RUNNING WILD - "SHADOWMAKER" (Heavy fucking Metal is back on the attack!!!)

RUNNING WILD - "SHADOWMAKER"
("SPV" / "Steamhammer"; CD + DVD limited edition):

Okay, and now with one or two more days, uh, yes, I mean: Okay, okay, maybe even just after three or four days more delay then primarly planned finally another new post is coming up here in this very relaxed and silent month. And so now without loosing any more words for the introduction here and now straight onward into this very post which is a record review post of or on the new current RUNNING WILD album. And so you see, yes, finally good old teutonic Heavy Metal is the order of the day up here. I discovered RUNNING WILD finally at the age of thirteen back then in 1994 when I saw and bought, fascinated by the whole artwork, their soon to be a true classic gem "BLACK HAND INN", a groundbreaking and lifechanging record for me. So you also see, that I know listen to RUNNING WILD for nearly something like twenty years, and even over the last decade when Metal lost more and more of its importance to me I always enjoyed and celebrated RUNNING WILD. And from then on, which now means from 1994 on, I was, yes, you can say that I was some sort of addicted to RUNNING WILD, a total stand-alone band to me, point and fact!!! From 1994 on every single new album was high if not number one on my priority lists of the meant then current times and I bought and, to be honest, celebrated them all heavily, also live and best of albums I bought enthusiastically. And it's logical that I bought all their old and earlier than 1994 recordings soon and, yes, also celebrated them heavily, and so today I can say that I have them all on CD or LP, all RUNNING WILD albums. Hell yeahr!!! Also the albums that came after the "VICTORY" masterpiece and that had been pretty often heavily discussed if not defamed, "BROTHERHOOD" and "ROGUES EN VOGUE", I like very much, and especially "ROGUES EN VOGUE" is just pure might, period!!! So it was a ''Bang!-Happening" of the negative kind when some years ago Rock'n'Rolf declared the end of RUNNING WILD. It sucked!!! And even Metal isn't today what it many years ago once was for me and some years ago, when RUNNING WILD were laid to rest, Metal meant even less to me than these days, RUNNING WILD always stood their ground and remained one of the most important bands for me and so, yes, I was really shocked when I heard about the end of this larger than life band. So, and after especially in 2011 I missed out on a lot of things, yes, and so I also missed totally out on the return of RUNNING WILD and was incredible suprised when I saw suddenly a new RUNNING WILD album when I visited the local record store in, I think so, this years April or so, and even my first impression was "WTF?!?" because of what a crappy ugly bullshit cover was to be seen I bought it recently and promptly. And how I was curious about it... jumped right in my car, put the disc in the stereo and cranked up the volume and with loud ringing and cracking speakers I made my way home. This album wasn't welcomed with open arms by the Metal press and in the world of Metal music in general, at least for all what I saw and read online and based on this can say so far. Not a real band anymore respectively still or again not a real band anymore, just a one man project of Rock'n'Rolf named RUNNING WILD and today also soleley recorded and all this stuff just by Rock'n'Rolf himself, and on and on and on. All the same bullshit that was to be heard and read already when the "BROTHERHOOD" and "ROGUES EN VOGUE" titled albums were released. Never gave a fuck about it back then, don't do so today. And maybe Rock'n'Rolf just refused it and still refuses it to become one of the oh so true Metal house pets of the "ROCK HARD" magazine guys, like maybe Götz Kühnemund expects it, so that there is no other way to deal with RUNNING WILD latest today then with bashing them off. Who knows, I mean, I'm just thinking... Also the ranting of nothing new and nothing really anyhow creative coming in through and blah blah blah on and on and on. The total unbelievable thing is, that first of all RUNNING WILD created a very own style and a sound of their very own like bands like MOTÖRHEAD and AC/DC and IRON MAIDEN and HELLOWEEN/GAMMA RAY for example and so the question is how and why such a band should take a drastic turn after the creation of something very own; and second of all this album is anyhow anyway packed up full with creative tension and fresh ideas and just great suprises. So what the fuck is this whole bitching around all about?!? Fuck all this trash talking nutjobs and bullshit spreading dickheads. Okay, anyhow, enough of such stuff, now more directly and more precise to this album. First of all, even a lot pretty close minded dickheads outta there will never be able to deal with it, this album takes a little bit the direction or course of that back then the "BROTHERHOOD" album, which means that this album is going strongly in the Hard Rock department full of natural organic earthy grooves and rhythms, hymnal arrangements and mercyless cracking heavy rockin' and hard rollin' guitar riffing and all is cultivated with and by that typical unique RUNNING WILD leads and melody lines and solos, a areal that btw RUNNING WILD are anything but strangers to. And this is not all what there is to announce respectively say about or to this album. The reason why Rock'n'Rolf gave new life to RUNNING WILD is, so he by himslef, simply the reason that new enthusiasm of writing new RUNNING WILD stuff is flamed up hot and new back again in him, and that's all good and fine as well as you can hear it in and through and with every single song featured up here on this one as a part of this album. Also anyone can easily see just by looking at and judging by the whole artwork that Rock'n'Rolf don't want to be just a ''recycled lifetube band'' with RUNNING WILD today and so he really did something else also already with the art of this album. Black jewel case, all wrapped up in a pretty beautiful designed black paper sheet, a new cover motif and band logo that looks like nothing of the old pirate days or so but instead of this more than some sort of a Cylon of Battlestar Galactica or something like this, and on the back cover there's again this Cylon-meets-a-cosmic-enforcer-meets-a-special-forces-G.I.