STRAY GODS- "Storm the walls" (Rock of Angels Records)

A tribute band to their own influences by seasoned and successful musicians. Well known multi organist player Bob Katsionis gathered a bunch of friends who all loved and raised with IRON MAIDEN music to pay in his own unique way a tribute to his favorite band. How? They wrote an album that is like the 80s never left in just 39 minutes of ultimate pleasure from metal music .IRON MAIDEN influenced music or inspired- a more accurate word-at the maximum percentage, with references until "Powerslave" but with a major difference from most of the retro bands and especially the US copyists of the 80s. STRAY GODS write songs in a studio, not in a dungeon, using a clean cut production to make you feel the passion and the love behind each and every composition. "In the seventh day" is a stormy opener, "Black horses" a mix between the early punkish MAIDEN feeling with their more mid 80s epic feeling and a video clip that brings memories to those of us who are of a certain age. An album that is so heavy metal in the traditional way, that would make Steve Harris and Co ,cry about the passion they used to have back in the days. Songs that stand on their own, memorable, full of the guitar dwells,the thundering bass (thanks to Mr Macricostas- you made S.Harris proud) and a voice that sounds like Bruce has been embodied in Artur Almeida.

Pounding rhythms, epic, metallic and most and above all memorable. "Silver Moon" is charging in the moonlight, reminding the glory days of "The trooper" and "Alexander...i cant sing it anymore-Great" , "Naked in the fire" could be a lost song from the "Piece of mind " album.The only songs that STRAY GODS step out of the norm and are a bit more original is "Love in the dark" a song that maybe IRON MAIDEN can cover as a b side in their future works (sic). The same title song is a heavy/prog epic that embodies all the elements of the second period of IM, complex rhythm timing, guitar dwells, exaggerated vocals and this epic feeling,that lost somewhere in time in the next years/ albums.This album stands far more than a tribute to IM, it stands out as a great work of traditional IM influenced Heavy metal that has songs that look the glory MAIDEN days in the eyes. Believe it or not, STRAY GODS deserve to find their own worshipers and the musicians involved in this project must feel proud of the music they deliver.

Someone like me ,who followed MAIDEN from the early days , felt the need togo back to their discography after listening to this album and rediscover the reasons I spent hours listening to music and reading lyrics instead of the high school lessons. STRAY GODS unleash the dogs of war on stage and get a proper Eddie mascot to accompany you on stage

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