Looking at the new line-up of Rage has made me skeptical about “The Devils Strike Again“. I mean, the new members have big shoes to fill. They are essentially replacing a couple of legendary drummers and in my opinion, an underrated guitar master. It is not surprising that my suspicion was correct but it would be terribly wrong to say it is an awfully bad┬áalbum.
“The Devils Strike Again” is an up-front and clear-cut album that deserves a review with no sugar coating: Wagner‘s unmistakable voice is roaring still but now accompanied with the new members as back up vocalists, the drumming is quite simplified, the familiar guitar riffs replicated with a newborn tonality and an obvious different take on the leads. This album captures Rage‘s sound in their earlier years, the notable melodic sounds and straight forwardness that they possess. Evidently it is not expected to have the essence of Rage as a whole – as the progressiveness and technicality that Smolski has contributed is no longer there, unfortunately for some of us. I can see that some fans however approve of this new direction even new listeners are joining in (by the looks of it) but I am afraid I cannot see my self listening to this album mercilessly when I could be listening to their classics.
The new line-up is heading in a new direction and I won’t deny that it works as a heavy metal album. It is far better than what Metallica has put out since the 90’s for goodness sake and for that, they do not deserve to be completely discredited. Some of the elements that I enjoyed about Rage are still there but I think a whole lot of creativeness and surprises is lost.
Tracklist:
01 – The Devil Strikes Again
02 – My Way
03 – War
04 – The Final Curtain
05 – Ocean Full of Tears
06 – Deaf, Dumb and Blind
07 – Spirits of the Night
08 – Times of Darkness
09 – The Dark Side of the Sun
10 – Back on Track
Playing Time: 46:19
Release date: June 10, 2016
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Website: Facebook
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