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Review: Striker - Ultrapower
Striker
www.striker-metal.com
Ultrapower

Label: Record Breaking Records
Year released: 2024
Duration: 41:26
Tracks: 11
Genre: Heavy/Power Metal

Rating:
3.5/5


Review online: May 11, 2024
Reviewed by: MetalMike
Readers' Rating
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Rated 3.89/5 (77.78%) (9 Votes)
Review

I've been following Striker for several albums now and over that time, they've released some really fine records, but they've also been going in a direction over the last few that I don't find very appealing. Where initially they played energetic traditional metal, on their seventh album, Ultrapower, they are embracing a lot of elements that give their sound a more commercial, hard rock vibe. The album kicks off with the aptly named title track, a raucous number that calls for the air guitar. After that, Striker experiment with things like overdriven vocals ("Sucks to Suck") that bring to mind Rage Against the Machine, electronic-sounding drums ("Live to Fight Another Day") that remind me of the '80s song "Maniac" by Michael Sembello from the movie Flashdance, and horns ("Give it All") that bring up Glenn Frey's "You Belong to the City" and the '70s classic "Baker Street" by Gerry Rafferty. I'm not saying Striker is playing '70s/'80s pop here, and maybe I'm just old (replace "maybe" with "definitely"), but I can't shake the notion that when I am listening to this one, I'm hearing something akin to a lost Night Ranger album. The guys in Striker are pros, so the playing is solid and the songwriting seems to be hitting the intended target, it just isn't for me. If you like your metal to have a thick streak of accessible hard rock, maybe Ultrapower will suit your tastes. Personally, I'll be going back to Armed to the Teeth.

See below for more reviews and interviews... ↓
More about Striker...
Review: Armed to the Teeth (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Armed to the Teeth (reviewed by Sargon the Terrible)
Review: City of Gold (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Play to Win (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Stand in the Fire (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Striker (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Ultrapower (reviewed by Michel Renaud)
Interview with guitarist Tim Brown on November 21, 2018 (Interviewed by MetalMike)
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