This recent vinyl album from German doom metallers Wheel would have probably made my "best of 2021" list had I heard it last year when it was first released. I'm reminded at different points of bands ranging from Scorpions to Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and even Greta Van Fleet. There isn't a weak song here. I'd go so far as to say that there isn't even part of a song that doesn't seem just about perfect. This album is just so strong.

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2022  Volume 6. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2022.

This launches in with a riff driven movement that makes me think of Uli Jon Roth era Scorpions. It turns toward something more in line with what you might get if you merged Black Sabbath with Led Zeppelin and Scorpions. This is a powerhouse number that really has a classic metal sound to it. There is  a dropped back section later that almost brings some psychedelia to the table. It fires back up from there to a more powered up version of the doomy metal we've gotten used to by this point. A marching, driving movement emerges further down the road bringing new power and peaks as it does.

Here we get another screaming hot doomy jam. It calls to mind early Sabbath for certain. This get very doomy, heavy and intense as it marches forward. This is another that changes mostly be intensification.

This is a metal powerhouse that is well situated in old-school doomy zones. It has some shifts and turns and is another that at times makes me think of early Scorpions. The more dropped back closing movement calls to mind early Judas Priest a little.