Time Signature The storm...

Genre: traditional heavy metal / hard rock

Released in August last year, Black Trip's "Shadowline" is the follow-up album to 2014's brilliant "Goin' Under".

Like on the previous album, the Black Trip look to the late 70s and early 80s for inspiration. Thus, the listener is treated to a solid rock album with plenty of hard rocking riffage and Thin Lizzy and Iron Maiden style twin lead guitar melodies. While NWoBHM is indeed still a major aspect of Black Trip's music, it seems that Thin Lizzy in particular has had a major impact on the band members when they engaged in the songwriting on this album. Just check out the vocals, lead guitars, and riffs in the song 'Danger'.

Like the predecessor, this is a brilliant album, and fans of 70s hard rock and metal should definitely check it out.

Time Signature Definitely not putting out the fire...

Genre: traditional heavy metal

The retro-metal wave lives on in Sweden, and several bands emerge from the scene who embrace and celebrate the aesthetics of late 70s and early 80s metal. One such band is Black Trip, whose line-up features members with backgrounds in bands such as Entombed, Enforcer, Nifelheim, Morpheus, and Dismember. Thus, while Goin' Under is the band's debut album, we are hardly dealing with amateurs here.

While many of its members have operated within various spheres of the extreme metal universe, Black Trip is a straight up old school heavy metal and hard rock act, exploring the aesthetics of NWoBHM. Thus, the listener is treated to twin guitar leads and hard rocking riffs as well as a retro production which captures the essence of what a typical authentic NWoBHM release might sound like, but without being lo-fi. Virtually every tune on the album rocks hard and is at the same time melodic as hell. It would not be incorrect to compare the fine rock tracks on this album to a blend of Thin Lizzy, early Iron Maiden and Satan, sprinkled with a bit of Mercyful Fate.

In other words, Goin' Under is an album which kicks butt the old school way, and should appeal to any fan of good old fashioned heavy metal.

(review originally posted at seaoftranquility.org)