AC/DC - Back In Black (1980)

Marking a rebirth of AC/DC, Back In Black was recorded just months after original singer Bon Scott had died – the album title being reference to this. Scott’s replacement was ex-Geordie vocalist, and Geordie, Brian Johnson who was somewhat daunted by stepping into Scott’s shoes and the possible backlash from the fans so decided to scream as high, loud and powerfully as he could throughout the album.

He needn’t have worried, his vocals on this (and successive releases) are outstanding for the genre and ear-shredding in their intensity throughout. From the opening chimes of Hell’s Bells to the closing bluesy-riffed Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution, this album has ‘classic’ stamped all the way through it.

The fans agreed too and snapped it up making it AC/DC’s best selling album ever and selling in excess of 49 million copies worldwide! Back In Black carries the hallmark AC/DC sound but with the humour element brought by Scott replaced by a more aggressive vocal delivery and maturity.

In my opinion AC/DC lost their way during the later 1980s but this is a fine testament to a great rock band producing a masterpiece out of the most trying of circumstances. Such was the album’s impact, drumming metronome Phil Rudd can even be heard producing a drum roll in Back In Black immediately upon the song coming out of Angus Young’s solo – wonders will never cease!

• Angus Young — Guitar
• Brian Johnson — Vocals
• Malcolm Young — Guitar
• Cliff Williams — Bass
• Phil Rudd — Drums

Alcatrazz - Disturbing The Peace (1985)

Following their debut album in 1984, Alcatrazz were left without a guitarist leaving Graham Bonnet et al to consider the difficult question: just how do you replace Yngwie Malmsteen? The answer was to recruit ex-Frank Zappa guitarist Seve Vai! Keyboardist Jimmy Waldo’s eye for a talented guitarist – following a recommendation from Rainbow’s David Rosenthal – had not let Alcatrazz down as once again they had an incredibly talented guitarist on board and the band set about writing and recording their follow-up to No Parole From Rock N Roll.

Disturbing The Peace is a strong album with both Vai and Graham Bonnet putting in powerful performances. The album is a marked shift from their Malmsteen work with the distinctive style of Vai taking the band in a different direction of a more commercial edge with the rapid-fire soloing of Malmsteen replaced by Vai’s more harmonic style.

Kicking off with God Blessed Video – which was also a single – Bonnet takes a swipe at the Duran Duran era of music videos: “Some cheap kid from Birmingham blessed with an accent that pours like the darkest brown ale”! Impossibly high-ranged vocals, this uptempo opener features some trademark Vai soloing. Mercy is a bit of a non-entity but the thrid track, Will You Be Home Tonight is a standout track with Bonnet singing in an unusually low register minus the usual growl to his voice until the second verse when he can contain himself no longer and really lets rip! I’ve come across two differing statements from Bonnet as to the background for the track – one being it is dedicated to James Dean, the other that it was written about a fan that the band had heard about who had died in a car accident on the way home from one of the band’s gigs.

The album then gets a little bland for a couple of numbers until the all-out rock of Stripper kicks in at track 6 with a breakneck riff from Vai. Things again drift somewhat until Sons And Lovers, a medium paced melodic rock number with a good hook which is followed by Skyfire, one of the strongest tracks on the album, telling the story of a UFO incident Bonnet witnessed over his Malibu home.

Whilst much trepidation surrounded the post-Malmsteen Alcatrazz, this album turned out a near-cracker, not quite there but very good indeed, with Vai and Bonnet really giving it their all and proving equally as good as No Parole but in a different sound-scape. Unfortunately for Alcatrazz, Vai left following the Disturbing The Peace tour to join Dave Lee Roth but that’s another stony!

• Graham Bonnet – Vocals
• Steve Vai – Guitars
• Jimmy Waldo – Keyboards
• Gary Shea – Bass
• Jan Uvena – Drums

Alcatrazz - No Parole From Rock 'N' Roll (1983)

Following an all-too brief stint as frontman with Rainbow, vocalist Graham Bonnet pursued several short-lived projects for a few years – a short stint with the Michael Shenker Group and a solo album – only to re-emerge with Alcatrazz in 1983 and this, their debut album No Parole From Rock ‘N’ Roll. Featuring a largely unknown bunch of musicians, and Bonnet as chief songwriter (as opposed to in Rainbow) the omens weren’t good.

