Steelwing - Lord of the Wasteland

Release Date: April 30, 2010
Label: NoiseArt Records

TRACK LISTING

1.  Enter The Wasteland
2.  Headhunter
3.  Roadkill (…Or Be Killed)
4.  Sentinel Hill
5.  The Illusion
6.  The Nightwatcher
7.  Under The Scavenger Sun
8.  Point Of Singularity
9.  Clash Of The Two Tribes

Total playing time:  47:38

June 22, 2010

Reviewer: Chris

I don’t know what’s been happening out in Sweden of late, but the current rash of traditional heavy metal bands has been pretty impressive. First I had the Enforcer CD pass my desk to my delight and now Steelwing meshes that classic NWOBHM sound with some slight modern thrash elements to a near-perfect effort. If you can picture Iron Maiden circa 1981 meshing rather incestuously with Angel Witch or a See you in Hell-era Grim Reaper then you have the sound Steelwing captured.

Vocalist Riley manages to really capture my attention in that he sounds amazingly like a young Warrel Dane when he was belting out those high notes for Sanctuary in 1988. It’s a classic pitch that never seems to be done with any sort of individuality post Kai Hansen or even Steve Grimmett, but when the vocalist hits all the right notes (puns galore) the mark is hit accordingly. As for the rest of the band, the music is of very high caliber, taking the listener back to the metal scene’s infancy. While some might consider this style dated, it’s a part of the past that is both revered and fun to listen to when a change of pace is required.

Formed only last year, Steelwing is more than likely going to impress power metal fans around the world with its unique take on what some might consider an outdated, ancient style, missing completely the majesty contained here. With amazingly crisp production and guitar riffs straight out of the British playbook, Lord of the Wasteland should capture a few fans along the way if they’re not careful. It amazes me how many young kids are forming bands these days and calling upon the literal founders so intricately. As I’ve said a hundred times already there is definite hope for the scene and its future when these youngsters are pulling the circle closed around them and reinventing the scene note by note. “Sentinel Hill”, “The Illusion”, and “Headhunter” are standouts here, but I honestly can’t find a weak track on here (and my ears are always tuned for such a sad event).

While other genres are limping along, regurgitating the same old music with different titles, the classic NWOBHM sound that Maiden made a household phenomenon some twenty-eight-years ago is making a nice comeback, not to mention welcomed! What sets this particular revisiting apart is that the current trend of, well, trends is that there is real lapsing of time to allow the music to grow moldy in its perfection. These bands now all want to sound the same, capitalizing on a sound that is currently popular. While disgusting for true metal fans, it’s a sad fact that this is what’s been happening in the last decade or so. The NWOBHM had its day in the sun (okay, at least the semi-shade) but most of the impressionable youth of today has parents that might not have even met when it was making its mark. If you’re going to recycle and make all that is old new again, do it with vital, cerebral music for a new generation, and Steelwing is one of the bands that is set to do just that.          

High, high esteem for these guys! Seek them out when you can!

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