Grave Digger War Games LP kreator Acid sodom heavy metal thrash speed record

Description: Brand new LP. Sealed. GRAVE DIGGERWar Games LP DOUBLEMINT colored vinyl High Roller Records, reissue 2023, doublemint vinyl, ltd 400, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover, insert printed on uncoated paper, poster, Transfer, audio restoration and mastering by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in March 2023. Cutting by SST Germany on Neumann machines for optimal quality on all levels... The ultimate audiophile reissue of this German Metal classic! ------- GRAVE DIGGER - War Games LP HRR 919LP, ltd 1000, 400 x black, 400 doublemint green + 200 x light blue/ white splatter vinyl, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover, insert, poster Chris Boltendahl - vocalsPeter Masson - guitarC.F. Brank - bassAlbert Eckardt - drums 01 Keep On Rockin'02 Heaven Can Wait03 Fire In Your Eyes04 Let Your Heads Roll05 Love Is Breaking My Heart 06 Paradise07 Enola Gay (Drop The Bomb)08 Fallout09 Playin' Fools10 The End AVAILABLE Transfer, audio restoration and mastering by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in March 2023.Cutting by SST Germany on Neumann machines for optimal quality on all levels...The ultimate audiophile reissue of this eternal German Metal classic! Originally formed in 1980 in the city of Gladbeck, North Rhine-Westphalia, by Chris Boltendahl (on bass), Peter Masson (guitar and vocals) and Lutz Schmelzer (drums) it took a while for Grave Digger to establish a stable line-up. Chris Bolthendahl soon took over vocals duties with Peter Masson concentrating on the guitar, Willi Lackmann was added on bass and Phillip Seibel sat behind the drum stool. With this line-up Grave Digger recorded the two songs “Violence” and “2,000 Light Years From Home” for the compilation »Rock From Hell – German Metal Attack«, which was released on Noise Recors in 1983. As a result, Noise boss Karl-Ulrich Walterbach offered the band a record deal. Grave Digger’s first two albums »Heavy Metal Breakdown« (1984) and »Witch Hunter« (1985) received great reactions from fans and press alike. The band toured extensively on a nationwide level and in the process shot to the top of the emerging heavy metal scene in Germany. Recorded by Chris Boltendahl (vocals), Albert Eckhardt (drums), Peter Masson (guitar) and C.F. Brank (bass), »War Games«, originally issued in 1986, also on Noise Records, suffered from the “difficult third album” syndrome. At least if you believe Canadian metal journalist Martin Popoff, who wrote in his book »The Collector’s Guide To Heavy Metal Vol.2: The Eighties«: “»War Games« is superficially more of the great sustained mayhem of the first two, but something is lacking. […"> Production values are still excruciatingly glorious, but the band’s delivery is a tad loose, slapdash and lackadaisical. […"> Admirably fierce but also a trace sluggish, »War Games« still manages to kick harder emotionally than a lot of the aggro of the ‘90s and beyond.” Holger Stratmann’s view in Rock Hard was quite similar: “There is no big difference to »Witch Hunter«, apart from the fact that »War Games« is sounding better and in the form of ‘Fallout’ there is a number on the album which shows a bit more depth.” He concludes awarding 8 out of 10 points: “In direct comparison to »War Games«, »Witch Hunter« is the slightly better album. However,a few more ideas wouldn’t have hurt.” Grave Digger singer and main man Chris Boltendahl himself concluded in his own biography in 2002: “I can’t remember exactly why we followed a more commercial route on this album. However, regarding the concept »War Games« was almost some sort of dress rehearsal for our medieval trilogy in the mid to late 1990s.” MATTHIAS MADER After their second album "Witch Hunter" was a disappointment in every possible way, the Grave Digger fans of the 80s wanted the quality "Witch Hunter" could not deliver. So the band hired their new bass player Chris F. Brank, tried to get their shit together again and wrote their best album to date. In 1986 "War Games" saw the light of day and tried to improve over the mess that was "Witch Hunter". With their third album the band even slightly surpassed their debut "Heavy Metal Breakdown". A good sign, or not? Hmm, to be honest "War Games" is a mixed sort of an album full of good ideas and strong ambitions but it still has too many of the same issues on which "Heavy Metal Breakdown" and "Witch Hunter" suffered before. If you look at the the songwriting you know what I mean. But I have to be fair, the songwriting appears way more mature than on "Witch Hunter" and "Heavy Metal Breakdown" but at the same time it is still too generic and lazy to really overshadow the issues of the last