The March Is On

Oh Ireland, probably one of the few European countries from which I cannot name a band. I must certainly have listened to a band from Ireland, but I just cannot recall any bands for some reason. In my conscious, Ireland just kind of flies underneath the radar when it comes to metal and I’m not sure why. Unfortunately, Trojan kind of follows this trend.

Despite hailing from Ireland and The March Is On being released at best six years too late, Trojan sounds exactly like a NWOBHM band. While NWOBHM doesn’t have a distinct sound, many of its bands are clearly punk influenced. The most obvious punk influence involving Trojan is in the production, which is atrocious. In addition to the production, there are some other subtle punk influences, such as the punk-rooted riffs and the raw energy. Although, The March Is On is slightly more progressive than the average NWOBHM band.

Perhaps the most unique aspect of The March Is On are the vocals. If I had to describe the vocals, I would ineloquently say it sounds like sad punk vocals. Sad, not as in bad, but sad in literally sad, moody, and whiny. The lead vocalist’s range just isn’t all that great and he kind of sounds rough a lot of times. One of the easiest comparisons one can make in music are vocals, but for Ed Kenny, I just can’t really think of any adequate comparisons.

The March Is On is a decent album, but it's incredibly unremarkable and forgettable. All the riffs are decent, but nothing about The March Is On is over the top. Maybe if this exact album was released where and when it aesthetically belongs, Trojan would have received some attention in the underground, but The March Is On is from the wrong place and time.