Winds of Change

In the late 1980's, some of the founding parties in extreme metal had something of a creative breakdown. The end result is what I'd like to term a trifecta of three similar releases, Celtic Frost's "Cold Lake", Venom's "Calm Before the Storm", and this, Mantas's solo offering. All of which attempt to follow or at least embrace 80's cliché's as defined by the glam metal scene of the time. Of all three, Winds of Change is considerably the strongest and most coherent.

To deem it a musical departure from Venom of old would be a severe understatement. However, this does indeed work in it's favour. Unlike the previously mentioned two albums, which attempt to soften and simplify a black metal idea, Mantas completely does away with any semblance of his black metal roots. The direct upshot of which is that where the other two are caught heavily between the two and come across disjointed and shambolic, Winds of Change has a very focused sound to it.

Of course, that "focus" is a lot more convincingly glam. However the nature of the glam is much less akin to a Motley Crue or a Poison, but much more en-lue of a Racer X glammish shred metal. The lyrical content ranges from typical 80's AOR style tripe, most notably seen in "Deceiver" and "Let It Rock", to slightly more interesting fare in the title track, "Western Days" and "King of the Ring", though nothing approaching "profound" is ever really touched upon lyrically and ultimately the lyrics are perhaps the weakest link in the chain. Though I must say it isn't the fault of Pete Harrison at all, since he didn't write the lyrics and does his damnedest to deliver them with vigour. They aren't obnoxiously bad, but they aren't worth digging out the lyric sheet for and simply exist to tie proceedings together.

Thankfully, this record needn't rely on it's lyrical prowess. While Mantas was never someone of whom "virtuosic" would apply, he does a fairly good job of convincing otherwise here. The level of musicianship is very competent and technical throughout all the pieces on the record. The three instrumental pieces (and the whole record, really) are full of not just shredding, but crucially tasteful shredding. Guitar wankery is avoided through layering of keyboard components and multitracking of different guitar parts.

As for particular songs of merit, the title track is probably my favourite of all, managing to be catchy and technically impressive, especially for a "glam" record. I even find myself forgetting how much the lyrics mean absolutely nothing. Even with how clear it is that a drum machine is used for the tracks, it's a drum machine put through it's paces, rather than one used to simplify. Particularly with the double-bass assault at the end of the piece through the chorus repeat fadeout. I'd also suggest "King of the Ring" and the three aforementioned instrumental tracks as solid pieces, all bordering on a power metal style not unlike Helloween, notably similar to their own "Future World". I suppose it's much like Iron Maiden's "Somewhere in Time" in that respect. All the typical, used and abused 80's tools are in play, keyboard's, synths, drum machines, but everything is used to make the tracks more complicated, rather than to simplify them down. It even has a sorta sci-fi feel to it's production. Even in the softer fare, the single and weakest number here "Deceiver", there's something more technical about it's composition than more predictable fare of the period.

Overall, I'd say that if you happen to enjoy the softer end of the metal spectrum, somewhere between Racer X and maybe a Helloween, this is certainly worth a listen. Though nothing even close to black metal can be found here. Not that that's a problem.

Winds of Change is an album I never expected to hold up on repeated listens in any capacity. Yet somehow, every time I dust this one off (or stream it; physical copies are nigh-impossible to procure) - it retains just enough perceived throwback freshness to wiggle its way cleanly in and out of my ear canals. The otherwise-stock title of the album certainly holds a deeper meaning both then and now, but while it would have been interesting to see a continuation of this style as opposed to the baseless aggro cum-groove/industrial pandering of Zero Tolerance, this particular denomination of hockey arena-caliber, watered down heavy/speed metal was already beginning to wear thin during the time of its release. As such, it remains a definite snapshot and time capsule that is bolstered by Mantas' compositional malleability and the fact that there isn't a whole lot of pretense or thought put into the damn thing on the whole.