However, what in fact emerged was something of a revelation during what was something of a transition period in the development of rock with Bonnet ‘taking a punt’ on a then-19 year old Swedish guitarist named Ymgwie Malmsteen who, at that time, was heavily under the influence of Richie Blackmore in both classically-influenced style and appearance coupled with rapid sweeps, runs and arpeggios: something which he would develop to a phenomenal extent in his post-Alcatrazz career.

Furthermore, Bonnet’s writing was first rate with Jet To Jet, Hiroshima Mon Amour and Too Young To Die being three of the outstanding tracks from the album. Whilst Bonnet’s vocals were good with Rainbow, the more commercial approach that that band were taking at the time had somewhat limited the scope for his vocal abilities where as here, Bonnet really could let rip with his awe-inspiring range and power.

Unfortunately, the Bonnet-Malmsteen partnership only saw this studio album, and a live offering released, before Malmsteen pursued a solo career but for lovers of melodic shredding guitar, melodic yet powerful rock and soaring vocals, you couldn’t ask for more than No Parole From Rock ‘N’ Roll. My only criticism would be the production is a little ‘limp’ but hey, you can’t have everything!

• Graham Bonnet – Vocals
• Yngwie Malmsteen – Guitar
• Gary Shea – Bass
• Jan Uvena – Drums
• Jimmy Waldo – Keyboards

Anthrax - Spreading The Disease (1985)

At the forefront of the emerging thrash scene in the mid-1980s, New York’s Anthrax recruited vocalist Joey Belladonna and bassist Frank Bello for Spreading the Disease, their follow-up to their 1983 debut album Fistful of Metal which turned out to be an inspired move as Disease broke the band internationally. Whilst thrash developed in a direction that I didn’t find particularly inspiring, Anthrax retained a humour and inventiveness, particularly on this album and its follow-up, that I found quite refreshing and many a good mosh was had to its tracks as a youth.

AIR makes the intentions of the band felt from the outset with repetitious, chugging riff and Belladona wailing the lyrics – a trademark break to half-time is also featured and rapid double-bass drums from Benante during the guitar solo. The intensity is kept with the thumping bass intro to Lone Justice which is soon accompanied by the metallic rhythm guitar of Ian and squealing guitar soloing of Spitz . . . all good stuff and rather laying down the blueprint for a plethora of US speed/thrash metal bands to follow soon after.

One of the real standouts of the album is up next with the immortal line “It’s time for your medication Mr Brown” immediately preceding the distinctive chugging riff of Madhouse – one of Anthrax’s classic tracks which was also a single for the band. I recall seeing Anthrax live on the Among The Living Tour and Madhouse got by far the biggest roar from the crowd when the opening riff was played by Scott ‘Not’ Ian!

A rather easter-flavoured guitar piece opens SSC/Stand or Fall which then, via a rapid shred, into the speed metal riff of the track proper which featured some machine gun double-bass playing from Benante and even a singalong chorus! The Enemy opens with a drum riff from Benante – akin to their later track Indians – which flows into a rather doom-laden riff to a real chugger of a track featuring one of Belladonna’s strongest vocals.

Aftershock again opens with drums and is a thrash number: enough said! Then the pace disappears with the guitar picking intro to Armed and Dangerous and suddenly we’re in ballad territory . . . there’s even a prog-style keyboard in the background. But, just as you think something very odd is happening, in comes the guitars with a strong and melodic solo accompanied by crashing chords and drums and the tempo doubles mid-way through; all of which provides for a very powerful multi-facetted track.

Another good dance floor-filler back in 80’s rock clubs Medusa is up next which is a medium-tempo track and is more a straightforward metal track with good melodic overtones both vocally and within the verse riff itself. The distinctive metallic rasping of Ian’s rhythm guitar however, leaves you in no doubt you’re listening to Anthrax throughout.

The closing track, Gung-Ho, is a real belter and co-written with previous Anthrax vocalist Neil Turbin who was fired by the band prior to the sessions for Spreading the Disease – he also shared the writing credits for Armed and Dangerous however. The riff is pure thrash, the track thundering along at a furious pace and was a moshing classic . . . albeit an incredibly tiring one if my memory serves me correctly. Gung-Ho is a great way to close the album and was, at that time, one of the fastest tracks I’d heard, along with Whiplash by Metallica a year or so earlier: the ending is amusing too – you’ll hear why if you listen to the album!

