Iron Maiden - Senjutsu (2021)

[Heavy Metal]

Iron Maiden have never been a band known for shock value. They stand solid like a British institution, unwavering and unchanging. Sure, they have had a couple of vocalist changes and sometimes we see an unexpected twist or two in their music, but for the most part - you always know what you are going to get. And therein lies both the strength and weakness of most late period Maiden albums. The predictability level is always quite high (there will be multiple epics, with the slow bass introduction, building to the soaring chorus), and on first listen I tend to feel disappointment that this all sounds a bit too familiar - yet something still draws me back for more. Once it all sinks in you see there are still some brilliant songs on display here. On disc 1 the title track opener broods and builds to a massive war epic, and 'Stratego' and 'Days Of Future Past' harken back to the 80s. 'The Writing On The Wall' has a western flavour, and 'The Time Machine' sounds like something from the 90s era. Disc 2 heads into more of the epic territory with only 4 songs, but there are some surprising moments hidden in there. Even at close to 50 the band still has the magic, but there is certainly some bloat that could be removed. Not every song needs to be an epic after all - but which ones would I possibly trim.?

Uncle Slam - Say Uncle (1988)

[Thrash Metal (Crossover)]

Think 1988. Think all the happenings and maturation of the Heavy Metal Scene at that stage - Iron Maiden, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, Kreator etc. In addition, if you are not pinned to the ground with heavy metal, you were starting to experience the likes of Suicidal Tendencies which is more the modern punk scene. I mention ST as they formed half of the thrash band that became Uncle Slam. Now the title of their debut says it all in terms of North American slang, being a call to a contestant in a fight to submit. Well I wasn't ready to until I listened to all 35 minutes of this debut record. There is plenty of fast riffing, fast lyrics that are hard to decipher in parts and a bunch of songs that focus on topics that are questionable at best - 'Weirdo Man' and 'Ugly Dude' for example that lead off the record. All these years later, I still listen to this regularly when you're after something not so serious - just great thrash metal.