IMPALER – Blood Brothers Bernard Doe Metal Forces, Issue 17 (1986) The State of Minnesota may not be renowned for its hard rock / heavy metal acts, even though some ignorant fuckers may try to convince us otherwise by proclaiming that Minneapolis’ Prince fits the bill. But now there’s a quartet from St. Paul who […]

DOKKEN – All Keyed Up? Dave Reynolds Metal Forces, Issue 17 (1986) Dokken (l-r): Mick Brown, Jeff Pilson, Don Dokken and George Lynch Unlike in the United States, taking a shopping trip after half past five in the evening is futile, because that’s when the working day for most Britons comes to an end; doors […]

AXE HERO It’s Rock (Against All) (1985) Shock-rock Italian style. Not having seen a photo of this outfit yet, I can’t say whether they look like dicks or look the part? However, I have seen a photo of their ‘sex girl’ they use at live shows and she looks pretty horny stuff… but then I’m […]

DEFCON Defcon (1986) Defcon feature ex-Metallica guitarist Lloyd Grant, and a real talent he is too. The band’s five-track demo is dominated by Grant’s excellent axework with a dazzling display of intense riffing and frenzied fretwork technique. Thrash metal without the normal punk overtones is probably the best way to describe Defcon’s intense mayhem, as […]

METAL FORCES – Issue 17 Magazine Cover (1986) « Previous Cover Next Cover »

VIRGIN STEELE – Virgin Savagery Dave Reynolds Metal Forces, Issue 17 (1986) Virgin Steele (l-r): Joe O’Reilly, Edward Pursino, David DeFeis and Joey Ayvazian In these times of intense as hell thrash, can anybody remember way back in 1982 when Virgin Steele released their self-titled debut album? Well it may surprise you to learn that […]

KING DIAMOND – Diamonds Are Forever Bernard Doe Metal Forces, Issue 17 (1986) King Diamond When King Diamond decided to leave Mercyful Fate in April ’85, it came as no surprise that his split also signified the end of a band who, at the time, were a major force on the metal underground and on […]

HELLHOUND Submit Or Die (1985) A five-piece unit from Sunnyvale, California, Hellhound sound pretty heavy. They’ve been around since 1981 and until last year made a living playing Venom, Slayer, Angelwitch and Iron Maiden covers. Since the addition of vocalist Mike Walish though, they’ve blossomed out into an original, heavy duty act. Hellhound deliberately stay […]

DIAMOND REXX Diamond Rexx (1986) Already Metal Forces faves, Chicago’s Diamond Rexx caused quite a stir with their first demo I reviewed in issue 15; securing a management deal and receiving endless amounts of letters from all parts of the globe. Now the jeweled ones have bounced back with a new two-song demo which will […]