TYRANT
“HEREAFTER”
Album Review by British Steel Sam

7/10

Across the Atlantic, in the land of the brave and the home of the free, a mighty tyrant bestirs itself once again…

Back in the mists of time, 1978 to be exact, a couple of guys in California claimed the name TYRANT and set out with a dream of metal domination. After their 1982 demo they knew they were onto something good and, though they were not the first TYRANT onto the scene in the early 80s, they certainly made their mark with the mighty ‘LEGIONS OF THE DEAD’ and ‘TOO LATE TO PRAY’ quickly becoming well known for Rocky Rockwell’s crushing black Sabbath-esque riffs and Glen Mays manic vocals, with Greg May holding down the thundering low end. Fast forward to the 90s and after a 10 year hiatus the boys were back in ‘96 with the mighty album ‘KING OF KINGS’ where-in as Tyrants revelation III revealed, they resurrected Tyrants power and glory to slide back into their dance with the devil… 24 years later and it seems the devil is ready to dance again!

The first thing that becomes apparent when listening to the album ‘HEREAFTER’ is the sheer quality of the recording, gone are those gravelly garage tapes of the early 80s and in its place crisp riffs and clear vocals. Have no fear though, the riffs themselves are gigantic! Massive crushing waves of sound powered along by Ronnie Wallance’s pounding drums and supported by Greg May’s furious thundering bass.

The album begins with the epic ‘TYRANTS REVELATION IV’ setting the mood, heavy, slow, building and building in power telling the listener to take heed, the warning of… The Tyrant! Before launching headlong into the mighty lead track ‘DANCING ON GRAVES’. ‘DANCING…’ hits the listener full bore, the galloping rhythm straight out of the 80s with plenty of ‘priest and ‘maiden inspired flare but with a good dose Tyrant’s own signature madness all over it. The first full length track pulls the listener in, irresistible as a manic Ceasers will and unstoppable as a legion of war elephants lumbering into the fray.

But wait! What is this I hear you cry! Gone is the howling lunacy of Glen Mays manic pipes, in their place the deeper, sinister, operatic vocals of ex-Candlemass frontman Robert Lowe. This will surely come as a massive shock to those who were big fans of the bands earlier albums, and though many will miss the sheer unhinged edge of Glens voice, I can promise you that Rob Lowe has not lost a bit of what made him great in Candlemass. In fact I think Lowe’s voice suits Tyrant’s style perfectly and with such a great quality recording the power and majesty of his voice come across amazingly, transporting the listener into the song and dragging them on a vocal journey to the very depths of hell…

As ‘DANCING..’ rumbles to a close, Rocky is straight back into another epic riff, this time breathing power into ‘THE DARKNESS COMES’ and any metalhead who doesn’t feel their head banging along to this mesmerising heavy metal tune must be considered clinically dead. The arrangement, the lyrics, the retro 80’s metal goodness that this song oozes makes it one of my personal favourite songs of the album. Every member of the band gets their moment to shine in this frankly epic track. It has everything a proper old school metalhead could want, dark enticing operatic lyrics? Yep. Great drum work and complementary riffage for the chorus? Yup. A shredding solo… when a chance appears for Rocky Rockwell to lay down some guitar fuelled lunacy he delivers in spades! It’s this lunacy that sets TYRANT apart and makes this song really stand out from the pack.

The next track, the aptly names ‘FIRE BURNS’ starts off nice and slow and heavy, really letting the listener feel TYRANTS Sabbath connection. This song is no screaming banshee, it’s a slow, crushing, unstoppable force that simply powers forward without relent or hope of release. Lowe bestows his vocal blessings upon the record and keeps the listener hooked with his dark lyrics and eerie promises to return. A drop in tempo for the solo/bridge really hammers the heaviness home and leaves you marching along, head nodding in time with this metal monster. Death… prevails!

Finally the last song on side A (plenty of us are still living in a vinyl world and TYRANT have structured their album to cater for our ancient format desires!) is the haunting melody that gives its name to album itself. ‘HEREAFTER’ is an 8 and a half minute decent into doom inspired heavy metal. Lowe gives another belting performance, keeping the listener hooked with more great lyrics, vocal tricks and the chanting chorus… “Hereafter!” That’s not to say the other boys don’t get their chance in the spotlight though, and all deliver a great rounded performance. That said the lack of tempo change and repetitive riffing is sure to divide the fans.

