Five years after the excellent Footprints in the Rock, New Wave of British Heavy Metal survivors Trespass come back with Wolf at the Door.
Original member Mark Sutcliffe still around on guitars and vocals. Joe Fawcett and Jason Roberts remain on guitar and drums respectively from the last album with new member Wil Wilmot joining on bass all making a solid band.
Roberts and Wilmot make a formidable rhythm section. The drumming in particular being straight ahead and powerful with a big sound.
Fawcett and Sutcliffe crank out big yet measured riffs and their lead interplay is nicely on point.
Eleven songs with around an hour running time making a pleasurable listening hour.
The monster riff of Blackthorn kicks things off. It hits hard, has some nifty lead work and a thudding chorus to boot. Controlled power.
Daggers Drawn, forgive the pun, stabs away with more big riffage, big infectious chorus and more of the Sutcliffe/Fawcett lead trading. Quite the guitar duo indeed. Force of Nature is just that – hard, heavy and a bit dark as the powerful delivery continues.
Indeed – the whole album squarely hits the mark.
Crooked Cross is packs so much in to four minutes including more of the blazing lead work.
Unsinkable and Stanger in Paradise a spectacular pair of mini-epics stretching out in to prog-metal territory and Live Like a King could arguably be the choice cut with the energy running through it. Have a listen:
The title track closes things out is some style too. More of a brooding doomy style contrasting what’s gone before which works well.
Kudos to Trespass for putting together an album of fresh sounding thumping heaviness, some finesse and the NWOBHM undercurrent which squarely hits the mark. Various formats available.
>> TRESPASS WOLF AT THE DOOR ON AMAZON <<
Oh: and do check out the previous album from Trespass – Footprints in the Rock – as that’s top stuff too.
The new albums from Weapon and Millennium should arrive soon so more NWOBHM to look forward to.