Any fans here? White Wizzard is a newer band, and to me they seem like defenders of some of the old school stuff, Judas Priest, Saxon, etc. They have put out 2 EPs and one album so far, so they're relatively young, but I have high hopes for this band. I think they're awesome. A lot of nice catchy songs and some stuff that really reminds me of classic material from other bands.

I'm probably one of the biggest classic metal buffs around here, but i dislike WW. they are simply copycats, and base their own success on referencing established bands like Priest, Maiden or Diamond Head.

now i realize many of my favorite bands aren't too original, but these guys take it to a whole different level. Their song 40 Deuces is basically a sampling of Priest's Desert Plains. How can anyone not call them out on it is beyond me, who cares if it's a tribute or something, you take a whole song (and an obscure one!) which belonged to another band and then you try to convince people it's your own. that is not acceptable on any level.

the only song by them which i find really good and enjoyable is High Speed GTO, but that's it.

It's true, they do emulate the sound of older bands a lot. But I think they're still a good band for a number reasons. The first being that old sound is awesome, and you can't deny they do a pretty good job of getting the Dio/Priest/Maiden flavour in some songs. The second being that there's really not many bands around these days that people who like metal, but weren't around in the 80's to listen to, that are good quality. Sure, Maiden, Priest (not for long), Metallica, and a bunch of other 80's bands are still touring, but you are missing out on the prime if you weren't around in the 80's (like me). It's kind of cool that maybe, one day, they will be a bigger band, and I can look back and be like, fuck yeah, I liked White Wizzard and whatever other bands like them (Holy Grail, which is composed of some of their members, is good too) in their prime time. Not 30 years after it. The first Maiden concert I ever went to was last year, and it was good, but it was not great.

Just my opinion though.

High Speed GTO is probably their best song; I recall watching it on YouTube and a comment (not by me) stated that the guy who played an 'angry dwarf' should receive an emmy for his performance.

Written by Mattybu on 05.07.2011 at 02:05

The first Maiden concert I ever went to was last year, and it was good, but it was not great.

me too, but it was underwhelming for a reason, namely the poor setlist...

anyway yeah it makes sense to root for bands who are now in their prime, but in my opinion at least Priest, Scorpions, Accept and Maiden (to name a few) are far more technical nowadays than they used to be in the 80s, and combined with their legendary status, brilliant shows and old school attitude, I find them much better now than on the videos of their 80s concerts. Any of these bands are better at doing their shit than WW.

The way I see it, most people complain about vocalists not being able to do their job anymore, but imo all those reasons are moot. Halford has grown that subtle gruff in his voice and his screams now sound absolutely evil, Dickinson has better control and his voice doesn't slip all over the place like on Live After Death, Klaus Meine's voice is much smoother and he's a much better showman, the guys at Accept now sound even more menacing and epic than on Balls to the Wall, Byff Byford's voice has actually (though i have no idea how) improved continously over the years, and the guys at Anvil are even more technical than before. Now i realize that many vocalists obviously lost their voice like Ozzy, King Diamond or Paul Di'Anno, but on the whole I love how most of them evolved over the years.

On the other hand, the guy at WW sounds like he's still in his teens, which is great if you like some youthful energy added to the music, but on the other hand along with their mostly juvenile lyrics and cliche music, it makes it sound fake to me, almost like a bunch of guys in high school who are all stoked on some new heavy metal fad (which is obvious in their image too). It's like they skip their classes to go to metal shows, and act like the guy in Steel Panther's video "Death to All but Metal" or something.

Reminded me of this hilarious picture too:

Ya know man... I went and listened to their stuff, got their album, along with Holy Grail's, cuz James Larue is a friend of mine (ex founding member of both)... and I have to say that they definitely have classic metal elements to them, but they were just a bit too much rock n roll for me... Not bad really, just not my style entirely.

Written by Valentin B on 05.07.2011 at 09:50


anyway yeah it makes sense to root for bands who are now in their prime, but in my opinion at least Priest, Scorpions, Accept and Maiden (to name a few) are far more technical nowadays than they used to be in the 80s, and combined with their legendary status, brilliant shows and old school attitude, I find them much better now than on the videos of their 80s concerts. Any of these bands are better at doing their shit than WW.

I find videos of Maiden's 80's concerts to be the best, to pick on one band. The thing is back then, it just seemed like there would've been this kind of idea of being a part of something. Maiden's early tours with Dickinson just looked fuckin' awesome, and on top of that, throughout the 80's Maiden kept on putting out fantastic albums. I heard a perfect quote in a review of The Final Frontier. "Iron Maiden marches where they once galloped". And when I think about that, I realize it's so true. The energy of albums like Powerslave and Number of the Beast is mostly not there, so when I start thinking of the band as a whole, not specifically their live or studio material, I picture them as downrights legends, but legends that, sadly, aren't going anywhere but down. Then I imagine how great it would be to be part of the rise. I don't know if I've explained myself very well, I can sometimes not be good at that, but maybe you can kind of understand that.

