Leatherhead – Violent Horror Stories Review | Metal Territory

Steel are terrible for a band trying to bring back the rich glory of the ’80s metal sound. Let’s look at Greek retro lovers Leatherhead and their second full-length crusade,Violent Horror Stories. I randomly stumbled on their lead single “VHS” while browsing YouTube and mistook them for yet another thrash revival band, but I was wrong.

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Although this is often fast, energetic material, it feels more like a loving nod to the salad days of American power metal than any kind of beer-and-BO thrash festival. ThroughoutViolent Horror Stories, the listener can expect to be reminded of earlyQueensrÿche,Agent Steel,Crimson Glory, even the Fates Warning of the John Arch era, but you know, faster. In short, this wasn’t the sweaty leather I expected to try on for size this week.

Things open with the aforementioned “VHS,” which pays tribute to all those horror gems with the “found footage” of the ’90s and ’00s, while also walking a fine line between an all-out thrash ethos and the overkill speed of Agent Steel. The guitar is clean, sharp and reminiscent of early Annihilator, as frontman Tolis Mekras gives it everything with his abundant, high-pitched vocal destruction. His enthusiasm and devotion to excess make the song even more fun, especially as things accelerate to the point where the band seems to lose control. After that high-voltage outburst, the pace slows for the riffy and still quite lively “Summoning the Dead,” before kicking into the extra-fun Agent Steel meets Savatage of “The Visitors,” which finds Tolis doing some of those weird Jon Oliva-style screams. This is irresistibly fun for everyone and I keep bringing it back to life.

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The album’s centerpiece is the 7-minute mega-epic “Children of the Beast,” where every self-restraint is abandoned in favor of MOAR. Widescreen vocals, guitar solos, looser emotions, a frantic vibe from anything fucking. And you know what? I love it! It exudes the same regal coldness that early Queensrÿche and Crimson Glory exuded back in the day, and it’s even more impressive than Holdeneye at a barbecue pavilion with all you can eat for 8 dollars after a three-day juice cleanse. Tolis delivers it all with an emotionally charged performance, building peaks and valleys as the guitar work impresses with its range and scale. The last 2 minutes are like a rocket ride to Valhalla with an over-attentive Thor fighting a much drunker frost giant in the back seat while you try to navigate, and you know that’s a good time! Elsewhere, “Crimson Eyes” sounds like something Sumerlands could have included on their debut, and “Something Wicked (This Way Comes)” sounds like it comes from Agent Steel‘s debut, Skeptics Apocalyse. With no dead space or filler, the all-too-short, over-37-minute Violent Horror Stories is a fast, octane-packed spin that doesn’t get in the way of a good time, unless you struggle with strident vocal lines.

Tolis Mekras is the centerpiece of Leatherhead‘s experience, his impressive, if not always perfectly controlled, vocals piercing your ears like a powerful mining laser. He reminds me of Arthur W. Andersson of Trial at points and Stephan Dietrich of Alpha Tiger at others, but the primary reference point has to be the ever-mysterious John Cyriis of Agent Steel. Like any singer of this kind, he’ll be a love-or-hate factor, and he’s sure to alienate those who want everyone to sound tired and lethargic on the mic. Continuing with Tolis, the guitar duo Thanos Metallios and Jim Komninos bring the Olympic thunder with an endless stream of speed, thrash and classic ’80s metal riffs packed with big hooks. There’s plenty of speed-pluckery and speed-pluckery in the material, and it makes me wish Waters could write songs this fun after 1990.

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Violent Horror Stories sounds like a group of friends having fun making frantic metal for the dirty masses. Leatherhead have talent and an ear for hooks, and you’ll enjoy the glorious final product of their work. This fits well alongside bands like Ambush, so put on the right hat, blast it and start banging your skull against the wall in the name of all things metal. You won’t regret it, but you may be numb.