TYGERS OF PAN TANG

Reviewed:

- Wild Cat (1980)

- Spellbound (1981)

- Crazy Nights (1981)

- The Cage (1982)

- Burning in the Shade (1987)

- The Best of Tygers of Pan Tang: On the Prowl (1999, compilation)

- Animal Instinct (2008)

- Ritual (2019)

WILD CAT          1980          (MCA)

- Standouts: Everything on here is decent!

I've had this album on vinyl for years, and I've been meaning to pick up a CD copy since... well, since my school days! It's literally only been very recently (2020!) that I finally added a CD version to my collection! So there you go. In my defence, from what I remember, Wild Cat (and the majority of the band's earlier discography for that matter) was out of print on CD for a very long time, and it was extremely pricey to try and find a copy, so that's probably why it took me so long. Anyhow, Wild Cat was the Tygers' debut album, and the band themselves were at the forefront of the so-called 'New Wave of British Heavy Metal' explosion in the late 70's and early 80's. Along with bands such as Iron Maiden, Saxon, Diamond Head, Samson etc.... even Def Leppard (despite all of Joe Elliot's attempts to disassociate Leppard with the NWOBHM scene...) - the Tygers helped cement heavy metal in the early 80's, even if they never really became a big act later on down the line. To be honest, a lot of the old NWOBHM bands were popular at the start, but never really took off on a grand scale. On the plus side, many of these bands are actually still active to this day, and recording solid albums at that - the Tygers are one of them.

I've always enjoyed this record. Wild Cat is a rough n' ready, raw, no-frills heavy metal classic. It was vocalist Jess Cox's only album with the band, but he left a good lasting impression with his raspy, punk-like pipes. And central band member, guitarist Robb Weir, plays some great, punchy, hard-hitting riffs from start to finish on all these tracks. I always really loved 'Don't Touch Me There', that track just kicks ass. And the guitar leads on 'Money' are cool too, as is the hard rockin' blues rhythms of 'Killers'. In fact, 'Killers' just kicks ass on all levels. They were good at putting catchy hooks in their songs too - 'Suzie Smiled' for example, is really catchy both vocally and musically, whilst still being able to qualify as metal. Love those drum beats during the chorus too! 'Insanity' is the album's big finale, and it tries to be more ambitious than the rest of the straightforward nature of the record, what with all it's musical transitions. I'd also like to mention Chris Tsangarides - who produced countless metal acts in the early 80's - production job, which is very stripped-down and raw, but it works brilliantly for the kind of vintage sound that heavy metal had in the early 80's.

Yeah, I'd probably say Wild Cat is one of my favourite albums from this particular period of metal. It's not a masterpiece of course, but it is one of those records that captures the spirit of metal in it's most basic form. True, it has a slight punk attitude in the vocal department, and the way the riffs are delivered, but that's only because it's hot on the heels of the punk scene that dominated the late 70's, which, in turn, influenced heavy metal to some degree. Crank it up!

Adam's rating: 9/10

SPELLBOUND          1981          (MCA)

- Standouts: Again, everything Spellbound has to offer is very good.

By the time this second LP was released, the Tygers had undergone a change in the band lineup. Jon Deverill has relieved Jess Cox for vocal duties while they also added a second guitarist, one John Sykes. Sykes is a bit of a legend himself these days; he would join Thin Lizzy just a year later for their final album, Thunder and Lightning, and later join Whitesnake and perform during the peak of their popularity. He'd also form Blue Murder, but his humble beginning started with the Tygers of Pan Tang's Spellbound. Well, I guess it was humble in comparison to what he would go on to do later, but regardless, Spellbound is an awesome slice of British heavy metal. Wild Cat was a pretty raw album with a punk-like attitude. On Spellbound, the band's musicianship has improved further; Deverill can actually sing unlike Cox (not that Cox didn't fit in of course, he was more Paul Di'Anno whereas Deverill is more Bruce Dickinson - he has far more range), and with the addition of Sykes backing up Robb Weir, the guitar performances have also improved. Songs like 'Spellbound', 'Take It', 'Gangland' and 'Blackjack' keep in line with the heaviness of Wild Cat, and feature all the signature hard-hitting, crunchy riffs you'd expect from a New Wave of British Heavy Metal band. But with the new band members in place, their contributions to the music also give the album a melodic aura that the first album lacked. For example, there was no way you were gonna see a song like the dramatic, melodic heavy rock ballad 'Mirror' on the predecessor. And by the way, 'Mirror' is a great track. The same can be said for 'Silver and Gold', which is heavy, sure, but the song's chorus could probably work in an arena rock setting. 

