Resolution Defiance

The past decade has seen the return of a number of old school NWOBHM bands such as Quartz, Satan, Hell, and many others. Now it is time for another of the old school stalwarts to make their return. Hailing from Lancashire, England, Slander are a bit different than the rest of the old school NWOBHM bands as they were not around for the original movement. They formed in 1990 and released their debut album a year later before dissolving in 1993. Nevertheless, the sound is very similar to that of the original movement and after 26 years, Slander have finally returned with their sophomore album, Resolution Defiance!

One thing that stands out here is that these songs are not as fast as some of the original NWOBHM bands. That is not to say Slander does not bring energy to their music because they certainly do. The old school sound and production absolutely define this album and these songs are certainly high-energy rockers. The riffs are very solid and the melodies sound quite fresh and many of them are also quite memorable like the one toward the end of “The Machine Keeps on Rolling” or the main melody of “When We Die.” All things considered, Slander rocks pretty hard and a few of the riffs and some of the vocal lines are reminiscent of Armored Saint. This is a testament to the awesome riffs laid down by founding member Andy Saxon-Lamb and newcomer Ian Snape. It is their guitar work that keeps the listener hooked into the title track, which would otherwise get slightly repetitive at a shade over six minutes. The riffing on “Take You Down” is classic NWOBHM, not to mention the killer solos in the middle of the track. The guitar tone on this album also has a wicked old school feel to it that fans should really dig.

Andy “Eddie” Edwards is the only other original member still with the band and it shows. His fills fit Slander’s groove beautifully and he knows when to just keep the beat going and when he can add a splash of creativity. The last two songs, “Juggernaut” and “In a Dark Place,” really exemplify this as he is constantly moving the beat forward and throwing in splashes of creativity like the repeating cymbal pattern that opens “In a Dark Place.” He throws in some rim drumming for good measure as well as some other sweet drum beat/cymbal patterns and ultimately complements the riffs extremely well. Paul Snape’s bass is fairly audible for most of this album and he has some sweet bass lines over the course of the album. However, his shining moment is the totally awesome solo he has in the title track. It is relatively brief but it is still a standout performance and a great moment in the context of the album.

Martin Moffwood is a great fit for Slander. He does not show a ton of range on this album but his voice is powerful enough to keep the songs punchy and melodic enough to complement Ian and Andy’s infectious rhythms and creative melodies. There are a handful of moments on this album where Martin sounds a bit like John Bush. However, Martin has a unique quality to his voice that makes him stand out among his peers. He also has a truly epic scream at the beginning of the title track which stands as a defining “heavy metal” moment for both him and Slander. Martin may not have the high range of some of the old school NWOBHM or new school heavy metal vocalists but his mid-range is really good and his low range on “Juggernaut” is badass. His vocal delivery is also extremely well-suited to this kind of music, which makes Resolution Defiance all the more enjoyable.

This is a great album, plain and simple. It moves along at a really good pace and is full of catchy, creative melodies and hard-hitting songs. It is not an album that sets out to blow your mind or be something you have never heard before but that is perfectly okay. This is an album that knows its sound and audience really well. It sets very attainable goals and actually surpasses them. Slander may have taken a long time to return with a sophomore album but they have come back with a bang. This is an album that fans should remember as one of the better reunion albums in recent years because of how well Slander’s sound holds up. Credit to Slander for making such a fun record and to Stormspell Records for releasing it.

- originally written for The Metal Observer