SAVAGE MASTER
“Dark & Dangerous”
Album Review by Iron Mathew

10/10

Savage Master are a female fronted heavy metal band from the USA formed in 2013 releasing five albums to date – ‘Mask Of The Devil’ (2014), ‘With Whips And Chains’ (2016), ‘Myth, Magic And Steel’ (2019), ‘Those Who Hunt At Night’ (2022) and ‘Dark & Dangerous’ (2025)…

…featuring the bands incredible NWOBHM sound – so incredible in fact, you’d think Savage Master are of British origin! But oh no they’re not – they’re from over four thousand miles away in Kentucky (USA), the band oozing an early eighties metal sound comparable to the likes of Angel Witch, Girlschool, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Raven and Rock Goddess. The bands new album is eleven songs and forty “foot on the monitor” minutes of highly head bang-able old school heavy metal, the one minute instrumental ‘Three Red Candles’ setting a tense yet highly anticipative atmosphere as ‘Dark & Dangerous’ explodes into life with the foot to the floor ‘Warriors Call’ – the iconic metal gallop in full flight as Savage Master pound the ground hard! So hard, nearby buildings are shaking under the bands immense force, the new album off to a barnstorming start!

And keeping the hammer well and truly down, ‘Black Rider’ is faster paced and a little more fiery too, Savage Master delivering unapologetic and unabashed traditional heavy metal of the very old school variety – something I am often described as! And not just “old” you cheeky lot, “old school metaller” is where I was going with this, the band hitting my sweet spot with devastating accuracy – you too I’ll wager, ‘Dark & Dangerous’ dropping a gear to march on with ‘The Edge Of Evil’, a resounding early eighties feel rising high in the air. And the chorus break is one hundred percent anthemic too, every listener everywhere acting as the band’s backing singers for this one! Glorious galloping metal returns in the mighty shape of ‘The Devil’s Child’, Savage Master pounding the ground harder than ever before, every mosh pit around the world turning into a sea of frenzied head banging maniacs here as the American metallers deliver the stuff of dreams – my dreams anyway, I don’t know about yours!

The album has been a non-stop rollercoaster of heavy metal since it began, the band shuddering the ground with the mid tempo foot stomping ‘Screams From The Cellar’, an eighties ‘Metal Queen’ era Lee Aaron pouring outta ‘Dark & Dangerous’ right now – the relentless, unadulterated heavy metal march burning brighter than ever as ‘Never Ending Fire’ roars into life, crackling and hissing with power and pace! The fastest song heard so far, ‘Never Ending Fire’ is classic heavy metal personified, Savage Master galloping hard with intense urgency and purpose, the level of head bang ability getting higher and higher as the Kentucky metal machine rolls on with the first single released off the album ‘Devil Rock’. And what a rock ‘Devil Rock’ is – the band dipping a toe over the border wall into hard rock territory to bring a spellbinding melodic metal and rock mix to the ears of all eight billion people on the planet! Incredibly infectious and sing a long-able, ‘Devil Rock’ is just one of many highlights ‘Dark & Dangerous’ has to offer.

And talking of highlights, ‘I Never Wanna Fall In Love’ is spectacular, ’cause if you were thinking a ballad was forthcoming due to the title – you couldn’t be more wrong! The guitar tone here is straight outta the eighties NWOBHM evolution, Savage Master remaining steadfast and very proud in the heavy metal come hard rock arena, perfectly blending the two styles together to produce one of the best songs I’ve heard all year! And from the best song on offer to the fastest – ‘When The Twilight Meets The Dawn’ a searing romp of fierce pace and power, the heads of every listener, fan and follower rocking back and forth faster than the speed of fucking light! Savage Master are superb here, even attracting a few thrashers with the ferocity of ‘When The Twilight Meets The Dawn’, ‘Dark & Dangerous’ coming to a close with the longest song at over six minutes in length ‘Cold Hearted Death’, the band dropping a couple of gears here to stride purposefully on with a hymn-like swagger – the mellower atmosphere in stark contrast to the rest of the album! There’s also a little balladry here too, so feel free to raise your lighters high and sway from side to side as the album’s finale meanders on and on.

Overall, an energetic and fast paced array of head bang-able heavy metal from a band on fucking fire, ‘Dark & Dangerous’ is a very good album.

TRACKLIST

Three Red Candles
Warriors Call
Black Rider
The Edge Of Evil
Devil’s Child
Screams From The Cellar
Never Ending Fire
Devil Rock
I Never Wanna Fall In Love
When The Twilight Meets The Dawn
Cold Hearted Death

https://savagemasterofficial.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/savagemaster666

This review is the property of Iron Mathew and Metal Gods TV. It is strictly prohibited to copy any part of this review, unless you have both of the parties’ permission, or are the band/record label/PR company in question. Failure to adhere to these instructions will be considered as Plagiarism and you will be reported to the appropriate authorities

---