Throughout rock 'n roll history, short-lived hotspots of creativity have been erupting all over the world, insular music scenes giving birth to a plethora of exciting stuff for a few years and eventually tapering off. So many of these movements were worthy of analyis: early 80s midwestern hardcore punk, Gothenburg death metal, Memphis garage/soul, and late 70s NYC art punk, just to name a few. Although I'm not and don't plan to be British, the New Wave of British Heavy Metal has always fascinated me. Such a vast quantity of quality hard rock and metal gushed forth over a period of just a few years, some artists leaving a legacy indelibly stamped on many genres, even today.
For those that are confused by those confounded initials, the NWOBHM came about in the late 70s as UFO / THIN LIZZY / SABBATH worshipping metal bands in the UK began to take the cues from first-wave punks, pressing and distributing their own singles and albums rather than waiting for the stuffed shirts at the record labels to notice them. Thus, from about 1979 to 1982, truckloads of rock 'n roll was released that wouldn't have seen the light of day under normal circumstances. But unlike today's internet-fueled ocean of hacks trying their hands at making music, there was a bit of filtering and quality control. These passionate bands were dogged and persistent enough to get out there, book studio time and shows, make recording contacts, and tirelessly promote themselves.
Not to say it was all great. In fact, the NWOBHM generated enough poor vocalists and crappy drum sounds to choke a camel - precisely the reason for this little e-based buyer's companion. All too often, internet NWOBHM discussions become pretentious exercises in name-dropping, collectors substituting obscurity for quality. With all these years of hindsight, there's no reason to settle. As a remedy, this cheap seats guide focuses on the survivors, artists borne of the NWOBHM that released numerous quality albums. Some were dead by '81, others soldiered on for years with varying results. Some even crafted their best stuff 20 years after the fact. And it seemed like everybody covered at least one SWEET song at some point, but we'll get into that later.
Of course the NWOBHM movement was fueled by independent singles and EPS, so I've included a list of my personal must-haves below. The feature is divided into five sections, links at the bottom of each page. Enjoy!
For those that want to start with the obscurities, we'll dig in with some singles. Many of the bands with strong singles developed them into strong records (we'll get to them later). Below is a list of recommended bands with singles and EPs that were stronger than their actual records.
THE SHORT ONES
MYTHRA - "Death and Destiny" EP, 1979: This slab just oozes cool in every sense of the word. From the dark, mysterious cover art to the addictive, gnarly Schenker/Mogg songwriting, it all screams "Take me home!" "Death and Destiny" is a perfect record for the jaded metal fan trying to digest a long text like MAIDEN's "Dance of Death" or HOLOCAUST's "The Courage to Be". The smooth, stinging guitar harmonies in "Killer" and gut-level mix of "UFO" ranks right up there with "Killers" and "Lightning to the Nations" quality-wise. The disc received the reissue treatment (with bonus tracks) back in the late 90s, but judging by the scarcity of said title, someone needs to do it again. This one's a must-have.
BLACK AXE - "Highway Rider" single, 1980: Fret-burning solos! Sparkling, rapturous vocal harmonies! Inestimably raw guitar chugging! This may be an obscure one, but even if they were broke, my love don't cost a thing. These guys should have been the biggest thing since folding ironing boards, but it just didn't work out that way. At any rate, both cuts are perfect examples of metal-crazed youth throwing everything they've got and more into a recording. Plus, I think they invented electricity. Find it at once.
HOLLOW GROUND - "Warlord" EP, 1980: Glen Coates husky, street bum vocals hell-dance with titanic leads and playful choruses throughout this short EP without setting one foot in AOR-land. The pre-chorus of "Rock On" buries itself deep in your psyche like a hungry mosquito with an "Am I Evil" sort of staying power. The drums are crisp and the basslines are audible and crafty. I know you already spend a lot on music, so I'll just tell you to sell everything you own in order to acquire a copy.
TOBRUK - "Wild on the Run", 1983: Sultry, elegant AOR with just a touch of grit from these Birmingham transplants, "Wild on the Run" wins extra points for oodles of bombastic guitar, crazy-glue choruses, and creative use of the organ from PINK FLOYD's "Welcome to the Machine". These early tracks were eventually reissued on CD, but finding the band's lone single on Neat may be a cheaper option in the long run. If you can stomach that sickly-sweet PRAYING MANTIS stuff, this one will make your heart skip a beat.
