By far one of Germany’s more unsung traditional metal exports over here in North America-lagging unfairly far behind fellow Teutonic titans Helloween, Accept and The Scorpions-the story of Rage nonetheless chronicles a band whose unwavering dedication to the iron cause is nothing if not inspirational for those faithful whose souls still bleed denim and leather with pride.
Kicking things off way back in 1983 under the name Avenger, this early lineup of Rage was, as always anchored by fearless leader, singer, bassist and songwriter Peter ‘Peavy’ Wagner, releasing the Prayers of Steel full length and Depraved In Black EP in ’84 and ’85, respectively, before finally morphing into the Rage we all know and love sometime in 1986.
The sound shift from Avenger to Rage wasn’t terribly drastic. Although Avenger favored the dark, leather ‘n spikes image fixation of the time, the music Wagner was writing always tended to dwell somewhere in that nebulous realm between power metal and thrash, often dubbed ‘speed metal’ by those seeking a firm differentiation. Still, however, both Prayers of Steel and Depraved In Black showcased a far speedier and more aggressive side of Peavy’s songwriting, a tendency which would be further focused on early Rage efforts such as Reign of Fear and Execution Guaranteed, both of which would find a quick and appreciative audience in Germany, as well as those American metal fans who had the foresight and presence of mind to peruse the ‘import’ racks of their cool, local record store.
It was after these two efforts where the wheels began to spin a bit more quickly for Rage, however, specifically with the release of their next efforts, Perfect Man in ’88 and Secrets In a Weird World the following year. Both of these records featured what could be considered the first proper ‘hit’ singles for the bands, including live favorites “Don’t Fear the Winter,” “Invisible Horizons,” “Supersonic Hydromatic” and “Time Waits For No One.” Musically, this early-to-mid period of Rage could be quite easily compared to the creative arc of their countrymen in Blind Guardian, not only due to their shared love of double bass runs and melodic, slick guitar work, but also the orchestral, symphonic fetishes which would eventually encompass their (invisible) horizons.
While Rage would roughly continue this melodic metal streak for a bit longer than The Guardian-releasing LPs which would include Reflections of a Shadow, Trapped! and The Missing Link throughout the 80s and early 90s-the band would eventually collaborate with Prague’s Lingua Mortis orchestra on a trilogy of releases during the late 90s, with 1998′s XIII serving as a memorable high point for the musical marriage, resulting in the poignant and epic sounding single “From the Cradle to the Grave.”
Although Peavy has remained a constant throughout the existence of Rage, the band’s lineup has shifted multiple times over the years. With 2001′s Welcome to the Other Side, however, a new solidified lineup of Rage emerged: that of Peavy, guitarist Victor Smolski and drum machine maven Mike Terrana. This revitalized version of Rage would compose a number of efforts which nicely combined the traditional metal sounds of old-centered, as always, by Wagner’s pleasantly melodic vocals-with a modern day production and sense of heaviness.
These ambitions would best be serviced on 2002′s Unity LP; a prime LP of Rage tunes performed by a tight, charismatic unit. While Terrana would jump ship after 2006′s Speak of the Dead, both Smolski and Wagner remain to this day-alongside new skinsman Andre Hilgers-still holding true to their ideal of true, unabashed heavy metal…their way. The band is still an adored draw over in Europe, as well, particularly in their German homeland, despite the fact that true crossover success never really crossed their path.
Regardless of this fact, Rage remains a well-worthy investigation for traditional metallers seeking to broaden their 80s (again, invisible) horizons.
Martyr’s Circle of 8 is a fine example of why some obscure bands are probably best left that way, to lounge in the shadows of collector’s lists and cut-out bins.
While the heritage of this Dutch act extends all the way back to the early 80s with a duo of full lengths back-to-back in ’84/’85, Martyr never really made much headway here in the States, with most American metal fans probably associating the moniker of ‘Martyr’ more with the Canadian tech-death outfit than anything remotely power or traditionally minded.
Regardless of this fact, however, this Martyr has returned with their Circle of 8 comeback album, ready to make the day of every early 80s obsessive and/or the encyclopedic amongst us, for sure. Although the end results here are by no means piss-poor or ear-grating-check the aggressive and catchy thrash disaster ‘Art of Deception’-the bulk of Circle of 8 tends to be extraneous to need, rehashing many power/speed cliches without any real identity or the spark required to stand out from the ever-growing heritage pack. The love ‘em or hate ‘em tone of frontman Robert Van Haren is also a sticking point, as the singer tends to flip flop in and out of tune half the time.
To their credit, Martyr has ably arrived with the times, melding their old school influences with a bevy of lower-tuned, heavier attacks-think old Pantera or even mid-era Nevermore at times-and Circle of 8 does pick up speed ’round the half way mark, preventing a total and utter loss from these old schoolers. However, the real selling point for this album still eludes the listener, with Circle of 8 not really doing much to kick up things from idling in first gear. This one’s only for die hards.
Over the course of four full lengths now, Germany’s Van Canto have pioneered their own unique style of ‘a capella metal’-five singers and one drummer with no other instruments-to a surprising amount of success.
