Fire Down Under

Recorded in 1980. Put this one in, hear the first riff, hear where Two Minutes to Midnight was born... classic power metal - this is the first time it manifested itself in the US. Possibly the first American metal band?? (Twisted Sister were around earlier, but they weren't metal until 1976 or so, which is the year Riot was formed.)

This is really the album that put Riot on the map. There is a far stronger NWOBHM feel to this album than the previous two studio albums, not to mention that the songs are faster and more intense. It's Guy Speranza's last album, and probably his finest vocal effort aside from the live album from 1980.

We start off with two insanely fast speed metal songs, stuff that remind one of Hell Bent For Leather. Bands in the US simply weren't playing this sort of stuff - Priest and Sabbath influence abounds here, and even a bit of Diamond Head and Maiden. "Swords and Tequila" and "Fire Down Under" are early speed metal classics. Holy crap, that title track is absurdly fast. FIIIRE!!! DOWN UNDER!!!! "Feel the Same" is a bit slower, while "Outlaw" returns to blazing speed, and has a bit of a Saxon feel to it.

The rest of the album isn't quite as fast as those three songs, but is still very damn energetic, sounding at times like some of the earlier, heavier Tygers of Pan Tang works. "No Lies" and "Altar of the King" are both very good power metal, and "Run For Your Life" is excellent as well despite being completely different from the song of the same name on the Thundersteel album. (What the fuck?? Has any band ever recycled a song title like that?)

Several re-releases have assorted bonus tracks, and I'm not going to bother to keep track of them all. Most any version of this album is worth picking up.