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Port Royal (1988) is the fourth full-length studio album by German power/heavy metal act Running Wild. The album introduced bassist Jens Becker (later of Grave Digger) and drummer Stefan Schwarzmann to the line-up. The album continues to promote the pirate themes that began on the previous album Under Jolly Roger (1987) and have arguably become what the band is best known for, though it never applied to all of their work, which I feel may be a common misconception when it comes to Running Wild.
Port Royal is one of the Running Wild albums that my experience with has had its ups and downs. Initially impressive while still discovering the band, I reached a stage where the album started to come across as being a lesser Running Wild release and therefore I didn't give it as much attention as others out of their discography (such as Black Hand Inn (1994) and Death or Glory (1989)). Later, now familiar with most of the band's discography, I gave Port Royal another go and over the course of several subsequent listens to the album, it's actually become one of my favourite Running Wild records.
Musically Port Royal is like a logically progression from the sound heard on Under Jolly Roger. With the European power metal scene still in its formative years when both these albums were released the vibe of the music is still very much traditional heavy metal and that separates it from the more pure power metal bands of today (and even genre originators Helloween back then) and even from later heavy/power metal crosses such as Grave Digger (who turned to power metal in the nineties). There's a distinct 80's vibe to be heard. But the differences even between Under Jolly Roger and Port Royal are quite large. Port Royal sees the band fully embracing a new power metal direction, whereas Under Jolly Roger sounds like some kind of proto-power metal by comparison. The production of the music is the weak link for me, though I guess it was typical for the time if you weren't a major band like Iron Maiden or Judas Priest and had to operate on a smaller budget. But really that lack of polish is what makes Port Royal distinctly Running Wild.
Beginning with a intro filled with tavern noise a man asks where he is. He's promptly informed that he is in Port Royal, which allows the band to lead off with the title track. Port Royal (located in Jamaica) was quite the haven for piracy during the Golden Age of Piracy, so it's no surprise to find Running Wild using it in their music given their then still rather newfound love of pirate themes. For me the title track is actually one of the album's less impressive moments, though it is still quite good. Further tracks provide much higher levels of enjoyment. One that instantly stood out even from the very first listen was the final track, Calico Jack. John "Calico Jack" Rackham was a real-life pirate who lived between 1682 - 1720, who is credited to designing the infamous Jolly Roger flag. The song remains one of Running Wild's very best, not just for its music but the actually rather humours dialogue exchange where the band do their own re-enactment of Rackham being sentenced to death, in which as his last words he promptly tells the judge to 'stick his pompous words where the sun don't shine'. I believe that this is poetic licence on Running Wild's part; I have googled and can't find any more credible records of Rackham's last words. But who cares right? It's a killer song, no pun intended.
Other highlights of the album are Conquistadores, which is quite the addictive track and perhaps surprisingly, the instrumental Final Gates, just because it's so different from the musical standards set by the rest of the album. This is probably because it was written by Jens Becker and is his only credit on the album. It's the sort of track that can throw you off when first discovering an album, but I love that they included it. Uaschitschun deserves a mention too. While not my favourite songs from Port Royal, it is one of the band's most popular tracks. Uaschitschun is one of the Running Wild songs that is a departure from the pirate theme. Instead it deals with pollution from a Native American perspective.
Fans of eighties metal would do well to explore the music of Running Wild. By modern standards I suppose it's fair to say that their sound was never exactly groundbreaking but they were one of the first bands of European style power metal and as far as German power metal goes I've come to consider the band second only to the mighty Blind Guardian. While I don't find Running Wild's later records anywhere near as interesting as the first ten (eleven if one counts the re-recordings release The First Years of Piracy (1991)) in terms of overall consistency I personally feel that they have a run of a strong releases that lasted the better part of two decades. Port Royal belongs to the upper end of that run of albums though; an essential release of eighties heavy/power metal that fully deserves a 5 star rating.
Now for the downside; Port Royal has, despite some reissues over the years including one in 2007, become one of those albums that can be quite difficult to find without reaching deep into your wallet. I got lucky and managed to get this and many other Running Wild albums in a more reasonable price range, but prices tend to start at double what I'd consider normal price for a CD album, at the minimum. Fortunately the album can be purchased digitally or streamed with Spotify (unlike some other eighties metal records, even ones that are widely held as genre classics). No matter how you get to hear it, just hear it. But if my experience is anything to go by, give it a bit of time before making your final judgement. Port Royal is a grower and a very rewarding one.