Far more than a curiosity or passing fad, this admittedly odd group-who, let’s face it, could have ONLY been born ‘n bred in Germany-actually make this frankly bizarre concept work for them, and work in spades. The real key here is that Van Canto know how to structure their songs optimally for the human voice, utilizing percussive vocalizations to simulate the driving feel of bass and guitars without the use of any strings whatsoever.
The combined efforts of female vocalist Inga Scharf and the four male compatriots-who handle bass, lead, and high/low guitars (including solos!), respectively-are practically seamless, resulting in a far more enjoyable listen than anyone could possibly imagine…serious, this has to be experienced at least once, if only for curiosity’s sake. Whether or not Van Canto possess any staying power really depends on personal taste, however, as the songwriting of Break the Silence is still very much rooted in the Blind Guardian/Rage school of power metal traditionalism.
Break the Silence also continues the band’s tradition of cover songs-having indulged in Metallica, Maiden and Grave Digger tunes on prior LPs-by including Manowar, Sabaton and Alice Cooper jams into the mix, cementing Van Canto’s place within underground metal’s strangest, yet most original corner.
I’ve always had a soft spot for the clear, punchy vocals of Urban Breed, ex-singer for Tad Morose and current Pyramaze frontman.
With that said, I approached Bloodbound’s fourth LP with a certain amount of trepidation. Luckily, new vocalist Patrick Johansson does his best to fill Breed’s shoes, and does so with proper taste, class and power.
Bloodbound benefits greatly from Johansson’s slight Germanic tone and approach-sounding slightly like Helloween’s Andi Deris at times-with Unholy Cross serving as a stately reminder of how this sort of melodic, approachable metal can still sound quite traditional and pleasing, without the cheese.
Mixing old school Accept and Rage-isms with a healthy dose of Americanized power metal a la Savatage, Unholy Cross doesn’t exactly win any awards for originality or uniqueness overall, yet the album serves as a suitably strong candidate for fans of the style, delivering practically all a follower should desire from this very Euro-centered heavy metal madness. Eliminating much of the speedy, neo-classical style of a Stratovarious or Yngwie Malmsteen, Bloodbound instead approaches their music from the perspective of The Riff and The Song, celebrating mid-paced choruses and chugging, simply effective verse structures.
RAGE is a German band that has been around since 1984. Although they are a band that never broke it big in the states, they often made their way into all of the major metal magazines over here in Europe. As a result they have always had a steady backing on this side of the pond.
With their latest release Strings To A Web they have tried to mix the old with the new. Sometimes this works, and sometimes it doesn’t. Case in point RATT’s Infestation came out earlier this year, they focused on updating their classic sound and released an album that was relevant for 2010, and their legacy. This is that opposite of what other bands have done, like say MOTLEY CRUE, who tried updating their sound by mimicking modern rock bands like PAPA ROACH and LINKIN PARK. The reason I bring this up is because RAGE has done the latter. Don’t get me wrong the album is alright, and I think to an extent it is cool to branch out and do different things, but if you’ve always played say glam metal, it would be hard to sell a black metal album to your fans, no?
The album is full of melodic metal in the vein of say WINGER, has parts that are flat out borrowed from VAN HALEN and JUDAS PRIEST, and adds touches of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and METALLICA to boot. The opening track “The Edge Of Darkness” starts out with a blatant rip off of VAN HALEN’s “Mean Streets”, although the JUDAS PRIEST influence is felt throughout the album, the solo for “Saviour Of The Dead” sounds like a complete rip off of the end of “Love Bites”. Only sped up, think Tom Morello style. The song itself sound is completely in the vein of BLS, and the riff actually sounds a lot like OZZY OSBOURNE’s “Thunder Underground” off of Ozzmosis, which Zakk Wylde played on. When first hearing the closing track “Tomorrow Never Comes”, I thought I was actually listening to BEATALLICA! Lead singer/bassist Peter “Peavey” Wagner actually sounds like BEATALLICA’s singer/bassist Jamyz Lennfield on the track throwing around plenty of faux Hetfield heys!
The album does head into symphonic metal territory for a few tracks, which in my opinion comes off pretty frail. This is the biggest determent to the album. If they were trying to go in a KAMELOT direction, they ended up in a symphonic WINGER direction instead. I have no beef with Winger, it’s just that this part of the album sound pretty weak, and comes off like a very cheap imitation of this sub-genre of metal.
If you’re a fan of the band I’d recommend you checking it out, if not just purchase some select tunes like the aforementioned “The Edge OF Darkness” and “Saviour Of The Dead” along with “Purified” and “Hunter and Prey”. These are the strongest tracks in my opinion, the rest is unfortunately just a lot of filler. My biggest issue is that I’ve heard all of the this a million times before in a much more entertaining fashion. It seems as if the band is just throwing a bunch of things up on the wall to see what does and does not stick.
By far one of Germany’s more unsung traditional metal exports over here in North America-lagging unfairly far behind fellow Teutonic titans Helloween, Accept and The Scorpions-the story of Rage nonetheless chronicles a band whose unwavering dedication to the iron cause is nothing if not inspirational for those faithful whose souls still bleed denim and leather with pride.
