Michigan’s Steel Vengeance are just one of hundreds of American metal bands of the 1980s who made little impact in their day (it didn’t help being signed to obscure French label Black Dragon), but who now find themselves the subject of intense interest from an obsessive new breed of fans dedicated to digging up and dusting off decaying relics from metal’s golden years.
Remastered, re-packaged and complete with rare bonus material (including some mega-rare, super-cheesy videos), these reissues round up the band’s first three albums; 1985’s CALL OFF THE DOGS [7], 1986’s SECOND OFFENSE [7] and 1988’s PRISONERS [7], each as solid as they are interchangeable.
Wearing denim and leather with raised fists, straight faces and songtitles like Devil’s Lair, Beware The Wizard and Vengeance Is Mine, it’s real man’s metal for fans of Riot, Warlord, Omen, Jag Panzer, Virgin Steele, etc. They can’t compete with Priest, Maiden or Saxon, but there’s plenty of top-drawer riffage to be had and a few quality tunes, too.
