RUNNING WILD „Rogues en Vogue”

Music: Heavy Metal
Website: http://www.running-wild.net
Country: Germany
Cool songs: Angel Of Mercy, Skull And Bones, Black Gold, The War

Three years it took Rock’n’Rolf to get back into the studio, get the crew and record another album. Rolf always had problems with getting a crew. It was a pity, that Thomas Smuszynski and Thilo Hermann left the band. Without them, it was not the same RUNNING WILD. Kasparek tried to keep the legend going on, but unfortunately, he did not manage. Finally he and Pichl invited Liebetruth. And the story is going on… again.

The last studio child of RUNNING WILD is a good piece of Heavy Metal. Quick pace, various themes and good old Running Wild guitars. What annoys from the beginning is the sound of Rolf’s guitar. He probably wanted to get back to the early sound (the 80’s) of RUNNING WILD, but in this case, it is not the same. It simply squeaks. Sometimes it annoys a lot. This sound is similar to that generated by synthesizers in the 80’s.

First song “Draw The Line” is nothing special. Old Heavy Metal. Nice arrangement and performance (all in all… 30 years on the stage). The next one, “Angel Of Mercy” is far better, quick and rhythmic metal. It is a pleasure to listen to it. Although this strange guitar sound creates an impression that it is just a background for Rolf’s voice and… the drums. Yes… the drums are definitely too loud. “Skeleton Dance” is another brick. Quite fast, but without any particular character. After a few riffs it becomes boring. “Skull And Bones” is a little pearl in here. Nice intro, in the old style, mood, slow guitar a la mandolin, later on – heavy riff, change of rhythm. In other words, this song is very good. It is lacking in repetitions and those changes: slow – fast have a great effect on it. At the end it goes even faster to finish in a speedy way from the beginning. “Born Bad, Dying Worse” sounds very similar to earlier “Return Of The Dragon” from LP “Rivalry”. Again, the beginning is spoiled by the sound of the guitar. And the last straw – the beginning of the title song, “Rogues en Vogue”. That guitar sounds terrible. It just drives me mad. As if someone hid it in a rubbish bin. The song is quite good, just like most of RUNNING WILD title compositions. Nice cooperation of the guitars and drums plus strong and tangible bass section. Good workshop.

The album is filled with better and weaker compositions. It is visible, that this is not the same band, which it was a decade ago. Rolf was trying hard, but the almighty time, did its job. “Black Gold” and “Soul Vampires” are good compositions – classical riffs, strong vocal line, and what is the most important, they catch the attention. On the other side, “Dead Man’s Road” is very weak, the guitars are simply rumbling. That hideous noise appears sometimes in songs, but here, it is just too loud. And spoils the rest. Sometimes I had an impression that my eardrums will explode, although the volume level was not so high. And the final song – traditionally an epic story. This time about the First World War. The simple drum beat and guitar riff, combined with good vocal line, create an impression of participating in this song. The grandpa is sitting in his rocking chair and telling his grandchildren the story. The intro sounds a little bit silly (some sort of Yankee Doodle style) but it actually fits the whole. Later on it develops into fine composition which calms down, as the gunfire is heard in the background. This track gives the clear picture of war, from false enthusiasm, to fear, hatred, the feeling of helplessness, and finally… victory.

This album (number 13), is better than the previous one. It is less predictable, more varied and all in all, sounds better (apart from that quasi guitar). In this case, it seems that the “unlucky” 13 was not unlucky, at all. This is a good piece of old heavy metal.

note: 7.5/10

Tracklist

1. Draw The Line
2. Angel Of Mercy
3. Skeleton Dance
4. Skull And Bones
5. Born Bad, Dying Worse
6. Black Gold
7. Soul Vampires
8. Rogues en Vogue
9. Winged And Feathered
10. Dead Man’s Road
11. The War

Total playing time 57:05

Line-up

“Rock'n' ” Rolf Kasparek – vocals, all guitars, some bass
Peter Pichl – bass
Mattias Liebetruth – drums