Brute Force and Ignorance

The resounding name is the same as the alien virus that decimates the population of a small town in New Mexico in the film "The Andromeda Strain" (1971). The logo is inspired by the classic motorcycle brands Norton and BSA. In the lineup, two guys who can tell their grandchildren that, although they never recorded a single note, they were part of Iron Maiden: vocalist Paul Mario Day and guitarist Martin Bushell.

In the country that listens to Iron Maiden the most in the world, this connection is a compelling selling point. However, by releasing Wildfire's complete works in Brazil, Hellion Records is not just offering two more items for completist fans; they are belatedly doing justice to a remarkably talented group that went unnoticed during their brief period of activity.

Some time after leaving Maiden, Day formed More and made extra money as a van driver. He recorded a single LP, "Warhead" (1981), before realizing that he wanted more. With Bushell, he established the creative core that, alongside guitarist Jeff Summers (ex-Weapon), bassist Jeff Brown, and drummer Bruce Bisland (future Praying Mantis), gave birth to Wildfire in 1982.

Between deliveries, Day and Bushell wrote the bulk of the material that the band took to Belgium, home of Mausoleum Records, the label that signed them. They recorded their debut album in two weeks fueled by lots of Delirium, Chimay, and Duvel, among other famous beers. Their influences included Deep Purple, Judas Priest, UFO, Queen, Thin Lizzy, and Rush – the staple bands of any young rocker in 70s England.

Thus, what you hear on "Brute Force & Ignorance" – only God knows if the title was inspired by Rory Gallagher – from the opening track "Violator" is undeniably heavy music, but with a melodic twist that makes it difficult to fit into the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) aesthetic, which by 1983 was no longer so "New." Another example is "Victim of Love," the second track, which sounds like a metallic derivative of "You Can Do Magic" by America, which Dokken would later emulate in "Don't Lie to Me" from the classic "Under Lock and Key."

Next up is "Another Daymare," where the palatable horror of the lyrics is only surpassed by Day's vocal quality; the slightly danceable "Lovelight," featuring a totally new wave guitar tone; and "Search and Destroy," a distant cousin of "Eye of the Tiger" (Survivor) with a solo clearly attempting to emulate Randy Rhoads.

Further highlights include the groove of "Wildfire," built on a well-played bass phrase; "If I Tried" with its acapella nod to "Scarborough Fair," a gem from the British folk tradition immortalized by Simon & Garfunkel; and the march "Eyes of the Future," where the keyboard provides more than just ambience, hinting at the direction the band would take the following year with the equally impressive "Summer Lightning."

I tend to give this band no small section of the shaft whenever they come up, calling them snoozers and such, and to the then 14 or 15 year old mind who was in vivid search for some lost sibling of Slayer, Wildfire were sleepy and yet another Mausoleum tragedy that had mugged him in the heavy metal section of the record store, but now that time has healed most of these scars, it can be admitted the quintet weren’t estranged from ‘83’s use-it-or-lose-it chronology. However, Brute Force and Ignorance as a title for this particular album is a faulty weapon dipped in nativity, for the force isn’t brutal and their unawareness of it is apparent before the first side ends. Even the name Wildfire may be kind of a stretch for some, looking like something effortless like Exciter or Killers. Basically, if you didn’t glean anything too lofty or high-headed from the words written on the front cover, you built yourself a nice little buffer. But despite petty aesthetics, this band has its fine ingredients and glory moments.

One spice from the rack is Paul Mario Day (one of those unobtrusive, three-pronged names that sounds as if it shoulda played an integral part in some bigger band’s slightly gone heyday, like Joe Lynn Turner or something, which proves kinda true), a former of cool ass More and really early Maiden casualty, washing up on shore with his semi-veteran maw sweeping some of the inbred averageness from the marketable tracks while helping spark plug the minority belters. Then there’s two old Weapon escapees in Bisland and Summers, a decent backbone that do a clear-headed job unleashing a bevy of civilized, respectable, and fortunately bendable hooks and corners. Meanwhile the Shiva Studio production wipes the instruments free of debris without worrying if you can eat off the clinic’s floor.

Peeking under the hood, it’s pretty clear the band’s motor is comprised of an alloy made with as much hard rock as metal, powered by commercially viable fuel that luckily falls short of skirt-chasing scumbag rock or the AOR red flag, though when you finally pass finale “Eyes of the Future”, there’s little doubt Wildfire could’ve rolled up with much softer tires if they wanted. Unluckily for us, however, only about two or three of these need seatbelts. Cool n’ dashing are “Violator” and “Another Daymare”, sliding along with enough dynamic steam to make you think your pick at the store was a good one, but alas the former is the album’s opener and soon-to-be-discovered as a flasher of the false green light at the line considering what follow (save the latter and maybe “Redline”) have a much lower stall speed. The other vehicles are a little overfilled with coolant - “Victim of Love”, “If I Tried”, “Eyes of the Future”, “Lovelight” - very melodic while stirring up a small nest of catchiness, out of harm’s way while being harmless themselves, and unapologetic for the success-savvy brainwerk that could probably be seen wriggling under their skulls even while nothing’s really boneheaded, tawdry, or childish about these tracks, and is another reason why I can’t burn this thing like cheese in a microwave.

On the worldwide front, Wildfire rounded the table but couldn’t find their nameplace amongst the Whitesnakes and Dokkens (or any of the second shelfers they probably would’ve sat nicely with), but as they duked it out with more battle dressed Crossfire and Ostrogoth for Mausoleum’s marketing eye, they sorta succeeded, coercing from the label some full page ads and another disc that few worry over. Unfortunately not even a stepping stone to someone’s brighter future.