By Monk
“What dreams are made of is what we need to feel the power of being free” declares David “Rock” Feinstein on the opening line of this, the ninth album in the 45-year long career of New York street metal veterans The Rods. And a fitting declaration it is too, as ‘Rattle The Cage’ proves that this epitomizing power trio can still do just that, with ten tracks of no-holds-barred, fist-in-your-face classic metal that sounds as fresh and vibrant as when the band first starting ploughing this furrow away back in the day when metal was all about no nonsense, see-you-at-the-end fits of fury…
And that is exactly what Feinstein, long-time cohort Carl Canedy and new recruit Freddy Villano deliver on this rock solid opus magnus. Good old-fashioned heavy metal that gets your head banging, your feet tapping and your fists pumping from the opening note to the last.
Driven at every stage by the absolutely massive sound of Villano, who is as pummelling as he is intricate, as brutal as he is subtle, Canedy’s powerhouse percussion and Feinstein’s combination of acidity and melody, this is proper old school heavy metal played in the properly old school way. ‘Rattle The Cage’ does just that, proving once again that the old guard metallians can still give the young pretenders a bloodied face in any back alley heavy metal brawl.
There’s nothing fancy or clever here. ‘Rattle The Cage’ is just seriously fun heavy metal from beginning to end. Like contemporaries such as Anvil, The Rods don’t fuck with the formula, but instead stick to ensuring it is tried, tested and still proven to be true. With Canedy’s drumming hitting so hard you swear you’re being thumped on the back of the head with a ten-tonne concrete block, Villano’s resonating bass driving deep into your darkened soul and Feinstein snapping and growling like a rabid wolf on heat, this is a suitably fiercesome assault on every aspect of your aural sensibilities.
‘Come ‘Hell Or High Water’ The Rods definitely ‘Can’t Slow Down’ and they ‘Play It Loud’ and take us down an accelerated trip along those ‘Metal Highways’ on which they ‘Don’t Slow Down’ any time between ‘Now And Forever’. And praise the gods of metal for that, for the world needs more bands like The Rods. Bands who just don’t give a fuck and just want to ‘Rattle The Cage’ for as long as they can. Take me back to the old school each and every day of the week.
- ‘Rattle The Cage‘ is released on Friday 19 January.
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