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Rating: 1984 is quite a remarkable year for Metal. Many bands haven't yet figured out what they want to be when they grow up, while others already had clear ideas. Among the groups that didn't know what they wanted to be were undoubtedly the Grave Digger, led by the powerful voice of Chris Boltendhal. 1984, as we said. The Iron Maiden confirmed their consistency with 'Powerslave', while the Metallica were busy with the famous 'Ride The Lightning'. But heavy music, in general, had reached a crossroads. The idea of labeling some Heavy Metal albums, which seemed to hit harder than others, as Speed/Thrash was just being considered. Thrash wasn't yet a true genre, nor was Speed. In this oblivion, we find the debut of the undertakers, of German stamp, called 'Heavy Metal Breakdown'.
Still far from being classifiable as an album in full Grave Digger style, the album in question is worth listening to thanks to tracks that would later become musts in live performances, like the fast 'Headbanging Man' or the title track. Many are the happy episodes, such as 'We Wanna Rock You', a true manifesto of Heavy (a bit like 'I Wanna Rock' by Twisted Sister or 'Chains & Leather' by fellow countrymen Running Wild). But the album reaches its peaks with the beautiful semi-ballad 'Legion of the Lost' and the fast 'Tyrant' which give the album that something extra. Another episode worth mentioning is the ballad 'Yesterday', far from being yet another cover of the Beatles' song, but with a strong impact. Lastly, a cover of the Rolling Stones ('200 Light Years From Home').
Excellent vocal performance by leader Chris Boltendhal, the only one who will carry the Grave banner high over the years, good guitar by Masson, and without praise or infamy the drums and bass. Unfortunately, what penalizes the final score is the poor production that makes a smooth listening experience difficult. The undertakers were searching for their path, and they were also criticized for being yet another copy of the immortal Accept. But everyone has their points of reference, right?
Tracklist and Lyrics
01 Headbanging Man (03:37)
Dressed in leather, dressed in chains
Full of agression, full of pains
Stage is open, light comes up
Metal kids go mad
Count - down is on for the band
Drunken women, drunken men
Show their hands for fucking arse
They bang their heads
He's a man, he's a kid
Wanna bang with you
Headbanging man
He's man, he's a kid
Wanna bang with you
Headbanging man
Metal music blows your heads
And metal maniacs bang to death
The air roars like a machine gun
Banging devils on the run
The show is over, kids are gone
And fucking people lay alone
Drun too much, they're falling down
It's a headbanging crown
He's a man, he's a kid
Wanna bang with you
Headbanging man
He's a man, he's a kid
Wanna bang with you
Headbanging with you
Headbanging man
02 Heavy Metal Breakdown (03:42)
Metal invasion that's all what we need
Metal dominion that's all what we want
We come to give you rules and principles
What you have to do
We come to shake your hands and legs
As fast as we can do
Heavy Metal Breakdown
Women and children want to hear the noise
Women and children want to feel the beat
Bang your heads as fast as you can
Until you're breaking down
The night is long, the show is right
Bang until you die
Heavey Metal Breakdown
Shake your legs and bang your heads
Heavey Metal Breakdown
04 Yesterday (05:06)
Yesterday, when you left me on my own
Yesterday, when you left my heart alone
Yesterday, no, yesterday, no no
Yesterday, when your love was very true
Yesterday, when we knew what to do
Yesterday, no, yesterday, no
Yesterday, in my mind it's still alive
Yesterday, when we were husband and wife
Yesterday, no, yesterday, no
07 Tyrant (03:17)
Lost horizons everywhere
The sun is grey and dark
A coach runs through the shattered night
Without a tone
Four winds howl into the night
It's cold and wet
Horses, black and danerous
Horror runs my blood
Tyrant
The beast, comes to kill us
The beast, comes to kill us
The beast, comes to kill us
The beast, comes to...
Magic world's around my soul
Desaster's burning high
He's the son of heaven's devil
He's the arm of death
Don't look back, don't look back
You can lose your life
Tyrant sees every step, every step you make
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