So first off, the lyrics are irrefutably the worst part of Winds of Change. Teen dream '80s schlock of the lowest possible merit delivered by Harrison's capable, but safe vocal chops means that many eyes will be rolled well before the halfway point of the record is cleared. The procession of the record does make some sense however, and whether or not this was a conscious decision to help buoy the filler numbers escapes me. At any rate, there are three instrumentals that are generally tense exercises in controlled shredding strengthened by the typically warm and forgiving reverb of the period. The album sags a fair bit in the middle, but manages to maintain just enough of the listener's attention as it holds out for the final salvo that is "Nowhere to Run." This is easily the highlight and revolves around an endearingly catchy keyboard motif and the strongest chorus here. I listen to the lyrics of this one, and it sounds like it would have made a great entry on a soundtrack to a Friday the 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street, sort of like Dokken's "Dream Warriors." A great sendoff for Harrison that segues nicely into the closing instrumental.

"Western Days" is pretty cohesive speed metal in the vein of Digger's Stronger Than Ever. In fact, that is the closest parallel I can honestly draw to much of this, the only difference being that Harrison's half-baked Halford lampooning fits this style of music far better than Chris Boltendahl's gruff barking. The synths are unbelievably garish and sonically blinding like a spotlight. Mantas jumps to the keys in a style reminiscent of Europe or Van Halen circa 1984, so if you have a soft sport for that style (as I certainly do) then Winds of Change might just be up your alley. The melodic element is rather consistent and pretty strong throughout, but the cheese factor comes from the lyrics and synth pads chosen more than the note progressions themselves. It also helps that there are no plodding, schmaltzy ballads to navigate either. This is a pretty upbeat record from cover to cover, and while Savage's double bass gets a little exhausting on the longplay, it doesn't fall into the expected pitfalls like one may expect going in.

So "Deceiver" was chosen as the single and obligatory music video representation, but "Let It Rock" or "Nowhere to Run" would have been far better choices. Since the video consists of more footage of the band members taking the piss than actually playing their instruments, you could have probably spliced the footage atop any one of these songs and made it passable. Anyway, "Let It Rock" features one of the better solo sections augmented by a stellar harmonized lead, and I have already touched on what makes "Nowhere to Run" so strong. The vocals and overall tone lands Winds of Change closer to Dokken territory, but I definitely find this a record stronger than many of its peers during the late '80s and quite a successful little experiment that yielded some sticky tunes. Not brilliant by any measure, but could have been far, far worse.

Well, it sure doesn't sound much like Venom. Loud keyboards, clean guitars, and nearly operative vocals? And where is the Satan?

No worries, we've just a different side of Mantas here. Knowing that he' s a big Judas Priest fan, it's no surprise that the majority of the tracks on here are quite driving. This could be a more commercial version of Defenders of the Faith, with very over blown, cheesy as hell keyobards. But goddamn, this is a fun album! It sounds totally dated, straight out of the eighties. Epic, 80's cheese in the best way possible!

I just love the melodic touches that Mantas only hinted at in certain Venom songs. He really is quite the consummate lead guitarist. He even pulls out the acoustic for a few moments.

Not surprising, when Mantas rejoined Venom for their most refined effort "Prime Evil," he brougth with himself a new professionalism and composed lead work. If you love anything that the men in Venom have done, then this is a mandatory listen, even if it is far from what you'd expect from Mantas.

Being the huge Venom fan that I am, I had to buy guitarist Mantas's first solo album. Like any unsuspecting Venom fan, I was expecting something that sounded like...well...Venom, or at least Venomish. To my surprise, Winds of Change sounds NOTHING like Venom. It is melodic and keyboard filled. The keyboards are dramatically overblown and the some of the lyrics are damn right hokey.

Though I just dissed the album, some how I liked it. I liked the extremely dated overblown keyboards and I liked hokey lyrics. Call me crazy, but I can't explain it. I like the album yet it makes be bust out with laughter at the same time.

I read in an interview that Mantas took this approach because he wanted to prove he could play Melodic metal and prove he was a good guitar player. I have to agree that the album does showcase his talent to play melodically, but somehow I doubt most people will care

Well Venom fans like this? Unless they are are fucked up fans like me that somehow like anything the members pump out, I highly doubt it. This album owes more to Dokken than black metal Gods Venom.

This album makes a great conversation piece on any Venom fans shelf

It should also be noted that Mantas released another solo album in 2004. Though it is again released under the group name Mantas, it sounds TOTALLY Different than Winds of Change. People looking for hardcore metal are better off looking there instead....