Whilst Fistful of Metal was, I felt, a rather mediocre offering, Spreading the Disease really paved the way for a stack of thrash and speed metal bands to break through and it formed the bedrock of Anthrax’s reputation, one on which they’d build considerably with the follow-up release, Among the Living. For fans of thrash, and the various sub-genres that stemmed from it, this album is a must to see how it all started, and for fans of heavy metal too this album is highly recommended as it is a prime example of how the genre was changing and an indication of how much further the style could be taken.

• Joey Belladonna – Vocals
• Dan Spitz – Guitar
• Scott Ian – Guitar
• Frank Bello – Bass
• Charlie Benante – Drums

Ark - The Dreams Of Mr Jones (1988)

Working, as I once did in a previous incarnation, at one of the UK’s top rock venues back in the 80s with live bands on 3 – 4 nights a week occasionally a band really made you stand up and take notice . . . and I mean occasionally . . . and there are also bands for whom the term ‘underrated’ doesn’t even come close: Ark more than ably satisfied the criteria for both categories. Hailing from the West Midlands, Ark walked the dangerous line between prog-rock and commercial rock with ease, producing a succession of musically adroit and lyrically meaningful tracks at a time when the music world was by and large turning ‘cock rock’.

In 1987 the band entered the Edward’s Rock Complex Battle of the Bands competition – on which i was a judge on some of the rounds – and won, securing time at Birmingham’s Rich Bitch recording studios for the following year which was utilised to record their debut album The Dreams of Mr Jones.

The album opens with Gaia, a powerful up-tempo track that personified Ark’s sound with twin guitars played with a twist. On the one hand was Pete Wheatley’s distorted rock guitar and on the other Steve Harris’ guitar synth playing which added power to some of the tracks with a traditional guitar sound and more than ably filled-in for keyboard melodies and solos as required. The mid-section of Gaia is particularly interesting as it features vocalist Anthony Short on flute for a half-time instrumental break.

Next-up is the slow ballad Through The Night which is tender without being cheesy and features Steve Harris playing ‘piano’ throughout on the synth guitar. The track speeds-up for the latter quarter featuring a solo from Pete Wheatley and whilst one of Ark’s longer tracks on the album at just over five and half minutes, holds the interest throughout with strong vocals and melody coupled with the instrumentation.

Kaleidoscope follows which is again a very strong composition and it’s about here you begin to realise that there is something of a revelation about The Dreams of Mr Jones in that there’s no filler at all, each track is equally as strong as the others and follow a principle I always admire in that they contain several distinct segments that hold the interest and demonstrate the band’s compositional abilities to good effect.

Echoing the band’s concerns about terrorism, and the IRA at that time, Powder for the Gun is a powerful piece of prose set to a mid-tempo, bass-driven track:

“Like the glint of a weapon with no hint of surprise
He’s naked in the bright interrogator’s light, there’s no disguise
With a foot in the graveyard and a hand on his heart
An actor for the cause in romantic civil wars, he plays the part ”

With lyrics such as this, Powder for the Gun is a bold statement and conveys its message with skill and prowess!

Mabeline – no not a Chuck Berry cover – tells the tale of a lady of, shall we say, low moral fibre, and provides a lighter respite between the power of Powder from the Gun before Nowhere’s Ark kicks-in.

Nowhere’s Ark closes the album and is a belter of a track with an up-tempo triplet feel throughout and a strong instrumental mid-section with a semi-mediaeval feel too it – particularly in the vocal harmonies and flute section over the pounding tom toms. However, don’t think this is done in a pretentious manner as it still sounds very contemporary in its approach and lyrically explores the emotions as a nuclear holocaust beckons which, as with many of the lyrics, shows a distinct maturity and distance between Ark and a fair proportion of prog bands. Musically the track builds into a powerful set of guitar solos thus maintaining a powerful rock feel to the track overall and the syncopations at the end of the track are again of an English folk flavour but really end the album on a high note.

