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Italy's Witchunter is another in a long line of bands playing in the classic 80s, NWOBHM style. Their debut, Crystal Demons, is full of buzzy guitars, frenetic drums and the loose, we-play-with-more-enthusiasm-than-talent performances that marked so many records back in the day. There's nothing complicated about Crystal Demons and Witchunter are OK with that. This is an album about having fun and playing Heavy Metal, plain and simple. Sure, singer "Psycho" Steve Di Leo's tendency to play it fast and loose with the concept of singing in tune gets old quick, but you can't fault the guy for giving it everything he has. Guitarist "Ace" Federico Iustini more than compensates with some excellent solo work.

There's nothing new in Witchunter's Saxon-inspired hard rocking Heavy Metal music but the band steps it up on the slow, Middle-Eastern-influenced "The Breath of Satan" as well as the Tygers of Pan Tang cover, "Hellbound." If you like your music executed with clinical precision, look elsewhere, but if you have a sweet tooth for the NWOBHM, Crystal Demons is worth a listen.