There is one thing for sure in this sad and lonely and pathetic little planet, legends never die, they live forever. It’s only what I can say when I hear a band like Flotsam and Jetsam and their long career dedicated to the greatness of Metal music. I guess I could say each album recorded and released is a real victory no matter the quality of it, but thing is, veteran’s albums are always great. It’s just the way they do it. They know all the shortcuts. A band like Flotsam and Jetsam knows a long career has its ups and downs, maybe more downs than ups as the band tasted the bitter taste of ostracism. It’s not easy to be always the heat of the moment.
Life may sound easy for veterans, but I guess it gets harder and harder as time goes by. The way I see it a band can live forever in its glorious past, or in a kind of imaginary past if it wasn’t as glorious as the band wanted. So, it won’t ever change its music. On the other hand, a band can look up to the future and mingle with new bands. Well, this can be both a disaster or a big fat success. Or, yet, the band aware of its importance can tell new bands the way things are done. I mean, they can still be the avant-garde. Judas Priest did it until “Painkiller;” Saxon are still doing it with strong and glorious albums that are miles away from their long distant gold era now recriating and keeping their power to the new generation of metalheads; Iron Maiden did it as well until “Dance of Death.” Since their last album 2021’s “Blood in the Water” Flotsam and Jetsam chose, as Saxon, to recriate their music and contribute with what is called today Melodic Thrash Metal. From where I’m standing, “I Am the Weapon” has more of the Thrash Metal that made the band famous, however, with much more melody. “Running Through the Fire” is a good example with its thrashy cadence and caustic and corrosive vocals plus the cool moments with strumming guitars and lots of melody. I like very the way Thrash Metal bands value the overtones of their basses as they do here.
As an album, “I Am the Weapon” can be divided into two very distinctive moods. The first values Flotsam and Jetsam’s Thrash Metal roots, as album warmer “A New Kind of Hero” with a striking and killing Thrash Metal speed and mood. Or the corrosive and fast as hell album tittle “I Am the Weapon.” The other mood would a more melodic one sounding at some moments as Deep Purple in their “Perfect Strangers” era as in “Beneath the Shadows” where the band gives some very groovy movements. In fact, this facet of the band is everywhere melted in the album.
As I said before about 2021’s “Blood in the Water” do not listen to “I Am the Weapon” expecting the goold old past. Times changed and Flotsam and Jetsam managed their way to fit in. It means the band is alive. So alive!
Flotsam and Jetsam “I Am the Weapon” was released on August 30th via AFM Records.
Track Listing:
- A New Kind of Hero
- Primal
- I Am the Weapon
- Burned My Bridges
- The Head of the Snake
- Beneath the Shadows
- Gates of Hell
- Cold Steel Lights
- Kings of the Underworld
- Running through the Fire
- Black Wings
Watch “I Am the Weapon” official music video here:
I’m just a lucky guy who has chosen metal to live with for a long time. Metal changed my life for good. It made me more confident and stronger. Metalheads are naturally far away from the mass mediocrity and don’t accept impostures from anybody else. Metal is more than music, it’s a life changing oportunity!