Running Wild - Black Hand Inn (1994)

2017-04-07T14:46:33Z

Running Wild - Black Hand Inn (1994)


1. The Curse 03:15
2. Black Hand Inn 04:32
3. Mr. Deadhead 04:02
4. Soulless 04:57
5. The Privateer 04:21
6. Fight the Fire of Hate 06:38
7. The Phantom of Black Hand Hill 06:25
8. Freewind Rider 05:15
9. Powder & Iron 05:18
10. Dragonmen 05:42
11. Genesis (The Making and the Fall of Man) 15:18

Rock 'n' Rolf - Vocals, Guitars
Jörg Michael - Drums
Thomas "Bodo" Smuszynski - Bass
Thilo Hermann - Guitars (lead)

Gotta give credit to Rolf for not only writing the same album for the fourth time, but for also making it one of the best in his career. Hearing Black Hand Inn is bittersweet, since although it is another album to cherish, it means one more in the last line of worthy albums. The band would still churn out other awesome material, but all of this feels so long ago that it is already a tale in the history. Next time you look in the history books, you’ll see Black Hand Inn therein, and a nostalgic sigh will emit thereafter.

Just to get it out of the way, the sound of the drums can be a little grating for some. The bulky, boisterous bonks battering the listener every instant gives mixed signals: click-ish double bass? Dusty snares? Rattling cymbals? Did “Angelo Sasso” do guest drumming? No, they’re real, and they aren’t as bad as “Sasso’s” contributions later on. Personally I think the drumming here fits just fine, and it’s the upbeat assault of double bass with complete rhythm precision that makes Jörg Michael stand well in the rabble of drummers. Like all the players on this album, you can feel his utter control over the instrument. Switching gears to the other rhythm maintainer, the bass support grumbles like a hushed boat rudder. I do miss Becker’s lead takeover, but I also love this low-end bubble-bass that compliments the refined speed / heavy metal attitude most present on songs like “Soulless”. So infectious and thick; kick back and get dragged and burned by bass.

Rolf and company (whoever that consists of at any given time) have never let us down when it came to the guitar department, even on the later albums (barely) were production was the main problem. Here I was given more of the crunchy, cherished, commanding riffs, leads, solos, and straight-up barrages of speedy force. Seriously, harmonies are abundant from the conceptual intro, to the title track’s riff-onslaught, and through the trilogy of monstrous anthems preceding the final closer. Every song has a tune that sticks with you for life, and I guarantee their warranty is a lifetime. It’s impossible not to go berserk listening to beasts such as “The Privateer” or the groovy, drum / bass oriented “Fight The Fire Of Hate”. The last track, “Genesis…”, is the most epic on the album, naturally, with a ton of Maiden-competing solos, vicious riffs, and insane vocals.

Vocally I’d say Black Hand Inn contains some of Rolf’s best moments, with the standard set at no less than awesome. He never sounds dull or exhausted, with plenty of those bellowing, gritty howls to encompass another three or four albums. The finale is the last straw, where the gargantuan scope and speed metal domination of the riffs collide with Rolf’s gruff barks to make one of Running Wild’s best tracks; track length be damned! Expect only authoritative, aggressive speed / heavy / power metal with crisp production, powerful (manly) vocals, and a plethora of cool, catchy riffs. There’s no ditching that tone of royalty though, so while angry, it’s still a chivalrous piece of work. I’d certainly rank this up there with Blazon Stone and Port Royal - maybe even slightly higher. Glad to know Rolf was able to muster a couple more novelties before meeting middle-aged burnout. --- OzzyApu, metal-archives.com

"Black Hand Inn" (ósmy album studyjny) to jedna z najlepszych płyt Running Wild. Powala na ziemię precyzją i dograniem najdrobniejeszych szczegółow, jest bardzo szybka i rytmiczna. Płyta jest spójna tak, jakby był to jeden kilkudziesięciominutowy utwór. Klasyka gatunku. Od debiutu w 1984 roku bardzo się zmienili. To heavy metal wciąż w tym samym stylu, ale image już zupełnie inny i zupełnie inne teksty. Refreny już nie kilkusłowne, ale o wiele dłuższe, tematyka egzystencjalna wpleciona w krwawe wojny na morzu, teksty pasujące do szant i stroje wojskowe z różnych epok. To już nie jest black metal.

