TAILGUNNER

Released at the tail-end of 2022, TAILGUNNER's debut EP "Crashdive" was a thrilling first statement from the now hotly tipped Brits. While a large portion of contemporary metal media tries to convince us that heavy music started in 1991, traditional, melodic metal is impervious to passing trends and shows no signs of losing popularity or momentum. Some ideas are so fucking brilliant that to dismiss them as old-fashioned is either disingenuous, idiotic or both. "Guns For Hire" will have little appeal to anyone that uses the term "alt-metal" with a straight face and no shame, but if you wake up every morning thinking, "Ah, another heavy metal day!" then this album, and its creators, are exactly what the denim-clad doctor ordered. Alternatives are fine in small doses, but the real thing still stirs the soul like nothing else.

Steeped in the grand metal tradition of IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST, TAILGUNNER have already proved their worth with that first EP, but their full-length debut broadens their Big Picture to exhilarating effect. Admittedly, all five previously released songs re-appear here, albeit in seemingly re-recorded and punchier form. Discerning punters will already be familiar with "Shadows Of War", "Guns For Hire", "White Death", "Revolution Scream" and "Crashdive", but they are all eminently worthy of a second glance, not least because in career terms, TAILGUNNER are still twitching in the starting blocks.

Frontman Craig Cairns is a phenomenal talent and contributes much to the authenticity and verve of the whole enterprise, and bassist and creative driving force Thomas Hewson is clearly as close to a post-millennial Steve Harris as it gets. Most importantly, TAILGUNNER are pathologically averse to being just another retro metal band. On something like "White Death", which combines the strident uproariousness of classic power metal with a MERCYFUL FATE-like dark dexterity, they showcase an evolved hybrid of trad metal styles that sounds as vital and relevant now as it ever did. As much as the late noughties surge of old-school metal bands like WHITE WIZZARD and CAULDRON was a breath of fresh air, none of those bands ever sounded fully equipped for the long haul. TAILGUNNER absolutely do, and the five new songs on "Guns For Hire" are all of the same sky-high quality that made the EP leap out as something special. "Futures Lost" has an air of early WOLF about it, but TAILGUNNER are fervently British in conception and execution. And if you've ever been a mess of goosebumps at a MAIDEN show, it won't be hard for you to imagine experiencing something similar when those twin-lead harmonies are erupting all over the place. "New Horizons" is another breathless speed metal banger with deep roots in the old school, alongside an underlying ferocity that noisily demands the banging of heads; "Warhead" allows a little American influence into the mix, with strong echoes of peak-era DOKKEN and VICIOUS RUMORS filtered through a barrage of repurposed MAIDEN-isms; "Blood For Blood" brings radio-friendly melodic flair to a nimble canter through pumped-up traditional realms, while the closing "Rebirth" confirms that TAILGUNNER have more to offer than succinct anthems. Eight minutes long and, inevitably, touched by the hand of mid-to-late '80s MAIDEN, it reveals a more sophisticated side to the band that bodes well for the future.

Heavy metal never broke, so TAILGUNNER haven't wasted any time fixing it, but what they have done is salute the original blueprint with more contemporary energy and bite than any other band in recent memory. Battle jackets out and horns up, folks.