Spitting Fire

The affinity for true metal is not a one night stand, but a deep relationship over years and decades. The best case is a lifelong love affair (seems that I am in a romantic mood today, sorry for that). Maybe Revenge from Colombia share my opinion. Honestly speaking, I think so because their latest album shows their unbroken mentality anew. "Spitting Fire" celebrates the metallic characteristics once more and everybody who says that this approach is boring or stupid should be punished with eternal diarrhea. This is not to say that I worship each and every detail of the here reviewed album. The artwork looks like an accident in the ink fountain and a chorus like "Heavy Metal / Heavy Metal / Friends of Heavy Metal" fails to deliver new creative aspects, to say the least. But these things do not play an important role, because vigorous guitars, heavy drums and expressive, sometimes high-pitched vocals of the South American answer to Rob Halford are the shaping forces of Revenge's music.

Once again, the band members did not see the necessity to change an iota of its style. The mix of dense, speedy guitar leads, melodic ingredients, screaming solos and catchy choruses still works and makes the guys to a reliable partner for their supporters. Okay, I don't know why they recorded a new version of "Infernal Angels" which was primordially released on their debut. The mid-paced song with the nearly soft beginning does not belong to the highlights. Nevertheless, it also does not do any harm (and it pushes the album over the 30 minutes mark...). But the true essence of Revenge shows up in tracks such as "Wild Till Death". The song has this currish, straight and combative component that reflects the attitude of the Colombians perfectly. And I may not forget to mention its liveliness. The album spreads a vibrant aura and uncovers the fact that these guys are probably fans of their own music. The old school is shining bright in new splendour - what else can we (old geezers) demand? A compact killer like "Thy Axes Scream" makes my day, because it does not suffer from a lack of pressure, power and dynamism.

In alignment with its predecessors, "Spitting Fire" creates a very homogeneous overall picture. This situation mirrors the enthusiasm, integrity and authenticity of the four-piece that has never wasted a thought about starting any form of non-metallic experiments. Any type of external influences does not have a chance to become an inspiration for the guys and therefore it is only logical that the crispy production also shines with a very generic appearance. It underlines the robustness of the music in a very good way. Given this situation, there can be no doubt that "Spitting Fire", the seventh full-length of the group, meets the requirements. It is not the most aggressive album of the band and it gives a f**k about innovation, but its resilient substance shimmers through each and every tone. I am also not the most aggressive guy and I am not interested in innovation, too, but my substance has survived for more than 49 years. In view of these parallels, you will understand that I really like this output. Yet on a more serious note, there are not many bands at the interface of speed and power metal that do a better job than Revenge. Seems that they love their earthy music, true metal.