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MALICE
New Breed Of Godz

Steamhammer (2012)
Rating: 8/10

It seems light years ago that I purchased Malice’s License To Kill (1987) album, and yet all these years later the Los Angeles-based band are still cranking up the volume and enveloping the listener with their pulsating brand of power metal.

If you’re not familiar with Malice, who, let’s face it, weren’t exactly the most popular 80s metal band, then you’ve actually missed a few treats over the years. Even more astonishing is the fact that in 2012 the band are back rocking harder than ever before. How do they do it? I’m of the opinion that some bands that enjoyed a cult following many moons ago are now eager to give it one more shot before the hair completely falls out, the fingers cease up with arthritis and the vocal chords disintegrate.

Malice have been enjoying their second coming since 2006, but New Breed Of Godz – featuring eight re-recorded classics and four brand new songs – is certainly one of their most potent releases; a straight-shooter of a platter that combines the more cold steel aggression of Judas Priest than ever before. In vocalist James Rivera, Malice harbour an impressive set of pipes, and behind him is the guitar wall that is Jay Reynolds and Mick Zane, responsible for those ear severing riffs and soaring solos. As for the brutal backbeat, we can’t go without mentioning the skin-thumping Pete Holmes, and bass bashers Mark Behn (who plays on the re-recorded songs) and Robert Cardenas (who contributes to the new material).

Considering this is the band’s first original release since 1989, this has to go down as one of 2012’s best efforts. The wall of sound Malice create can only be described as “real metal”, a steely bulldozer comprising of cutting guitars and dazzling melody, fronted by those incredible vocals.

The title track is a new, epic power metal Malice masterpiece with a cool, marching anthemic chorus that sticks in the head long after the album has finished. There are those who will argue that on tracks such as the updated ‘Hell Rider’ and brand new ‘Winds Of Death (Angel Of Light)’, Malice simply become a Judas Priest clone, but in the 80s there were countless same-sounding bands who all had one aim, to create mighty, straight-from-the-heart metal, often delivered with no frills but which won over its audience with its warrior cries. I personally think it’s great that a band like Malice can still find a place in the metal genre and give a lot of modern day bands a run for their money, and I’ll say it again, Rivera is one accomplished vocalist who matches Priest’s Rob Halford for passion and intensity.

Although New Breed Of Godz lacks creativity, the same could be said for countless new metal bands today that for some bizarre reason are being touted as the new gods, but for me, bands like Malice remain the old, unrivalled gods, still able to melt the speakers while wearing their influences on their sleeve.

Neil Arnold

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