For a few heady months during 1981 Leicester’s Blitzkrieg were considered one of the most exciting bands of the burgeoning NWOBHM. Their reputation built on demo tracks and the Buried Alive single on Neat Records, the original line-up of the time, featuring main writers Jim Sieroto (lead guitar), Ian Jones (rhythm guitar) and Brian Ross (vocals), unfortunately split later that year.
But Blitzkrieg, the B-side to Buried Alive, gave the nascent Metallica – and early US thrash scene – some very useful pointers indeed. Blitzkrieg, of course, popped up alongside Diamond Head’s Am I Evil? on the flipside to Creeping Death. As a signature tune, it takes some beating, and features twice on this trawl through the archives, which pulls together three demo sessions, from November 1980, and February and May 1981.
Sadly, and somewhat inevitably, the sound quality is pretty poor. The first three tracks from 1980 are the worst: the drums sound like a hail of bullets hitting biscuit tins and riffs buzz like a swarm of wasps armed with chainsaws trying to escape your speakers. The remaining 13 tracks are better, but still not great.
However, if you can forgive the sonic inadequacies and repeated songs (Armageddon appears three times), the magic lies in the sheer energy of the recordings. The band’s ferocious attack is something to behold, with memorable riffs and Sieroto’s lightning solos firing off in all directions. Good stuff, but ultimately one for the NWOBHM trainspotters only./o:p
