High Roller Records continue to deliver awesome NWOBHM and classic heavy metal releases, so here is the new Cloven Hoof full length. Band hails from Wolverhampton, UK and were formed in 1979. They played until 1990, then had a pause until 2001 to come back. This is their eleventh full length album. The sole original member is bassist Lee Payne, but he gathered mighty group of musicians, led by fantastic vocalist Harry Conklin, known for his work with Jag Panzer among other bands and projects. There are 10 songs on this record. The music is melodic heavy metal, NWOBHM style with great melodic guitar work, super vocal lines and great anthemic choruses, fine keyboard background generally made to pump your fist in the air, show metal horns and appreciate the music of Cloven Hoof. Lyrics vary from occult, fantasy and (anti) religion. Songs that somehow stood out to my ear upon listening to this album are Conquistador, Iron Mask and Flying Dutchman. Great album for all fans of classic metal.
Britanske NWOBHM legende Saxon su 2021.izdali album ‘Inspirations’ kojim su odali počast svojim uzorima, iz vlastitih razloga odabranim bendovima i pjesmama. Inače nemam naviku slušati i recenzirati albume obrada iz razloga što njima bendovi obično ispunjavaju zaostalu ugovornu obvezu prema labelima, ali vjerujem da ovdje to nije slučaj. Nakon nedavnog studijskog novog albuma ‘Carpe Diem’ iz prošle godine, Saxon su odlučili ponovo nas počastiti albumom, svojevrsnim nastavkom nazvanim jednostavno više inspiracija. Na ovom albumu nalaze se obrade deset bendova koji su utjecali, bili uzor i/ili inspirirali Saxon tijekom svih tih desetljeća sviranja i stvaranja. Stvar ukusa, no meni se na ovom albumu najviše sviđaju obrade Alice Coopera, Rainbowa, Kissa, a najviše od svega mi je nekako u uho uletjela obrada The Animalsa – ‘We’ve Gotta Get Out Of This Place, volim je jako i u originalnoj verziji. Po mom mišljenju sasvim nepotrebna dva albuma obrada, ali netko nekada voli obznaniti narodu bendove koji su utjecali i inspirirali, a i zgodan je način za pobrati još malo para od fanova.
San Francisco has always been fertile ground for metal and many great bands come from the Bay Area and around this glorious city. Nite are relatively new band in the scene, formed in 2018 but the members of this entity are in no way new or fresh in the scene having played in many bands and projects. This is Nite´s second full length opus and it contains eight songs. The music of Nite is melodic heavy metal but done with blackened style. That means many melodic hooks and solos, anthemic guitar riffs and catchy songs, but vocals are way different giving the whole darkened atmosphere. Guitarist/vocalist Van Labrakis sings, well it is not really singing but a mixture of growling, whispering and almost spoken voice in some parts, giving special, almost Lovecraftian atmosphere to this opus, although it is a nod to all old school NWOBHM masters through metal´s vast history. My personal favorites are Acheron, Kronian Moon and Heliopolis. Lyrics deal with more sinister and fantasy themes this creating a mixture of beauty with melodies and unrest and dread with horror atmosphere. I am glad I discovered this band.
