Metal Massacre II, released 1982
Yeah, two albums of unsigned bands in the one year. Metal Blade were busy in '82!
Track one: “Lesson well learned” (Armored Saint)
Yeah, about that: Armored Saint went through some lineup changes, including one forced upon them when their guitarist died from leukemia, and another when vocalist John Bush joined Anthrax, and in fact they disbanded in 1992, reformed in 1999, went on hiatus in 2001 and finally reformed again in 2005. They have released eight albums to date.
The track: The production is terrible, but the rawness kind of adds to the song's appeal. It's a good rollicking rocker, driven on powerful guitar and with a strong vocal.
So where are they now? Still around, still recording.
Track two: “Mind invader” (3rd Stage Alert)
Yeah, about that: Oddly enough, these guys seem to have released just one EP in 1984, which did not have this song on it. They were another band from LA.
The track: A much better track than the first one, with elements of Sabbath, Rainbow and Uriah Heep in it, great guitar work and what sound like keyboards. Really strong and powerful vocal. Fun fact: two ex-members of Steeler, whom we met on the first volume, played with 3rd Stage Alert. Actually one of the best tracks I've heard on either volume to this point.
So where are they now? Well, they were talented, good songwriters and a cut above anything else here, so naturally they split and were never heard from again.
Track three: “Rivit (sic) head” (Surgical Steel)
Yeah, about that: Well, when all you can manage in two years is to release two demos, one of which contains ninety percent of the other, don't expect stardom to come knocking on your door. It didn't.
The track: I guess it's sort of early thrash, which is odd when you see a picture of the guys, who are serious poster boys for hair metal! Not too bad a track but a little hard to take the tough-as-nails lyric seriously when you can see who's singing!
So where are they now? Split up I guess. Never even got an album out.
Track four: “Shadows of steel” (Obsession)
Yeah, about that: Seems Obsession are famous for bringing to fame vocalist Michael Vescera, who went on to head up such bands as Loudness and Dr. Sin, and worked with Yngwie as well as getting into production. They've also provided songs for various slasher movies, including the third instalment of
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
The track: Interesting echo effect on the vocals. Reminds me of an early Iron Maiden, though a bit more polished. I can see why Vescera was highly sought after as a vocalist.
So where are they now? Still going, having released their last album so far in 2012.
Track five: “Sceptres of deceit” (Savage Grace)
Yeah, about that: Not a whole lot of interest I can tell you about Savage Grace, other than they once employed Randy Rhoads's brother on vocals and that their original vocalist and guitarist, and founder of the band, disappeared “mysteriously” before they reformed in 2010.
The track: Decent song, but the vocalist seems to be straining a little? Nothing overly special about the song, but it's not crap either. Holy s
hit! Is there a woman joining him or is his range actually that wide? Maybe I should rethink my idea on this track.
So where are they now? After the disappearance of Chris Logue, the co-founder of the band, they decided to carry on with a new vocalist, but their last real album was out in 1986, so whether you can say they're still around technically or not I'm not so sure.
Track six: “No holds barred” (Overkill)
Yeah, about that: Right. You're joking, yes? We all know who Overkill are.
The track: It's a little raw compared to the kind of thing they would later do, and to be honest listening to this you actually can't get the same idea that you did from the likes of Metallica and, later in this series, Slayer. It's a good song but I feel it's a little below par.
So where are they now? Still going, with their last album, their sixteenth, released last year.
Track seven: “Lucifer's hammer” (Warlord)
Yeah, about that: Anything you need to know about Warlord, see The Batlord. He loves them.
The track: Despite Batty's enthusiasm and his belief that they would be right up my alley, I couldn't get as excited about Warlord as he did. I thought what I heard was okay but not remarkable, and it just did not impress me. Here, it just sounds like a sub-Gary Moore song to me. Okay but again nothing special. This would later appear on their debut album,
Deliver Us, released the next year.
So, where are they now? Warlord were another band who suffered from ever-fluctuating lineups, and disbanded in 1986, with a brief reformation in 1997 and then in 2011 they reformed properly, releasing a new album in 2013. Point of interest to no-one but me: Shadow Gallery guitarist Gary Wehrkamp is now playing bass for them.
Track eight: “Such a shame” (Trauma)
Yeah, about that: Trauma's claim to fame is that they once numbered Metallica bass player Cliff Burton (RIP) in their ranks. They seem to have had a stop/start career, being around since 1984 but only releasing one album until this year, when they released their second, making a thirty-one-year gap between the two!
The track: They've been compared to Maiden, and I can see the similarities. Impressive guitar work.
So where are they now? Have no idea where they've been for three decades since their debut, but now apparently they're back with their, um, second album...
Track nine: “It's alright” (Dietrich)
Yeah, about that: Again, nothing much I can tell you. They had one demo and one EP and that seems to have been about it for them. Oh, they were presumably named for guitarist and founder Brad Dietrich.
The track: Sounds like they had some talent too. Good rocker with an impressive vocalist. Not the most imaginative of lyrics, but you can't have everything. As indeed, they did not.
So where are they now? Split up, it would seem. Very little information on them.
Track ten: “Inversion” (Molten Leather)
Yeah, about that: Can't tell you a thing. No information at all.
The track: Good song, not as bad as some of the ones here. Odd how they didn't survive.
So where are they now? Search me, but as there's zero information on them around the interweb, I assume they never made it and split up.
Track eleven: “Kings” (Hyksos)
Yeah, about that: I'm gonna go out on a limb here and assume they were Greek, or had some Greek members? No, from LA. And given the fact that both guitarists were Gonzaleses, I'd think more Spanish than Greek. Other than that, can't tell you much except they cut one album in 1982, and this was on it.
The track: Another decent rocker, even if the vocalist's range is a little screechy for my tastes. Nice kind of progressive feel to it in the later minutes. Pretty good actually; really improves in the latter half.
So where are they now? Again, I assume they're split up but I can't confirm.
Track twelve: “Heavy metal virgin” (Aloha)
Yeah, about that: Bit of confusion here. Metal Archives says they worked under the name Vixen from 1981-82, then changed to Aloha and became Hawaii from 1983-1986. If they changed their name so much it's not that surprising they had no chance to make it. Looks like they got out two albums under the latter name though, which is more than they managed as Aloha!
The track: Well it's the only one on the whole compilation to feature a female vocal, which is interesting in itself. Lisa Ruiz has a decent voice, though it doesn't knock me over.
So where are they now? After three years under the name Hawaii it seems they ran out of names and decided to call it a day.