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Old 08-09-2015, 08:53 AM   #981 (permalink)
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09. Exciter Long Live the Loud 1985 (Combat)
Speed Metal

Feel the mighty blade of the exciter.

The Lowdown

After the rip-roaring speed metal gem Heavy Metal Maniac (see 1983 review) and an album that should’ve been much higher that year as well, the band had displayed that there was an extremely thin line between speed metal and thrash metal. Canada’s Exciter showed that when it came to Canadian metal they were just as essential as Anvil around this time, due to their potent fusion of both speed and thrash. The band then released their sophomore set Violence & Force which despite being a good album just missed my hectic 1984 listing, but the album still managed to display the band’s iconic sound despite the fact that most reviewers viewed the album as quite a bit weaker than Heavy Metal Maniac. Things though were firmly back in their court and back to business for their third album Long Live the Loud, where the band acquired the services of Guy Bidmead who had worked with Motorhead. Overall the album comes fairly close to matching the heights of their debut set but instead of opting for the raw power of that album, Exciter have gone if for a more controlled power metal type assault here, surely in order to impress the commercial metal market, but this is not to say that there aren't a number of rawer sounding efforts on the album. This change of direction becomes obvious with tracks like the album intro “The Fall” a heavy and controlled power instrumental and this leads into other similar sounding material a bit later like "Victims of Sacrifice" a track which really benefits from having a slightly knocked back feel to it in terms of its speed but its powerful momentum and aggression make it an album classic. Their is a surprising organ into for the following song "Beyond the Gates of Doom" again another essential in the same vein as the previous track, but does feel a bit faster. "Born to Die" sounds a bit too much like an AC/DC track for my liking here and its corny chorus chant does it no favours either. The awesome 10 minute closer is ambitious to say the least but in "Wake Up Screaming" the band have one of the epic sounding tracks of the year and surely something that Manowar had wished they'd put out. It's business as usual though on the pure speed of "Sudden Impact" which sounds as mean as anything else out there at this time and comes across as premium Exciter. It should be noted that Exciter operated as a three piece outfit like both Tank and Raven, but in Exciter’s case vocalist Dan Beehler (who at times could sound like Rob Halford) was also the band’s drummer and to be honest this is a combo that I’ve never fully embraced but there are exceptions and Dan Beehler just happens to be one of those exceptions. Heavy Metal Maniac had contained a slew of fantastic tracks and none had come any better than “Mistress of Evil” “Rising of the Dead” and the slower “Black Witch” and as can be seen the band had a penchant for great song titles. This time around the great song titles have been swapped for great cheesy metal lyrics and these are littered across the album and listening to the title track “Long Live the Loud” that song alone is clichéd up to its eyeballs. Again the tracks here are driven on by the relentless and exciting riffs of John Ricci, whose electrifying riffs are a real characteristic of the band and probably the vital element and these punctuate the album's best tracks like the already mentioned "Victims of Sacrifice" but his guitar equally turns out as well punk-fuelled efforts like "I Am the Beast" which could easily be a Venom track. The bonus CD edition of the album comes with a number of bonus tracks which really extend the album's original playing time. The album cover reaches hilarious levels though and I’m certain the band were looking at the type of album covers that Manowar would fully embrace and so had no trouble using this type of thing. The end result of the album is a prime example of where a speed metal band knocks back on the raw aggression of their early days, to install a more controlled sound with better production values, something of course that a band like Tank had done with This Means War 1983 (see review) which shows that even the most dedicated ‘raw bands’ whether on their own decision or the record label’s were often looking to make their sound more commercial and ear friendly. Overall the album in many ways is a prime example of where speed metal starts looking into a more controlled power metal direction but without betraying its roots and it's really an album for a metal enthusiast and as Martin Popoff would say knock it back!

Dan Beehler- Drums/Vocals
John Ricci- Guitar
Allan Johnson- Bass

Production- Guy Bidmead

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Pounding Decibels- A Hard and Heavy History

Last edited by Unknown Soldier; 08-09-2015 at 09:38 AM.
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