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This is actually the fourth album for Exxplorer, who apparently changed their name from Explorer because somebody else had it. Anyway, this band put out their debut in 1984, then nothing until 1994, another one in '96. . . so their output has been spotty, and I had never heard of them at all. I wasn't expecting much, as if a band was going to be great, after 27 years they would have managed it by now, right?

This is actually a really cool slab of old-fashioned 80's Heavy Metal, and the only thing that sounds modern about this is the recording job, which is far too punchy to be retro. This is very much in the vein of classic US metal like Steel Assassin, Jag Panzer, or even Helstar. Vocalist Lenny Rizzo is not a high-pitched wailer, sounding more like David Coverdale than anybody else. What makes this shine is the old-school steel riffs all over the place – chugging, hooky riffs that are not too simplistic, but still direct enough to hit like a brick.

This disc has it all: solid songs, killer riffs, strong vocals, and a gutsy but still rough production job. They may be relics, but Exxplorer have their shit together, and I hope this is the start of bigger things for them. 80's metal fans do not want to miss this.