STEELWINGS
“Still Rising”
Album Review by Iron Mathew

9/10

Steelwings are a heavy metal/hard rock band from Sweden forming in the early eighties, releasing three albums to date – ‘Steelwings’ (1989), ‘Back’ (2019), and ‘Still Rising’, released in 2022.

Hailing from Sweden – one of the worlds hottest exporters of metal and rock bands – Steelwings are just one of the many great things to have emerged from the country famous for ABBA, IKEA and Volvo. The band have been around for over forty years – with a thirty year gap between their debut and sophomore albums! Thankfully, we’ve only had to wait three years for the bands third album ‘Still Rising’ – a ten song, forty five minute avalanche of the bands power driven metal come rock style. Album opener ‘Hell Or High Water’ leans heavily towards the style of British metal legends Judas Priest, careering forth with pace and power – and a sing a long-able chorus that is simply gorgeous! In fact, the uninitiated may even mistake ‘Hell Or High Water’ for ‘Priest! But we “long in the toothers” know much better – there’s no British metal grit, or any ear piercing high pitched screams. This is European metal come rock…

…which marches on at pace with a little of the famous AC/DC boogie – but only a little! For ‘Stand Up And Fight’ is heavy metal rock ‘n’ roll to get excited about: the tempo, the bounciness, the sheer party anthem feel – let’s all dance. Or head bang if you’d prefer! Slowing everything down, the band adopt a heavy menacing stance, as ‘Break Of Day’ builds a crescendo of doom before NWOBHM sounding guitars crash in. And then we’re majestically marching forth, calling to arms all the bands fans and followers, raising fists and punching the air in salute to a sparkling anthemic stomp – with a cracking chant style sing a long chorus to boot! And just like pouring fuel on a fire, Steelwings up the ante and party harder than ever with ‘Hey Hey’, and a subtle Alice Cooper come Kiss feel that many younger listeners will not hear. But I can assure you it’s there.

‘Still Rising’ has many influences and inspiration, the band rocking a metal sound from yesteryear that’ll please so many, err, ahem, older listeners! And I include me in that sentiment! And I’m only in my early fifties! Doesn’t time fly? ‘Like A Shadow In The Night’ moves the album stealthily forward, the bold and towering nature all consuming and guaranteed to get heads moving back and forth at a rhythmically synchronised pace. Since the album began, its like-ability has been top drawer, with every song digging deep into the hearts and minds of every listener, leaving a long lasting and very memorable imprint. So tell me – what do you expect of a song with a title of ‘Rocket’…? Yep, that’s right – fast paced, up tempo, and featuring the iconic “foot on the monitor” gallop of traditional heavy metal. The infectious level is incredible as the band motor on with a purpose and intent not heard previously. Returning the anthemic feel of earlier, ‘My Rock ‘N Roll’ is a solid as a rock thunderstorm of mid tempo heaviness – think British metallers Saxon and you’ll have some idea of the songs bombastic sound.

Steelwings are described as a heavy metal/hard rock band – yet I would place them much more in the metal zone than the rock one. Even though the previous song, and this next one, have “rock” in their titles! ‘Rock On’ maintaining the heavy anthemic style that pulsates feverishly throughout the album. And with its booming intensity, ‘Still Rising’ hasn’t lifted its foot off the monitor since it began – ‘Easy To Go’ featuring the iconic guitar sound of the revolutionary NWOBHM evolution. The thunderous mid tempo march of ‘Easy To Go’ also has just a little touch of blues swagger, bordering on an era over forty years ago when legendary British rockers Whitesnake introduced heavy blues rock to the world – and at a time when their music was considered heavy metal. How times change eh! Steelwings close the album with the longest song on offer, ‘Heat Of The Night’ clocking in at over five and a half minutes in length – and a mellowness not heard anywhere on the album. Sounds like an impending ballad to me! Well it did until the fifty second mark, when a red hot AOR come melodic rock come heavy metal sound rises high and takes over the airways – ‘In The Heat Of The Night’ the most melodic and infectious of all the songs on offer.

Overall, a non stop romp of anthemic hard rock edged heavy metal, fully head bang-able with a glorious old school feel.

TRACKLIST

Hell Or High Water
Stand Up And Fight
Break Of Day
Hey Hey
Like A Shadow In The Night
Rocket
My Rock ‘N Roll
Rock On
Easy To Go
Heat Of The Night

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