Hard charging NWOBHM
Justin Gaines | Northern Virginia | 11/18/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I found out about Chariot in something of a backwards way. A couple of years ago I stumbled across both albums by Dirty Deeds, a UK-based hard rock band fronted by one Pete Franklin, who was originally a member of New Wave of British Heavy Metal act Chariot. I was impressed enough by the Dirty Deeds albums to check out their debut album The Warrior. Besides that, I'm a sucker for just about anything connected to the NWOBHM scene.
Chariot came a bit late to the NWOBHM party, releasing their debut in 1984. Still, the band definitely had the spirit and energy of that scene, sounding like a happy medium between Diamond Head and Motorhead. Chariot has the polished speed of the former and the aggression and slightly gruff vocals of the latter. It's pretty far removed from the power metal style of NWOBHM icons Iron Maiden and Saxon, and seems almost like straightforward hard rock in comparison. There's definitely a strong UFO influence here. Whether or not this is a "metal" album may be a matter for debate, but the quality of the album is never in question. The Warrior is a solid hard rock album from start to finish, and is the kind of music that will have you reaching to increase the volume more than once!
The Warrior spent the better part of two decades without an official CD release, until Majestic Rock's 2004 reissue. The album has been digitally remastered and sounds terrific. NWOBHM fans will want to check this one out, as will fans of Franklin's later work with Dirty Deeds."
Track Listings (10) - Disc #1