Nightlord were first plying their trade at the very tail end of the ‘80s and the beginning of the ‘90s. They trekked their way back and forth across the country playing with the likes of Toronaga, Decomposed, Skyclad, Paradise Lost and a thousand others and released one four track demo tape entitled Approaching Thunder in 1990. The band called time on their career in the spring of ’93 but incredibly reformed to play a successful show at London’s Camden Underworld last December and in the wake of that show Copro have released these two excellent CDs which incorporate a wealth of previously unreleased material.
First up we have Approaching Thunder which is now a full eight track album. All eight tracks were recorded back in 1990 but only four made it on to that original tape. They’ve all been remastered by Nick Hemingway at Philia Studios but other than that they’re just as they were back in the day. ‘Reign’ gets things underway in a bluster of ‘The Four Horsemen’ style proto-thrash and the energy and enthusiasm are palpable in every note. The sound is pretty good with Jamie Thorne’s bass rising up between the twin guitar razors of James Mackenzie and Ferenc Collins. Thorne also supplies the vocals that spearhead the attack and Neil Wiseman’s energetic drumming propels everything forward at breakneck pace. As soon as I heard ‘Reign’ I was flooded with memories of gigs at the end of the ‘80s, beginning of the ‘90s – of watching bands like War Dance, Toronaga, Metal Messiah, Sabbat etc. Not because Nightlord sound like any of those bands in particular but because these songs evoke the excitement of that time. At first I did wonder if all I was getting from Approaching Thunder was the warm glow of nostalgia, the pleasure of happy metal memories, but my appreciation for it has just grown with each repeated play. Tracks like ‘The Final Book’ and ‘Vote For Me’ have stood the test of time remarkably well and deliver the goods quite superbly even with that nostalgia factor shoved firmly to the back of the mind. The riffs come thick and fast and there’s lightning lead playing around every corner and adrenaline bursting from every note. ‘Season Of Decay’ introduces a definite groove to proceedings while the opening bars of ‘Power Of Hate’ are steeped in atmosphere. There’s really no weak point on Approaching Thunder as every song has something about it, a sense of quality. Perhaps the best of the lot though is saved for last in the form of ‘Holy Inquisition’, an accomplished thrash classic. Most important to stress is the fact that this album keeps on growing in stature the more you play it. Approaching Thunder doesn’t give up all its gifts in one listen so make sure you give it enough time to fully reveal its glories – it’s well worth the effort.
The Cult Of The Moon EP was a work in progress back in ’93 but was never completed due to the band’s demise so on this version the vocals, bass and lead guitar parts have been newly recorded. In addition the band have grafted on six tracks of raw live mayhem from the Royal Standard in 1992 and a ’92 track – ‘Practice Makes Perfect’ – from the recording sessions for a split 7”. ‘Dark Night Dance’ gets things underway and immediately demonstrates progression and increased maturity compared to Approaching Thunder. It’s a more smoothly constructed piece and more measured in its pace. ‘Twisted Out Of Mind’ continues with a spoken word piece taken from Lovecraft and a sinister, crawling pace. There’s a strong vocal performance on this one and some nice lead work, particularly when the band give in to the temptation to put pedal to the metal and thrash out at the song’s conclusion. ‘What Have I Done?’ sums up a lot of what Nighlord are about. The songs are typically long and convoluted with an excess of riffs – loads to listen to, loads to enjoy. ‘What Have I Done?’ is the epitome of this with riff after riff, part after part and some wicked lead playing. ‘Cult Of The Moon’, the title track, takes it’s time to develop with no rush or bluster. It’s another glorious amalgamation of riffs with a jagged, choppy verse over some almost tribal drumming and a big chorus decorated with some snarling lead guitar ornamentation.
Then we get to the bonus material and this stuff is really exciting. ‘Practice Makes Perfect’ is full of cool, spiralling riffs and multiple changes of gear but also plenty of melody. In my opinion it’s one of the band’s best tracks and my metal life is slightly the richer for this little beauty being unearthed. The live show is rough and ready sounding as the band clearly say on the sleeve – “hardly produced; bum notes, tape drop-out, passion, feedback and raw energy left in!” – but the good thing about this is it captures all the excitement and atmosphere of the night it was recorded. I love this live material and it definitely plays a part in making Cult Of The Moon the essential purchase it undoubtedly is. The set begins with the opening duo from Approaching Thunder – ‘Reign’ and ‘The Final Book’ – and for my money they sound even more convincing in this raw and violent form, especially the venomous ‘Reign’ which is bloody brilliant. The set continues with two of the band’s best, ‘What Have I Done?’ and the awesome ‘Practice Makes Perfect’ before things are rounded off by ‘Holy Inquisition’. Any live recording that has you wishing you’d been at the gig has more than done its job and this one certainly has me wondering what the hell I was doing on that night in March 1993 when I could have been watching Nightlord. Will we get to hear any more of this excellent band’s potential realised now that the Nightlord has awoken again? Let’s hope so.
If the budget will only stretch to one of these two Nightlord releases then make it Cult Of The Moon – but you know you want both of them really don’t you?
http://www.nightlord.co.uk
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