I honestly can't make my mind up which album I like best. Some days I like Spellbound best, other days, Wild Cat. I think the songs on Spellbound are better composed and refined overall, but it is quite a short record. In fact, it's ten minutes shorter than the debut, and only lasts little over half an hour in total. I'd say that's it's biggest failing, but even so, sometimes all I want is a quick fix of traditional heavy metal, and Spellbound more than does the trick.
Adam's rating: 9/10

CRAZY NIGHTS          1981         (MCA)

- Standouts: 'Love Don't Stay', 'Never Satisfied', 'Running Out of Time', 'Crazy Nights', 'Down and Out', 'Make a Stand', 'Raised on Rock'

I love the first couple of Tygers albums, I think they're brilliant. I feel that their third, Crazy Nights, is a slight step down in comparison, but still a great record none-the-less. The songs have gotten just a tad more simplistic, and at times, a little more radio-friendly. I use the term 'radio-friendly' quite loosely however, as most of the tracks here don't sound like blatant attempts at writing hit singles. In general, a lot of the tracks still sound quite similar to those on Spellbound, only with a little more in the way of hooks as well as, uh, slightly dumber lyrics at times. 'Love Don't Stay' is an obvious example of this; however, I actually had quite the nostalgia trip when this track came on. I hadn't heard it in years - it was featured on a compilation CD that I picked up during my school years (and it's reviewed below), and I always loved that song. It has that classic Tygers attitude with it's heavy riffs and verses, but the chorus is oh-so catchy and melodic. They actually succeed with this track. Frankly though, there's still plenty of songs on here that could have quite easily fit on Spellbound. 'Never Satisfied' is raw and in-your-face while 'Running Out of Time' cannot be described as anything other than heavy metal. The title track and 'Down and Out' are still heavy, but comfortably manage to fit in a sense of melody and catchy songwriting charms. 'Make a Stand' holds on to that crunchy, rough NWOBHM sound, and album closer 'Raised on Rock' is a good bit of upbeat, dumb fun. A good party metal track.

This album is definitely weaker than Wild Cat and Spellbound, but it's still a very solid record on the whole. The overall more melodic, hooky touches on some of the tracks don't really hinder the band's sound too much, in fact, a lot of the time they work pretty well. I think all the songs this album has to offer are good. I just find Crazy Nights to be slightly less exciting overall, especially given the talents of a lead guitarist like John Sykes. That said, I still totally encourage anyone who enjoyed anything else this band put out to go find a copy.  

Adam's rating: 8/10

THE CAGE          1982          (MCA)

- Standouts: 'Making Tracks', 'Love Potion No. 9'

Well, after three classic heavy metal platters, the Tygers of Pan Tang churn out their fourth studio album, The Cage. Predictably, the band were starting to move into a more musically radio-friendly, commercial direction. You could already sort of hear this progression on Crazy Nights, but it was nowhere near as in-your-face as it is here. I can only guess that this was a move encouraged by the band's management/record label in an attempt to make the Tygers appeal to a wider audience. Did it pay off? Nah. Well, not really. I mean, this isn't a terrible album per say, but it doesn't hold a candle to any of it's predecessors (or any of the more recent records for that matter). Many of the tracks on here have little in common with Wild Cat and whatnot. 'Lonely at the Top' sounds like a Magnum track to me, while 'Rendezvous' and 'Paris by Air' honestly have more in common with High n' Dry-era Def Leppard. 'Letter from L.A.' even has what sounds like Peter Frampton's talk box on it, which is odd! 'Tides' musically kind of gives me Judas Priest vibes - er, that is Judas Priest circa Point of Entry, one of their worst and most commercial albums ever! Sort of makes sense, given the fact it was released in '81, a year before The Cage. I do think 'Making Tracks' is a cool song - maybe not a cool Tygers song, but it is at least a thumpin', drivin' hard rock tune. The cover of Lieber and Stoller's 'Love Potion No. 9' was released as a single and has John Sykes playing guitar on it (along with 'Danger in Paradise'), but by this time he was effectively in Thin Lizzy - or at least in the auditioning process. 'Love Potion No. 9' really isn't as bad you'd expect it to be. I don't know the original song, and I probably wouldn't realise the version on this album is a cover in the first place, had somebody played it to me with zero context. 'You Always See What You Want to See' is harmless arena hard rock. 'The Actor' is a fairly mediocre ballad, however.