But once you flip over onto side B… the album leaps back into life! with the massive ‘PIECES OF MINE’ giving the listener even more great riffing, enchanting lyrics and nifty bass and drum lines to get their teeth stuck into. The first 2 and a half minutes really push the tempo of the album back up, getting the heads nodding again, introducing us to a somewhat more hard rock/radio side of TYRANT, but after that magical 2 minute 30 second mark… a drop in tempo and a driving riff from Rockwell that could have been taken straight from the mighty Sabbath really gives weight and punch to this track, turning it from a nod along rock show to a full bore heavy metal masterpiece that keeps you wanting more. Another truly stand out track from the album and another of my personal favourites.

‘UNTIL THE DAY’ grabs the listener, pushing them back into the ranks to march along to a riff that puts me in mind of the work of Canadian rockers Anvil. More excellent axe work from Rocky and an inspiring performance from Lowe force the listener to keep time to this rolling rumbling powerhouse of a track.

‘WHEN THE SKY FALLS’ is much more of a twisting journey, still keeping up a marching rhythm to drive the sound forward, but this time Lowe seems to create a much more haunting operatic changing vocal melody that leads the listener into the darkness and opens their minds as well as their eyes to his world. The slow light start to ‘BUCOLIC’ lulls the listener back into a false sense of security, before the TYRANT roars back into life, crushing all who dare to stand before its might. Another stellar vocal performance from Rob Lowe with his haunting voice leading you further and further from the light and encourages you to join in with the madness!

“Outside, the world is calling, inside, my world is falling…” and so starts the next rocking tune ‘BEACON THE LIGHT’ with another dose of TYRANT’s force and fury. More great song writing on display from the boys, with a chanting chorus “Let me… BELIEVE!” meaning that hopefully this track will make its way into live performances. Rocky slips his leash again to unleash a crazed shredding solo before the final lasting chorus. ‘FROM THE TOWER’ rounds the album off in TYRANT’s unmistakable style, Rocky, Lowe, Greg and Ronnie cementing everything that is so good about this album. Heavy riffs, pounding tempo and soaring vocals that drive the listener on and on, head banging to the might of the metal.

When listening to an album from TYRANT be under no illusions, these guys have stuck to their early 80s roots and it shines through in all of their songs. It’s so good to hear some proper heavy metal and if your fan of the denim and leather, Priest and Saxon era of the genre then I promise you will find something to like this album. However the addition of Robert Lowe into the fold lends a lot of the music a slightly more doom metal feel and some of the tracks feel that they are struggling to find a balance between the two, whilst others embrace both elements perfectly and wrap it all up in TYRANT’s signature style that makes them truly stand out. Tracks like ‘THE DARKNESS COMES’, ‘PIECES OF MINE’, ‘UNTIL THE DAY’ and ‘BUCOLIC’ are the stars of the album, finding that perfect balance of all the elements, and quickly making them head-banging favourites that you keep coming back for more. Whereas ‘DANCING ON GRAVES’ and the titular track ‘HEREAFTER’ can soon start to feel a little too long, a little too easily bogged down, in places a touch too repetitive and with a lack of variation in tempo they are more easily pushed aside in order to cut through to the other tracks waiting in line.

Overall I thoroughly recommend this album to all the metalheads out there looking for a dose of no nonsense, good old fashioned, early 80s rocking metal. But I would also add that there are some tracks that just feel like they need the last little tighten up and finishing touch. It’s strange to consider a group of musicians who have as much experience as they do as going through a revamp, but as is often the way the first album with a new singer always leads to a lot of ‘what-ifs?’ I’d really like to hear more from this lineup of TYRANT and to hear them strike that perfect balance again, because when it works it shows.

TRACKLIST

Tyrants Revelation IV
Dancing On Graves
The Darkness Comes
Fire Burns
Hereafter
Pieces Of Mine
Until The Day
When The Sky Falls
Bucolic
Beacon The Light
From The Tower

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