The ’20s have been quite the victory lap (pun fully intended) for Herman Frank. After roughly a decade of dormancy, the veteran guitarist revived the iconic hard and heavy band, Victory, to much fanfare. 2021’s Gods of Tomorrow was an all killer, no filler affair, showcasing a brand new lineup while staying true to the classic sound of albums like Culture Killed the Native (1989) and Temples of Gold (1990). However, considering the band’s track record through the 21st century, one could be forgiven for thinking it would be another decade before we heard from these Teutonic titans again. Lucky for us, it only took a few years for Victory to strike back with their twelfth studio album, Circle of Life.
Much like Gods of Tomorrow before it, Circle of Life is loud, proud, and packed to the brim with hard rockin’ energy. If you’re looking for sappy ballads, flashy musicianship, and thought provoking suites, look elsewhere, because Victory stick to what they do best, and that’s big rockers with big hooks, big riffs, big choruses…you get the idea. It’s go big or go home, and Victory don’t plan on leaving anytime soon. Frank has found a groove with this new incarnation that most hard rock and traditional metal outfits would fork over a kidney for.
I mentioned the WWE intro vibes scattered throughout the last album, so imagine my delight when Circle of Life opens with an anthem that captures this spirit to a tee. “Tonight We Rock” is a gloriously over the top rocker that does a fantastic job setting the stage for a truly larger than life outing. Carefree blasts of high voltage hedonism like “American Girl”, “Reason to Live”, and “Virtual Sin” aren’t far removed from fellow euro party kings Krokus, making this an all the more enjoyable listen, while “Surrender My Heart” and “Falling” capture that mystical euro melodic metal essence that manages to grab this fickle American hook, line, and sinker.
Also like Gods of Tomorrow, while Circle of Life is primarily a hard rock album, it’s not without its metal moments. There’s something about “Moonlit Sky” that channels the more accessible side of Accept’s Balls to the Wall à la “Losing More Than You’ve Ever Had” and “Love Child”. Heaven forbid Wolf Hoffmann ever hears it, he’ll get angry at Herman retroactively for not thinking this one up 40+ years ago! There’s also the all guns blazing romp that is “Money”: A go for the throat euro metal rager, complete with driving drums and fiery guitar work. I can totally see the festival hordes headbanging in unison to this one next summer.
In an era where American hard rock has since become overwrought with post-grunge facelessness or tired Zeppelin worship with zero in between, it’s nice to know our European counterparts are still partying it up like it’s 1987, cranking out hard and heavy bangers that are as invigorating as they are memorable. Armed with his trusty flying V and a hotshot singer in Gianni Pontillo, the possibilities are endless for Herman Frank, who’s still kicking ass over 40 years since he ordered us to get our “Balls to the Wall”. God bless him!
8 out of 10
Label: AFM Records
Genre: Heavy Metal/Hard Rock
For fans of: Krokus, Vandenberg, Tygers of Pan Tang
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