Skull Fist - Way of The Road (2018)

Classic speed metal as a genre is not exactly dead, but it certainly does not get a lot of attention these days. There could be several reasons to that, like no new bands taking the leap or no ground breaking records have been made for some time, but I think it is because we as a metal community has grown tired of the genre, which of course hits it hard on the bands that are still active within the genre. I do not think the Canadians in Skull Fist are doing terribly bad, but it has after all been 4 years since their last release, and judging by the album cover of their third effort, "Way of The Road", it seems like their budget has been cut down. No more colorful artwork with that skeleton mascot, instead we see the band in front of their beat down van, hoping for some much needed help to get to the next gig.

Their previous two LPs, "Head öf The Pack" and "Chasing The Dream", were both really enjoyable little speed demons, so it was not too far fetched to expect something similar for "Way of The Road", and we certainly got it. We got the killer double guitar combo that has always worked since the early days of Judas Priest, the vibrant bass that gives the sound that extra oomph, and also some nice high flying vocals that matches the speed quite well. From a quick glance, it seems like "Way of The Road" is standard, good stuff, starting off furiously with "You Belong To Me".

Then we come to the second track, "No More Running", and the band has already lost most of its momentum. It is an okay track overall with a nice melodic aura, but to let go of the gas so soon just does not feel right, and it also feels incredibly outdated, like it came straight out of the 80's. The band gets back up to speed again in "I Am A Slave", then gets immediately back to the sluggish pacing in the following three tracks. It is a roller coaster ride that does not feel very good.

Now, I do not want the band to go completely full speed ahead in the entire record, but if you are going to go for some slower, more melodic tracks, then do them well. "Heart of Rio" is a title that Duran Duran would do, and the music sounds like it could have been from Social Distortion, or any other old band that uses very simple riffing. In other words, not very speed metal like. Then we have "Witch Hunt", which has some neat guitar work in the solo, but it is otherwise a standard cookie cutter metal song that is just dull. I just wished they would have focused on creating more faster tracks, because those are genuinely good, like "Better Late Than Never" and its cool mix of Rainbow structures and Iron Maiden guitars.

The biggest problem with "Way of The Road" is that it feels pretty outdated, both in terms of a Skull Fist release, and as a general speed metal release. It is certainly a fine record overall that can give you a quick 80's fix, but if you are into the genre, you have surely heard albums like this one that are more fun, better executed, and are way more enjoyable. "Way of The Road" is an inconsistent release that does not warrant the 4 year wait, an album that is some rough shape from the get go, kind of like that van the band has. If you want to help these guys out, get one of their previous releases instead, do not bother with this one.

Songs worthy of recognition: I Am A Slave, You Belong To Me, Better Late Than Never

Rating: 5,5/10 Witch Hunts

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More reviews of Skull Fist
Chasing The Dream

White Wizzard - Infernal Overdrive (2018)

It is hard to predict when White Wizzard will churn out a new album, just because of the sad fact that this band literally has no stability. Founder Jon Leon never seems to find the right pieces to make the band a stable tour de force, for reasons that we only can speculate about, but it is quite telling that in their current state, the band does not have a permanent drummer, and that the other two members James LaRue and Wyatt Anderson are back in the fold (this is in fact Wyatt's 4th run with the band). Despite the rotating doors, White Wizzard has still managed to come up with some nice speed metal albums over the years, but can "Infernal Overdrive" meet the expectations that comes with 5 years of album absence?

Well, it is perfectly obvious that "Infernal Overdrive" is White Wizzard to the core, 80's influenced speed metal with tons of catchy choruses and meaty riffs. However, it seems like Mr. Leon is getting ambitious these days, because out of the nine tracks that makes this record, we got four that goes beyond the eight minute mark, including the finisher "The Illusion's Tears" which clocks in just over 11 minutes. It is not like White Wizzard has gone the long road before, but doing so time and time again in this record is really stretching the whole term speed metal, because these 61 minutes does not go by very fast.

And that is exactly my main problem with this album, it feels surprisingly sluggish. I expected this group to put the pedal to the metal, that they would channel that guy from "Mad Max: Fury Road" who wields a flame thrower/guitar hybrid and transform his energy in album format (the cover art certainly hinted that), but they never do. It feels like the hand brake is still active, keeping the band from reaching their full potential. Every element that makes White Wizzard so good is here, but the length of the record works against it. It shows the most in "The Illusion's Tears", which is is way too long and slow for me to care really, just end the album already.

Not to say there is no quality in the record at all, there is some really interesting ideas in some of the longer songs like "Chasing Dragons", "Voyage of The Wold Raiders", and "Critical Mass". Not sure if they fit the band, but it could be the start of an exciting evolution. The guitar play is as playful as ever, wanking its way inside out in the solo bits, and Wyatt's voice was made for speed metal, crushing those higher notes with ease. So the performance can definitely not be blamed for this album's shortcomings

While I do admire White Wizzard's will to expand their sound and bring a lot of music to their dedicated fans, "Infernal Overdrive" does come out as a drag, overstaying its welcome quite a bit. It really would not be all that bad if they would have just crammed in one more fast burner, say something that matched the intensity of "Storm The Shores", just to bring some good and much needed variety. It still has a lot of interesting ideas, and the execution is on point, so fans of the band will surely enjoy this effort, but it just does not have the bite that the previous records have. Let us hope that Mr. Leon has finally found some stability within the line-up, and that the next album will be a killer thanks to the improved chemistry.

Songs worthy of recognition: Critical Mass, Storm The Shores, Chasing Dragons

Rating: 6,5/10 Pretty Mays

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