Stephen
Remember the notorious and legendary Hells Angels Harley bikers? I don't know why but something about this Norway's quintet reminds me of them, probably because they play the no-frills, in your face, harsh and heavy, dangerous rock and roll, and to top all that, check out the angry vocal of Cyztom, he roar wildly like a mad guy from World Wrestling Federation, ready to crash a chair on his opponent.
Throw in AC/DC, Motorhead, and Judas Priest and you'll get the raw mix of what's behind Barbed Wire's music. Sometimes they swirl the riffs with an occasional mid-80s glam touch of Ratt and Keel to spice the thing up. The straight forward "Rock And Rebel", the sleazy "My Bitch", the 70s feel "Boogie Train", and the melodic "Getaway" are among my fave picks. Basically, all the tracks are pretty much enjoyable, but somehow they ended up too similar and you'll get mixed up easily and forgot which track is which.
In "Rock And Roll Dream", the British Steel era of Judas Priest is obviously the main influence, a good song but the attempt to combine the harsh vocal with the sound of a girl is a flaw in my book."Lover Machine" on the other hand, is perhaps the most flat arrangement they have, quite short and repetitive. Nothing's groundbreaking about this album, but if you don't mind the Hulk Hogan growly vocal on the mic, this is a fun heavy metal for the hot sunny day!
