ANVIL - Juggernaut Of Justice
Submitted by ausmetallium on Sun, 21/08/2011 - 5:26pm
I have been a fan of Anvil since the release of Metal on Metal [1982] and have always struggled with the fact that it just hasn’t quite happened for this band. That was, of course, until The Story of Anvil created a buzz around the outfit, coinciding with the re-release of This Is Thirteen around the same time as the 2009 documentary. I think due to some of the lyrical content with this band, and the fact that they don’t take themselves too seriously, has done them a disservice to a certain extent, but the trio of Anvil has always been able to write songs and build a real metal atmosphere with great musicianship - but, as I said, some people just don’t get it.
And so, to Juggernaut of Justice, the fourteenth studio album from the band, which saw its release through the German label The End Records earlier this year, May 2011. When I put this record on for the first time I was really impressed, as the songs on this album, although simple in structure and form, are quite intricate and very catchy. The first two tracks “Juggernaut of Justice”, and “When Hell Breaks Loose”, are pretty straight forward metal songs that fit right into the vein of Anvil and what they are about. The next title, however, “New Orleans Voodoo”, has a different lyrical focus to the norm and is very chunky and mid-tempo, really adding to the drama of the first half of the album.
From this point, the album really takes off, as I stated earlier, with catchy and punchy numbers – “On Fire”, “FukenEh!”, “Turn It Up” and “This Ride”. The opening riff to “FukenEh!” is just so uplifting, a real fist punching sort of a song and as far as vocal melodies go, I can actually see Lemmy singing this one for some reason, very convincing. “Turn it Up” flows like an Anthrax track with some guitar harmonies that really could be put on a European power metal album, very different, but again, still accessible and digestible, and I would actually love to hear this one live!
“This Ride” takes the album into a very heavy and intense tone, the speed is still here but the song is just driving with a heavy guitar and quite a heavy vocal for the band, not far reminiscent from a San Francisco trash metal vocal melody. This song really is the track on the album.
Juggernaut of Justice moves through the above sort of pace and ferocity until the second last track “Paranormal”. A very haunting introduction that builds into a heavy, slow tempo song, and initially, I really didn’t take to this number, most likely due to the eight songs that preceded it - as they were fast and uplifting as metal anthems. However, after a few times with the album, “Paranormal” works - a very Black Sabbath-esque track, in the vein of Anvil, with a great lyric.
The last piece is a bit of an anomaly, “Swing Thing”, as it features a brass melody line. Now, to be quite honest I have never thought that brass instruments lend themselves to metal – thinking specifically about Black Sabbath and Helloween – but this one does really work! It is a swing song in the vein of the 1920’s, but with a metal band. I know that this might not sound right, but it is – and you really have to listen to the track to hear what I mean.
Steve Lips Kudlow’s vocal melody lines on this effort are the most adventurous that he has ever recorded and the breadth of his vocal ability is very impressive on this disc. I would have loved to have watched him record this in the studio because he really does push himself in to un-chartered waters. With regard to Rob Geza Reiner, his drumming is excellent - I know that he has always shown himself to be a very capable musician but there is freshness on this album that he drives from behind the kit. If you are an Anvil fan you will be impressed, and if you aren’t, I ask “why not?!” and am telling you to go and buy the album.
Juggernaut of Justice is out now through The End Records.
Album: Juggernaut of Justice
Release: May, 2011
Track Listing:
- Juggernaut of Justice
- When Hell Breaks Loose
- New Orleans Voodoo
- On Fire
- FuckenEh!
- Turn It Up
- This Ride
- Not Afraid
- Conspiracy
- Running
- Paranormal
- Swing Thing
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