While listening to this album “Awesome Anthems Of The Galaxy” my mind was flooded by more questions than answers. There was a mix of rebellion, disbelief, anger, and, believe it or not, some kind of understanding because I assume me and Iron Savior‘s guys are about the same age, hence, most of the songs they got here are pretty familiar to us. Ok, some of them I liked a little bit… Not talking about Blondie “Call Me.“ This one I love! Journey “Separate Ways,” for instance, is now Classic Rock, no doubt about it. The thing is that I hated most of them. I could not, and cannot, stand A-Ha or Pet Shop Boys. No, no, no and no! They are kind of torture to me. Other tracks I do not really have an opinion formed or, for real, I do not know them.
Well, first of all let me explain what “Awesome Anthems Of The Galaxy” is about. Iron Savior got 1980s, and 1970s, pop songs that were huge worldwide hits – most of them I bet you know or you have bumped into around the years – and made them their own Heavy Metal versions. Ok, then. As a matter of fact, at first, this kind of album could be interesting to say the least.
The first question that immediately pops up is why a band as Iron Savior with a pretty well-established, and well-suceeded career of more than 30 years into our beloved Metal music, decided to record an album like this.
For fun? Maybe.
For money? I doubt it.
To enrage the fans? Hmm, maybe.
To mock the songs? Some of them maybe.
To make them instant Metal music classics? Hmm…
Ok, right, so, let me be the most pacient and unbiased as possible. Let me be very careful about this. Phil Collins “Against All Odds“ got unrecognizable for the ones who know the original – I do. If the fan does not know the original, he may think it is Iron Savior’s even with the piano. The same happens with Patrick Swayze “She’s Like The Wind,” another song from a famous movie blockbuster from the 1980s. Here Iron Savior kept the spirit of the song and it their own – which I think was the original idea of the album. By the way, I have realized only now that most of the songs covered here are from original movie soundtracks. Funny thing, huh?
Being really honest, if songs as Eurythmics “Here Comes The Rain Again“ were covered by Bon Jovi or Poison I would not be surprised. These songs got their DNA. But, not bad at all. On the other hand, believe it or not, Alphaville “Forever Young” should have stayed the same. I did not like this version and I guess would not like any other version of it because, from where I am standing, this song is just perfect the way it is. Its melancholy is so real. One of the best songs of this 1980s generation.
If one dives deeper into “Awesome Anthems Of The Galaxy,” there are songs like Journey “Separate Ways” that got heavier than hell here however respecting the melodies. I liked it. On the other hand, Pet Shop Boys “Suburbia” did not get any better. It is still boring as usual. Never liked them anyway. By the way, there are two Irene Cara’s covers. Hmm, I assume Iron Savior do like her.
It turns out that “Awesome Anthems Of The Galaxy” was a fun album to review. It is not an album to be taken seriously I guess. My only hope is that Iron Savior also had lots of fun recording it because by the quantity of songs covered my guess is that they did indeed. It seems to me 17 is too much not to love.
P.S.: When possible I provided the link to the originals at the text quotations. The ones from Iron Savior’s are at the Track Listing. By the way, while looking for the track listing, I made sure to find one with all the original artists, so, my dear fan can keep track of them all if wanted.
Iron Savior “Awesome Anthems Of The Galaxy” was released on March 27th via Perception.
Track Listing:
1. Fame (Irene Cara Cover)
2. All I Need Is A Miracle (Mike And The Mechanics Cover)
3. When The Rain Begins To Fall (Jermaine Jackson & Pia Zadora Cover)
4. Maniac (Michael Sembello Cover)
5. Take On Me (A-Ha Cover)
6. Relax (Frankie Goes To Hollywood Cover)
7. What A Feeling (Irene Cara Cover)
8. Against All Odds (Phil Collins Cover)
9. Separate Ways (Journey Cover)
10. Suburbia (Pet Shop Boys Cover)
11. Here Comes The Rain Again (Eurythmics Cover)
12. She’s Like The Wind (Patrick Swayze Cover)
13. (I Just) Died In Your Arms Tonight (Cutting Crew Cover)
14. Forever Young (Alphaville Cover)
15. Since You Been Gone (Russ Ballard Cover)
16. Call Me (Blondie Cover)
17. Catch Me I’m Falling (Pretty Poison Cover)
Watch “Fame” official musical 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!