Album Review: Warzaw - Werewolves On Wheels
Reviewed by Paul Hutchings
In a world of multiple genres and sub-genres, the classic sound of good old heavy metal sometimes gets smothered under the technicality and layered compositions. Well, if you want your metal served with lashings of old school style fist in the air, grab a beer, your denim cut off (it’s not a battle jacket FFS!) and immerse yourself in the thumpingly good debut release by Norwegian quartet Warzaw.
Skip past the rather dreadful album cover and you’ll unpack 11 tracks crammed full of riffs, chunky rhythms and driving beats. From the opening riffs of the title track this is bar room boogie at its finest. Music to drink and dance to. Sweet solos, some crafted melody and hooks that loiter in the mind without permission. Whilst Warzaw stick to their formula, there is ample variation which maintains the listener’s interest.
Ode to that B list actor, ‘Second Banana’ rocks along nicely with some blisteringly impressive guitar work. It’s a thunderous, addictive track that pulses with power and energy. There is an anthemic quality on ‘Dragging Knuckles’, the comparison with Swedish trio Grand Magus irresistible. This is a song that demands to be played live! In fact, there isn’t a track here that wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms in the live arena. Spitfire pays tribute to the most beautiful fighter plane of all time, and whilst the lyrics are at times a bit crude and basic, it doesn’t detract from the overall feel of a good time. Cohesive and sharp, with a fierce attitude that magnifies the intensity, Warzaw are packing a Tyson sized punch.
There’s plenty of diversity as well and whilst the focus is on heavy riffs and stomping metal, the Trondheim quartet can slow it down without losing on iota of the heaviness – check out the deep groove on ‘Swamplands’ for evidence. Choosing ‘Switchblade Renegade’ with its NWOBHM flavours to close the album is a wise choice as well, leaving the hooks ringing long after the song and the album have finished.
If you like your metal unaltered by labels and genres, if you want vocals, two guitars and drums and if you want snappy songs that get the head nodding and the feet tapping, then ‘Werewolves on Wheels’ is one for you.