Ehh. This is a forgettable album at the end of the day. It's not entirely horrid - I can listen to it from start to finish and get some enjoyment out of it, and songs like 'Making Tracks' and 'Love Potion No. 9' are decent, but sadly a lot of bands that established themselves within the NWOBHM realm started trying to appeal to the US market around this time. I wouldn't be surprised if it was Def Leppard who really started this trend - they were the one's who became massively successful in America by changing their sound and appearance on the High n' Dry and Pyromania albums. Meanwhile, other British bands like Diamond Head (with '83's Canterbury), Saxon (with '84's Crusader) and Raven (with '85's Stay Hard) were failing epically by following suit. Thankfully I don't think The Cage is as bad as any of those other albums I just mentioned, but the band's label (MCA) were screwin' 'em around a lot in '82 and they subsequently disbanded, reforming in '85 to record two of their worst albums of all time, and then splitting up again in '87 (and then finally reforming for good in 1999!)! The Cage is only worth picking up if you're a serious collector of old heavy metal records. Good thing, because on CD, it's actually pretty expensive. I managed to track down my used copy in an eBay auction and ended up paying a fairly reasonable price (£8.50), but unless someone reissues it again, I can only assume eBay is the way forward if you don't wanna splash out. Vinyl copies seem to go quite cheap however.

Adam's rating: 6/10

BURNING IN THE SHADE          1987          (Cherry Red)

- Standouts: I wish...

When I think of bad albums by good metal bands, things like Megadeth's Risk, Saxon's Destiny and Celtic Frost's Cold Lake instantly come to mind. People remember those turkeys, yet the Tygers of Pan Tang seem to get a free pass despite the fact they released this abomination in 1987! I guess people were done with the Tygers by the mid-80's, so nobody bothered picking up Burning in the Shade. Lucky for them - Christ almighty this is lame!! Honestly, most of the music on here has more in common with new wave and pop groups of the era - think A Flock of Seagulls, Tears for Fears, Spandau Ballet with light touches of hard rock guitar here and there. Now, this would be acceptable if: a) the Tygers had always been a pop rock band and b) they didn't sound like poor imitations of groups like the one's I've just used as examples. I have nothing against the new wave and 80's pop music - I do however, take offense to a once great British heavy metal band selling out to fit in with the charts, and giving us the train-wreck that is Burning in the fucking Shade!

The only thing I can really give anyone credit for here is the fact Jon Deverill is that good of a vocalist; he can actually pull this kind of stuff off just as well as he does heavy metal. In fact, if he'd shown interest in pop music from an earlier age, he may have had more success as a singer in general. I mean, we'd never have had awesome records such as Spellbound or Crazy Nights, but he definitely has the pipes for melodic pop that's for sure! As for the rest of the band, well, Tygers of Pan Tang circa 1987 were reduced to just a three-piece, with session musicians doing all the overused keyboard work and backing vocals. And predictably, there's no point in even discussing any of these songs in detail. They're all terrible, and they're all fluffy, spangly, over-produced keyboard-driven pop songs, with the occasional trace of electric guitars here and there - but none of them are really led by riffs save for maybe 'Open to Seduction'.

To be honest, I'd heard about how bad this album was before I actually owned this thing. The reason I bought it is because I won it in an eBay auction for £6. I have the 2004 Lemon Recordings reissue, which is actually quite expensive these days (check it out on Discogs) so it seemed like it was worth at least trying to bag it cheap in an auction. So from that perspective, it's worth having. In terms of listening pleasure however, stay well away!

Adam's rating: 2/10

THE BEST OF TYGERS OF PAN TANG: ON THE PROWL          1999          (Spectrum)

A compilation of eighteen Tygers tracks spanning from the debut, Wild Cat, up until the band's fourth record 1982's The Cage. Not a comprehensive collection of songs then, but it is at least a decent summary of the band's early years. And after The Cage, the band made a couple more albums (The Wreck-Age and Burning in the Shade) which were much more radio-friendly rock-focussed and flopped both critically and in terms of sales. The band eventually split in 1987, eventually reforming in 1999 and got their act back together ever since (which would probably explain why this compilation was released in 1999).

ANIMAL INSTINCT          2008          (Cargo)

- Standouts: 'Rock Candy', 'Cry Sweet Freedom', 'Live for the Day', 'Bury the Hatchet'

21st century Tygers are a competent beast alright. After some hiccups throughout the 80's, this album just screams 'old-school metal' without trying too hard. There are newer throwback bands out there - bands like Enforcer and White Wizzard for example - playing traditional metal in modern times, and as much as I enjoy them, they almost always feel somewhat forced. It's different when a veteran band that actually pioneered that sound put out something like this decades later however. It certainly doesn't feel forced.

