RUNNING WILD — Resilient (review)

Album · 2013 · Heavy Metal

3.5/5 · 2014-06-10
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Resilient (2013) is the fifteenth full-length studio album by German heavy/power metal act Running Wild. It is the second album since the band started recording again, following Shadowmarker (2012). These days Running Wild is operating as a duo consisting of vocalist/guitarist Rock 'n' Rolf (Rolf Kasparek) and second guitarist Peter Jordan. Actually they currently share the exact same line-up as Giant-X, the band formed after Running Wild originally disbanded, making Resilient the second album these two guys put out in 2013, following the Giant-X self-titled debut in January.

There's no denying that Running Wild deserves status as one of the legendary acts to emerge from the German metal scene. Starting with Under Jolly Roger (1987), their third album, they were one of the earliest artists to play European power metal and went on to produce several pirate themed genre milestones over the course of the following decade, including Death or Glory (1989), Pile of Skulls (1992) and Black Hand Inn (1994). However starting with Victory (2000) their albums have, to my ears at least, been a bit lacklustre, showcasing a declining quality, hitting an all time low with the would-have-been swansong Rogues en Vogue (2005).

Reunion album (a term I use lightly due to the absence of a full band line-up) Shadowmarker was stronger to my ears, even though it doesn't seem to have gone down well with fans at large. Some might cite the problem as being that since coming back Running Wild hasn't been a power metal act. That's half-true, they're not a power metal act these days, but let's be honest here, there hasn't been a significant power metal element in the Running Wild sound since The Rivalry (1998). Shadowmarker was still not great to my ears though, but it did at least seem to have a bit more energy to it than Rogues en Vogue in particular. Resilient continues in much the same direction; it's not power metal by far, but again takes steps in the right direction so long as one can accept that the current incarnation of Running Wild creates catchy and rocking traditional heavy metal and isn't attempting to relive past power metal glories.

Indeed, to my ears Resilient is actually the strongest Running Wild album released in the last fifteen years. Sound wise, with the music at best being tinged by power metal (but more so by hard rock), it's not exactly classic Running Wild, not even being comparable to their early heavy/speed metal records, but it is significantly more enjoyable than their last few albums. The album's closing track Bloody Island is also their best song in some time and overall the album is enjoyable enough for what it is. I would not go as far to call it a return to form but it is at least a good album and deserves to be judged upon its own merits. It's no doubt true though that the more demanding Running Wild fan won't find Resilient any more worthwhile than Shadowmarker or Rogues en Vogue et al. Still, 3 and a half stars seems fair to me.

70/100

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven: http://metaltube.freeforums.org/running-wild-resilient-t3537.html)