Airforce is a band with a strong New Wave of British Heavy Metal connection whether or not they’d be hit with the NWOBHM tag.
The brief history is that drummer Doug Sampson had left an early incarnation of Iron Maiden. A few years later Steve Harris introduced Doug to guitarist Chop Pitman with the result being for formation of Airforce in the mid-1980s.
For whatever reason the band tried hard with not much to show for their efforts deciding to disband in the mid-1990s. There’d be a reformation about a decade later and they’ve been generally active since.
I didn’t realise that they’d put out an album a couple of years or so ago until I dropped on it randomly and ordered a copy immediately. The original line-up of Sampson, Pitman and Tony Hatton remain with a recent recruit on vocals – Flavio Lino.
Strike Hard certainly lives up to its name. To add to the NWOBHM connection Paul Di’Anno provides vocals on Don’t Look in Her Eyes. And there’s a storming heavied-up cover of the old Alex Harvey Band classic Faith Healer with none other than the great Zal Cleminson on guitar.
The album is excellent from start to finish. Well-constructed and performed punchy rockers with an atmospheric feel to them. Chops’ guitar does indeed chop out the beefy riffs and they punch, cut and slash with the big riffs and nicely restrained solos.
Doug Sampson’s drumming is first class driving each song along with Tony Hatton’s solid bass lines. Flavio Lino’s vocals are quite superb. Powerful and rangy. The nods back to the NWOBHM days are obvious yet the entire album sounds fresh and upbeat.
Fight is a great opener punching along aplenty and is instantly accessible. Have a listen:
Die For You builds on that upping the ante some more. As does The Reaper – brooding, heavy and a monster track.
Finest Hour dips in to Aces High territory Spitfiring along like a Battle of Britain dogfight. Monstrous stuff. Lino’s vocals particularly outstanding here. Then Di’Anno shows he still has the chops on the bitingly heavy Don’t Look in Her Eyes.
I Feel Your Pain slows things down a bit being almost a “power ballad” before the pace properly picks back up with a blistering trio of War Games, Band of Brothers and The War Inside.
Lastly we have the Faith Healer cover with Zal coming in on guitar. An excellent cover of a classic song and a welcome chance to hear Zal again. For me he’s one of the most underrated guitarists and supremely talented.
Airforce have a very fine album in Strike Hard – make no mistake about that.
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