Midnight Rider - Beyond The Blood Red Horizon

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Some five years ago I heard an absolutely brilliant album that mixed the sounds of early JUDAS PRIEST with those of Ozzy era BLACK SABBATH. The fact that these guys are from the Ruhr area in Germany only made me appreciate “Manifestation” even more. I actually had to work at achieving the physical CD, as the big online shops didn’t have it, and ordering through the band was not very easy at that time. Thankfully my local record shop Wil’m was willing to step up and make sure that I -got it in my possession. It has been spinning around in my CD-player quite a lot.

And now, finally, MIDNIGHT RIDER are blessing us with their second full-length album. Massacre Records have picked up the band, which makes “Beyond The Blood Red Horizon” easily available in many formats. But, you will have to wait until October 7^th, 2022 before you can enjoy this album in its finest form. So, you can understand that I am very grateful for being allowed to review this gem.

Yes, gem, as this again is a very good MIDNIGHT RIDER album. the sound has changed a bit. No, not the atmosphere, as that is still deeply grounded into the seventies Heavy Metal / Rock vibe, with the influences of JUDAS PRIEST and BLACK SABBATH very much palpable. But, they have added some more. Now you also will hear RAINBOW/DEEP PURPLE riffs and sounds passing through your ears. The song that could have been penned by The Man In Black is the closing tune “Always Marching On”. Just imagine this being played by him and sung by RJD. Heavenly. But you will hear those influences coming through more than once. The amalgamation of all these sounds give “Beyond The Blood Red Horizon” a very distinctive sound, enhanced by the very distinctive voice of Wayne.

If you love your seventies sound in the heavy sector, I can only say that you need to turn your ears to MIDNIGHT RIDER and both of their albums. “Manifestation” gave evidence that these guys know how to rock to a high standard. I have to admit that “Beyond The Blood Red Horizon” not only does that, but also shows that they have the possibility to expand their sound and enhance their quality. I will be enjoying this new one quite a lot for the foreseeable future. I hope you’ll join me.

Songwriting: 10
Musicianship: 9
Memorability: 10
Production: 10