RUNNING WILD — The First Years of Piracy (review)

RUNNING WILD — The First Years of Piracy album cover Boxset / Compilation · 1991 · Power Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
adg211288
The First Years of Piracy (1991) is a re-recordings release by German heavy/power metal act Running Wild. It was released a little while after their sixth full-length studio album Blazon Stone (1991) and features the same line-up. The songs on The First Years of Piracy are taken from the group's early releases from between the years 1984 - 1987.

The main feature of The First Years of Piracy is that Running Wild have updated the arrangements of the song selection to be more in line with the heavy/power metal sound that they were producing at the time, rather than the rawer speed metal based sound of their first two albums Gates to Purgatory (1984) and Branded and Exiled (1985). This is even noticeable on tracks originally from Under Jolly Roger (1987) which was when they first started to turn more towards power metal and drop the speed metal aspect of their sound. The song choices are pretty good too, representing some of the best from their early works including the Under Jolly Roger title track, Soldiers of Hell, Branded and Exiled and Prisoner of Our Time. Some of Running Wild's most addictive songs there and the improved production just makes them feel more energetic and infectious than ever.

Which is why, in my mind at least, that The First Years of Piracy is actually one of Running Wild's most essential releases. It's not really that the original versions had anything wrong with them, I'm really quite fond of Gates to Purgatory in particular, but these re-recordings were done during the time that Running Wild were at the absolute top of their game and delivering their best albums, and something must have rubbed off on these old songs to end up with an album like this one. Five stars.
Share this review
more

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

Review Index

Member Zone

Username:
Password:
Stay signed in

Metal Subgenres

Artists Alpha-index

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

I, the Destroyer Black Metal
SVARTFJELL
Buy this album from MMA partners
A Sonication Technical Death Metal
OBSCURA
Buy this album from MMA partners
Hin helga kvöl Atmospheric Sludge Metal
SÓLSTAFIR
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Cycles of Suffering Black Metal
BURIAL OATH
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Suns of Perdition - Chapter IV: To Shadow Zion Black Metal
PANZERFAUST
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

DAWN OF REVENGE - Sanctuary [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 9 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Farewell [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 9 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Curtain of Death - [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 9 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - Vengeance [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 9 days ago
DAWN OF REVENGE - I Need You [official music video]
DAWN OF REVENGE
Bosh66· 9 days ago
More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us
Follow us on Twitter Become a Facebook fan RSS Feed