When it comes to a new traditonal metal band with the most buzz, the band that comes to mind is Tailgunner. KK Downing produced their new album, giving these kids from the UK an edge on the competition, and they have the buzz to build the momentum. But none of this means anything if they are just delivering the idea of an era rather than songs that are relevant in 2026. They open with a somewhat aggressive track, considering the genre, at times making me think of a less flashy Dragonforce. The second song is more melodic, which I appreciate, but it also flirts with hair metal a bit, which I feel is an equal influence on what they do.
Despite KK producing their album, they do not sound like Priest. They sound more like a speed metal version of the Scorpions. This fact is highlighted on "Follow Me in Death". There are lots of guitar solos racing around, so if that is your thing, you might be into this. Three songs in, and I am under the suspicion that these kids are not going to be dark or aggressive enough for me, which is a common problem I have with power metal. By the time we get to 'Dead Til Dark', I'm positive that if a song about vampires is too happy for me, there are going to be some stylistic differences that I might not be able to reconcile with these guys, despite them being good at what they are doing. It begins to become hard for me to even think of this as metal due to how upbeat they are.
"Barrens Land and Seas of Red" finds the rapid-fire pace being maintained. The vocal approach is very similar to what this guy has been doing for the bulk of the album, where a wider range of vocal colors would feel the dynamics of the album. "War In Heaven' features Ozzy/ Sabbath Keyboardist Adam Wakeman. It's more of a power ballad. You do finally get to hear more shades of the singer's voice. He is some hat you stereotypical power metal singer, but without any falsetto yodeling, so far everything has been sung from his tenor chest register.
The drummer earns his place at the table on "Blood Sacrifice." Their singer tries to be a little more aggressive and goes up into his blended head register on the chorus. "Night Raids' is just as over the top as the bulk of this album has been, though they back off enough on the verses so the vocals have room. No new ground is broken on this song, and the fact that everything is similar in tempo makes the songs sound the same. "Eye of the Storm" at least finds the verses creating more space and tension. When it builds up, it feels more like a tribute to modern power metal. The last song opens with more fanfare to create the mood. Then, they race off into something not far removed from what we have already heard from these guys. The fact that they stick so closely to the rule book for this genre and do not bring anything new to the table is a bit off-putting, and it's too happy for my tastes, but they have the chops for this kind of thing, and it's well-produced I will give it an 8.
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