UMUR
"Master of Disaster" is an EP release by Canadian heavy metal act Black Knight. The EP was independently released in 1985. Black Knight formed in 1981 and released a 1984 demo before recording and self-releasing this EP. They disbanded some time after releasing "Master of Disaster", and it would be their only release (save for the 1984 demo).
Stylistically the 5 tracks on the 24:16 minutes long EP are powerful, energetic, and raw heavy metal (with a slight touch of early US power metal). Hard rocking, sharp riffs, melodic lead- and harmony guitar work, and an incredibly well singing lead vocalist in front. I was shocked to learn that the vocals are performed by a woman (Lori "The Scream Queen" Wilde), because the are very raw and if I didn´t know I would never have guessed that it was a woman singing (an artist like Chastain is a valid reference). Especially the vocal performance on the slow and epic "Aaraigathor (Metal Anthem)" makes me wonder if the vocalist credits are correct (I´ve read some sources saying that, that particular track was performed by a male vocalist). Well...under any circumstances the vocals are absolutely fantastic.
The songwriting is of a high quality, the performances are on a high level on all posts, and "Master of Disaster" also features a powerful, detailed, and sharp sounding production job, making it a high quality release from Black Knight. I would have loved to have heard a follow-up to this release, but unfortunately that wasn´t to be. To my ears this one is a gem and I can highly recommend it. Sure it´s not the most unique release in this style from 1985, but there´s so much quality here to enjoy that it´s a minor issue. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.