two records. Grave Digger still relies on its old formula: Some goofy lyrics, choruses that are repeated to death and riffs that, although they hit hard sometimes, are really exchangeable most of the time. But, and this is the most important thing on "War Games", it doesn't suck balls. Oh no, it fucking rocks! Yes, we may still get silly lyrics like in "Let Your Heads Roll", which builds on a rhythmic but unspectacular riff straight out of the heavy metal handbook of the 80s and a mantra-like chorus that repeats itself 100 times. "Fallout", for example, is a mid-tempo stomper without any silly lyrical ejaculations, even the verses sound exciting, but everything is dressed up in a gown of average riff and drum work and a repetitive chorus. "Heaven Can Wait" drags its way through the verses until it somehow explode in its good but too repetitive chorus line. This all may sound a little harsh but it isn't meant to sound that way, it is just a fact. And although "War Games" isn't revolutionary or a timeless classic that will be placed beside Accept's "Restless and Wild" or "Balls to the Wall", Grave Digger manage to spread a strong attitude never seen before on the previous albums. Chris Boltendahl sounds as dirty and mean as ever but I cannot deny that he has clearly evolved since his work on "Witch Hunter". He seems to be able now to control the power of his voice so he doesn't sound like a air raid siren constantly. Even his clean singing has matured very well. His evolution is most evident in the typical ballad that every 80s Grave Digger album contained so far, "Love Is Breaking My Heart". The previous two ballads on "Heavy Metal Breakdown" and "Witch Hunter" were half a desaster, I didn't liked "Love Is a Game" very much and I considered "Yesterday" a catastrophe. From the title alone, I predicted the same fate for "Love Is Breaking My Heart", but thankfully I was wrong. Don't get me wrong, even "Love Is Breaking My Heart" is far away from being a fantastic experience but it is a good but saccharine sounding ballad. Piano intro, a whiny verse and an epic chorus. Chris Boltendahl really transports feelings to the listener, the guitars relies on simple power chords with a tasty little solo in the middle of the song. A cliched but somehow epic piece and finally a good ballad, although even this song is still far from being outstanding. Also Peter Masson sounds way more inspired here than on "Witch Hunter". His guitar work is more refined, even it is garnered with the typical speed metal texture, but his riffs are way more memorable than on "Witch Hunter" or "Heavy Metal Breakdown". In "(Enola Gay) Drop the Bomb", "Paradise" or especially in "Fire in Your Eyes" he throws some cool riffs out in the fields. Masson's solos are also way more refined than on previous albums and have matured very well. Albert Eckardt on the other hand, does what he does best, playing fast and relentless or slow and boring. His drumming was never of the most special kind, but he knows how to play the most fitting beats for every song. In this case, that is enough. In conclusion, "War Games" is the best album Grave Digger has recorded in the golden 80s and proved that not every legacy starts as exciting and influential as Accept's or Rage's does. Sadly the full potential that slept within Grave Digger wasn't used or pushed to its limits. They tried too hard to gain more success, although I think they had deserved it in any way because the music was fun and written with love. Nonetheless "War Games" is a good but mostly forgotten album by a german legend that split up after this album and started a new project under the name Digger. They tried to commercialise their sound to gain more money, but even this attempt failed. So they changed their name to Hawaii and released a demo under said moniker. After that everyone except Chris Boltendahl left the band. In the end even Chris Boltendahl called it quits and Grave Digger was just a memory in the history of 80s german heavy metal...

Price: 31.9 USD

Location: Baltimore, Maryland

End Time: 2024-09-12T23:06:22.000Z

Shipping Cost: 6.5 USD

Product Images

Grave Digger War Games LP kreator Acid sodom heavy metal thrash speed record

Item Specifics

All returns accepted: ReturnsNotAccepted

Artist: Chateaux, Helloween, Morbid Angel, Morbid Saint, Ostrogoth, Running Wild, Testament, Witchfinder General, acid, aragorn, dark angel, demon, grave digger, jaguar, praying mantis, savage, tank, warrior, witch cross

Speed: 33 RPM

Record Label: high roller records

Release Title: war games

Case Type: Cardboard Sleeve

Color: Red

Material: Vinyl

Inlay Condition: Mint (M)

Edition: Collector's Edition, Limited Edition

Type: LP

Unit Type: oz

Record Grading: Mint (M)

Format: Record