WARRIOR – Invasion Imminent (2017)
Do you remember WARRIOR, one of the pioneer from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal heydays? The band reformed to play at Brofest in 2014 and are now thankfully active again with a new album titled “Invasion Imminent“.
Including original members Dave Dawson and Ed Halliday (guitars and vocals respectively) is a prime slice of classic British metal, traditional in feel but contemporary in outlook, and is an album which shows that old dogs can not only learn new tricks, but can show the young pups a thing or two in the process.
After the intro ‘Metal Fatigue’ – a beautifully played piano / synth piece which deserves to be developed into a full song in its own right – ‘Trojan Horse’ grabs your attention by the scuff of its neck and gives it a damn good shake. With its relentless riff, kick-ass solo and wild vocals, this is what NWOBHM was all about. Iron Maiden come to mind, but Warrior has their own identity.
Keeping the heat up, ‘Second Chance’ follows on, fast and furious, before the album allows some breathing space. It’s light and shade in equal measure, but if you want some highlights there’s the exciting and self-explanatory ‘Rise Of the Warriors’, slower, heavier and more in-your-face with an intricate split solo from Bloom and Dawson.
We have more quality in the Saxon-esque ‘Who Will Win’ which veers into Biff’s Motorcycle Man territory and features guitar histrionics to die for; and the diabolically-sounding ‘Black Middens’, a heads-down stomper in the Sabbath style which was actually inspired by a Sunday afternoon stroll Dawson took near the mouth of the Tyne where the rocks of this name wrecked many a ship in years gone by.
But for me it’s the title track ‘Invasion Imminent ‘ that takes all the honors, a true metal call-to-arms with a chorus that deserves to be shouted loud ‘n’ proud at every opportunity.
Warrior sounds 2017 if like nothing would have happened and we still are in 1982. This is classic metal in its purest form, and these veterans surely know how to do it.
‘Metal Is Forever’, Primal Fear once decreed, and bands like Warrior are the living proof.
Up the Irons!
01 – Metal Fatigue
02 – Trojan Horse
03 – Second Chance
04 – Rise of the Warriors
05 – Voices
06 – Oblivion
07 – Who Will Win
08 – Black Middens
09 – Riding the Wave
10 – Invasion Imminent
11 – Downfall of the Tyrant
Ed Halliday : Lead Vocals
Dave Dawson : Guitar
Gwaether Bloom : Guitar, Vocals
William Baxter : Bass, Vocals
Elliot Sneddon : Drums, Vocals, Keyboards
BUY IT !
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06Y5H7268
.
