Grave Digger
Ballads of a Hangman
(Napalm)

Of course it got ridiculous, with both Motley Crue and Slayer populating the "heavy metal" sections of record stores, but it wasn't so damn restricting. It allowed "power" metal bands to become more "progressive" over time, and it allowed a few zit-faced kids in San Francisco to take the NWOBHM bands they were listening to and mutate that plethora of sounds into Metallica (and I'm talking "Ride The Lightening" era Metallica). And it also allowed for bands that defied labels to fly the banner of heavy metal and be done with it! I remember some bands that, while they stayed underground, were metal, pure metal, with no pretense and no bullshit. Omen was one, as was Virgin Steele. Savatage, before they became Trans Siberian Orchestra and mad millions of holiday dollars, was one of these undescribe-able bands. White Wolf, from Canada, was a favourite of mine. The ultimate in this genere-without-a-name was Accept, though Metal Church was a close contender (especially with their first singer). They were heavy metal, but they wern't black-metal (no mentions of Satan...of course, this was when black metal was Venom and Mercyful fate), nor were they thrash (an unfortunate label stuck on bands like Anthrax, Nuclear Assault, and even Metallica for a time). They tended to have a gruff (but not growling), brute lead singer, which distanced themselves from the operatic-metal bands like Iron Maiden and Queensryche (pre-Empire, when they really were metal). They wern't pretty, which meant you rarely (if ever) saw them on MTV, and if you did it was during the last hour of Headbanger's Ball (the 2-3am slot).

Grave Digger reminds me a lot of these bands (especially Omen), but maybe that's because they formed back in 1983! Their music is fast, but not ridiculously so. Their vocals are melodic, but vocalist Chris Boltendahl has enough balls and testosterone to make sure it's never sloppy or sentimental. Guitar duo Manni Schmidt and Thilo Herrmann hearken back to the great twin-guitar attatcks of yesterday, especially the KK Downing/Glenn Tipton pairing in Judas Priest. The fact that this band isn't resting back on their millions earned from arena tours like their cohorts in Priest or Maiden is fucking criminal, because Grave Digger always was and continues to be one of the greatest metal bands of all-time. Their latest, Ballads of a Hangman, shows just how great they are, because while bands like Judas Priest, Saxon, and Scorpions are coasting on their past greatness, Grave Digger is turning out metal music that's great in it's own right. Hell, you could play this CD for someone who knows nothing of their past, and they'd proclaim it to kick more ass than the Undertaker on PCP in a biker bar.

You'd figure that, after 25 years in music, a band would just run out of great riffs, killer solos, and unbelievable songs, but Grave Digger just goes to show you that true greatness never runs out, it just matures and evolves. I can't even pick favourite songs off of this album, because every track leaves me shaking my head in disbelief. Every track, and I mean EVERY FUCKING ONE, is a killer! Do yourself a favour...on Friday, February 9, 2009, treat yourself to one of the best metal albums of next year, and pick this one up. Better yet, pre-order it...if there's a shread of justice in this God-forsaken society we live in, this album will sell out faster than tickets to see Cliff Burton ressurected from the dead to kick James Hetfield's ass for St. Anger. The Heathen Hippy gives this five fists in the air!