Review Wolf's Gang - Apocalypse 2011

Tracks
01. Crash
02. Maréchal de Fer
03. Guerre de Cent Ans
04. Toxique Luxure
05. Couloir de La Mort
06. Mon Combat
07. Docteur Satan
08. Génocide
09. Martyres de Nos Clans
10. Apocalypse

Band:
Julien Amiot - Guitars
Hermann Goizet - Bass
Fred Bailly - Vocals
Yohann Tanfin - Drums
Pierre Jacquinot - Guitars

Discography:
Debut

Guests:

Info:
Recorded at P&F Studios by Fred Rochette
Mixed by Fred Rochette and Wolf's Gang
Mastered by Fred Rochette
Cover and Design by Astargoth

Released /8-2011
Reviewed 6/12-2011

Links:
wolfsgang.monsite-orange.fr
myspace
youtube
emanes metal records

A gang of wolves, something desperately needed in the hunter infested area where I live. If we get wolves here they might actually kill off some hunters who are throwing off the balance of prey and predators, at least some prey animals. But hang on, wolves don’t kill people around here, in Sweden there hasn’t been a wolf related death in hundreds of years so I guess the hunters are right they will soon start killing of people and especially children who are on their way to school or out in the backyard playing with their toys, just like they don’t do to the children herding sheep in Romania. Anyway, a gang of wolves or Wolf’s Gang can also be a french heavy metal band who plays in the classic French Heavy Metal genre which is reserved to a very select group of artists. They have also for the album Apocalypse which is their debut received a rather mixed response in the three reviews I found easily. I don’t care about that though as I look at the rather cool looking apocalyptic album cover which I like and I also listen to the album without outside influences.

I think musically you will notice two things first: the sound is rather cheap almost like it was made in some third world country like China or Taiwan or maybe Korea, the vocals are sung in french much to the delight of one of the reviewers I read before starting to write this review. Beyond this there is a classic heavy metal album looming but with some rather atypical song structures which might make this album a bit less straightforward to take in, for some. Much of the riffing is classic heavy metal but there are some additional touches thrown in here and there to maybe spice it up a little bit with flavour. The sound is actually a little bit remnant of the Iron Maiden sound during the 1983s and maybe back to the year before as well, and the album possess ten tracks and it plays for just over 55 minutes.

So, I should think this is quite poor to be honest, the vocals are in french but they are not what I would call good, the sound is quite bad and it sound cheap as well as old, it is quite long and it is rather simple and bears a resemblance to a band I am not the biggest fan of. Nothing positive there but even so I like this album as is has some nice magic feel to it that makes it sound really good and added to that this novelty of the french vocals that is always a treat to hear in metal music. I think it is an album that feels so much greater than the sum of its parts, parts that frankly aren’t that good. It is hard to put a finger on what it is that makes this album such a treat to play but I think the music as a complete makes you forget the other flaws, it is simplistic in style but it still has enough little hooks to keep the listener interested.

I especially like the opening track Crash and the eighth track Genocidé which are two tracks that grabs the attention of the listener and makes him/her stay for a while and for me these are two tracks that makes me want to play this album again and again, two tracks that is a source for me wanting to play the album. The other tracks are not bad either, they are eight strong tracks that makes this album along with those greats a really good one. An album I would consider buying, especially had I liked the genre more.

So, it an album that becomes so much more than the sum of its parts, an album that sounds cheap and poorly made but it is still really good. One reviewer complained about the band singing in their native tongue which is french and that is really something I think is incredibly stupid and narrow minded, you can do well outside your home country singing in your native tongue, look at Iron Maiden for instance. With that said, I think that this gang succeeds really well in making this an interesting album.

HHHHHHH

Wolf's Gang Apocalypse

Wolf's Gang
Apocalypse