And Priest isn't going to be touring for much longer, but I do agree with you in saying they're still doing their thing damn well. Although I also wouldn't have minded being a part of the Priest uprising through the 70's and 80's and ending with what I think was their high peak, Painkiller. Damn I really have to see whichever date on their final tour is closest to me.

Another example of a band, not necessarily old school metal, that went down the drain: Metallica. I watch the video of Seattle '89 and listen to their first 4 albums and just think, wow. These guys really helped start a whole movement with this stuff, and this is fucking great. Then I listen to their 90's crap, and their live performances where they play Enter Sandman like it's a good song or something, and it just disappoints me. I imagine what it would be like to be around in the 80's when Metallica had not yet heavily tarnished their reputation for me. Especially because they were one of the first metal bands I knew of, and prior to hearing their post 90's material (my first two albums of theirs were Kill 'Em All and ...And Justice for All) I thought they were awesome.

I guess this really varies from band to band. Some bands age well, some don't, and some pretty much stay the same. All I'm saying about WW is I'm glad bands are starting up that are playing old school style stuff and creating the oppurtunity for younger people to maybe be a part of their high points, and really get to experience the history of these bands.

Written by Mattybu on 05.07.2011 at 21:37

I guess this really varies from band to band. Some bands age well, some don't, and some pretty much stay the same. All I'm saying about WW is I'm glad bands are starting up that are playing old school style stuff and creating the oppurtunity for younger people to maybe be a part of their high points, and really get to experience the history of these bands.

I see what you mean there. It's like you want to be a part of this great metal uprising like in the early 80's and WW is a modern equivalent of that. I kinda agree with it, there's been quite a surge in popularity for classic metal in the past 1-2 years, driven by the popularity of bands like this, Steel Panther, Evile, and Wasp and Accept's brilliant last albums. So enjoy the ride while it lasts

Written by Holy Man on 05.07.2011 at 19:54

they were just a bit too much rock n roll for me... Not bad really, just not my style entirely.

Same here. I guess they rolled through Denver a couple days ago. My bass player went and saw them and said they were a lot better live.

Written by Vacant Throne on 06.07.2011 at 10:06

Written by Holy Man on 05.07.2011 at 19:54

they were just a bit too much rock n roll for me... Not bad really, just not my style entirely.

Same here. I guess they rolled through Denver a couple days ago. My bass player went and saw them and said they were a lot better live.

I was at that same show and it was pretty good. their singer is fucking awesome... especially for the first few songs....but he began to fade

Written by Valentin B on 05.07.2011 at 21:49

Written by Mattybu on 05.07.2011 at 21:37

I guess this really varies from band to band. Some bands age well, some don't, and some pretty much stay the same. All I'm saying about WW is I'm glad bands are starting up that are playing old school style stuff and creating the oppurtunity for younger people to maybe be a part of their high points, and really get to experience the history of these bands.

I see what you mean there. It's like you want to be a part of this great metal uprising like in the early 80's and WW is a modern equivalent of that. I kinda agree with it, there's been quite a surge in popularity for classic metal in the past 1-2 years, driven by the popularity of bands like this, Steel Panther, Evile, and Wasp and Accept's brilliant last albums. So enjoy the ride while it lasts

Yeah, exactly. Right on.

And, on top of that, I actually like the music a lot. The first song I heard of theirs was High Roller from the Over the Top (suitably named) album, and I was pretty blown away. Just reminded of powerful singing like Dio, catchy riffs like Judas Priest, and just an overall fun kind of vibe to it, as well as really good production.

Another thing to consider with the musical aspect, is they're still a very young band, and they've only put out one full-length album. Plenty of room to get better still!

Written by Mattybu on 07.07.2011 at 06:41

Written by Valentin B on 05.07.2011 at 21:49

Written by Mattybu on 05.07.2011 at 21:37

I guess this really varies from band to band. Some bands age well, some don't, and some pretty much stay the same. All I'm saying about WW is I'm glad bands are starting up that are playing old school style stuff and creating the oppurtunity for younger people to maybe be a part of their high points, and really get to experience the history of these bands.

I see what you mean there. It's like you want to be a part of this great metal uprising like in the early 80's and WW is a modern equivalent of that. I kinda agree with it, there's been quite a surge in popularity for classic metal in the past 1-2 years, driven by the popularity of bands like this, Steel Panther, Evile, and Wasp and Accept's brilliant last albums. So enjoy the ride while it lasts

Yeah, exactly. Right on.

And, on top of that, I actually like the music a lot. The first song I heard of theirs was High Roller from the Over the Top (suitably named) album, and I was pretty blown away. Just reminded of powerful singing like Dio, catchy riffs like Judas Priest, and just an overall fun kind of vibe to it, as well as really good production.

Another thing to consider with the musical aspect, is they're still a very young band, and they've only put out one full-length album. Plenty of room to get better still!

youre right... and if these guys focus more on making great music instead of retro music well have a real killer on our hands