-Joe like character to be seen. No recatching of old fame of the old Pirate days of RUNNING WILD or so and also no recycling of old into the grave carried and laid to rest old fashioned ideas, instead of this something pretty new and fresh, if old fans now may like it or not. And this all suits pretty well the new music of RUNNING WILD, that is for sure through and through pure RUNNING WILD but all done very fresh and exciting, some sort of new, and that's just great. Like already above mentioned this new one by RUNNING WILD is a strong rockin' and heavy rollin' Hard Rock monster with a clear and strong teutonic marked Heavy Metal backbone that's backing it all in a pretty beefy and bulky way up. Hard groovin' and pretty dynamic, all done catchy and anthemic structured guitar riffing as well as clever arranged and heavy storming fast paced guitar riff runs all dominated by this unique and typical RUNNING WILD melody lines and leads as well as just sheer great solos mark the songs heavily, strongly and enormously, and that's just awesome, again, awesome and amazing, I'm just falling over and over again and again totally in love with that always typical as well as always fresh and always grapping RUNNING WILD guitar playing and arrangements. Then there's Rock'n'Rolf's typical damn charismatic style of singing the lead vocals and of structuring and delivering this unique amazing hymnal refrain parts, the next trademarks of the music of RUNNING WILD that you simply just have to love, amazing stuff. The rhythm section consisting of bass and drums is then just a pure tight massive precise working everything hard forward pushing and driving Metal machinery of the highest class and premium level. That the musical technical skills are damn fucking high and first class should be clear latest by now anyhow anyway. The songwriting and the compiling of the album is incredible fresh and lively and all done interesting and outstanding grapping and of a very, very high standard and of the first class. Also the album is packed up full with great and new, fresh and interesting as well as grapping ideas and interesting tributes or homages, like for example the clear and strong homage to THIN LIZZY titled "ME AND THE BOYS", the BEATLES inspired guitar intro lead of the amazing anthemic and catchy and melodic "INTO THE BLACK", the AC/DC inspired arranged stoic forward driving "LOCOMOTIVE" and the a little bit by the old glory days of the SCORPIONS and such Stadium Rock inspired larger than life opener "PIECE OF THE ACTION", the very doomy and somehow slightly british "BLACK SHADOW", as well as the stoic heavy metallic slightly british (in it's great done and totally positive meant monothon approach) forward hammering amazing and damn massive title track "SHADOWMAKER", and the sort of somehow tricky and by 1970's Prog Rock influenced lead line of "SAILING FIRE", and all done very stand alone and in the typical unique RUNNING WILD style. Just clear your ears to get all of this and quite more, as well as the overall outshining stuff on this very one here. And don't expect a return of RUNNING WILD to their glory Pirate Heavy Metal days. But even this album can't beat or anyhow at least rival their infamous larger than life classics like "MASQUERADE", "BLAZON STONE", "PILE OF SKULLS", "DEATH OR GLORY" or respectively and "PORT ROYALE", and not to talk about the groundbreaker and lifechanger "BLACK HAND INN", but who could ask for it and how could this album do anyhow so after the mentioned ones are all albums for that I would have to upgrade the rating scales here to twelve and up to fifteen points, if you get what I want to say. Anyhow, this is a more than great album that will make it definitely way up high on and in my top ten list of this very year of 2012. My personal favorites on "SHADOWMAKER" are without a doubt "PIECE OF THE ACTION, "SHADOWMAKER", "INTO THE BLACK", "RIDING ON THE TIDE", "I AM WHO I AM", "LOCOMOTIVE" and "BLACK SHADOW", but also "SAILING FIRE", the so far most un-typical RUNNING WILD song ever titled "ME AND THE BOYS" and especially the epic finishing track "DRACULA" are first class stuff. Just an amazing comeback album by the german Metal legends of the name of RUNNING WILD and it's more than great that Rock'n'Rolf strikes back under the banner of RUNNING WILD and even more that he is doing it all so fresh and totally not delivering a cheap boring retro rip off crap affair. The album comes with great and also pretty new and fresh lyrics dealing with a lot of un-typical topics for RUNNING WILD and without all that final battle mysticism of the "MASQUERADE", "THE RIVALRY" and "VICTORY" era (and that also marked "ROGUES EN VOGUE" again, at least some sort of) and so also lyrically it's no repeating of old stuff just to make sure that old fans will like it right from the start without taking an aware listening session approach. Thumbs up for that bravery as well as for the high quality, of the music as well as of the lyrics. The only more or less classical two let us call it Pirate theme songs, "RIDING ON THE TIDE" and "SAILING FIRE", are also done pretty exciting and not ripping off the early RUNNING WILD work and days. The artwork of "SHADOWMAKER" is also just great, at least if you look aside the freaky and somewhat ugly Cylon at the front cover. The forceful production sound is maybe a little bit too clean and clear, but it works out in the end very good and strong. So yes, this one is for sure highly recommended to you, especially if you are not expecting and demanding a retro RUNNING WILD album, but if you want something fresh and lively by RUNNING WILD then this will serve your needs for sure. An amazing comeback!!! Get it!!! (10 of 10 points)
(http://www.running-wild.de/)