Saturday, 17 December 2016

#10 - Top of 2011

Riot - Immortal Soul (SPV)

This is the final album of truly legendary heavy metal band Riot, that disbanded after Mark Reale sadly passed away in 2012. Releasing their debut back in 1977, they span 4 decades of awesome music and truly inspired songwriting. Although the band never broke to the "mainstream" it will always be remembered as one of the true pioneers of heavy metal. Their final album is a special one and has everything a fan of the band could ask for,  by combining different elements of their repertoire: We have the relentless speedy songs, such as "Riot", "Wings Are For Angels" and "Sins Of The Father", but at the same time one can hear more mid / up tempo pieces that bring to mind the Di Meo season, with most typical examples including the "Whiskey Man", "Fall Before Me", "Believe" and "Immortal Soul". We will be confronted with sometimes furious, sometimes mellow riffs, nice solos and harmonies, with Moore perhaps gives the more mature performance of his career. Mark Reale delivers here one of his best performances as a composer/lead guitar player and leaves this world with an album which rivals the legendary "Thunderseel" and is a fitting swan song for the band.

PS: It is worth noting that surviving members of the band have since reunited as Riot V and have released an interesting album in 2014 - worth checking out for fans of the band.

94/100

Below as a rare treat, a video containing the entirety of the Immortal Soul album.


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