Anthem - Gypsy Ways (1988) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91175] (B000088E4T)

More

Scans -> 60 Mb | King Records | KICS-91175 | ~356 + 110 Mb | FileServe, FileSonic

& 8220;

This album, released in 1988, was the first album for the new lineup of the band. After the shock departure of (due to stress and pressure to perform mounting on) vocalist Eizo Sakamoto, the band looked set to either disband or take a nosedive in terms of popularity. They did neither. Vocalist Yukio Morikawa, who had previously auditioned when previous vocalist Sakamoto Eizo got the job after the band narrowing it down to these two, was called back to see what would have happened had he joined.

At the time, Yukio Morikawa was known as ‘the local Graham Bonnet’, who, as we all know, has contributed vocals to some of the best Heavy Metal bands in history. Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group (MSG), his own band Alcatrazz, Impelliteri, and also, as it turns out, in 2000, Anthem (on their self-cover comeback collection, also highly recommended, ‘Heavy Metal Anthem’)! Anyway, back to the point. Yukio Morikawa, working at a Sushi restaurant at the time, had been compared to Bonnet. And rightly so. But we’ll get back to that.

This album would have shut up any critics who wanted Eizo back. Although as the first generation of Anthem (with Eizo) went on, the music style hardly changed, the quality of the songs had undoubtedly improved, from the self-titled album of ’85, through ‘Tightrope’ (’86) and finally ‘Bound to Break’ (’87). They even made a break in America, playing a tour with Racer X (!) in support. Eizo’s singing had also matured to a very impressive level, from an amateuristic attempt on the debut. He would be sorely missed.

The songs on this album are melodic but heavy, dramatic but catchy, and very atmospheric, a clear turn away from the out-and-out aggression of the first 3 albums. You could even say that the band came closer to achieving the sound of Bonnet-era Rainbow. From the first song to the last, however, the songs are heavy and with good riffs. Song by song:

1. Gypsy Ways (win, lose or draw) – a great opener, heavy, cool riff, with mournful, emotional singing from Morikawa. Nope, Eizo could not have pulled this off. A

2. Love in Vain – This song is even more melodic than the first, and what a melody! It’s a minor key song, heart-wrenchingly sad, and Morikawa makes you wonder why they ever chose Eizo over him (although Eizo’s aggressive singing does have it’s place on the aggressive previous albums) A+

3. Bad Habits Die Hard – This song is HEAVY! Although not as strong as the first two songs (lamentably, it’s a little repetitive and the melody is not that great), still a good song. B

4. Legal Killing – This song is heavy but aggressive too, with pretty heavy lyrics. B+

5. Cryin’ Heart – This is amazing stuff. Cool Japanese lyrics, great backing guitar and solo! Melody is good, really catchy. A great song, one of the best on the album. A+

6. Silent Child – Second great track in a row, intro sounds a little like ‘Will you be home tonight’ by Alcatrazz, although that wouldn’t be released for another 3 years. The melody on the bridge is so good, as well as the harmonized chorus. A

7. Midnight Sun – This is a good mid-tempo song, a new kind of song for Anthem, since Eizo was not suitable for ballads. Good song. A

8. Shout It Out! – Catchy, fun song. Good. B+

9. Final Risk – A speedy number, the obligatory ‘car song’, but with a twist. The chorus is really sorrowful, not the usual happy 'Highway Star' stuff, and Morikawa is really emotional. A

10. Night Stalker – Heavy, plodding rhythm on top of which Morikawa lays down a most impressive vocal track, powerful like Dio or Graham Bonnet. A

All in all, a great album, so left for the time too, as had Eizo not left at the time, he may not have performed as well as he could have, and the lineup of albums have produced not a single dud between ‘Tightrope’ and the last album of Morikawa-era, ‘Domestic Booty’ (what the hell were they thinking when they named that album?)

If you understand Japanese (or even if you don’t you can enjoy the impressive singing and brilliant songwriting) and like Metal in the vein of Accept or Bonnet-era Rainbow (bar ‘All Night Long’ and ‘Since You Been Gone’, ‘Down to Earth’ is so much more than those two tracks), you will really like this. Expertly executed Heavy Metal with a really great singer.

