Manilla Road 'Invasion' review


MANILLA ROAD
'Invasion'
(Shadow Kingdom Records)

I consider myself a Manilla Road fan, but I also admit I only have a few of their albums, which are classics in their own right, in my view at least. So 'Invasion', a re-release of their 1980 album is a new one for me. As the bio states the band were a rock ‘n roll band at this point and the material on here was written in the late 70s. You can hear hints of what would come for Manilla Road as the 80s wore on and they adopted a more metal sound. Thanks to Shadow Kingdom for pulling this out of obscurity for fans of the band and fans of late 70s/early 80s rock in general to hear. The fans that are hoping to hear vintage in their prime Manilla Road metal may be a bit disappointed. As for myself I am a fan of 1970s hard rock and this is a neat little time capsule for me. There are some cool effects and sounds on here for the time period. You can definitely feel the band attempting to find their way, it is beginning of the power that the band would become. There are strong hints at this on the awesome thirteen minute album closer "The Empire". It is an epic and ambitious tune that is finely crafted with a superb main riff and plenty of dynamics, such as duelling guitar effects, some tasty fills and mystic, moody atmosphere that keeps you interested the entire length of this marathon song. That brilliant song alone is worth the price of this album, it is well ahead of any other tune on here, this song "The Empire" is fucking fantastic I am telling you. I dig the vintage band and rehearsal photos too. I would say this is a must have for Manilla Road fans and 70s rock aficionados alike.
(Dale Roy)



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