DSG
Still a Warrior
Pure Steel Records
2015
David Shankle, best known for being a member of Manowar between 1988 and 1994, is a notable “shredder” guitarist. He used to be in Paradoxx (yeah those guys with the ultra-expensive EP) then went on to Manowar and ever since he was replaced, he’s been releasing some solo albums and has another band called Voodoo Gods.
Following two previous albums, “Ashes to Ashes’ (2003) and “Hellborn” (2007) comes “Still a Warrior” after a lengthy eight year break and a very confusing 2008 shift of personnel inside the band with Carlos Zema and Chity Somapala both announced as vocalists, but then stepping down, Pierre-Emmanuel Pélisson (a band mate of Chity’s not even exactly landing a place, but being considered and even Steve Williams the keyboard player of Power Quest briefly being a member of the band before being replaced by Drake Mefestta. Michael McCarron was also the band’s drummer for a period in 2008. None of these musicians actually recorded anything with the band.
2015, finds the band with a revitalized lineup, apart from David Shankle (the obvious one) on guitars, there’s Radakka’s (who are reunited? – when did that happen?) Gabriel Anthony on drums, Michael Streicher on bass, who comes from a local band called Wretched and Warren Halvarson on vocals, who you might recognize as the latest/current vocalist for Damien Thorne. The aforementioned WH, does a fairly impressive job handling the vocals, sounding like the typical “US Metal” vocalist, with a decent range and masculine voice, bringing to mind a more restrained, down to earth Lizzy Borden. The production is clear, but, sounds a bit “mediocre” with the mix sounding rather thin and the drums sound suffering quite a bit, which is a pity since, the performances are pretty good all around.
The eponymous opener “Still a Warrior” is quite impressive; checking all boxes it needs to be considered, satisfactory US metal.
“Ressecution” tries to maintain the momentum, but somewhat pales in comparison, as it’s not as inspired.
“Glimpse of Tomorrow” reminded me of a less inspired latter day Armored Saint, while the “Demonic Solo” (From the movie Jezebeth – which I’m fairly certain no one has seen) will only impress Yngwie Malmsteen’s freaks and possibly not even them. It’s fast, but not as “clean” as say Impellitteri, is...
“Fuel for the Fire” gets things back to the “right path” after the rather disappointing stuff that precede it, mixing equal measures Armored Saint and Dio in a very tasteful end result.
“Eye to Eye” is a lot slower and rhythmical, but its chorus, is underwhelming as its under-sung, so it fails to leave its mark.
“The Hitman” is a technical instrumental with great emphasis on the guitars (what else) which is not bad, but at almost nine minutes long is a bit of a killjoy, unless you’re in the mood for a “long instrumental” (TM)…
“Suffer in Silence (Agenda 21)” manages to somewhat redeem the album, but it’s not really, crop de la crème material, however again it re-ignites the album, after the rather cumbersome, “Hitman”.
“Into the Darkness” is thankfully maintaining interest. It might be mid-tempo but it’s more lyrical and dramatic and more melodic, even a tad, prog, with some underlying keys, creating atmosphere.
Last but not least, “Across the Line” is a mid-rising tempo number, with impressive melodies and a nice chorus, in the vein of epic Malmsteen (at a certain moment it’s even slightly reminiscent of “The Fury”/Impelitteri), that sounds like an excellent lost 80s gem… but mysteriously, suffers a bit more mix wise more than the rest of the tracks…
“Still a Warrior” is greatly uneven. With a better mix/mastering, the great performances would be more exemplified and a few more focused compositions in the place of the loose “instrumentals” and “solos” that break it up, it could have been significantly better in terms of flow. Now it sort of stands as a great example of what-if... with a handful of excellent tracks really standing out.
Following two previous albums, “Ashes to Ashes’ (2003) and “Hellborn” (2007) comes “Still a Warrior” after a lengthy eight year break and a very confusing 2008 shift of personnel inside the band with Carlos Zema and Chity Somapala both announced as vocalists, but then stepping down, Pierre-Emmanuel Pélisson (a band mate of Chity’s not even exactly landing a place, but being considered and even Steve Williams the keyboard player of Power Quest briefly being a member of the band before being replaced by Drake Mefestta. Michael McCarron was also the band’s drummer for a period in 2008. None of these musicians actually recorded anything with the band.
2015, finds the band with a revitalized lineup, apart from David Shankle (the obvious one) on guitars, there’s Radakka’s (who are reunited? – when did that happen?) Gabriel Anthony on drums, Michael Streicher on bass, who comes from a local band called Wretched and Warren Halvarson on vocals, who you might recognize as the latest/current vocalist for Damien Thorne. The aforementioned WH, does a fairly impressive job handling the vocals, sounding like the typical “US Metal” vocalist, with a decent range and masculine voice, bringing to mind a more restrained, down to earth Lizzy Borden. The production is clear, but, sounds a bit “mediocre” with the mix sounding rather thin and the drums sound suffering quite a bit, which is a pity since, the performances are pretty good all around.
The eponymous opener “Still a Warrior” is quite impressive; checking all boxes it needs to be considered, satisfactory US metal.
“Ressecution” tries to maintain the momentum, but somewhat pales in comparison, as it’s not as inspired.
“Glimpse of Tomorrow” reminded me of a less inspired latter day Armored Saint, while the “Demonic Solo” (From the movie Jezebeth – which I’m fairly certain no one has seen) will only impress Yngwie Malmsteen’s freaks and possibly not even them. It’s fast, but not as “clean” as say Impellitteri, is...
“Fuel for the Fire” gets things back to the “right path” after the rather disappointing stuff that precede it, mixing equal measures Armored Saint and Dio in a very tasteful end result.
“Eye to Eye” is a lot slower and rhythmical, but its chorus, is underwhelming as its under-sung, so it fails to leave its mark.
“The Hitman” is a technical instrumental with great emphasis on the guitars (what else) which is not bad, but at almost nine minutes long is a bit of a killjoy, unless you’re in the mood for a “long instrumental” (TM)…
“Suffer in Silence (Agenda 21)” manages to somewhat redeem the album, but it’s not really, crop de la crème material, however again it re-ignites the album, after the rather cumbersome, “Hitman”.
“Into the Darkness” is thankfully maintaining interest. It might be mid-tempo but it’s more lyrical and dramatic and more melodic, even a tad, prog, with some underlying keys, creating atmosphere.
Last but not least, “Across the Line” is a mid-rising tempo number, with impressive melodies and a nice chorus, in the vein of epic Malmsteen (at a certain moment it’s even slightly reminiscent of “The Fury”/Impelitteri), that sounds like an excellent lost 80s gem… but mysteriously, suffers a bit more mix wise more than the rest of the tracks…
“Still a Warrior” is greatly uneven. With a better mix/mastering, the great performances would be more exemplified and a few more focused compositions in the place of the loose “instrumentals” and “solos” that break it up, it could have been significantly better in terms of flow. Now it sort of stands as a great example of what-if... with a handful of excellent tracks really standing out.