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Running Wild

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Wednesday, December 8: Grave Digger, “Kill Ritual”

At various points during “Kill Ritual” it sounded like Chris Boltendahl was actually trying to sing a bit. It was more than a little surprising, since Healed by Metal was Grave Digger’s 73rd album (actually more like their 17th, but close enough), and by the time the track appeared toward the end of the record listeners had already been regaled/harangued by over half an hour of frazzled battle cries, so hearing something resembling singing, as opposed to Boltendahl’s usual frazzled gargling, was certainly startling. That said, “Kill Ritual” was still a Grave Digger number, so it charged forward with Jens Becker’s and Stefan Arnold’s steady rhythms and Axel Ritt’s simplistic but effective riffing. It was a prototypical GD banger, in a good way, kicking ass without making a fuss or trying to draw attention to how metal it was (as opposed to the title track, which was just full-on idiotic). If nothing else, the song showed that Boltendahl and Grave Digger were still good for a fun rager every so often, despite churning out albums at a rate that would make Saxon blush.

Grave Digger - Home at Last

2012

Friday, March 12: Running Wild, “Tortuga Bay”

Death or Glory was where it all came together for Running Wild: Port Royal was a major step up in terms of writing and overall consistency, but its impact was hampered by thin production. But whether by luck, a bigger recording budget or simply the benefit of experience, Rock n’ Rolf finally delivered the pirate metal opus that sounded as frenetic, intense and powerful as the songs suggested. So whereas “Tortuga Bay” would’ve felt a bit tentative just one year and one album earlier, on Death or Glory it popped with ramshackle fury. It helped that the song was performed by one of Running Wild’s best lineups: Iain Finlay not only supplied the trashcan drumming, but proved to be a valuable co-writer that apparently helped Rolf Kasparek turn his tales of high seas adventure into proper English. But most of all, “Tortuga Bay” was a really good time, a fun headbanger and foundational pirate metal number that once and for all proved Running Wild was the real deal.