Behold! The latest saga in my ongoing love/hate battle with the so-called NWOTHM is here, and it arrives in the form of my review of Rising: The sophomore album from Spanish trad metal troupe, Savaged. Now I’m sure I’ve asked this in a past review, so forgive me for repeating myself, but at this point in time, does the term “NWOTHM” hold any salt? It’s 2025, and lord knows I’ve been hearing this godforsaken acronym tossed around to describe the likes of Night Demon and Enforcer for at least a decade now. It’s become so prevalent that we’ve reached the point where this latest crop of bands owe more sonically to these throwback outfits than the very ’80s gods they set out to pay homage too. Would that make Savaged part of the “New New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal”? I don’t know, but I better get onto the album itself before I get ahead of myself.
Rising is a full fledged traditional metal affair if there ever was one. You could probably figure that out without even listening to a note of it, just from Savaged’s logo, or the album art, or the band themselves who look straight off the back cover of some Teutonic metal obscurity circa ’84. Alas, this band doesn’t hail from Germany, but rather Spain. From the opening “Fire It Up” (not to be confused with the Black Label Society song of the same name), it becomes very clear what Savaged is all about. Driving tempos, anthemic riffs, shred-tastic solos, high pitched vocals, and crystal clear production (teetering on the point of overproduction) is the M.O.
At certain points throughout, Rising double down on a hyper-melodic approach, channeling such ’80s titans as Scorpions, Dokken, Lizzy Borden, and Icon on cuts like “Queen of My Salvation” and “Stars Are Falling”, the latter especially boasting “hit single” potential if this were 40 years earlier. These accessible moments are countered by outbursts of what can best be described as proto-euro power metal bombast, particularly on the dramatic “Across the Burning Fields” and valorous “The Conqueror”. Neither fully cross the euro power threshold, but strongly resemble the prototypes for the genre explored by bands like Pretty Maids and Europe circa ’83/’84.
This is the case until the closing title track, on which Savaged go full blown power/speed in the tradition of Helloween. Sounding like a hybrid of Walls of Jericho‘s fury with Keeper of the Seven Keys‘ majesty, “Rising” is no doubt this album’s strongest moment, washing away the same-ness that begins to weigh things down come its back half in terms of writing and aesthetic. I’m not saying Savaged aren’t a commendable melodic metal band. Again, “Stars Are Falling” is a hit record if I’ve ever heard one. However, I’d like to see them explore this power metal vein further on subsequent releases.
With just a sharper focus intact and greater confidence to let loose (the overall vibe is a little too safe), Savaged are certainly capable of greatness. Rising is a cut above the usual mediocrity that dominates the NWOTHM realm, but a cut below the brilliance we’ve been treated to this year from acts like Savage Master, Vultures Vengeance, and so forth. All things considered, it’s worth your while if headbands and striped spandex pants are a part of your daily wardrobe, especially as we enter these warm summer months.
6 out of 10
Label: No Remorse Records
Genre: Heavy Metal
For fans of: Enforcer, Helloween, Lizzy Borden
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