My only criticism of this album which is now nigh-on impossible to purchase on CD, is that at 6 tracks and lasting only 29 minutes it’s way too short. Ark certainly had plenty of strong material at that time so I can only assume that constraints on studio time dictated the album’s length which, if correct, is a great pity. With the Gabriel-esque vocal styling of frontman Anthony Short and a musical style mixing the likes of Marillion with a touch of folk and hearty dose of powerful rock – along with a great live presence – I always thought they’d found a winning formula but alas I was wrong and Ark never really hit anywhere near the heights their talents deserved but if you can get hold of a copy of The Dreams of Mr Jones I’m fairly confident you’ll come to the same conclusion.

• Anthony Short – Vocals/Flute
• John Jowitt – Bass
• Dave Robbins – Drums
• Pete Wheatley – Guitar
• Steve Harris – Guitar Synthesizer

Asia - Asia (1982)

For many today, the idea of a prog rock group is anathema and therefore a supergroup made up from members of prog rock groups is far from an enticing concept. However, back in the 1980s Asia, formed by ex-Yes guitarist Steve Howe, ex-Yes keyboardist Geoff Downes, ex-King Crimson bassist/vocalist John Wetton and ex-ELP drummer Carl Palmer pulled it off with great aplomb!

This, Asia’s first album, contains some classic tracks and the album proved a real commercial success and has since been certified 4 x platinum! Furthermore, the album doesn’t contain lengthy concepts and overblown solos but rather a neat set of AOR-tinged numbers which, I would imagine, somewhat dismayed prog fans as it wasn’t really what was expected from the musicians involved.

As you would expect the level of musicianship is high with all but Carl Palmer (who seemed to be playing with one arm behind his back compared to in his ELP heyday) turning-in good performances. Well, to be fair so does Palmer but as a drummer myself, and a big fan of his flamboyance with ELP, I find his work on this album a bit flat: although more than adequate for what the songs require.

A number of singles were culled from the album with Heath Of The Moment probably the best known as it scored a number 1 in North America and achieved most airplay at the time. Time And Again and Soul Survivor (see the video clip below and yes, that is Greg Lake on bass/vocals!) are also standout tracks and a little less radio-friendly than most of the other material.

All-in-all a good album if not quite what was expected from Howe and co and it stood the band in good stead for several years to come. If you like your rock melodic, well produced and with the occasional tinge of musical virtuosity then this album is definitely for you!

• John Wetton – Bass/Vocals
• Carl Palmer – Drums
• Steve Howe – Guitars
• Geoffrey Downes – Keyboards

Berlin - Count Three And Pray (1986)

Californian electro-pop/new wave band Berlin hit the scene in the early 1980s their carefully blended mix of synth-driven songs, such as The Metro, coupled with their image, personified by singer Teri Nunn which garnered them a growing fan base. As their career progressed a more rock side to their sound emerged and by Count Three and Pray, their fourth studio album in 1986, they had developed into a strong commercial-rock band capable of writing songs of both power and melody, all impeccably sung by the very underrated Teri Nunn. Unfortunately, just as More Than Words became a millstone around the neck of Extreme by being their worldwide smash hit but not belying the true sound of the band, so Take My Breath Away from the film Top Gun did for Berlin, but more of that later.

The album opens with a powerful mid-tempo bass and drum line overlaid with Hammond followed by a flash of guitar before Terri Nunn begins the verse of Will I Ever Understand You. A strong album opener held together by a bassline and powerful vocal performance from Nunn who demonstrates her powerful and versatile range to good effect. Mid-track there’s a short drum-break and slow build to . . . not, not a guitar shred, but a return to the main theme thus maintaining the melody and intensity of the overall track.

The mood then drops for the pan-pipe style intro to You Don’t Know through which the drums fade-in along with a brief synth melody before Nunn once again holds centre stage with a brooding verse before lifting the mood slightly with the chorus. Written by bass/synth player (and Nunn’s partner) John Crawford the song serves well to illustrate the strong songwriting credentials of the band – there’s even a harp on this track in places! You Don’t Know was a single from the album reaching number 39 in the UK chart but in my opinion deserved to perform much better.

Like Flames starts with a whistling melody over a really typical 80s synth pattern but soon turns into a more mainstream rock track making good use of light and shade with the first part of each verse being dropped softly and picking up with intensity towards the chorus and as with You Don’t Know, was a minor chart troubler on both sides of the Atlantic. The track was written by drummer Rob Brill and makes good use of Nunn’s range and whilst the rather dated backing track – think John Parr’s St Elmo’s Fire and the ilk – there’s enough guitar, even a solo, and interest from Nunn to carry the track along without it descending too much into cheesy 80s territory.

