Ultrapower

Was anyone else wondering what Striker would come back with after basically becoming the heavy metal answer to Imagine Dragons on Play to Win? I don’t actually know that Imagine Dragons is the right reference here because I’m not young and hip enough to find a more suitable pop/rock group that makes every song sound like you’re halfway down a halfpipe and about to fly through the air. (Also because I think the words ‘hip’ and ‘halfpipe’ are somehow cool.) At the time, I compared Play to Win to some of the biggest hair metal bands, but now I’m pretty sure that Striker had little intention of harking back to the ‘80s for their credibility, since Ultrapower takes the game a step further on, though fortunately returns a lot of the rock power to their sound, even if it’s not exactly their early speed/power influences. In fact, I’m reminded quite a bit of what Skull Fist did on their latest full-length, since this really makes a point of trying to sound edgy and energetic without getting particularly heavy.

The tools that the Canadians use to do this centre around pumping hard rock riffs, guitar solos, and lots and lots of backing vocals, which always say “Woah-oh-ah-oh!” Don’t rule out saxophone either, as ‘Give It All’ features a hook played on the instrument that I initially mistook for that George Michael song. You know, that one. It’s hard to explain, but the whole thing sounds so extremely positive and pumped for action that I just see the energy drink marketing departments licking their lips as they hear ‘Best of the Best’ or ‘Blood Magic’ for the first time. If those are snapped up, however, the exceptional ‘Sucks to Suck’ remains for their delectation. Sort of unfortunately, these are all so catchy that you will randomly find yourself going “Woah-oh-ah-oh!” in the middle of the supermarket a few weeks from now, and you won’t even want to do it. As with anything this completely devoted to being one thing (energetic and catchy…okay, that’s two things) I feel conflicted about whether it’s too much or whether I should abandon myself to the beautiful excess of the Striker mood.

I think the real reason for my conflict comes down to the realization that Ultrapower is definitely not an album made for me, yet I like a lot what I’m hearing. Firstly, it’s called Ultrapower. Next, there’s an engine on the cover, and I don’t like engines. Not like that, anyway. Moreover, Striker seem to be wearing what basically constitutes the outfits of sports superheroes in all their latest promo shots. Plus, they’ve done their best to exploit every cliché in the book. And then on the other hand, they can still play their instruments very well, these songs are just insanely catchy, and they have the pacing up to very exciting levels that makes even my aged heart beat quicker. In essence, Ultrapower beats all the cheesiest power metal for cheese because it’s not even a niche kind of stinky cheese like keyboards and major key choruses about wizards; here we have goddamn Dairy Lee Lunchables and Cheesestrings cheese about doing things in the city and winning at events. Striker have produced a bloody excellent album of basic bitch heavy metal for random 12 year olds and I am fucking pissed that I love it so much.