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Triumph & Tragedy is the fourth album from Spain’s Hitten and the grandiose title is a bit at odds with the music which is more early ‘80s US Metal than, say, symphonic metal. The singer has a strong, clear voice and tackles complex vocal lines quite admirably. He reminds me of a young Don Dokken in his ability to sing in a high register, but has a better range than Don ever did and on songs like "Core of the Flame" that had me thinking of the late Midnight from Crimson Glory. The music is heavy and melodic in the mainstream way US metal was before it diverged into hair and thrash, with some excellent guitar work, particularly the solo on "Meant to Be Mean" and others. Think George Lynch. Some of the songs embrace the commercial aesthetic while others are more metallic, but all are catchy. I listened to a lot of Dio, early Dokken, Keel and other similar bands in the early ‘80s because they were easy to find in my small town but still had enough of a metal edge to make my parents tell me to turn it down when I broke out the air guitar. Hitten’s Triumph & Tragedy brings me back to those times, so check it out if early ‘80s US metal lights the fuse for you.