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Artist: U.D.O. |
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There
are Metal giants and then there are Giants amongst Metal and Udo
Dirkschneider is
definably the latter. There is truly a legend in the world of Heavy Metal,
just mention the name to any metal fan and they’ll give you the nod of
approval. Their have been many pretenders to the Metal crown but the man
from Wuppertal will always come out on top of any poll when it comes to
iconic metal frontmen. U.D.O.
the band have become a tight group with the same line-up keeping the
consistent power driven metal, not just throughout the three albums in the
last five years, but ever since their inception back in 1987 with the 'Animal House' album.
The band have shook the world of metal ever since and
with their new album 'Rev-Raptor' there is no holding back, as the
U.D.O. Metal machine keeps on rolling. With
this new album there are no fancy intro’s, no sound effect intros, it's straight into the
axe wielding riff spewn Heavy Metal that has become synonymous with the
name U.D.O.. Right from the
opening barrage of the title track ‘Rev-Raptor’, you know this can
only be U.D.O. and no other, with Stefan Kaufmann and Igor Gianola just
throwing out the titanic metal riffs like six string confetti, while
Francesco Jovino beats the living daylights out of the drum kit and Fitty
Wienhold punches out a massive massive bass line. People often try to
define heavy metal with specific genres and sub-genres, but if you want to hear the
true spirit of Heavy Metal, then listen to any album that features Dirkschneider
at the helm. The
album keeps it battering ram metal attack going with the stomping
‘Leatherhead’, with the Metal General himself leading his troops
into battle once more, with the twin guitar attack of Kaufmann and
Gianola heading the attack, although the full force of U.D.O. is perhaps
not fully felt
until the rampaging no holds barred slick metal of ‘Renegade’. But Udo
has always been one to show his mellower side from time to time. Who can
forget his duet with Doro on 'Dancing With An Angel'? This album
features a
more gentle refrain with ‘I Give As Good As I Get’, a great mid-tempoed rocker that
could easily lull the listener into a false sense of security, as
the full on metal machine gets back underway with ‘Dr. Death’ and
the excellent metal anthem ‘Rock n Roll Soldiers’. This is old school
heads down metal as is should be. It just makes you want to dust off the
old air guitar and throw out a few shapes yourself in front of the
bedroom mirror. Keep
that air guitar out as the metal just keeps on coming hard and fast with
the razor sharp licks of ‘Terrorvision’, before bringing it down with
another old school metaller ‘Underworld’. The tempo might be a little
slower but the power is there as always, as Dirkschneider delivers that
unmistakable vocal prowess of his. The
tempo is picked up a touch with the typical U.D.O. style with angst
filled metal of ‘Pain Man’, before the melodic metal majesty of
‘Fairy Tales Of Victory’, which has to be my favourite track off the
album. This one has it all, great guitars, a power driven chorus and a
mighty back beat. This has to be one of the finest U.D.O. tracks ever
put down on record. It's
back to the meat and bones metal with the full throttle ‘Motor-Borg’,
with Kaufmann and Gianola really setting the fret boards alight as they
trade riffs off each other with true German precision. The
album continues with another of my favourites off the album the
rockin’ ‘True Born Winners’. Another anthemic metaller at its very
best. The album closes not with a whimper but with a bang, with the excellent
swaying rocker ‘Days Of Hope And Glory’. A real touch of the epic
metal with this superb closer, which wraps up another stunning album that
can showcase the fact that U.D.O. the band and Udo the man are the still the
metal force that conquered the world back in 1987 ... and long may it
continue! |
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Tracklisting: 1. Rev-Raptor |
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All content copyright of The Mayfair Mall Zine unless otherwise stated. |
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