| Track by Track Review
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CD1
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HELLFIRE
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Argus Eyes
This screams in fierce and driving. It's a screaming hot metal stomper. The instrumental section on this includes some amazing guitar soloing. This is a great way to start the set in style. |
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Money
There is a real Saxon meets Motörhead kind of vibe to this. It's energized, raw and so cool. As good as the opener was, this might actually raise the bar a little. There is definitely a NWOBHM feeling to this. I can make out hints of early Iron Maiden. |
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Cuts Me Like a Knife
This tune has some catchy hooks and tasty riffs. The guitar fills are absolutely on fire. This presents a different side of the band's sound, but also fits in with the rest. I'm reminded to some degree of a more metallic Montrose. |
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Rat Race
Raw, furious and driving, Motörhead is again a valid reference point here. This is one of my favorites on this first disc. |
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Different Worlds
This has some mellower, balladic like portions, but it also rocks out at other points. This is a cool tune, and another side of the sound. There is plenty of NWOBHM on this song. I really dig the melodic guitar soloing on the piece. |
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Hellfire
Raw hard rock merged with metal is the concept on this tune. It's a good tune, but doesn't really rise above the stuff that came before it. It's sort of an "also ran." |
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Nightmare
I really dig the driving metal and classy chorus on this. The tune is mean, but also catchy. The guitar soloing is surprisingly melodic and intricate. This is smoking hot riff-driven metal music. |
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From Bad to Worse
This is based more on straight-ahead raw rock. It's sort of a combo of that Montrose sound with Motörhead angles. This is very much a rock and roller turned almost punky. |
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Trouble
The riffing on this is particularly meaty. There is a raw angle to this, and some more raunch and roll elements. The guitar solo is so fierce and powerful. |
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War at Home
Fierce metal is on the menu here. This is a raw cut that has plenty of NWOBHM in the mix. |
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Medicine Man
No big change, this is another that has a lot of NWOBHM at its core. It is solid, but doesn't really manage to stand out. The formula is wearing a little thin by this point. |
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House of Glass
I really like the driving energy of this. It's another strong rocker with plenty of metal within. This manages to rise above the sameness of some of the music here. |
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In a Dream Within a Dream
This is very much a power ballad. It's also so powerful. It's packed full of style and emotion. It has some killer expressive guitar soloing, too. |
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BONUS TRACKS
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Tonight
More rock and roll meets NWOBHM is on the menu here. I think the intro on this is very effective. The rest of the song suffers a little from being too samey, though. |
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Same Old Story
While overall this song doesn't really stand out, the guitar soloing on the instrumental break is really transcendant and so powerful. |
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CD2
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THE BEST OF KILLER 1980–2023
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Ready for Hell
This is very much in line with the underground metal of the late 70s and early 80s. It's fierce and pretty raw. That said, it's better produced than a lot of the stuff that was coming out at the time. |
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Backshooter (2023 Version)
I love the riffing that gets this stomper underway. This has a lot of raunch and roll in the mix. It's another that definitely makes me think of Motörhead. |
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Laws Are Made To Break
Hard rocking, driving rock is on the menu here. There are metal angles, particularly on the instrumental breaks, but this is more straight-ahead hard rock to me. The bass break section is awesome. |
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Secret Love (2023 Version)
More metallic, this is a stomper and one of my favorites on this second disc. It has some great hooks. |
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Wall of Sound
Another that seems to have some links to Motörhead, this also includes plenty of that underground meets NWOBHM sound. It's fierce and furious and fairly raw. |
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Blinded (2023 Version)
This has more of that rock and roll feeling to it. The chorus hook has some great metallic power, though. I like this quite a bit. |
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Bodies and Bones
Not really a big change, this is more old-school metal. It's solid, but sort of "more of the same." |
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No Future
I love the almost punky vocal hooks on this thing. The tune has some great raw energy, too. There is a cool dropped back movement that's slow moving and reminds me of some of the Uli Jon Roth era of Scorpions. There is almost a psychedelic angle to it. That really elevates this piece. In fact, I'd consider this one of my favorites here. It comes back out of that into another driving section that really rocks. |
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Kleptomania
I dig the driving old-school metal sound on this tune. It has some great crunch and a lot of energy built into it. |
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Shock Waves
Drums start this and hold it for about 20 seconds or so. This drives out into a seriously frantic and furious screamer from there. This thing is positively on fire. It has a definite punky edge to it, but also plenty of real metal. It's very thrashy. It is also tastefully raw. This has a cool, echoey, effects laden ending. |
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Steel Meets Steel
There is a sense of impending power as this gets going. The cut drives out into some scorching hot old-school metal zones from there. I can hear hints of Thin Lizzy in some of the guitar work. There is a rawer metal edge once the vocals join. This is another powerhouse and highlight of the set. The instrumental section on this is packed full of screaming metal guitars and killer changes. In fact, that's one of the best parts of the entire double disc section. It's got a lot of magic built into it. |
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Broken Silence
A cinematic symphonic sort of movement brings this into being. That holds the cut for quite a while. When the more metal approach joins in, it still has bits of that symphonic keyboard presence. They work it out into a faster paced, furious movement from there, and the keys really soar over the top. When the vocals join the keys are gone. This is very much of the speed metal meets epic school. It's another highlight of the set. It features some very classically oriented stuff on some of the instrumental parts. |
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Immortal
Here we get another fierce metal screamer. While this is not quite at the level of the last two songs, it's no slouch. This is a smoking hot speedy metal tune. A more epic, symphonic movement later elevates this further. The guitar solo section is positively incendiary. |
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Touch of Evil
The vocal hooks on the chorus are particularly catchy. This is a meaty metal tune, but it's not as strong as the last few. It does have some solid guitar riffing, though. |
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Monsters of Rock
This comes in with some seriously mean metal sounds. The cut is a meaty stomper. It has some particularly catchy hooks. It reminds me quite a bit of vintage Scorpions, and I mean that in the best way. |
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Back to the Roots
If you like music that name checks other artists, this is for you. I love all the musicians getting mentioned on this. The cut has a straightforward metal grind at its heart. It's not all that exceptional beyond those reference points, but still it's no slouch, either. This is definitely metal that is aware of its predecessors. |
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