WHITE WOLF — Standing Alone (review)

WHITE WOLF — Standing Alone album cover Album · 1984 · Heavy Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
voila_la_scorie
Traditional heavy metal. Yes, but 1984 and perhaps one of the first new bands to march onstage with a synthesizer and not play Bon Jovi-type pop metal. White Wolf had a hit and popular video with the song "Shadows in the Night". Aside from synthesizers, they also make good use of backing vocals.

White Wolf open their debut with the title track "Standing Alone", a serious-minded heavy rocker, on the slow side but not menacing, that place the keyboards between the ranks of metal guitars and bass. However, as the second track "Headlines" begins, a feeling of familiarity surfaces. This sounds quite similar to post Dio Rainbow, at least their more aggressive songs. Scottish born vocalist, Don "Wolf" Wilk could be a cross between Joe Lynn Turner and Graham Bonnet. The lead guitar break in the single "Shadows of the Night" actually seems to exhibit some Blackmore-inspired techniques.

"What the War Will Bring" is a slower, war protest type of song where the band make good use of their sound with two guitars and synthesizer and two backing vocalists. The music does sound very much of the day and the slow chugging riff is stereotypical of mid-eighties metal. The drum production also sounds very typical for the time. The guitar solo is melodic and suits the music well.

Side two offers four more songs in the same stylings as side one. Of these, "Metal Thunder" is a little disappointing when considering other much "truer" metal-themed songs by other Canadian bands such as Anvil's "Metal on Metal", Lee Aaron's "Metal Queen", Killer Dwarfs' "Heavy Metal Breakdown" or Kick Axe's "Heavy Metal Shuffle". But it features a very metal guitar solo that redeems the track somewhat. "Night Rider" is just WAY TOO 1984, even though it's an energetic rocker, but at least the keyboard player gets a solo, dated as it sounds. Much better is the track "Homeward Bound", which is the only track that really gets the fist pumping on the flip side. The guitar has more guts and so do the dual lead vocals. Still there are some Rainbow similarities but I don't know of a Turner era Rainbow song with this kind of aggression. The closing track "Trust Me" sounds very much like a rocker off "Bent Out of Shape" or "Straight Between the Eyes".

It's good enough for most of side one and one or two tracks on side two. The thing is that it's not easy to get a hold on this album now. I was fortunate to track it down for a reasonable price as a used but in excellent condition CD. The sophomore release "Endangered Species" is still out there from what I've seen. Perhaps "Standing Alone" is not worth grabbing now unless you really love this kind of eighties trad metal but still a decent enough album. Very good but not great, which is mostly due to the mid-eighties sound, in my opinion.
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