Description
NWOBHM CDR 3.
18 songs from extremely rare singles. Free for orders of £80+
with Scarab, Scarab, Talan, Trident, Turbo, Tyrant, V8, Wikkyd Wikker, Wolf.
SCARAB
Location: Wednesbury
Line Up
Millard
Garner
Stevens
Notes:
– Mysterious band with not much information to be found anywhere. They were in fact neighbors with the guys from the other Scarab, both coming from the greater Birmingham area. According to Paul Britton from the other Scarab, members of both bands never actually met. The Wednesbury Scarab (this) might have been a bit older as they started in 1979. As far as he can tell they never played a single gig. This added to the general local confusion as most fans at the day (and for several years after that) thought that there was only one Scarab.
– The Ohio based Black Metal band Midnight did a cover of the track “Wicked Woman” which appears on the compilation “Complete And Total Fucking Midnight” (LP, Nuclear War Now! Productions, 2006)
|
Inferno Music vinyl label |
Phoenix Records cover |
Rock Night
7″ Inferno Music (1981) HEADBANGER 1
7″ Phoenix Records (2003) NWOBHM 7013
1. Rock Night
2. Wicked Woman
*Original pressing by Inferno Music never in picture sleeve.
*Bootleg by Phoenix Records limited to 250 hand-numbered copies in Red vinyl
SCARAB
Location: Sutton
Line Up
Paul Britton (v,g) – also in The Battle Of Britton, Trappazat, Solstice and Jameson Raid
Dave Parrish (g) – also in Valley Forge, Nightblade and Icefire
Richard Horton (d) – also in Nightblade and Solstice
Andy Lewis (v)
Garry Wain (b) – also in Chemikill
Gary Crowe (b) – also in The Red Dogs
Nigel Shaw (b) – also in Strontium Dog
Chris McHale (d) – also in Chemikill
Rick Orton (d)
Paul Brookes (d) – also in White Trash, Agincourt, Benediction, Marshall Law and Sacrilege (not the NWOBHM Sacrilege)
Steve Riley (d) – also in Lyck, Trident, Agincourt and Icefire
Notes:
– Formed in 1981 and since the very beginning they were giging all over the place.
– Very good friends with Wolfsbane who supported Scarab on several occasions. In 1984 Blaze Bayley was asked to joined them on vocals
– Split up in 1986 after their last gig on February, 7th. Reunited in 2007
– In 1989 Zebra Records offered them a deal but at the time it was hard to get the band back together.
– Not to be confused with the other Scarab from Wednesbury who were actually only 25 miles away!
Poltergeist
7″ Pharaoh Records (1984) PR-001
1. Poltergeist
2. Hell On Wheels
*Pressed in 2000 copies
Not to be confused with the other NWOBHM Scarab.
Release: Poltergeist / Hell On Wheels, Single 1984
Genre: NWOBHM
Country: UK
Lineup:
Paul Britton – Vocals/Guitars
Dave Parrish – Guitars
Nigel Shaw – Bass
Steve Riley – Drums
headbangers from Birmingham, not to be confused with the other SCARAB, also from Birmingham apparently. This one reminds me alot of ANGEL WITCH in the vocal department. The intro to the first track “Poltergeist” is almost worth your time alone. This is a great mid paced slice of heavy metal. Next we got the B-side “Hell on wheels”, with some great riffing at the beginning, this is the stronger, more metal track. The vocals are out front and this one is much more serious in its approach than the A-side. Also this one is damn catchy and very well written I think. A great singl e, check it out!
1.Poltergeist
2.Hell on Wheels
TALAN: Spellbinder / Underground madness 7″ featuring former members of Preyer and Samurai (both NWOBHM bands that released some stuff on Ebony Records).
featuring former members of Preyer and Samurai (both NWOBHM bands that released some stuff on Ebony Records).
TRIDENT – DESTINY (1984)
Yet another NWOBHM single for you guys (I know, I’m a tad obsessed with them) featuring Trident, a very short lived band known for their song “Destiny”. The sheer praise that these guys get just for that one song is incredible, and they completely deserve it, as it is easily one of the greatest tracks of the NWOBHM era. “Power of the Trident” is a shoot and miss track that doesn’t seem to capture Trident‘s true talent, but hey, “Destiny” completely destroys any sign of negativity on this single.
