I’ve been jamming this force in Canadian power/thrash for years, and they never fail to surprise me. This latest album seems like a mix of power/thrash metal and ’80s-flavored AOR which makes me quite pleased.
“Heart Of Lies” begins the disc with a fiery opener wherein guitars are flying all over the place, and the classic ’80s rock montage moments are in full force. To be honest, this entire record is an updated ’80s workout montage in the vein of “Eye Of The Tiger” and “Take It To The Limit,” neither of which are covered here, to my great dismay. A record with this much influence from that era could have really benefitted from one of those covers.
In any case, “Position Of Power” follows next as one of the most hard-hitting earworms that you’re gonna hear from this performance, and it’s definitely a cut that will go into my personal playlist. It also reminds me a little bit of Crush 40’s Sonic The Hedgehog stuff, and I have no regrets admitting that. And since Sonic Team more or less gave Crush 40 the boot, I’m sure Striker here would be a great replacement. Just saying.
With the third song, “Head First,” digging further into classic action movie realms, albeit with an unexpected tropical vibe in the guitar work, I find myself continually intrigued by the saccharine sense of catchiness that pervades this album. If you don’t have this cut stuck in your head by the end of the run, then there’s something wrong here.
Play To Win is the kind of disc that would make classic rock radio stations confused, because it would technically classify as ’80s rock yet was made this year. “On The Run” yet again jumps right into that ’80s-influenced chorus, sure to leave it’s mark implanted on your skull. It’s also odd that there’s another song about running or racing, which almost makes me think the band is looking for Sega to pick them up for the next Sonic The Hedgehog video game soundtrack. If there’s another song on this one about running, racing, or just moving fast, I’m going to be very suspect.
“The Front” is a more powerful song, especially lyrically, as it seems to deal with the masks that we all hide behind; a topic that I’ve dealt with in my own material. It’s just a hell of a lot catchier here and take a gander at that tasteful solo, folks. That’s one of the many reasons why we come to this kind of metal as opposed to the extreme stuff, and one of the reasons that I was drawn to this kind of music since Ron Wasserman’s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers soundtrack from the ’90s. If you’re not shy about digging that, then you’re going to find that many of these songs seem to echo that same level of quality cheese. We’re talking fine cheddar here.
The album’s title cut continues the awesomeness, with yet another catchy number that will get stuck in your head due to it’s fierce amount of choral repetition. “Standing Alone” changes the tempo quite a bit; however, even though it is one of the few songs that I’ve noticed utilizes thicker keyboards than some of the others. The slower tempo doesn’t prove as powerful, but the chorus is thundered into oblivion and may appeal to listeners looking for a less heated approach. This one is admittedly a ballad, which might be my issue with it.
“Summoner” more than makes up for that, actually lifting up into the realms of traditional power metal and taking much less from the ’80s influence that consumes much of this album. “Heavy Is The Heart” follows as another ballad, but this one’s a real stomper. It’s right up there with “Position of Power” for me and will definitely be on my playlist as well–just a great number that would equal out to a smashing single. The hammering of metal in the background only adds to the atmosphere of this incredible cut.
Finally, we have “Hands Of Time,” which is by far the band at their very worst. It actually sounds a little bit like the Backstreet Boys or N*Sync in places, which is extremely weird, but manages to work with their aesthetic. In all honesty, this is the only real dud I found here, as a cross between Poison and New Kids On The Block is a bit less my cup of tea. A devastating solo effort is the only real thing that this song has going for it, and I would have left it on the cutting room floor. It’s a nice B-Side, but ending the disc on “Heavy Is The Heart” would have been legendary. I’m going to pretend that “Hands Of Time” simply does not exist.
My nitpicks aside, I think that Striker have knocked this one out of the park and into the stratosphere. Play To Win is by and large better than their last output, of which I only found the bonus cover to be enjoyable. This is the Striker that I know and love, reminding me of the killer cuts from their past, like “Out For Blood.” You’d be hard-pressed to find a catchier slice of fine cheddar this year, and I’d highly recommend it.
