Metal Blade Keeps “Spreading Its Wings” With Firebird Re-Issue

Courtesy: Metal Blade Records

Metal Blade Records has made quite the name for itself in the world of hard rock and metal this year.  New releases from the likes of Horisont, OSI, and Six Feet Under have shown audiences what makes Metal Blade THE leader in hard rock and metal right now.  The re-issue of Gentleman’s Pistols’ debut self-titled serves as another reminder of that.  And now, the re-issue of Firebird’s fourth album, “Hot Wings” continues to show Metal Blade branching out, making itself that much more versatile and respected in the music community.

Firebird has allegedly disbanded.  But the band’s fourth album, “Hot Wings” will be re-issued by Metal Blade Records at the end of the month.  It is a fitting tribute to a band that could only be described as one of the best pure rock bands in recent memory.  “Hot Wings” opens with the guitar driven, ‘Carousel.’  Front man Bill Steer sings here, “How many times have you found yourself stuck on your own carousel?”  In other words, how many times have you found yourself going in circles?  Rather than taking the low rode, the energy of the song really captures what a person feels like when he or she is going in said circles.

The band slows things down a little bit after ‘Carousel’ with the King’s X-esque ‘Good Times.’  The guitar solo in the middle of the song will have any true rocker grabbing their air guita and jamming along to it.  Steer asks in ths song, “Where did all the good times go?”  But again, rather than making the song into what could have easily been quite the downer of a song, it’s more contemplative without losing its rocking energy.  The segue into the bluesy ‘Misty Morning’ will keep listeners locked on the album.  That the band can go from rocking to blues in a matter of songs without losing anything along the way is a real tribute to this band.

The mix of rock and blues in the first three tracks of “Hot Wings” make for an excellent listen.  But three tracks alone don’t make an album.  Those tree tracks are followed by the classic rock feel of ‘Play The Fool.’  There are hints of some very well known classic rockers in just this one song alone.  As with the previous tracks, this is one more that any fan of true rock won’t want to miss.

Perhaps the most intriguing track on the entire album is ‘Overnight.’  This straight forward jam band style song is unilke anything else on the album.  Set next to the remainder of the tracks on this brand new re-issue it shows once again how much talent Firebird’s members have.  It only makes fans wish the band hadn’t called it quits after just a handful of records.  One can only guess, after hearing this album, and its last, “Double Diamond”, how far Firebird could possibly have gone.  At least the band’s legacy will now live on thanks to this re-issue courtesy of Metal Blade Records.  Who knows, maybe the label will even re-issue the band’s other albums, too, and really pay homage to one of the modern era’s best little known rock bands.

“Hot Wings” will be re-issued via Metal Blade Records next week.  It will be available in stores and online at http://www.indiemerch.com/metalbladerecords/band/firebird.

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Horisont’s sophomore album a shoe in for one of 2012′s best rock records

Courtesy: Rise Above Records/Metal Blade Records

The members of Swedish based rock band Horisont could not have chosen a better name for their band.  For those who don’t know, Horisont is Swedish for horizon.  So what does that have to do with anything?  Everything.  For every band and act that wants to hit it big, fame is just over the horizon.  It’s in the distance.  But for Horisont, the band has reached the horizon (horisont) line and crossed over to major fame in the rock community. 

The band’s new album, “Second Assault” is arguably one of the year’s best rock records.  There are lots of acts that try to emulate the old school rock/metal sound.  But what Horisont does is more than just emulate that classic rock sound.  Horisont sounds like it came direct from rock’s golden era. The album itself makes the band’s name fitting, as it starts off very quiet as if the band is off on the horizon before launching into ‘Time Warrior.’  This is one that fans of Deep Purple will love.  The band gives listeners just enough time to catch their breaths at the end of ‘Time Warrior’ before going headfirst right back into things with ‘Road to Cairo.’  The softest that the band gets on “Second Assault” is on the seemingly Pink Floyd-esque, ‘Crusaders of Death.’ 

‘On The Run’ is yet another perfectly fitting piece to this band’s musical puzzle.  It’s a straight forward, hard driving piece that will get any true rocker moving.  The band’s dual guitar attack, mixed with the Rob Halford/Ozzy style vocals of frontman Axel make this one of the album’s highest of points.  And who would ever have imagined Fleetwood Mac being mentioned in the same thought as Ozzy and Rob Halford.  But it’s true.  ‘Watch Them Die’ shows a pretty obvious Fleetwood Mac influence throughout.  And the guitar solos in this piece will even conjure thoughts of Jimi Hendrix, with their styling.

The title track from “Second Assault” kicks off the second half of the album just as strongly as ‘Time Warrior’ kicked off the first half.  There’s no denying the Judas Priest influence on on this one, from the vocals to the music as a whole.  Axel even gets the high notes with an ease that would make Rob Halford proud.  He doesn’t lose his vocal footing even once anywhere in the song.  The band barely lets off from there as it segues into ‘Spirit.’  The bluesy/rock fuzz feel of ‘Spirit’ brings to mind so many different influences.

‘Hard Bargain’ especially is an impressive track. It boasts a touch of Jimi Hendrix on the guitars mixed in with the thundering John Bonham-esque drumming from Magnus.  Add it together, and audiences get yet another great musical experience.  Once the band pounds through ‘Hard Bargain’, there’s jsut one more song on the album.  That song is the hard rocking, guitar driven, ‘Thunderflight.’  It’s just as relentless as the rest of the pieces on “Second Assault.”  Once it’s all said and done, and ‘Thunderflight’ ends, audiences are left breathless.  But it’s a good breathless.  From start to finish, this record leaves real rock fans feeling like they haven’t just listened to another album.  Rather, it leaves them feeling like they actually just experienced something special.  It leaves them wanting more, in a good way, like a really good book.  They don’t want it to end, even though they know it has to.  And thankfully, just like a book, audiences can listen to it again and again and relive that experience each and every time.

Rise Above Records made a great choice signing Horisont.  “Second Assault” is proof of that.  Of the ten total songs on the album, there is not one bad song.  All combined, ”Second Assault” makes for an album that stands on its own two feet among the masses of bands whose albums try to emulate perhaps one classic rock band or another.  Horisont has taken the road less traveled, instead, making its own path.  Because of that, the band has put itself in place to be a candidate for the best rock record of 2012.

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