The New Wave of British Heavy Metal “back in the day” chewed up and spat out many a band which should have gone on to bigger and better things. Chalk up Trespass in to that category. Best known for One of These Days – which appeared as a much-touted single – the band didn’t make it.
Spring forward a few decades and here’s proof that you simply cannot keep a good NWOBHM band down. Trespass hit back hard with Footprints in the Rock with original member Mark Sutcliffe steering the ship ably indeed.
The album is rather jolly good. Straight ahead, brooding NWOBHM-style stuff which has plenty of power behind the delivery.
Momentum is a fine choice for the opener. A steady riff and drum beat drives the song along with as catchy hook chucked in. Be Brave adds muscle before Mighty Love drills in to your head and doesn’t leave.
Prometheus pounds along darkly as does the title track – both featuring some blinding guitar work raising the pace again.
Little Star demonstrates the band’s lighter side. A softer quitter gentle ballad style affair deftly delivered over the simple drum beat.
Check out the video for Momentum:
Then we’re back in to crunching riffage galore with the Green Man which precedes what are in my mind are the two stand-out cuts – Dragons in the Mist and Beowulf and Grendel. Mystic and venture in to Dio-esque territory. The twin guitars in full flow over powerhouse drumming and bass riffs.
Weed and Music of the Waves shunt back in to more traditional ground closing out an album which thoroughly “rocks” throughout retaining (perhaps deliberately) more than a nod back to when NWOBHM was king.
Trespass had the chops, if not the breaks, back them. With Footprints in the Rock they have an album which serves their talents well. I’ll listen to it again after posting this……
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