Heartstrings is up next and is a poppy track again around a bassline with guitars chopping away in accompaniment. The track stands up well alongside any 80s rock tracks of similar artists – Pat Benatar etc – and it does make you wonder why Berlin didn’t really hit the heights and aren’t remembered with the same degree of affection and frequency as some lesser groups of the era. The harmony guitar break works well on Heartstrings too as does the solo proper which stretches over several bars.

Up next is the root of the problem with Berlin, Take My Breath Away. Now, whilst the Georgio Moroder-penned track is good for what it is, and whilst Terri Nunn does a great job on vocals, in part Take My Breath Away broke the band. Being number 1 in the chart virtually globally, in part for its connection to Tom Cruise’s Top Gun film for which it was an integral part, was a double-edged sword for Berlin. On the one hand it gave them worldwide exposure and success but on the other hand it wasn’t reminiscent of Berlin – it was in effect a Terri Nunn solo piece – and thus those masses switched on to the band by the single would buy the band’s albums and be disappointed if they were expecting more of the same. Furthermore, Nunn and Crawford’s relationship was stretched to breaking point as Nunn was seen as ‘Berlin’ and the band an irrelevance.

Trash is up next and is a really ballsy guitar-driven rocker, good contrast to the previous track, in a more updated Runaways style. There’s even a squealing guitar solo here and a bit of shredding which gives a real metal edge to the track with Nunn’s vocals reigned back melodically in-keeping with the greater emphasis on instrumentation. The track does show what a versatile composer John Crawford was as he could seamlessly write hard rock, pop and ballads all with a distinctive catchy edge and was fortunate enough to belong to a band who could execute them impeccably.

When Love Goes to War opens with melancholy piano which drifts into a slow bassline once more over which a heavily chorused guitar plays and Nunn opines the breakup of love and the trail of destruction a broken relationship leaves behind: somewhat prophetic at the time! This is a classic track of its time and would equally have sat well with Vixen, for example, with whom I’m sure it would have been a huge hit as it has a strong hook, powerful vocals, melody, emotion and power. Listen to it back to back with Vixen’s Edge of Broken Heart and you’ll see that Berlin had great commercial potential too in their own style and right but sadly it was not to be.

Hideaway is one of the weaker tracks on the album – it’s got a strong performance once more from Nunn but doesn’t really standout amongst the other tracks being of mediocre ballad affair. Sex Me, Talk Me begins with a very ‘macho’ chant repeated to a backing of strings! Then in comes the 80s synth bass of which I’ve never been a fan and again it’s a bit of a filler track and not written by the band. Interestingly, Hideaway was also co-written by the writer of Sex Me, Talk Me so I’d go as far as to say that I’ve identified the weak link with these two tracks.

Pink and Velvet, co-written by Nunn and guitarist Ric Olson closes the album and is a mellow, slow-tempo track carried along by Nunn’s soulful vocals. Pink and Velvet was also released as a single from the album but failed to make any inroads into the charts and was, in my opinion, an unlikely single choice. However, it is a strong track featuring two very melodic extended, Dave Gilmour-esque, guitar solos and reminds me of Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb in the guitar department . . . well, at least heading in that direction.

Count Three and Pray should have been a huge album for Berlin as it contains a set of very strong tracks that equal, if not better, those of many of their peers in the power-rock/commercial rock field at that time but unfortunately their biggest hit rather overshadowed the band’s true sensibilities and attracted a new audience drawn by the sound of Take My Breath Away who were only going to be disappointed by how the band actually sounded. The nature of the single also rather made them somewhat of a novelty act in rock circles and further drove away an audience that would have been far more appreciative of the true Berlin sound should they have had the opportunity to hear it. All-in-all this is a very strong album and one I’d definitely recommend and Terri Nunn was, and is, a phenomenally talented vocalist who, along with the songwriting and playing skills of the rest of Berlin, should have been destined for greatness but, alas, that destiny was not to be realised.

