Tailgunner - Midnight Blitz - review
Tailgunner - Midnight Blitz - review
Tracklist
01. Midnight Blitz02. Tears In Rain
03. Follow Me In Death
04. Dead Until Dark
05. Barren Lands & Seas Of Red
06. War In Heaven
07. Blood Sacrifice
08. Night Raids
09. Eye Of The Storm
10. Eulogy
A review by
omne metallum February 12, 2026
It's a rarity in music that a band's debut effort truly hits the mark (or would it be target, in this case?) and sounds like the finished article rather than a work in progress. This exclusive club welcomed a new member to its ranks in 2023, as Tailgunner roared into life with their opening salvo Guns For Hire, an album that coalesced and celebrated the traditional heavy metal sound and style in one concise package. Having spent the interim years putting miles on the clock, fans were left to ponder the question of how the band could follow up such an album; in Midnight Blitz, fans finally get their answer. So grab your aviation goggles and chocks away, as Tailgunner take flight once more.
Listeners immediately get their answer as the wails of air raid sirens recede into the background and are replaced with the band's familiar high-energy style on the title track. Yes, Midnight Blitz soars high in the sky like the band's debut effort, offering up another set of tracks soon to become additional favourites. While Midnight Blitz is largely built from the same cloth as Guns For Hire, Tailgunner do spread their metal wings and tinker at the edges of their sound: not overhauling it by any means, but certainly pushing the envelope in places.
After soaring back into the clouds above with the title track, "Tears In Rain" maintains the same altitude as Cairns' powerful melodic vocals are complemented by Salvini and Thompson's dual guitars, something perfected on "Night Raids", where those searchlights become Tailgunner's spotlight. The band did well to choose a kindred spirit in KK Downing to sit behind the producer's desk, as he gives the likes of "Follow Me In Death" exactly what it needs to excel and understands Tailgunner to the note.
When the band do decide to test their limits, it is to mixed results. "Barren Lands & Seas of Red" ups the aggression and takes on a thrashier edge that sees the plane reach altitudes that few outside of Icarus dare to soar to. The other track is much the opposite, however, both in construction and success, that being "War In Heaven", a ballad that, while not 'grab your parachute and bail out' bad, sees Tailgunner do into a nose dive that they eventually manage to pull out off with the following "Blood Sacrifice". While it's not that a simple trade-off of energy for emotion doesn't work, it's not being able to do it convincingly that sees "War In Heaven" flounder; if the band were to attempt similar on their next album, I'd still give it a go.
Those who want more than a refinement (and liken this to regurgitation) of a sound and genre done many times before will likely find little to sink their teeth into on Midnight Blitz. However, those who float in and out of the genre as revivalist bands come and go (Holy Grail, Glacier (USA-PO), Fury) will likely find plenty to pull them back in, as the band have refined exactly what you want out of the genre.
Tailgunner take flight once more and soar high above the clouds. Midnight Blitz shows that the band are not a flash-in-a-pan phenomenon, and there is plenty more fuel in their tanks.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 8 |
| Songwriting: | 7 |
| Originality: | 4 |
| Production: | 8 |
Written on 12.02.2026 by
Written on 12.02.2026 by
Just because I don't care doesn't mean I'm not listening. Comments
Comments:
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Posts: 215
Indeed the band has “refined exactly what you want out of the genre“! This is it! This is the accomplishment of this album. I really enjoyed it! Very well made ! Lots of work on these compositions/arrangements
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 Posts: 64503 |
Posts: 64503
Damn good album lne of best in a genre in a 20 years something
---- I stand whit Ukraine and Israel. They have right to defend own citizens. Stormtroopers of Death - "Speak English or Die"  I better die, because I never will learn speek english, so I choose dieing
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