Flight
Flight
Bad Omen Records

Those into retro metal should check out the debut album from Flight. This band from Oslo looks like 80's street-wise kids, long-haired and denim-dressed. And they play it like they look it. Excellent ambassadors of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, "in all its blue-collar, earthy glory" according to their UK label, Bad Omen Records. It's hard to disagree. This is straight early 80's melodic and riff-laden metal, and the good guitar riffs galore from beginning to end of this album. Not to flashy, not to catchy, just very straight forward and down to earth. This also goes for the production, which feels very unprocessed, and almost analogue sounding. The guitars are not saturated with distortion, the singing is clean, but best of all is the drum sound. This feels almost acoustic, and the drums are sounding like real instruments. It's almost like the guys walked into a studio where the drum kit was rigged for a jazz session. The result is a light but dynamic sound that doesn't grow tiresome, and makes the album easy to enjoy.

The album as a whole will perhaps feel a little understated to some, but for me that's what makes it tick. There are no hits here, and they probably weren't looking for them. Instead it's a collection of decent songs, craftily executed and honestly delivered with a very authentic 80's feel, which also goes for the visual presentation. For the ultimate back-to-the-80's experience, you should of course buy this album on vinyl, which can be ordered from Bad Omen.

Copyright © 2015 Knut Tore Breivik