Metal on Metal
Considering they are up against Slipknot and The Prodigy Anvil do alright and probably manage to fill two thirds of the tent. Back in the limelight after the release of the recent film documenting their career, which in turn garnered plaudits from a host of celebrity fans they return to Donington after an absense of some 20 odd years.
The sound is great and for a three piece they make a big noise! This is classic minor chord metal and it sounds good, in fact it sounds very good, and it soon turns into a master class in old school riffage. Frontman Steve Kudlow not only has the perfect classic metal voice but is also a fine guitarist and gives a pretty stunning display on both lead and rhythm as well as delivering plenty of endearing speeches between songs and I don’t use that word lightly, they are pretty long but nobody minds as he takes several trips down memory lane.
‘Race Against Time’ and ‘White Rhino’ stand out but it’s the national anthem of heavy metal (as Kudlow introduces it) ‘Metal on Metal’ that steals the show and you just can’t argue with the quality of musicianship and song writing. They are a great band and I really do find myself wondering why these guys aren’t massive? They just seem to have it all and in the early 80s should’ve gone on to greater things (the film will no doubt explain what happened there). Well, whatever the reasons the fact is that today they richly deserve their headline status and turn in a performance worthy of the main stage.