Hungarian Soldier Versus Soviet Soldier

Salute is the new project from Last Autumn's Dream vocalist Mikael Erlandsson (voice: melodic, gritty and raspy, with strength and range) Sweden's best answer Bryan Adams. On board with him is fine guitarist and producer Martin Kronlund (DogFace, Gypsy Rose, White Wolf). If you dig anything and everything from LAD, you will love Salute's debut Toy Soldier. Toy Soldier is well composed and performed solid melodic hard rock from two individuals who know how to do it.

The band that Holy Soldier found itself compared to more than anyone was Stryper, which also used heavy metal/hard rock to promote Christianity. The style on this obscure CD is rooted in Gothic metal – sort of Judas Priest meets Ronnie James Dio meets Grim Reaper. But while tunes like "Eyes of Innocence," "When the Reign Comes Down" and "See No Evil" bear some resemblance to those bands musically, Holy Soldier's lyrics are obviously coming from an overtly Christian perspective.

Dog Soldier - Dog Soldier
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 470 MB | Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Esoteric Rec. # ECLEC 2252 | Country/Year: Europe 2011, 1975
Genre: Rock, Blues | Style: Hard Rock, Blues Rock, Heavy Rock

Dog Soldier's sole, self-titled album had strong connections to the Keef Hartley Band, with Hartley on drums; longtime Hartley band singer and guitarist Miller Anderson; and Derek Griffiths, who'd played alongside Hartley in the mid-'60s in the Artwoods, on guitar and vocals as well. (…) The CD reissue on Esoteric adds historical liner notes and a lengthier version (identified as "first version") of the most interesting track, the 11-minute closer, "Looks Like Rain," which has the record's most extended and faintly psychedelic instrumental progressive rock passage.

While these recordings by the Hungarian Quartet contain perfectly acceptable performances and adequately idiomatic interpretations of Schubert's later chamber music for string quartet and quintet, they contain nothing more than that. In the late '50s and early '60s, the Hungarian Quartet was a widely respected group playing in the central European tradition of plumy intonation, sugary sonorities, sometimes scrappy ensemble, and often sentimental interpretations.