Running Wild
Blazon Stone

THE REVIEW

Finally.

This is the word that spontaneously comes to mind when listening to this album. Finally, after wandering through various bands, I find a sincere melodic raw aggressive metal but above all well done, clean, and convincing.

The album is from 1991. The Running Wild had the great idea of placing their musical context in a piratical setting, combining speed, melody, and power, yet in the name of excellent classic heavy metal. A well-executed project, this sixth album from the Hamburg band, led by the excellent powerful and sinister voice of Rolf Kasparek (stage name Rock'n'Rolf), which many tend to classify as "Power Metal", but over time approaches the genre due to its melodic air.
This is pure metal, classic and granite, tough and wild. It is certainly not considered the best in their discography, but I liked it a lot; let's say it satisfied me. The title track "Blazon Stone", is fantastic, aggressive, and adrenaline-pumping, starting with a melodious mystic invocation made with raw and sharp guitars like the cutlasses of marauders, a truly special overwhelming warrior rhythm with a cheerful and danceable backdrop.

The following "Lone Wolf" is magnificent, typically heavy metal but decidedly powerful with some animalistic riffs and certain hard and devastating solos. With melancholic choruses, "Slavery" starts and soon takes on a strong and combative rhythm. This band, even being a crew of 80s pirates, is still able to captivate your ears in an era where experimental sounds are being created. Incredible classicism, high on impetuous energy and pirate aggression: this is the recipe for Blazon stone. I recommend "Fire And Ice" with its hard and violent rhythm, while "Little Big Horn" is not to be missed, powerful and fast but fun and amusing at the same time.
Peaks of melody are reached in "Over the Rainbow" where a very clean sound of plucked guitar creates a special psychedelic effect of serenity and wonder, without neglecting the power and strength at the base of the band's style. More epic pieces like "White Masque" vaguely remind one of Manowar, while others like "Bloody Red Rose" are simply enjoyable.

What more can be said... this album is a perfect mix of energy and melody, speed and technique, but also of classicism and malice. Running Wild could be a great discovery for all metalheads.

A little curiosity = in my opinion, the most metal/pirate song is "Over the Hills And Far Away" by Nightwish.