The Sign of 4

Blacklist's 'The Sign of 4' EP offers up some nice, albeit typical, 80s trad metal. The songs are based around heavy, catchy riffs with a hooky power chord vibe to boot, reminiscent of Grudge's 'Barbarians of the New Earth' but tighter. The production and songwriting is surprisingly good for an independent release from an unknown act; the band had obviously put in the practice time and were indeed ready for the vinyl stage. Nice guitar work is featured throughout. The only catch is the vocal performance; while not the typical nasally/shrill-sounding US singer, the vocals here are an odd combination of high and slightly hoarse. I can't think of a great comparison, but it's the sort of rough sound usually associated with German bands from this era. Nevertheless, he does have his moments by hitting and holding some nice high notes.

'Steady on the Steel' is, as one might suspect, a headbanging anthem, easy to raise you fist and sing along to. 'Confrontation' is even better, with a great, catchy riff that instantly grabs your attention and sticks. Unfortunately the remaining two tracks are not as strong. They're still competently written and performed, but they simply don't leap out and grab you like the first two tracks. Thus, the end result is a 50/50 split between songs that are strong versus merely average. Those interested should check out the tracks on the cd compilation before investing the time and money to track down an original vinyl copy.