Rattle Your Cage

It took 5 years after the solid album State of Control to come up with something fresh and new and I must admit that they did an excellent job. Rattle Your Cage saw the light under the Rugged Records label which lasted only a couple of years due to increasing stupid interest in alternative rock and grunge (funny because those genres lasted about 4 years and screwed all good hard rock and heavy metal)


But very well, let’s focus on the album itself: RYC is an excellent hard rock/heavy metal album very underrated because it did not get the best exposure. I do not know if it is the guys or the producer but the cover sucks (again). This is but total lack of creativity to do a cover, especially because this release was put out in 1994 (yes, the digital era was starting) so there is no excuse for this and the band picture is terrible too.


In regards to the music Rattle your Cage fits perfectly in SOC due to the main riff, very simple, taking aside the hard rock distortion this one can be put back in SOC without any problem. Actually, it is a filler song and I would not put it to open the album. Here I Am follows and now we get a kick ass track. Very powerful riff and drums rhythm parts are A. Not technical at all, I mean, this is a very simple song but has power and energy, excellent vocals and very unique by the way since I can not compare it with anything (no, not even with Maiden this time). The solo is good and the high vocals with keyboards added, this time enough to create the atmosphere and not overwhelming as in the past. No Time To Run is the classic happy melody, very ‘Until the End we Rock’ from Bride’s ‘Silence is Madness’. Foolish and funny lyrical concept (ala 90’s) but with an ultra catchy melody and high vocals, just as J.R.M. Unsuspecting and Sick are heavier, very rhythm and basic drums pattern but the guitar crunch is exquisite. In here we notice Mike Lee’s skills to perform all his vocal qualities since he uses very melodic vocals, operatic vocals, raspy vocals and even some growls. What a vocal delight!


Somewhere Far Away is a 90s ballad with acoustic parts, mid tempo pace and a very good melody. Let it Go Let It Die is the boring song here. Every time I listen to it think of My Friend of Misery from the Black Album because it is a bass driven song very slow. There is another ballad in Your Will which is almost acoustic and again very emotional and the vocal performance and this is Christian lyrics focused. We get a very good display of interesting topics such as murder, alcohol, flirting (yes flirting in a bus stop), heavy metal, God’s songs although as much hard rock without deep reflex ions. Instead they put melody in front of everything else. The heaviest and most spectacular song here is obviously Feed The Fire where we get an exquisite riffing mid tempo song full of precisely that: FIRE! The vocals are performed in a very low tone and the drum patterns go very much as in Here I Am. This is by far an excellent song to enjoy hard rock to the wall.


Thinking deeply into this I could say that the guitar crunch is very much alike Helloween’s ‘Master of The Rings’ and ‘Time of the Oath’, in other words, powerful hard rock from the 90s.


So my friends, for a 5 years hiatus they made an excellent recording, full of power, full of hard rock/heavy metal, full of energy, full of melody, full of everything!!! It is a pity the record label went down but with this last effort they secured their place in the annals in the Christian contemporary music and why not… hard rock as well!