Changing gears a little bit here from the last few posts... - I read that Phil Mogg is planning on retiring next year, for all intents and purposes bringing an end to the long and criminally underrated career of UFO...through all their various incarnations and line ups, this band as never failed to deliver the goods! - I saw them in NYC back in March of 2017, and they were tremendous - a great band that somehow managed to last for more than 5 decades that could still produce exceptional new music right up to the end of their career (see A Conspiracy Of Stars if you need proof). They will be missed!!!
Well said, could not agree more. Ashamed to say I have never actually HEARD any of those bands (but have heard OF them). Except for Saxon of course, who I love & have every album including some of their weaker ones (they still have songs I like).
With UFO hanging it up (I assume it is over for them without Phil) I wonder what Vinnie Moore will do next. He is still relatively young (in his mid-50's maybe) and had a long resume prior to joining UFO. I consider myself a fan of his, although I felt he was a bad fit for UFO, too shredder-y although he toned that down. I was hoping for John Norum to join them, although in hindsight am really glad he went back to the reborn Europe instead which has released some really great albums since their reformation. Vinnie is from around here (Delaware) and I remember seeing him in the audience at some shows I was at. Think I saw him open for Frank Marino at the 23 East Cabaret in Ardmore in the 80's (he opened for somebody - maybe that was the show but I'm not sure). He hung out at the bar after his set, super nice guy. Still have the guitar pick I got from him! Hope he lands on his feet.
Diamond Head's relative feting amongst Metal 'academics' is absolutely revisionist even if there was some period championing, e.g. a mainstream UK kids' TV appearance or two. I'm not debating the worth of Cloven Hoof, et al. You suggested Saxon as an example of greater consistency but I repeat - what about those 80s shockers? You can't accuse DH of limpwristedness of releasing terrible material in this context. As for festering piles of garbage; let's agree to disagree.
Did Saxon really have any shockers?? Ok some crappy songs here and there but I reckon every album had merit.
Besides, even if the mid to late '80's was a worse period for Saxon, pretty much everything they've done from ''79 to '83 and from '94 onward has had much more consistency and overall quality.
Saw Geoff Tate perform Operation: Mindcrime tonight. Geoff and his band blew away my expectations. By far the best QR-related performance I've been witness to (I'm too young to have seen the band during their peak). Geoff sounded awesome... only a couple notes here and there beyond his current range. He sang with power and conviction. His backing band performed with both precision and youthful energy.
First Angel Witch album is very good NWOBHM. The Satan albums are fun too but I’ll still take Diamond Head for my money.
I’m not going to have a macho bro-metal argument about which album is better. I like Court in the Act but my preference would be for the first Diamond Head album.
I realize this is about ten years too late but I realized there is no mention of the band Bad City on SHF. I thought I'd share a little bit about them. Bad City is a band out of Chicago. They spun a retro mix of Kiss, Boston, Alice Cooper, Sabbath, and a few other bands that, combined with their own style and lyrical wit, comes off as inspired not derivative. Originally called Powerspace, the band later joined forces with singer Josh Caddy to form Bad City. Their debut (and only release) Welcome to the Wasteland came out in 2010 and is one of the best glam metal/hard rock releases over the last twenty-five years. In Sex Pistols fashion they broke up immediately after their debut- Caddy left for no official reason and the band basically called it quits. Perhaps foreshadowed in the song "Heat Wave" Caddy admonishes: This place puts bullets in your back These kids toss roses on the tracks We gotta get out of the heat... More strangely, all the members have since effectively disappeared. I think guitarist Tom Schleiter is the only one still active, now as a record producer under the name of Tommy English. A shame, really, but that does mean you can probably pick up this release fairly cheap on discogs. There is aslo Japanese release that includes two bonus tracks (that I haven't heard). Their lead single IIRC was "Call Paul Stanley," a tribute to Paul and the rock 'n roll dream. If you're at all a fan of pop metal I would give this album a listen- I think you'll be impressed from the first riff to the final note.
Jimmy, I love Saxon dearly but in the interests of objectivity there were times when they were their own worst enemy. To some extent, when you have a career so long, it's almost par for the course (UFO sunk similarly in the mid 80s) but it's hardly - nor should it - blow affections off course. Whether it's 'Parental Guidance' by 'Priest or 'Break Like The Wind' by The B. Fleckman Quintet, the influence of 'this period' seems to be culpable for numerous moments of what King Lear might have called "howl, howl, howl!" I believe Tatler & co left the field during this epoch which was probably a cunning plan whether by design or not. There were exceptions to the trend (please don't quote lists!) but to my mind, the mid-late 80s was as creatively unfurtile as production values were sterile.
I guess I would take great exception to that last statement. Without creating a list, the American thrash scene was putting out tremendous music during this time.
There’s a reason the so called best bands ever lists always consists of bands that fall apart in under 10 years.
Any given era will have antagonists and protagonists and you'll note my comment wasn't absolute which I'll concede, in the wake of Metallica, Megadeth et al, may seem to some all the more ill judged given the former's rise to commercial dominance, not that this is remotely pertinent to my personal judgements. I think I attach my ire for the period with the actual sound of many records du jour; from period 'Priest, via Overkill and so much Thrashissimo, the boys from Accept and even my pet pleasure of Candlemass; it was invariably bleached by period effects, awash with reverb, or whatever and in many cases simply thin sounding which again, may seem harsh/irrelevant if you recite Operation Mindcrime before cleaning you teeth at night and focus wholly on musical virtue. Yes, you can/could get around it with tons of re-eq but this was always executed with a longing sigh as you countenanced that copy of Jailbreak, Stained Class, etc. It's not a case of being correct or otherwise, merely expressing an opinion with some degree of explanation, sometimes of a feeling or sense.
It's easier to handle weak production when the music's kick@$$. But wimpy production usually goes hand-in-hand with wimpy music. I love GFR, but I'll be the first to tell you that those early albums are crying out for a Steve Hoffman or Steven Wilson re-mix. Then the pendulum swung the other way as WAAB and Shinin' On were over-produced (IMO).
I enjoy that gentleman's writing. Certainly far more than your rudeness. You might choose to apologize. Mike F
There are so many albums where a better ('meatier?') production would elevate the listening experience. Big fan of Anthrax's Among The Living but the lack of lower end balls is a constant niggle. Mikey - how's it going, Squire?
