RUNNING WILD – Blood On Blood

With Rolf “Rock’n’Rolf” Kasparek being their Lemmy or Chuck Schuldiner, Running Wild are one of the most legendary German Metal bands. One funny thing about them is that they have plenty of fans in such places as Poland or England, yet they seem to be rather overlooked as far as their homeland goes. The Hamburg pirates of German Heavy Metal had their ups and downs in the past, but now, in the presence, they are about to have yet another – their seventeenth – album released. Here it is – Blood on Blood.

Let the first song kick in… although one might think it’s actually walking in cautiously, as if it didn’t want to get seen by anyone… kind of In Through the Out Door, to express it more musically. There is everything there that the global Metal audience loves Running Wild for: decent dynamics and tempos, that feel of solidness… and yet it really sounds as if the band had decided to tone it down a bit. It might seem as if Rock’n’Rolf’s voice has faded away, although it looks like a proper warm-up was all he needed – the vocals sound stronger and stronger as the song slowly comes to an end. The next track titled “Wings of Fire” kicks in properly and that one sounds much more like what Running Wild fans might want to hear. Beautiful solos and the Heavy Metal sound that is typical for German bands and is not to be mixed-up with bands from any other country. The album goes on, and as much as the songs are not bad, they’re still missing that element of Metal awesomeness. Even the 5th track “Wild and Free” with a very slight hint of British Punk sound to it – listen closely! – is not what the fans might want, but again, it is getting slightly better with every song.

Some impatient fans – in other words: not the most loyal ones – might stop listening to Blood on Blood like half-way through. And here comes the moment of truth – because those who decided to give the whole thing a listen should not be disappointed with the 6th track titled “Crossing the Blades”. Nothing like Heavy Metal that sounds like sea shanties at the same time. Even though it still doesn’t compare to the songs from decades ago, it still is the best track on this album so far. Then come another two songs that might as well be classified as fillers, things however get really wild when the 9th track “Wild Wild Night” kicks in. This is the Running Wild the world of Metal wanted to hear! And these “Detroit Rock City” like harmonies certainly do add a bit of a nostalgic feel to this song. Perhaps the band decided to leave the best – so far – track for the end of the album on purpose? Especially as the following (and closing) track number 10 titled “The Iron Times 1618-1648” is another one being absolutely splendid. Whole 10 minutes of the kind of Metal Running Wild took on the global scene with. Whether it sounds like a Metal version of Bon Jovi or not, it is another great track off this album. Those who decided to judge Blood on Blood before listening to it fully miss out on some great songs.

To sum things up, despite having some really good compositions on it, Blood on Blood is certainly not the best record Running Wild have ever delivered. Yes, there are songs on here that are the proof that Rolf Kasparek and friends still can come up with decent music. Perhaps it would have made more sense to include a bit fewer tracks. Some of the aforementioned songs will definitely be a proper killer live, but it still sounds like it’s such gems as “Under Jolly Roger” or “Raging Fire” that will have the audience go fully wild.