Cherry Red [Release date: 06.10.23]

Every Impellitteri album from 1988 to 2009. Nine in all, and the band’s 2 EPs. Plus a score of bonus tracks. All shoehorned into 6 jampacked CDs.

(Such was the weight of heavy metal contained therein, a reinforced Clydebuilt box had to be specially commissioned.)

The need for speed has never been more apparent than in the finger blurring, neoclassical ‘Secret Lover’, taken from the band’s first studio album, 1988′s Stand In Line.

Chris Impellitteri wields his guitar like an UZI, spitting out a blur of notes that leave no one untouched. Surprisingly for one who is inclined to suffocate the vocals with fast fingers, he leaves room on the outstanding title track for Graham Bonnet to show just why he succeeded with Rainbow and Schenker.

This album was the template for a 35 year career, and counting.

1992’s Grin And Bear it release divided fans and critics both. Nobody could pin it down musically. Described by some as AOR (?) and others as neoclassical metal, it’s as enigmatic as albums go.

‘City’s On Fire’ and ‘Under The Gun’ give a pretty good indication of the album’s socially aware message.

And although the follow up, Answer To The Master (1994) seemed to be treading water (yet still delivering the superb ‘Hungry Days’ and ‘Fly Away’) it also brought with it some controversy over its reputedly “vivid Christian themes”, but that’s another story (The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Metal does say that “They are unknown in much of contemporary Christian sub-culture”, but that’s debatable.)

By 1996, the band was attracting premier league producers. Michael (Accept/ Dokken/ Skid Row) Wagener manned the mixing desk for Screaming Symphony. It’s a blast from start to finish, and contains two of the band’s live set list favourites: ’17th Century Chicken’ and ‘Rat Race’, plus the immense ‘Father Forgive Them’.

It was awarded “Album of The Year” by HM magazine.

Eye Of The Hurricane… that centre point at which the maelstrom is still … is an apt title for this 1997 album. The recording takes this moment to illustrate the length and breadth of the band’s rock and metal range, adding two superb ballads ‘On and On’ and ‘Paradise’ to the band’s expanding canon.

Impellitteri EP (1987): In the beginning was this EP. It got a lot of music media attention, despite (or because of) its raw production. A more polished version of ‘Play With Fire’ featured on the band’s debut album, Stand In Line.

Victim Of The System (1993) EP went down well with a growing fanbase. Original vocalist Rob Rock was back, helping the band create a perfect mix of interpretive finesse and speed. ‘The Young And the Ruthless’, wrapped in a glorious rush of amplitude and complexity, is perhaps the EP’s standout.

In the year 2000, the band released the album, Crunch, it came on the cusp of a major change in just how rock music should sound, and so, drop tunings became part of the band’s musical arrangements. ‘Spanish Fire’ and ‘Texas Nuclear’ successfully claimed the middle ground… a skilful transition from past to present.

A lot can change in 2 years. On 2002′s System X, Bonnet was back, and along with Chris Impellitteri they twin up axe and voice, pushing the needle of the band’s stylistic compass back into the red. Fans loved it, especially ‘Falling In Love’ and ‘Rock’n’Roll Heroes’.

Pedal to The Metal (2005) was an outstanding critical success. It resonates with the sheer joy of running the heavy metal gauntlet, taking the punches, fighting back, weighing up the past and pushing on through the present.

The contemporary metal ‘Propaganda Mind’ is the pick, written, we would guess, for very personal reasons. Apart from melted frets and skyscraping vocals, you can always rely on Impellitteri and Rock to serve up a slice or two of social commentary.

2009′s Wicked Maiden doesn’t disappoint. Rob Rock’s sharp, observational lyrics take no prisoners as they condemn mankind’s propensity for violence. The title track and album standout, ‘Garden Of Eden’, carry the message.

And so, 9 albums and 2 EPs later we come to 17 genuine bonus tracks. The majority come from the Live, Fast, Loud, bootleg album compiled from the band’s Japanese tour recordings.

Many are live versions of the obvious stuff – ‘Stand In Line’, ‘Victim Of The System’ and so forth – but probably ‘Burning’ and ‘Lost In The Rain’ from 1987’s Impellitteri EP make the most impact. That said ‘Warrior’ and ‘The King Is Rising’, both from Answer To The Master, sound amazingly powerful in this raw, unadorned state.

This is a hell of a boxset. Impellitteri’s is quite some career to look back on.

And it continues still. *****

Review by Brian McGowan

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