Artist: Armour
Country: Finland
Label: Anger Of Metal / Iron Bonehead Productions
Formats: 7″ EP
Year: 2008
Together with Anger Of Metal the German advocate for real metal Iron Bonehead Productions comes with a very noble looking gatefold 7” EP of the Finnish band Armour. Most of you will most likely have heard from them the first time on the Nocturnal split 7” released on Thrashing Rage Records in 2007. Since then three other releases saw the light of day, amongst them is this “Blitzkrieg Warrior” 7” EP. Interesting stuff…
Armour might be seen as ‘the other’ or even ‘the odd other’ band by Werewolf, an individual that changes his name from release to release and from band to band. But, for underground metal followers his presence didn’t go unnoticed, he is/was in bands such as Satanic Warmaster (mainman), Horna and Gestapo 666. For die-hard fans of Satanic Warmaster this might come as a shock, if they don’t already know, but Armour is definitely different – to say the least. Armour stands rather near a band like W.A.S.P., with Werewolf (here ‘Vince Venom’) sounding really close to Blackie Lawless. Basically this is just heavy metal stripped down to the pure essence of the genre, with W.A.S.P. as the obvious point of departure. Add a bit of the catchy NWOBHM, a bit of sleaze and that funny Japanese thing that made Loudness one of the most interesting bands of the 80’s. On this 7” vinyl the whole thing (the two songs) sounds a bit harsher and therefore gives an extra heavy kick in the teeth. And, be real, what can be wrong with lyrics that go like this “Shining leather, armour of the Gods of Hell / Wall of guitar thunder, the sound of the bell”… Well?
