p>\n

Genre: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Melodic Metal<\/p>\n

Band:
\nCliff Evans \u2013 guitars
\nMick Tucker \u2013 guitars
\nZP Theart \u2013 vocals
\nBobby Schottkowski \u2013 drums
\nBarend Courbois \u2013 bass guitar<\/p>\n

Track List:
\n1.\tValley Of Tears
\n2.\tWar Dance
\n3.\tEye Of A Hurricane
\n4.\tHold On
\n5.\tLiving A Fantasy
\n6.\tHeading For Eternity
\n7.\tWorld On Fire
\n8.\tMake A Little Time
\n9.\tOne For The Road<\/p>\n

Label: Metal Mind Productions<\/p>\n

Website: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Tank-90444813508\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 9\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Alexandra Mrozowska – Sr. Columnist — A bizarre but common situation in the world of Rock these days is to have two (or more) versions of the same band. Each of them is usually […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":50729,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12394],"tags":[1103,2491,3439,11881,11882],"class_list":{"0":"post-50727","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2015","8":"tag-hard-rock","9":"tag-heavy-metal","10":"tag-melodic-metal","11":"tag-tank","12":"tag-valley-of-tears-cd-review"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50727"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50727\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}