This album starts off with the bombastic 'Rock Candy' (no relation to the Montrose song), which sets this album off to a great start. Hard, heavy, crunchy riffing, certainly reminiscent of the band's early works, which is what you want of course. 'Cry Sweet Freedom' is a lot of fun too; it has a very upbeat, almost party-like heavy metal anthemic quality. The mid-tempo 'Live for the Day' has a whiff of AC/DC about it, mainly in some of the riffs, but again, is another enjoyable track that would provide a fine soundtrack for a road trip. 'Let It Burn' and 'Hot Blooded' are another two solid and upbeat numbers, while 'If You See Kay' has a very 80's hard rock style about it. It maybe even gives me hair metal vibes, dare I say it. But it definitely works, so whatever. I also dig 'Cruisin'', but 'Bury the Hatchet' is certainly one of the strongest tracks on this album. If this had been released in the early 80's on one of their classic records, it would have been an instant classic.

There aren't any poor songs on here as such, but not everything on this album is especially memorable. If it wasn't for vocalist Jack Meille (who is perfect for this band), songs like 'Devil's Find a Fool' and 'Winners and Losers' wouldn't have much going for them. Listenable, sure, but they do kind of blend into the rest of this album without many obvious strengths. In general however, this is the kind of album I can just stick on in the background and pass time without much thought. The production is great too, with some very nice guitar tones and perfectly audible instrumentation.

Right now I'm looking back at the metal scene in late-2000's, and trying to put myself back in that picture. It was around this time that I started attending concerts, and bands like Machine Head, Children of Bodom and Lamb of God were all the rage at the time. Deathcore - for better or worse - was taking off too. Traditional metal and thrash was beginning to go through a revival at the time, so I guess Animal Instinct was something of a breath of fresh air at the time. For whatever reason, I missed out on this one at time, despite the fact I actually remember seeing it in record shops. Anyhow, it's a very well-executed and performed album. It isn't as good as what Saxon have been doing for the past twenty or so years, nor is it in the same league as their original, early-80's NWOBHM outputs. But it's still well worth checking out if old-school's your thing.

Adam's rating: 7.4/10

RITUAL          2019          (Mighty Music)

- Standouts: 'World's Apart', 'Destiny', 'Raise Some Hell', 'White Lines', 'Damn You!', 'Art of Noise', 'Sail On'

I'll admit I haven't heard every Tygers of Pan Tang album with Italian vocalist Jack Meille just yet (so much music, so little time!), and there's quite a few at this point. I think it's universally accepted that pretty much everything this band have been doing since 2008's Animal Instinct has been decent at the very least. And that's what I'm hearing on 2019's Ritual. In fact, it's more than decent. While I can't exactly call this a carbon-copy clone of an album like Spellbound or Wild Cat, it has it's own strengths over the oldies. Given how recent the album is, of course the production is extremely modern and crisp next to the old stuff. I suppose they could've deliberately given the album a more 'vintage' kind of tone if they wanted, but the songwriting itself has also evolved over time. That said, the album does still has a spark of that NWOBHM aura about it, thankfully.

It starts off with a powerful, kick-ass opener - 'World's Apart' - founding member Robb Weir blazing his way through the up-tempo riffs. 'Destiny' and 'Rescue Me' are soaring, anthemic metal numbers; both have a very big and full sound, with heavy guitars, and Meille's vocals add a huge amount of melody and hooks too. The most old-school sounding track here is probably 'Raise Some Hell' - Weir's riffs on this one hearken back to the early days, and while Meille has an identity of his own (and the fact the production is much more modern), this song is almost like a tribute to the first couple of albums, and I love it. They manage to not rip themselves off in the process. 'Spoils of War' is nothing too special I guess, just a solid, mid-tempo chugger. 'White Lines', I guess you could say is a little 'poppier' than any of the previous songs, but only because it's quite melodic and built around a repeating vocal hook. And back in the day, most metal still had hooks, so it gets my stamp of approval! I also like the ballad 'Words Cut Like Knives'. The band again, successfully manage to sound like classic Tygers on 'Damn You!', which starts off with a riff akin to that of 'Spellbound'. 'Art of Noise' thunders along like a freight train while 'Sail On' is a surprisingly lengthy, almost progressive epic, full of musical transitions. I've gotta add that the guitar solos on this album are stellar. They certainly do John Sykes justice, that's for sure.

Ritual doesn't do anything ambitious, like break any new ground for the band. But the Tygers are at a stage in their career where they don't need to do anything but keep on making great heavy metal albums. And that's what it is, just a great heavy metal album from a bunch of seasoned veterans - an album that makes use of all that was great about this band in the early 80's, with a few modern traits of it's own. Anyone who digs straightforward, traditional heavy metal will have a good time with Ritual.

Adam's rating: 8.1/10