Ruling the World

Usually I believe that tradition beats any trend, but sometimes it is necessary to break the tradition. After two albums with alarmingly weak openers (“Up the Hammer” and “Rock Your Bottom”), “Ruling the World” starts with one of the best songs in the history of Tyrant. “Burn You” is kicked off by a few atmospheric guitar tones before the song gains tempo and power. The up-tempo number cruises somewhere between heavy and speed metal and its liveliness whets the appetite for more. Good start, to say the least, and it’s just a side aspect that the guitar solo reminds me of the one of Steeler’s title track for “Rulin’ the Earth”. More remarkable is that it looks like every German wants to rule the world or the earth, but that was already the case before Steeler or Tyrant appeared on the metallic radar.

Tyrant had lost 50% of the line-up of “Running Hot”, but the song formula had not been significantly affected by this change. Lead vocalist Kerrmit and his loyal guitarist, who now combined his former names to “King Carl Tomaschko” had hired a new rhythm section and additionally a new second guitar player had entered the stage (not the pig that had sent greetings from the artwork of “Running Hot”). But the only difference to “Running Hot” was a more serious approach, a more metallic one, a higher degree of the well appreciated “we don’t care what you think about us” attitude. At least the first four pieces mirror this newly gained seriousness, while the relatively senseless “Wild Cats” marks a relapse into the old system of (not very funny) excursions. It’s true, old habits die hard – but all the more I like the slightly dark undertone of the first songs…

...and I fall into desperation when I hear the useless, inadequate electronic gimmicks in “She Makes Me Hot (Hot)”. You guessed it, the song is as embarrassing as its title. If you want to murder your integrity in a matter of secords, integrate such a song on an album that actually follows the tried and tested dogma of solid metal. It has nothing in common with the dragging title track which spreads more or less meaningful vibes or with “Beat It” and its earthy riffing. But okay, I don’t want to be too picky. After all, “Ruling the World” is the best album of Tyrant, at least in my humble opinion. The songs leave a comparatively high impact, the production is adequate as always and the artwork is a bit kitschy, but by far not as infantile as the one of “Running Hot”. Anyway, four albums were enough or even more than enough from this band and I wonder that Kerrmit is still active with a new line-up. Maybe I should praise his stamina, but honestly speaking, I don’t think that many people hope to get new Tyrant songs. Not because this would be a bad thing per se, but the scene has already more (second tier) bands than it can swallow.

The last pull from one of the unsung heroes of the German metal underground, the pack of tyrants from Ulm whose power/speed metal hymns had what it took to catapult their creators at least to the below-upper echelons… alas, high quality music and consistency were not always a guarantee for stardom, stolid uwavering attitude regarding the band’s initially chosen path another hard seller. It’s true that the guys did try to commercialize their sound to some extent on the third outing, the one before the album reviewed here, but this was a semi-compromise, the call of the wild still quite strong, resulting in the presence of several boisterous fast-pacers, those finely ruining the mellower intentions.

No such intentions here, Kerrmit, the band mainman and founder, correcting his mistake, by also hiring other musicians to help him realise his vision of power/speed metal dominance, said vision very nicely reflected in the perennial headbanger “Burn You”, vintage speed metal to the bone, the guys exorcising the pop metal spirits from the preceding slab with just a single tune, adding the memorable fist-pumping mid-pacers “Blind Revolution” and “Set 'Em On Fire” to the melee, the latter also enriched with the excellent dramatic shredder “Killing the Peace We Fall” and the officiant epic title-track. There’s only one wink at the cheese factory, the cliched heavy rocker “She Makes Me Hot”, but its presence is steam-rolled on in no time, the band pouring hot molten metal over it with the headlong fast-paced wilders “Wild Cats” and “Wild and Free”, the frenetic setting admonished to another restrained epic tractate (“On the Wings of Endless”) at the end.

A solid entry into the band’s discography, a distinct farewell opus which nearly reached the spontaneous, instantly memorable lustre of “Fight for Your Life”, their magnum opus. So yeah, the late-80’s were still willing to embrace the old school power/speed metal canons, and although said canons weren’t exactly the ultimate cry of fashion at that time, they still sounded relevant, even as a defiant gesture against the two trendier currents, the progressive/technical and the more aggressive thrash/deathy one. Tyrant were not interested in shedding their skin in order to attain fortune and glory. They were tempted once, slightly, but didn’t find it viable enough, with few reasons for one to feel compelled to run hot and wild by this softer musical accompaniment.

Cause this is where their hearts belonged, with the untamed and the vigorous… or rather belong as the band are back on the field as of 2020, seemingly with the same line-up as the one from the late-80’s. Kerrmit is bracing himself for another run, and we should provide all the support we can to this stolid albeit unrecognized marathon man of the underground.