Highlight: “Destiny”(Highly recommended , one of the best NWOBHM songs!)
Rating: 88%
Reg Marshall: Drums
One Hit and One Miss – 80%
Trident’s single is yet another NWOBHM 7″ release that has a terrific song on one side and a lesser number on the flipside. ‘Destiny’ is a great, energetic, anthemic song that is very similar to early Iron Maiden and Tokyo Blade. Fans of faster, guitar-driven NWOBHM such as Hollow Ground and the aforementioned Iron Maiden and Tokyo Blade will definitely enjoy this track. Sharp, fluid guitar work propels the song along, and the vocalist even sounds somewhat like a less gravely Paul DiAnno. The B-side is less effective; it has a ‘party song’ vibe that makes one suspect it was meant to be a simpler, sing-along number to get the crowd involved. It’s not terrible, but it doesn’t measure up to the gem on Side A.
The single is now a mid-priced rarity among collectors but fortunately both songs have been included in the Heavy Metal Obscurities CD series.
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Turbo– Charged For…. Glory
| A | Charged For… Glory | |
| B | Race For The Dawn (Midnight Mover) |
Charge for glory with me, you NWOBHM novice! – 74%
After making their debut with a 3-track EP in 1980 and keeping momentum going with a track on “New Electric Warriors” compilation the same year, Turbo received a fair bit of rock radio airplay, playing at London’s classic Marquee Club and even capturing one of their shows on video (not that you can find it at your local metal store, of course). Despite the relative success of their first vinyl appearances, many things would chance in Turbo after their first release, with a near-complete line-up reshuffle in the coming months.
Singer Des Horsfall accepted an offer to join Raw Deal (later singing in “Lonewolf” 7” single, released on Neat Records in 1981), and all the other guys involved in Turbo’s early recordings made their leaves too, with only guitarist Pete Mayhew deciding to soldier on. When their “Charged For Glory” single came out in mid 1982, Mayhew was assisted by a whole different set of accomplices – namely Steve McCann (V), Chris Bartlett (B), Paul Hartley (G/K) and Peter Emmonds (D). And it’s remarkable that, after such changes, they managed to release a very good follow-up to their already enjoyable EP, and with virtually no audible changes in their musical identity.
“Charged for Glory” is my favorite song from Turbo: a mid-paced, intense rocker with nice riffing, uplifting lyrics and a memorable, catchy chorus. The youthful energy of this track is remarkable, and only those with a very strong willpower (and/or an ice-cold heart) will avoid some healthy headbanging and horn-raising to this extremely likeable piece of music. Sterling stuff, one of those songs who truly epitomise the music and the spirit of NWOBHM. Understandably, the flipside of this 7” will not maintain the same levels of pure metal entertainment – still, “Race for the Dawn (Midnight Mover)” is another interesting effort of classic British metal, although it takes a few listen to get used to its slightly confusing (not really complex, just not straight-forward) song structure. All things considered, and taking into account that it’s far easier to locate (and less expensive) than Turbo’s first EP, this 7” is a must-buy, pretty much one of the best investments for a novice trying to form a proper NWOBHM collection.
It’s clear for all to hear that Turbo had genuine potential, and they sure could have delivered a promising full-length LP if given the chance. Unfortunately, it never came to be, as this line-up would also disintegrate in rapid fashion and, after a year or so of trying to assemble a new set of musicians, Pete Mayhew thrown in his towel, laying the good name of Turbo to rest sometime in 1984. Mr. Mayhew would try again with Silhouette (who recorded two singles in the mid-to-late 80s) before relocating to Germany and forming an AOR band called Turbo Red (somewhat surprising, huh?), that released a well-regarded eponymous album in 1991. Paul Hartley seemingly went to play jazz and folk music in later years, whereas Turbo’s first singer Des Horsfall is pretty much active today with a semi-acoustic rock proposition called Kuschty Rye.