TRESPASS - "One Of These Days" single, 1980 , "Bright Lights" EP 1981: Crown jewel of the "Metal For Muthas" collections and darlings of the Friday Rock Show, there was just no topping the singles of Suffolk's TRESPASS. Their Lynott-style knack for snappy songwriting, studio smarts, and luscious leads place them firmly atop the "EP bands" category. Always thought the intro to MEGADETH's "Good Mourning / Black Friday" sounded like Mustaine may have had "One Of These Days" on the brain. Luckily their Neat Records anthology is pretty easy to score, so you don't have to knock over a liquor store to enjoy the priceless pleasures of "Bright Lights", "The Duel", "One Of These Days" or "It's All Over". Let's hope Neat continues to reissue fine stuff like this in order to reduce the crime rate in your town.
PERSIAN RISK - "Ridin' High", single, 1983: Shhhhhh. This one gets the solemn, reverent tone. The greatest NWOBHM single of all time? Fans of orgasmically powerful chugging riffs, strong vocals, crisp production, and sweeping leads par excellence may be inclined to agree. The B-side, "Hurt You" could probably also land itself in the top 100 NWOBHM song list somewhere, with it's brilliant solos and Carl Sentence's iconic vocals. It's no wonder that Lemmy guy snatched up PR's guitarist Phil Campbell when he had the chance. The band soldiered on for a few years after this single, eventually releasing the full-length, "Rise Up" in 1986, which featured good, serviceable melodic metal - but wasn't in the same league as this milestone. I'm pretty sure an original copy costs the same as an island in the South Pacific, so look for a compilation or anthology somewhere.
GOLDSMITH - "Life is Killing Me", 1982: Formed back in '81 from the ashes of BITCHES SIN, Perry "Pez" Hodder's GOLDSMITH are a textbook strong-single NWOBHM band that may have evaporated into obscurity before their time. Despite the fact that Pez's vocals bear a striking similarity to RATT's Stephen Pearcy, (Wait! Where are you going? Get back here and finish reading this review!) the flawless, simple hooks and lyrical solo in "Life is Killing Me" approach TRESPASS-like levels of greatness. The B-side's burbling midtempo "Music Man" is a sturdy representation of the band's signature sound, but obviously doesn't reach the stratospheric heights of the title track. I've seen both the single and the posthumous GOLDSMITH anthology (also entitled "Life is Killing Me") on the internet with price tags that didn't send me into cardiac arrest, so they're gettable, dear friends.
HANDSOME BEASTS - "Sweeties", 1981: The original darlings of Paul Birch's Heavy Metal label, these guys became more famous for the primates-be-damned album cover of their full-length than for any musical conquests. While the "Bestiality" record is a decent excursion into seedy, basement biker rock, the singles were much more impressive. Led by the sleazy, Plant-like bellows of the proudly plump Garry Dalloway, "Sweeties" is a wooly blast of rough cut, nasty tavern rock with a hint of psych. The "All Riot Now" single is also recommended, the gargoyle-ish MYTHRA-like artwork qualifying as tempting fare for any vinyl aficionado. It's the type of thing I'd expect to see Rockadrome reissue at some point, but these days the early BEASTS stuff is subject to pricey, scant availability. At least no animals were harmed in the making of these recordings (I don't think).
PARALEX - "Travelin' Man" EP, 1980: On the surface, this short release from Nottinghamshire's PARALEX conforms to every NWOBHM grail sterotype. The pressing was done in ridiculously small quantities (some Sasquatch-like sightings of green vinyl versions have been reported), the production is a little hissy and primitive, and the still-developing vocalist sounds uncannily like Rick Moranis. But the vitality shown by the twin guitars of Mark Gibson and Kev Bower are undeniable. All three tracks are robust exercises in stunning musicianship, frequent changes, and hot percussion. Remarkably, the graceful, airtight interplay between guitar, bass and drums renders the above-mentioned shortcomings much less noticeable. Be sure to check out our brief exchange with Phil Ayling on the mini-spotlight page for more about PARALEX.
Now that you've got enough suggestions for a very cool mix tape, click below and move on to the next segment.
**The web version of this article can be found at www.peacedogman.com/csgnwobhm**