Cloven Hoof - Eye Of The Sun

*=Staff's pick	Inquisitor* Eye Of The Sun Cyberworld Kiss Of Evil* Eye Of The Zombie Absolute Power Whore Of Babylon Golgotha* King For A Day Angels In Hell

Genre	Heavy Metal	Matt Moreton	Vocals
Tracks	10	Andy Shortland	Guitar
Runningtime	51 Min.	-	Guitar
Label	Escape Music	Lee Payne	Bass
Release	23 June 2006	Lynch Radinsky	Drums
Country	England	-	Keyboards
Similar artists	Diamond Head, Blitzkrieg

Seventeen years after the release of A Sultan's Ransom, the classic NWOBHM-band Cloven Hoof is back with this new album. But, as with so many other NWOBHM-bands to comeback nowadays, there is actually only one original member left - bass player Lee Payne. I must say I am a bit sceptic to the honesty in this. If you suddenly want to play hard rock again when it is popular, and your old friends don't, why not create a new band instead of living on old merits? On the other hand Payne is the only member who has featured in all Cloven Hoof's settings.

New vocalist Matt Moreton sounds like a young Peavy Wagner (Rage). The world is not big enough for two singers of that kind (so Matt can be happy that Peavy himself has evolved dramatically thought the years). Inquisitor is a classic NWOBHM-tune and stands for a genuine kick off. But then your newly awoken expectations fall flat. Eye Of The Sun passes by unnoticed and Cyberworld feels somewhat misplaced, both musically and lyrically. It is simply too soft. Kiss Of Evil distinct itself a bit from the rest with a nice old school riff and a memorable chorus. Golgotha mixes soft parts and a melodic chorus with heavy riffs and speedy parts. The blend makes it the best track. Otherwise there are a couple of annoyingly repetitive choruses, like Eye Of The Zombie, King For A Day and Angels In Hell. So… the song material does not motivate the 'comeback' either.

Production	Vocals	Compositions
5	4	5

Summary
5 chalices of 10 - David