Wheels of Steel

Even though the band released a more robust and consistent work six months later, their sophomore effort became the most praised piece within the NWOBHM and an emblematic album for said subgenre. While the fact of featuring radio-friendly stuff could have been coined as the most relevant driver of its success, it is also important to point out the use gave to the biker-related lyrics, which fit the standards of a decade on which being a biker was highly honored, if not a dream.

In terms of musicianship, the band tends to move over and over from the border between hard rock and heavy metal, resulting in a set of songs that could be as romantic and sentimental as "Suzie Hold On" or as epic as "747 (Strangers in the Night)". Such a variety is a point in favor of the album when all is said and done; however, when the band tuned things down, they took certain wrong decisions, as mid-paced numbers like the title song and "Suzie Hold On". Even when both songs are still worthy-listening, they are not able to reach the dynamism that characterizes their trademark sound, making the album a little bit inconsistent. An exception to this issue, is "747 (Strangers in the Night)". That song fucking owns everything in the road, especially the solo played during the intro.

However, when these guys combine speed metal with their lyrics dealing with their stories about owning the highway, they do it astonishingly, giving life to moments in which men and machines lived together to conquer the roads. Is there someone rocking more than that? No, definitely no. These guys are the masters of chains and leather, and did not hesitate at making the Earth shake from the very beginning with the frantic speed metal number "Motorcycle Man". Its interesting riffs and tremendously accelerated drumming are in line with the musical standards established by Motörhead. In few words, it's pure Motörhead worship. Running wild through a similar path, "Freeway Mad" and "Street Fighting Gang" also represent the spirit of the highway that [insert the name of the wildest power trio in the British metal scene] exploited during the previous decade, especially during their earliest years. But if you think insanity stopped here, give yourself some minutes to listen to the craziest track on the album: "Machine Gun". Such hyperactive closing number begins with an intro riff that indeed tries to imitate the speed (if not the sound) of a machine gun. Thereafter, the band plays like Deep Purple on amphetamines, or even worse than that.

No matter how great is the next album. The band provided an incredible performance that reaches the levels of speed, savageness, and intensity that best characterize the NWOBHM, mainly, when their front-man is no other than Biff Byford, and their guitarists demonstrated to remain as one with their instrument. Once again, no matter how good is the next album, whether you choose this one or the other, your experience would be somewhat satisfactory.