Special mention must be made of guitarist Hiroya Fukuda, whose guitar solos on this are special, irresistibly melodic and a real improvement over his previous efforts. And he doesn’t resort to neoclassical shred for impact, it’s just classic metal-style shredding all the way through from him, often with palm-muted riff sections in the solos, to add emphasis. Some of the soaring melodies remind you of Wolf Hoffman (Accept) or Michael Schenker (UFO, MSG).

~ maidenpriest, Metal-Archives

& 8221;

Buy It at Lowest Price on Amazon

Download Anthem - Gypsy Ways (1988):

FileSonic - lossless:

FileSonic - MP3 CBR320:

FileSonic - Scans:

FileServe - lossless:

FileServe - MP3 CBR320:

Anthem - Gypsy Ways - One file

FileServe - Scans:

Anthem - Gypsy Ways - One file

--------------

In case you encounter dead links, please send me a private message.

All thanks go to VanGaal and shi

Server	Status
Download Links
Direct Download Link 1	Alive
Direct Download Link 2	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part1	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part2	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part3	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part4	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - One file	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - One file	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part1	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part2	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part3	Alive
Anthem - Gypsy Ways - part4	Alive
Buy This Book at Best Price >>

	Lyrics & Music Anthem - Anthem (1985) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS 9172] Anthem - Anthem [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS 9172]Heavy Metal \| EAC Rip \| WAVPack + Cue + Log \| MP3 CBR 320Kbps \| 10 TracksCovers -> 50 Mb \| King Records \| KICS 9172 \| ~296 + 100 Mb \| HF, FileSonicFirst studio album from japanese heavy metal b ...
	Lyrics & Music Anthem - Tightrope (1986) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS 9173] Anthem - Tightrope (1986) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS 9173]Heavy Metal \| EAC Rip \| WAVPack + Cue + Log \| MP3 CBR 320Kbps \| 8 TracksCovers -> 101 Mb \| King Records \| KICS 9173 \| ~271 + 87 Mb \| HF, FileSonicNext studio album from japanese heavy ...
	Anthem - Bound To Break (1987) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91174] Anthem - Bound To Break (1987) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91174]Heavy Metal \| EAC Rip \| WAVPack + Cue + Log \| MP3 CBR 320Kbps \| 10 TracksScans -> 102 Mb \| King Records \| KICS-91174 \| ~312 + 105 Mb \| FileServe, FileSonic“Long running Ja ...
	Anthem - No Smoke Without Fire (1990) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91177] Anthem - No Smoke Without Fire (1990) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91177]Heavy Metal \| EAC Rip \| WAVPack + Cue + Log \| MP3 CBR 320Kbps \| 9 TracksScans(png) -> 88 Mb \| King Records \| KICS-91177 \| ~336 + 105 Mb \| FileServe, FileSonic“Of al ...
	Anthem - Hunting Time (1989) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91176] Anthem - Hunting Time (1989) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91176]Heavy Metal \| EAC Rip \| WAVPack + Cue + Log \| MP3 CBR 320Kbps \| 8 TracksScans(png) Included \| King Records \| KICS-91176 \| ~323 + 122 Mb \| FileServe, FileSonic“This is the se ...
	Anthem - Domestic Booty (1992) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91178] Anthem - Domestic Booty (1992) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91178]Heavy Metal \| EAC Rip \| WAVPack + Cue + Log \| MP3 CBR 320Kbps \| 11 TracksScans(png) -> 101 Mb \| King Records \| KICS-91178 \| ~391 + 117 Mb \| FileServe, FileSonic“Anthem's J ...

Share this page with your friends now!
Text link
Forum (BBCode)
Website (HTML)

Book123

Categories

Share With Friends

Archive by Date

Search Tag

Newest

Useful Links

Anthem - Gypsy Ways (1988) [2010, Japan SHM-CD, KICS-91175]

Related Articles

DISCLAIMER:

Comments (0) All