• Terri Nunn – Vocals
• John Crawford – Bass/Synthesizer
• Ric Olsen – Guitar
• David Diamond – Guitars/Syntheiszers
• Matt Reid – Synthesizers/Keyboards
• Rob Brill – Drums

Brian May - Star Fleet Project (1983)

At just under 30 minutes in length, the mini-album Star Fleet Project is short, but certainly sweet, and is the debut solo project for Queen’s Brian May. The increasingly hard to find album, however, is not a Brian May solo project in the same way as his post-Queen works but is rather a jam session collaboration with some of May’s friends. Whilst this may not seem like a concept that should make it to vinyl, when you realise that among these ‘friends’ is guitarist Eddie Van Halen the project becomes all the more alluring.

Inspired by a Japanese children sci-fi animation series that was avidly watched by his child, May set about writing the Star Fleet theme into an extended full ’song’ and this piece forms the opener to the album and was also a single release. The version here is not the same as the single version, the video for which can be seen below, but is a longer more improvised version with extended soloing.

Next-up is Let Me Out, which wouldn’t have sounded out of place on a Queen album to be fair, and is a slow shuffle with some crashing chords and May taking lead vocal duties: there are even some Queen-esque vocal harmonies on the chorus for good measure. There’s a nice little guitar solo from May and then just as you think the track is about to fade, in comes the solos with Eddie Van Halen and May taking it in turns to run through a number of solos and it’s not long before Van Halen is into his stride with his runs but here they are in a more understated bluesy style to suit the number: but for fans of his speed-picking, he does squeeze a bit in too! May also really makes his guitar really screech here on the solos before the band return to the chorus for the outtro.

Side 2 of the old vinyl features just one track, May’s tribute to Eric Clapton, Blues Breaker which is a 12 minute slow blues instrumental jam with May and Van Halen again trading solos. However, unlike Clapton, Van Halen throws in some tapping and rapid runs as the track progresses whilst May, never the speed freak, keeps it simple but effective. Finally, Fred Mandel gets a piano solo spot too before the track double-times for the final bars.

This is a very interesting album indeed recorded when Brian May was in between the ill-received funk-oriented Hot Space and the reinventing Works albums by Queen and works extremely well as an intentionally minimally-produced set of jams. Eddie Van Halen and Brian May have two of the most distinctive guitar styles in rock so it is interesting here to hear both of them adapting their styles to blues – a style that heavily influenced both players – and trading solos throughout. If you can get hold of a copy, I’d highly recommend it!

• Brian May – Guitar/Vocals
• Edward Van Halen – Guitar
• Phil Chen – Bass
• Fred Mandel – Keyboards
• Alan Gratzer – Drums

Cloven Hoof - Cloven Hoof (1984)

Coming through the scene that was the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, Wolverhampton’s Cloven Hoof had largely missed the boat by the time of their 1984 self-titled debut album. While most other bands were back-combing their hair and pouring themselves into spandex, Cloven Hoof were serving-up a menu of powerful old school heavy metal with a lyrical content based in the sword and sorcery of previous bands with a more sinister overtone that early pioneers of black metal, such as Venom, would soon seize upon and take to the next level and beyond: it’s not too much of a leap of imagination to move from Cloven Hoof’s band member stage names of the four elements to Mantas, Cronos and Abaddon adopted by Venom either!

The album opens with the title track which is a basic mid-tempo metal track with somewhat shouted vocals and simplistic riff although later on there is some nice guitar work. Lyrically the track is very much in the ‘heretic’, ‘evil’ end of the genre which is ok but a little one-dimensional, albeit amusing to look back on!

Nightstalker is more of the same with a pounding riff and drum track that buzzes along well and you start to wonder if replacing Biff Byford in Saxon with Cronos from Venom (with a few vocal lessons) would produce Cloven Hoof . . . well, at least I do! Now, I don’t want to appear to knock Cloven Hoof as I’d much rather listen to them than the average pop pap we hear everyday elsewhere and I appreciate that they were a product of their time and were to a point influential, albeit of a direction in metal that I didn’t particularly enjoy, but the whole thing seems a little contrived. However, back to Nightstalker – there is an interesting shift in time signature and riff mid-way through that is totally unexpected and gives an inkling that the band are capable of more than the endless chugging guitar work heard thus far.

March of the Damned opens with a slow bass line and very distant drum thumping accompanied by a twin harmony guitar melody . . . yes melody! Actually, this 2 minute instrumental is quite good – whilst not showing any great flashes of musical dexterity the overall composition and execution is good.

