Psychodrome - CD

After the release of Echoes From the Gutter, VENATOR made good use of their street charm by hitting every new stage they could, first with labelmates MEGATON SWORD in 2023 and then with labelmates TOXIKULL last year. This increased charisma spills over into their second album, Psychodrome. Indeed, with a title and cover like that, Psychodrome builds an era-specific atmosphere that is "on brand" for a vintage-savvy band like VENATOR - but such sometimes superficial moves would all be for naught if they didn't have the SONGS to back them up! And that's what VENATOR do here, showing more and more sides of their sonic arsenal while sounding characteristically themselves. Much of LP#2 hits a cruising mid-tempo - fist-pumping, sure, but never overly fast - while other songs dip into both faster and slower tempos. But no matter what the speed, VENATOR quickly and convincingly establish the mood and the almighty MELODY: street level as before, but with that heart-on-sleeve passion that puts this into a realm of its own - one that's authentically mid-80s heavy metal heroism in one sense, but strangely refreshing in another. Frontman Hans Huemer once again rallies the warriors with a performance that's equal parts rough and emotional, while the rest of his bandmates sharpen their swords with a little more clarity and spit-shine those divine HOOKS to deadly levels.