Wolf

The flame for this old school metal quartet couldn’t burn any blacker. Hell-bent on bringing their beloved metal scene back to the glory of Maiden-esque highs, they produce another swirling mass of "guitarmonies,” scream/wail vocal crossovers and fill-heavy drum beats. At times, this creates a slight draft of cheese, notable on songs such as "At the Graveyard,” which must have been written at a whopping age of 15. It’s the only way to excuse a chorus so lame and rampantly overused as "Meet me at the graveyard/meet me at midnight.” Doesn’t sound too bad, but then imagine it delivered with the conviction of a John trying to lower the price of a "date.” Ignoring the questionable lyrical content, vocals still manage to emit enough testosterone to warrant Bruce Dickinson-worth praise and the thunderclap that is the rhythm section ooze the same testosterone handlebar moustaches are made from. The end product delivers too much Accept for anyone under 40 but is still confident and capable enough to sound masterful and confident.