The Gates of Gehenna is up next and is almost Maiden-esque, well very Maiden-esque – that is the Di’Anno era of Maiden I’m referring to here though not the more polished Dickinson variety. This is a more up-tempo track with some wailing vocals and things are looking up, the track features a triplet beat and multiple segments which keep it interesting and again there’s some good twin harmony guitar melodies dropped-in here and there. Mid-way through the track things really get motoring and if you ignore the ‘Lucifer’ references and lyrical content which is banal, this is quite good stuff. The guitar solo is good too with a bit of a shred going on and demonstrating Steve Rounds’ talents to good effect . . . or should that be Fire’s? In all seriousness, if The Gates of Gehenna had been the opening track I’d have been quite excited awaiting the rest of the album, as it is it feels like an oasis in a desert of run of the mill doom-laden metal.

Crack the Whip opens with a pounding chord-based riff and things are shifting AC/DC style, apart from the vocals which are snarled and screamed true metal style and rather let the whole thing down. Interestingly, ‘Water’ left the band after the release of this album which can be seen as a boon to Cloven Hoof to be honest. This could have been a really strong track had it not been for the vocals.

Laying Down the Law starts with a promising riff and some 16th notes on the hi-hat but again the track falls down on the vocals . . . give the Hoof Paul Di’Anno or Rob Halford and you’d have a decent track here. This track even has a hook on the chorus and a great guitar solo and a driving tempo and is one of the more ‘commercial’ of the tracks on this album but still retaining all the power of the band which is a plus.

Return of the Passover is a 9 minute epic opening with some frantic guitar picking on a heavily echoed guitar followed by a heavily echoed bassline over which Fire hits some big metal chords: this could go either way. Fortunately, the drums kick-in and we’re off on a mid-tempo riff again of a triplet format that carries things along well. There’s a tad too much ‘vengeance’, ‘damnation’ and ’soul stealing’ lyrically for my tastes but once again Steve Rounds shines through with some strong guitar work. A half-time mid section provides the backdrop for Rounds to solo before the track descends into doom territory with a chugging rhythm guitar interspersed with a dual harmony guitar melody before returning to the main riff of the track. The track ends with an extended guitar solo and some syncopations of drums, bass and guitar before a crashing chord finale and the album is done!

What to say in summation of Cloven Hoof? This is not a bad album per se and has some very strong moments, largely when vocalist David Potter shuts up! Steve Rounds really shines through on every track and for a band somewhat stranded in the wasteland between the NWOBHM and Hair Metal eras, as were many others, Cloven Hoof stuck to their guns and provided a set of powerful heavy metal tracks with no frills that does have its merits. They are cited as influential now and again and certainly I feel paved the way for the more ‘Satanic’ musings of the black metal bands that were to follow shortly after this album and are worth a listen for that and pure, no-nonsense guitar riffing.

• David ‘Water’ Potter – Vocals
• Steve ‘Fire’ Rounds – Guitar
• Lee ‘Air’ Payne – Bass
• Kevin ‘Earth’ Poutney – Drums

Dio - Holy Diver (1983)

Following his three album stint in Rainbow and two album sting with Black Sabbath, Ronnie James Dio decided to go it alone and formed Dio, of which Holy Diver was the debut offering. Featuring a relatively unknown 19 year old Irish guitarist Vivian Campbell, ex-Sabbath drummer Vinny Appice and ex-Rainbow bassist Jimmy Bain, the omens were good.

For once, initial expectation wasn’t dashed on the rocks with this album which features 9 of the hardest rocking songs you could ever wish to hear. The combination of Dio’s vocal dexterity and Campbell’s razor sharp riffing ensured that this album really buzzes along – think Sabbath’s Neon Knights crossed with Rainbow’s Kill The King and you’ll be in the right ball park for what to expect here.

From the opener, Stand Up And Shout, the album thunders along with all members playing to their strengths but Dio and Campbell emerging as the true stars. The title track itself is a plodding, metal anthem that really hooks-in the listener and became one of the band’s classic tracks.

The album, and two singles taken from it, even achieved chart success with Holy Diver reaching number 40 and Rainbow In the Dark reaching the dizzy heights of 14 on the Billboard charts and the album itself achieving number 13 in the UK charts.

One of the must-haves for any rock collection!

• Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
• Vivian Campbell – Guitar
• Jimmy Bain – Bass
• Vinny Appice – Drums