Przejdźmy do samej płyty, bo jest o czym opowiadać. Pisząc recenzję "Gates To Purgatory" Running Wild z 1984 roku, odwoływałem się do płyt Metalliki z lat osiemdziesiątych. W roku 1994 takiego odniesienia już nie ma, drogi muzyczne obu tych kapel bardzo się rozeszły i porównania nie miałyby sensu. ...--- lived, rockmetal.pl

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Running Wild – Victory (2000)

2017-04-10T14:24:46Z

Running Wild – Victory (2000)


01. Fall Of Dorkas (5:16)
02. When Time Runs Out (5:16)
03. Timeriders (4:22)
04. Into The Fire (4:55)
05. Revolution (2:56)
06. The Final Waltz (1:19)
07. Tsar (7:07)
08. The Hussar (4:03)
09. The Guardian (5:07)
10. Return Of The Gods (5:29)
11. Silent Killer (4:43)
12. Victory (4:49)

Angelo Sasso - Drums
Rolf Kasparek - Vocals, Guitars
Thilo Hermann - Guitars
Thomas Smuszynski – Bass

Here is the album by Running Wild that is trashed by many metalheads. While this is not a great disc and is a letdown from the prior and excellent album (The Rivalry), its still not bad.

Yes, this is where the drum programming started with RW and it is a mistake because there is the stale drum sound which hurts the material. It is even more stale on this record than on The Brotherhood and thats a shame because some of the songs are very good.

The album starts off with "Fall of Dorkas" which is a good but is not up to par with some of the past lead off tracks on RW's albums. This is followed by the very Maidenish (hey, thats a good thing) "When Time Runs Out" - alot of dual guitar leads here. Then we get a couple of mediocre songs with "Timeriders" and "Into The Fire". They are sorta RW by numbers, nothing to remember here.

Next is the worst song off the album - a cover of the Beatles "Revolution". One word to describe this - Yuk! I hate the original and Rolf and Co. do nothing to change my mind about it. A waste of time and space.

Then we get a little interlude called "The Final Waltz". Nothing special here. So, by now this album is looking pretty bad but don't fear because this is Running Wild afterall and they come back huge with the best song on the album and one my fav RW tracks "Tsar". This has it all - speed, leads, epic moments. A great song!

"The Hussar" is next and there is no letdown because this songs kicks ass as well and is probably the 2nd best song. The rest of the album is solid power metal with "The Guardian", "Return of the Gods", and "Silent Killer". Then the album ends with the great title track which can lay along side the other great RW title tracks. You will be screaming "Victory" and pumping your fist with this one. A great way to end the album.

Put a real drummer on this album and take off the Beatles crap and you would have a very good album but unfortunately, all you have is a solid (and not bad) metal album. Nothing wrong with that. --- icedray, metal-archives.com

"Victory" to już jedenasta płyta studyjna "piratów". Śmiem twierdzić, że jest jedną z najbardziej melodyjnych płyt w karierze Running Wild. Czasami człowieka aż unosi, żeby się gdzieś wyszaleć przy ich muzyce (np. przy "Timeriders"). Według mnie mnie płyta zaskakuje przede wszystkim znakomitym brzmieniem. Mam tu na myśli m.in. perkusję. W niektórych utworach (np. "When the Time Runs Out", "The Hussar") wysuwa się ona na pierwszy plan, dzięki czemu utwory staja się bardzo rytmiczne, żeby nie powiedzieć skoczne. Znakomicie wypadł cover The Beatles "Revolution" - znakomita rock'n'rollowa uczta. Na płycie nie brakuje również bardziej podniosłych utworów, takich jak nastrojowe intro "The Final Waltz" czy epicka opowieść o carskiej rodzinie - "Tsar".

Można rzec, że płyta nie wnosi niczego nowego do ich twórczości. Myślę jednak, że to dobrze - niech grają cały czas swoje - za to ich w końcu lubimy!!! Płyta ma bardziej łagodne, przejrzyste brzmienie. Chociaż w niektórych momentach brakuje przysłowiowego "kopa", całość prezentuje się bardzo pozytywnie. Album (jak nazwa wskazuje) jak najbardziej zwycięski!!! --- Tomasz Solarz, rockmetal.pl

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Rock, Metal

Running Wild - Black Hand Inn (1994)

Running Wild – Victory (2000)