Tyrant hold back the lightning
| A | Hold Back The Lightning | 3:53 |
| B | Eyes Of A Stranger |
V8 Lonely Days 7″ VINYL UK Music Factory 1985 B/W Only My Love
WIKKYD VIKKER (UK) – Black of the Night (7”, Boogie Records, 1983)
RATING: ***
I must admit that intentionally-misspelled band names always give me the chills, and I’m usually not really sympathetic towards groups that choose to adopt such “funny” and “confrontative” epithets. But Leichestershire’s (UK) Wikkyd Vikker somehow manages to survive their ill-conceived moniker and became a target of deserved praise from NWOBHM collectors, an adulation that their scarce vinyl legacy is more than enough to justify. Formed in 1981, the group was originally a four-piece with Dick Boorman (V), Gary Butler (G), Andy Harrison (B) and Adrian Bates (D), and it took less than a year before now-legendary Ebony Records offered the youngsters some much-needed studio time.
The first chance to listen to these hopefuls was “Super Rocker”, a song included in a 1982 compilation called “Metallic Storm” (soon to be reviewed around here). Unfortunately, it didn’t really show what the band was capable of, as it’s a somewhat predictable heavy rocker like hundreds of contemporary groups could write without much effort. It was a wasted opportunity perhaps (and there was no contract talks with Ebony at any stage), but Wikkyd Vikker didn’t spend much time dwelling on this mistake, expanding their act to a quintet by recruiting second guitarist Mark Evans – formely with Valhalla and one of those responsible for the “Lightning in the Sky” single from 1981. The newcomer pretty much took the songwriting duties all for himself, and it’s fair to say that it was a considerable improvement, as their sole individual release (the “Black of the Night” 7” from 1983) demonstrates quite well.
Both “Black of the Night” and “Release” are strongly connected to the NWOBHM sound and vision, being quite easy to ignore the glam-evoking monicker of the band and imagine the lads rocking hard at a small pub, all wearing their denim and leather outfits and banging their long-haired heads all over the place. I don’t know about you, but it’s sure a nice mental image for me! “Black of the Night” is the strongest of the pair, carried along by an ultra-NWOBHM riff that bands like Saxon and Dealer would sure enjoy calling their own and an astute song structure, coupling a simple-but-catchy chorus with a mellower mid-section soon to delve into a climatic (albeit very simple) instrumental part. Really good stuff to make any NWOBHM enthusiasts, well, even more enthusiastic than usual. “Release”, on the other hand, is a considerably more restrained tune – the main riff screams NWOBHM in your face once again, but the song as a whole seems less intense and I really think Dick Boormann could (and should) have sung with a little more passion here. The backing vocals are a bit radio-friendly (not that such a small-run single would gain any airplay, you know), but the composition drags on for quite a while – something that does little to help matters, if you ask me. But don’t get me wrong: “Release” is a good song as a whole. The sound production is fairly competent, the individual performances are all within the usual standards and this humble 7” show Wikkyd Vikker in a very positive light most of the time.
Unfortunately (but not surprisingly), Wikkyd Vikker (that chose to adopt the equally-hopeless name Pretty Wicked and a more glam-oriented outlook at the later stages of their existence) would not be around for much longer, being probably disbanded by the mid-80s. It is mentioned in some quarters that a second pressing of “Black of the Night” appeared sometime in 1984, under the Pretty Wicked guise and even with a picture sleeve – I sure wouldn’t dismiss such a possibility, though I never saw such an item myself. None of the musicians involved seem to have kept plugging in after the band was over, any signs of further musical activity from them being impossible to locate – but efforts are being made to contact some of the long-time members of Wikkyd Vikker, so maybe we’ll have some nice things to share in the near future.
Dick Boorman (V), Gary Butler (G), Mark Evans (G), Andy Harrison (B), Adrian Bates (D).
01. Black of the Night
02. Release
Many thanks to Mega Watt Fanzine for the label picture!
Not to be confused with Wolf, who were actually encouraged to change their name from Black Axe to Wolf by their record label.
| Side A | |||
| 1. | See Them Running | 03:24 | |
| Side B | |||
| 2. | Creatures of the Night | 03:24 | Show lyrics |
| 06:48 | |||
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