Blitzkrieg - Theatre Of The Damned
Album review by; Nick
There was a period in the late 70s where Hard Rock was considered dead and buried. Punk and Disco ruled the waves and bands like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple were considered dinosaurs. Thankfully for us rockers this was only short lived in the U.K. and several young, hungry British bands were budding from the surface thanks to a rock magazine called Sounds and in 1979 the New Wave of British Heavy Metal Aka N.W.O.B.H.M for short was born. Bands like Iron Maiden, Saxon and Diamond Head were influencing the scene left right and centre while bands such as Budgie and Slade were making huge comebacks and embracing the scene on their own. Another band from up in Geordie land were destroyed too and that band is Blitzkrieg. Today we are going to fast forward a few years to their 2007 album Theatre of the Damned as I review probably the rawest album I have heard in a long time.
We begin the album with a haunting spoken word introduction before kicking into the title track. It’s very thrashy and you can hear where a young Metallica got their sound from. It really does pack a punch and the catchy title helps kick off the album in style. A true NWOBHM classic, with hard hitting rhythms and pounding drum rolls. The Guitars blitz through the track with the Bass lines being the backbone of the track chugging along keeping it altogether. The album then kicks into a killer one two combo starting with The Phantom, again more of that classic NWOBHM sound we all know and love…the song drives along and showcases the power that Blitzkrieg has to offer. Pair that up with the next track Devil’s Spawn, and you have a couple of barnstormers. It’s a perfect formula that captures fans of the genre’s attention. True headbanging music and a good time had by all.
Spirit of the Legend kicks off with rip roaring guitar and it remains a guitar showcase throughout. It’s full of the heart and the lyrics pay homage to the guitar hero’s past and present. It will have the fan in awe and for me this is where the album truly starts to show its character. The next song Into the Light has a more melodic flavour. It reminds me of Mercyful fate in places and has yet another dramatic spoken word section. The song has an intense atmosphere that remains present and gives the listener a different feel of heaviness. It shows the softer side of Blitzkrieg and stands as a candidate for my personal favourite song on the album.
We move into another song that gives off a Metallica feel, Tortured Souls could have fit right in with anything from the And Justice for All album, with its dirty production and raw feel it feels like a chainsaw running right through you with buzzsaw sounding guitars and chugging Metallic riffs from the beginning to the end. The saga continues with the anthemic Together We Are Strong which stands as the album’s ballad. It makes a great driving song and one that will have you singing from the top of your heart. It’s a heavy ballad which will have you singing along to the amazing chanting of the outro to channelling your inner guitar hero with the glorious guitar solo.
Just when your fist pumps in the air and you think it’s all over, along comes the sludgy album closer Nightstalker. This reminds me so much of early Judas Priest and vocalist Brian Ross channels his inner Rob Halford screaming like a banshee. Again, it’s classic NWOBHM with the guitars trading off on Riffs and Harmonies which will have the listener on the edge of their seat with excitement. It’s intense, it’s heavy and it’s the perfect finisher to the album.
Like any good reissue the show isn’t over yet though and the album serves up a couple of bonus tracks for the encore. The first is the nasty, fast Armageddon. It races along and reminds me of the Thin Lizzy classic Are You Ready with its chugging guitars and fast and ferocious playing. It gets your fist pumping and then slows down in true Armageddon style with an eerie song bridge to boot. I feel the bass in the mix is lacking in this song and the production is lacking tone a little but don’t let that put you off it’s a killer song with Brian, once again screaming like a banshee.
The final song to bow the album out is the legendary title track, famously covered by Metallica. Not much that you don’t already know about this song with its crunching riffs, pounding bass, and thunderous drums. I love Brian’s soaring, but haunting vocals and you can hear how peers like James Hetfield and King Diamond got their voices. The guitar solo is note for note full of atmosphere and life before it goes into full blown shred mode. The drums keeping the beat together as the guitar goes wild. It’s the bands signature song and it’s Iconic, keeping that die hard headbanger satisfied before Brian hits those famous Woah chants that will get any red-blooded metal crowd going. Thank You and Goodnight!!
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Blitzkrieg haven’t lost their edge at all and like many other NWOBHM bands who have made comebacks in recent years, could mix it up with the younger guys and even make some of the best albums of their career. Their musicianship and tightness sound just as cutting edge as it did back in 1980 on Theatre of the Damned and you could shut your eyes and be there as if you were in that time machine rocking the roundhouse. All in all, for an album that’s 13 years old it truly stands the test of time and really does sound like it could have come out last week. Oh, wait it did…A True Metal Classic.
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Album Rating 4/5
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Official Blitzkrieg Facebook Page
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Blitzkrieg are;
Brian Ross - Vocals
Nick Jennison - Guitar
Alan Ross - Guitar
Matt Graham - Drums
Liam Ferguson - Bass