Blizzen – Time Machine

Blizzen

Time Machine

by Tim Bolitho-Jones at 17 May 2015, 4:14 PM

If the four lads who make up BLIZZEN had been born a few decades earlier they’d have wound up on the WAYNE’S WORLD soundtrack. Defiantly old-school and damn proud of it, they write songs that are chock full of guitar riffs and when they sing about fighting for Heavy Metal, they mean it! They might never trouble the mainstream much, but there’s no reason they shouldn’t one day draw a huge crowd at WACKEN OPEN AIR while everyone who doesn’t speak German stands back wondering who they are.

With an upbeat pace and no trace of introspection, "Time Machine" is also loads of fun. There’s no ballads or mood pieces, just hard rocking songs with catchy choruses and a wild enthusiasm running through them. "Strike The Hammer" for example could have been a lost ACCEPT number and the title track is terrific, with a stand out vocal performance from frontman Daniel Steckenmasser. He’s got an impressive set of pipes on him and lord be praised, can actually sing! He never resorts to growls or barks and some of his higher notes could shatter glass.

It’s the kind of Metal that turns up to shows on Harley Davidsons, wears its own merchandise and is consistently enjoyable. The only real problem is that "Time Machine" should have been the closing track, as the following "Gone Wild" isn’t quite as good and doesn’t leave as strong an impression. For the most part though, this EP is a cool throwback to an era that restraint forgot. It’s not especially taxing, but it’s good beer drinking party music and sometimes that’s all you need. Crank it up in the car on the way to the Gasworks and you’ll have an awesome time!