{"id":53095,"date":"2016-11-05T09:07:25","date_gmt":"2016-11-05T14:07:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=53095"},"modified":"2016-11-05T09:07:25","modified_gmt":"2016-11-05T14:07:25","slug":"steve-grimmetts-grim-reaper-walking-in-the-shadows-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2016\/steve-grimmetts-grim-reaper-walking-in-the-shadows-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper | Walking In The Shadows"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis<\/span>
\n– Sr. Columnist —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"steve-grimmetts-grim-reaper_walking-in-the-shadows\"Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper\u2018s Walking in the Shadows<\/em> is a hard rocking example of the Metal genre commonly known as NWOBHM (New Wave of British Heavy Metal) \u2013 not at all bad for a band that has been on hiatus for nearly three decades! In fact except for noticeably better recording techniques, Walking in the Shadows<\/em> could have been released as is all those years ago.<\/p>\n

Direct, hard hitting, and totally unapologetic, Grim Reaper’s music today is exactly what it was thirty years ago. Steve Grimmett has not allowed his Metal edge to dull and has not softened his approach one iota. He may have lost a tiny little bit of his top end, but the years have seasoned Grimmett’s vocal technique and songwriting skill enough that even the most hardcore fans of old Grim Reaper won’t complain.<\/p>\n

The original Grim Reaper was formed back in 1979 but did not release their first album until 1983’s See You in Hell<\/em>. Riding the crest of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, they released their sophomore album Fear No Evil<\/em> in 1985, and after a legal dispute with their label, they spun Rock You to Hell<\/em> two years later in 1987. When the New Wave broke Grim Reaper disbanded in 1988 with Grimmett brought his distinctive voice to other projects including Onslaught and Lionsheart, while his primary songwriting partner and well-respected guitarist Nick Bowcott went freelance. The band flirted with reunions in the mid-2000s, playing some festivals and live shows, but nothing truly solid materialized until they played a series of live gigs starting in 2009. That leads us at long last to 2016’s Walking in the Shadows.<\/p>\n

Steve Grimmett as expected fronts the band, and his voice remains as distinctive and identifiable as always \u2013 and his style has changed very little, which in this case is a very good thing. Ian Nash handles the guitars, and at times seems to be channeling original guitarist Nick Bowcott. Any fan of the original band would have doubts about GR without Bowcott, but Nash’s style is similar enough that the riffs carry the same musical punch and overall spirit while being different enough in execution that one can be sure that it is not someone trying to imitate him. Chaz Grimaldi proves to be a talented bassist and knows how to fit himself into the music, staying steadily in the background and stepping forward and kicking butt when called upon. Drummer Paul White can do it all, handling insane double bass and straight up rock styles with equal skill, and is just flashy enough to catch notice, but not too extreme that he dominates or becomes a distraction.<\/p>\n

Musical highlights include: \u201cWalking In The Shadows\u201d – a titanic track built around both Grimmett’s strong vocals and Nash’s superb rhythm guitars (his solo is pretty damned good here as well \u2013 Bowcott’s shoes have been filled well and truly); \u201cI’m Coming For You\u201d – a slower, pounding track that allows Grimaldi’s bass and White’s drums to rule; \u201cCall Me In The Morning\u201d is a near thrash \/ speed track with a dynamic drum line and huge guitar chops; \u201cTemptation\u201d features a manic drum line and machine gun bass behind gritty vocals and a superb lead break; and finally \u201cThunder\u201d is a massive, rolling rocker that pushes everyone in the band to be their best. There is not a bad track on the CD!<\/p>\n

Nicely produced and mixed, Walking in the Shadows<\/em> is NWOBHM with a modern sound. Grimmett’s voice is as metal as ever, and the new lineup is tight enough that it seems that they’ve been together for decades. Their sound is a throwback to the glory days of Metal and is refreshing in its familiarity. Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper delivers pure old school Heavy Metal without any fluff (no ballads, no keyboards, no love songs). Despite a mostly new lineup, long-time Reaper fans will love it, NWOBHM fans will be immediately at home, Grimmett fans will enjoy his vocals, and anyone looking for a new candidate for a guitar hero will have to consider Ian Nash…<\/p>\n

Steve Grimmett sums it all up when he roars \u201cRock will never die!\u201d and proves that Grim Reaper is not dead \u2013 not even close!<\/p>\n

Genre: Heavy Metal<\/p>\n

Band:
\nSteve Grimmett (vocals)
\nIan Nash (guitars)
\nChaz Grimaldi (bass)
\nPaul White (drums)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tWings Of Angels
\n2.\tWalking In The Shadows
\n3.\tReach Out
\n4.\tI\u2019m Coming For You
\n5.\tFrom Hell
\n6.\tCall Me In The Morning
\n7.\tRock Will Never Die
\n8.\tTemptation
\n9.\tThunder
\n10.\tNow You See Me
\n11.\tBlue Murder
\n12.\tCome Hell Or High Water<\/p>\n

Label: Dissonance Productions<\/p>\n

Website: http:\/\/grimreaperofficial.co.uk\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.5 \/ 10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Joe Mis – Sr. Columnist — Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper\u2018s Walking in the Shadows is a hard rocking example of the Metal genre commonly known as NWOBHM (New Wave of British Heavy Metal) \u2013 […]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":53097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13652],"tags":[2317,12837,12835,2491,3897,12834,12836],"class_list":{"0":"post-53095","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arcrvws2016","8":"tag-cd-review","9":"tag-dissonance-productions","10":"tag-grim-reaper","11":"tag-heavy-metal","12":"tag-nwobhm","13":"tag-steve-grimmett","14":"tag-walking-in-the-shadows"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53095","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=53095"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53095\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53095"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53095"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53095"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}