All the way back in 1979 a young and hungry band by the name of Solider formed in Northampton.
This was the good old early days of the New Wave of Heavy Metal and Soldier wanted to make their mark.
Best known from those forty years ago via their song Sheralee it looked promising though they became one of many who didn’t get the breaks.
However, Soldier, like, er, soldiers, are made of stern stuff. Numerous comings and goings over the years and an extended “hiatus” hasn’t stopped them – and now, forty years in the future the band celebrates that achievement with the release of a cracking three-track EP – Storm Rider.
Three excellent songs in the spirit of NWOBHM sounding modern and fresh and the same time. Plenty packed in to three songs and about fifteen minutes playing time.
Storm Rider being the first. A nice fast “throbbing” staccato riff sets the pace with some nifty lead work which rather than being “shred for the sake of shredding” it fits in nicely with the overall feel of the song. Strong rhythm guitar pumps it along too allied with a powerhouse vocal. Tasty.
R.N.R not dissimilar though is more of a “traditional” rocker I suppose you could say. Again the guitars work well and I like the extended lead out/fade out over the last couple of minutes.
Little Big Horn (no prizes for guessing what it’s about) comes in at around six minutes of mini-epic.
The tribal style drum beat and bass setting the scene throughout. Brooding, moody guitars help to give a darkly atmospheric feel and another powerful vocal from Richard Frost.
Solder most certainly still have “it”.
I couldn’t find any videos on YouTube to give you an example of how good Storm Rider is –so you’ll have to take my word for it.
There is a brief “taster” on Soldier’s web site – from which the EP is available for purchase.
Get on over there now for yours: https://www.soldiernwobhm.com/
Wonder if we can look forward to a new album – how about it Mr. Dick?