Guardians of the Flame

Virgin Steele's second album and a much more improved effort over their humble debut. Guardians of the Flame is almost like Noble Savage part one. Its with this album where David and his crew begin to realize their potential and from here on out Virgin Steele is a leader in the metal genre. The first song and one of the best on this cd is Don't Say Goodbye (Tonight). Some of you might be familiar with this track from the Book of Burning cd but I prefer this version to the re-recorded one that appears on that disc. Despite the better production the 2002 version just doesn't sound as passionate as this one. It screams with power and a frantic desperate energy that is missing on the re-recorded version. Another highlight The Redeemer is a seven minute song that has a chugging rhythm to it and is very atmospheric with some nice guitar solos. Jack Starr has a different playing style than Ed Pursino, he plays with a more classic 80's feel with fast solos all over the place and almost has a "guitar hero" quality to them, whereas Ed plays with a more technical feel and doesnt tend to show off as much as Jack did. Metal City is a song that reminds me of Rock Me off of Noble Savage. It starts off with the same glorious high screaming from Mr. Defeis. I bet you can't figure out what the songs about from the title now can you? Hell or High Water sounds like it could have been an almost glam metal type song but with the Virgin Steele stamp firmly placed on it. A welcome surprise. My personal favorite off this album is another track that was re-recorded for the Book of Burning, I Am the One. Along with Dont Say Goodbye (Tonight), I prefer the original version. It also has a more desperate feel to it plus the addition of some excellent solos when the song kicks into high gear. David makes me cry when he sings in that impossibly high voice of his, it is one of the most unique voices in metal, no one can match it. He just makes it sound so easy, I wonder if in his live performances if he even tries to sing like that or he just does it with barely any effort at all. At the end of this cd is an old interview from when Guardians of the Flame was a new release. It covers some interesting topics like if you called the phone line on the back of the LP David or Jack would answer the phone and talk to you. Ha, I wish bands would do something like that today that's not something you see or hear about very often if at all. Out of the two re-releases I would say Guardians of the Flame is the better one. It is more focused than Virgin Steele and a casual fan is more likely to enjoy Guardians than the s/t. A truly inspired and commendable effort from David Defeis and his crew, Guardians of the Flame should belong in every metalheads collection.