Striker – Striker

Canadian heavy/speed metal giants Striker are picking up momentum faster than ever. While we typically had to wait 2 years for a new record, the band’s self-titled album comes just one year after their last release, and the band shows no signs of slowing down either as they’re constantly touring. The most immediate concern when a band releases multiple albums in a short period is that it comes at the expense of quality, but that isn’t quite the case on this release. Though “Striker” doesn’t immediately rank amongst my favourites of the band’s work, nearly all of their albums have been growers, and this album’s general sound is consistent with everything else the band has done. It helps that this album is a bit shorter than their other records, meaning that the band didn’t feel compelled to write any filler in order to justify another record.

“Striker” is an album predicated on upbeat songs that are overflowing with hooks, good riffs, and plenty of leads and solos. There are efforts like “Pass Me By” where the band experiments with some heavier moments by utilizing both crushing riffs and plenty of gang vocals (though nothing quite like the thrashing “Underground” from “City of Gold”), but this album remains quite accessible most of the time. The band’s previous flirtations with AOR-esque songs (“Too Late”, “One Life”, and “Bad Decisions”) are much less frequent on this album, as there aren’t any ballads or feelgood songs. Everything on “Striker” is pure heavy metal, with only the occasional slower section, such as the intro to “Freedom’s Call”. However, the band does have an uncanny ability for moving from more serious riffing in the verses to giant, bombastic choruses that are easy to sing along with.  

This record doesn’t have any weak songs, but there are definitely a few standout cuts. The pre-release single “Born To Lose” was chosen appropriately, as it manages to be one of the catchiest songs on the album. It is matched by the opener, “Former Glory”, and the aforementioned “Freedom’s Call”, as one of the songs that should be in heavy rotation in the band’s live sets. The remaining songs rock as hard as they need to, but don’t necessarily compete with some of the band’s strongest work. Nevertheless, they’re enjoyable tracks because the band makes no compromises on their sound. One could argue that waiting a bit longer to put out another record may have benefitted Striker, but their self-titled remains a very worthy release that will likely be a grower (as all of their albums other than “Armed To The Teeth” have been for me).  

Be sure to check out and like Striker on Facebook!

Highlights

"Former Glory"

"Born To Lose"

"Freedom's Call"

Final Rating

4.5/5 or 90%. 

Written by Scott

Striker – Stand In The Fire

After a couple of releases with Napalm Records, Striker, Western Canada’s best speed metal band, has decided to go the independent route for their fourth full-length album, “Stand In The Fire”. Their previous record was another strong showing of the band’s identity, but ultimately didn’t feel quite as satisfying as “Armed To The Teeth”. The good news is that “Stand In The Fire” brings that magic back, and shows lots of emphasis on writing memorable hooks, alongside killer riffage and soloing. This is no more prominent than on the opener, “Phoenix Lights”, where the shredding will make your mind bend backwards simply due to how impressive it is. Considering the loss of longtime axeman Chris Segger, this is an important showing. The appropriately titled “Escape From Shred City” is another example of how good the band’s current guitarists are; this instrumental holds nothing back, and is likely to make your jaw drop.

The band’s last album showed them experimenting with some more melodic, almost AOR-like tendencies. These sounds again creep into their music on “Stand In The Fire”. A song like “Out For Blood” does it more subtly, as they alter the mood of the song with one line (“you know this time that it’s personal”), and instantly flip back to the speed metal ways of old. Of course, there are a couple of tracks that fully embrace this sound from start to finish: “Too Late” and “One Life”. The latter is a bit tamer, but is a perfect closer to the record, while the former is a song carefully constructed to become a classic for Striker. It has those classic feelgood harmonies that never fail to put a smile on one’s face. While this might be a marked change from the band’s more aggressive sound, it’s hard to imagine any fan of old-school metal being disappointed with these songs simply because they’re so good.   

It cannot be emphasized enough how solid this record is. The band has slightly foregone speed (and there is still plenty of that) in favour of sheer catchiness, and with tracks like “The Iron Never Lies”, “Outlaw”, and “Locked In”, as well as all of the aforementioned ones, you can’t go wrong with this record. For the time being, I’m still partial to “Armed To The Teeth”, but it would not be surprising if this record overtook it in time.

Be sure to check out and like Striker on Facebook!

Highlights

"Phoenix Lights"

"Too Late"

"Escape From Shred City"

"One Life"

Final Rating

4.6/5 or 92%. 

Written by Scott

Striker – City of Gold

“City of Gold” marks the third full-length album for Canadian speed metal juggernauts Striker. While their first album was pretty great in its own right, the band took a huge leap forward with their sophomore release. Despite taking a slightly different direction, “City of Gold” continues the band’s streak of great albums. In general, the sound of this album is similar to the prior records, but the main reason it feels different is because “City of Gold” appears to be more serious than the last album. “Armed To The Teeth” was the sort of record that you could throw on at a party and sing along to easily. While “City of Gold” still has plenty of catchy choruses, they are presented in a different way.

One reason why the album sounds a bit different is because it can get incredibly thrashy at times. Opening track “Underground” is an absolute speed monster, delivering some riffs that would not be out of place on an album adorning Ed Repka’s artwork. Even the next song, the title track, takes a thrashier approach with its verse riff. Both of these songs, along with nearly every other track are driven by melodic, awesome choruses. Vocalist Dan Cleary sounds as good as ever; he manages to unleash some banshee-like screams, alongside his normal singing voice. The vocal lines are all incredibly memorable. Even just looking at the track listing now, many of the choruses immediately come to my head. Other unforgettable tracks include "Crossroads", "All For One", and "All I Want". It's absurd how this band will manage to keep songs stuck in your head for hours.

One song that deserves special mention is “Bad Decisions”. This song shows Striker abandoning speed metal and going full-on AOR. It’s pretty tame, and even a bit out of place, yet completely amazing. As a sucker for glam metal, arena rock, or whatever you want to call it, this song is pure magic. Cleary puts forth his best performance, as the song is more dynamic, giving him more space to work with.  The main riff strings together a few power chords quite effectively, not unlike “Rock You Like A Hurricane”, while the verse shows the band channeling their inner Def Leppard.

As a whole, “City of Gold” is an impressive offering. I would be surprised if any Striker fan dislikes this. The band has had a bit of turnover since their last full-length, but it doesn’t appear to be affecting them at all. This album has all of the Striker essentials: high-speed riffs, energetic and enthusiastic vocals, shredding guitar solos, and just killer songs. While I still think I prefer “Armed To The Teeth”, there is no doubt that this album is incredibly strong.

Be sure to check out and like Striker on Facebook!

Highlights

"Underground"

"Bad Decisions"

"Cross Roads"

"All I Want"

Final Rating

4.4/5 or 88%. 

Written by Scott