Naming your band “Fortress” in 2021 is practically a death sentence. Why? Because there’s literally been dozens of bands named “Fortress” over the past 40 years. Don’t take my word for it. Take the Metal Archives‘! So when some headbangers in the know told me to check out the new Fortress album, my first thought was, “Which one?” Well Joe, today’s Fortress is the one from California. No, not that one, that one, or that one, but this one. Don’t you love hearing my inner monologue?
This latest Californian band to bear the name Fortress formed five years ago and has been rather busy since. They released a self titled EP in 2018, followed by a 2019 split with one of the biggest bands of the so called NWOTHM, Haunt. I can only imagine their debut full length, Don’t Spare the Wicked, would’ve dropped earlier if it weren’t for that pesky pandemic, but hey, better late than never. Some might argue over calling this a full length to begin with. Its eight songs (one being an instrumental) clock in at a little under 29 minutes. Is that “enough”? Well today’s age of one bloated “Let’s fill the whole damn CD.” release after the next, it sure is.
Don’t Spare the Wicked sounds nothing like how I expected it to. I was bracing myself for some in your face, Jag Panzer meets Omen style US steel, as is the approach many 80s revivalists go for these days. To hear dramatic riffing, grandiose synthesizers, and neoclassical leanings on the album’s opening cut, “Lost Forever”, was a pleasant surprise. This is power metal alright, but in the grand tradition of Yngwie Malmsteen as opposed to say early Savatage. The fact that their singer is a dead ringer for Graham Bonnet only makes this release even more exciting. Aside from “Lost Forever”, the dark aura of “Anguish” and rapid fire assault of the title track give us a glimpse into what a Bonnet/Malmsteen reunion would sound like.
When they aren’t channeling the finest moments of Alcatrazz, Fortress employs a heavy dose of melody to their brand of old school metal. “Devil’s Wheel” is an example of such: Heavy and melodic, yet fun and catchy from beginning to end. “Children of the Night” is another in the melodic vein, but boasts a structure and arrangement more characteristic of AOR than metal. Think Foreigner meets late 80s Yngwie. Heavy AOR? Melodic metal? Whatever you wanna call it, it’s hooky as all hell. In the middle of it all is “Find Yourself”: An all out Maiden worship hymn with enough gallop riffs and gusto to cleanse one’s palette of the prog metal primadonna-fest that is Senjutsu.
After a couple spins of Don’t Spare the Wicked, THIS Fortress is the only Fortress you’ll care about…until another worthwhile band named Fortress comes along. You know it’s gonna happen folks. This is Spinal Tap was too real for its own good. And this Fortress is too good to be lumped in with all the other Fortresses.
7 out of 10
Label: High Roller Records
Genre: Heavy Metal
For fans of: Yngwie Malmsteen, Alcatrazz, Iron Maiden