FRENZY FIRE

    

METAL & ROCK REVIEWS

    
             
HOME            
REVIEWS            
ARTISTS            
UPCOMING            
LINKS            
             

 

     
   
   
       
       

Secondhand Hero

    
       
       
       
     
             
Street Fighter are a metal & rock band from Denmark, releasing their debut album 'Secondhand Hero' in 2023.    
             
Featuring a host of guest musicians alongside the bands driving force, (multi-instrumentalist) Marco Angioni (Meridian), the sound of Street Fighter harks back to a time during the glorious eighties when heavy metal was just heavy metal without the myriad of sub-genres we have today. A time when the likes of Def Leppard, Kiss, Van Halen, and even Whitesnake were considered metal! How times have changed - but not for Street Fighter! The eight songs on offer perfectly blend heavy metal and hard rock - the aural assault attracting fans of both metal and rock to the bands soundscape.    
             
The bands line-up features Angioni playing guitars, bass and keyboards, fellow Meridian bandmates Klaus Agerbo (drums) and Peter Bruun (bass), and vocalists Sofia Schmidt (Ethereal Kingdoms) and Stefan Jensen (Exelerate) - and a host of guest musicians including Rasmus Bom Andersen (Diamond Head), Soren Andersen (Electric Guitars), Michael Catton (Tainted Lady), Chris Catton (Boys From Heaven), Lars Marker (Meridan), Michael Bastholm (Artillery), Michael Hvolgaard Andersen (Withering Surface, Thorium), and Martin J. Andersen (Blindstone). Phew, what a line-up!    
             
And so to the bands music - eight songs in a little under forty minutes, gets underway with the barnstorming 'The Fall Of The Ash' - and an almighty "rock scream" from singer Jensen! Just wow! 'The Fall Of The Ash' echoes the legendary gallop of traditional heavy metal and the iconic "foot on the monitor" stance made famous by the likes of Angel Witch, Iron Maiden, Samson and Saxon - Street Fighter's debut album well and truly underway. Moving into the realm of hard rock, the band majestically march on with 'Deadend City', a massive melodious intent rising high in the air. As I mentioned right at the outset of my review, the band are targeting the sound of the eighties when everything and everyone was just metal - 'Deadend City' a perfect example of a song that fits snugly into both genres!    
             
The band maintain their majestic march with the delightful (and I'll admit that's an unusual word to use in a "metal" review) 'Black Potion' - a hymn-like swagger progressing to a power driven, highly melodic rock romp. Street Fighter are catching the eye, and ears, of every metal and rock fan from all around the world with their infectious brand of metal come rock. 'Black Potion' even gets more metal the longer it runs - simply sublime! And a heavy stomp of anthemic proportions takes over the airways as 'Queen Of The Night' stomps into view and strides on with shoulders back and head held high. The band really are seamlessly blending metal and rock together with utmost perfection, 'Secondhand Hero' an instant like and an album that'll surely make its way very quickly onto everyone's playlists! Moving in the direction of balladry, 'Devil In Disguise' is more mellow and serene than anything heard so far - for the first minute and a half anyway! And then the band let loose in bombastic fashion, hitting hard and kicking harder with a bish bash bosh of exceptional ferocity! I say ferocity, but not in a thrash metal way, just ferocious drums and razor sharp riffs!    
             
The most infectious and catchy song on offer 'Heartbreak Ritual', takes flight at a highly head bang-able pace, re-awakening the head bangers of the world to remind them that it's a metal album they're listening to - although there is a huge rock presence too! 'Heartbreak Ritual' is the metal equivalent of arena rock, every listener, fan, follower and concert goer enthusiastically singing along. Back on the bridge between the metal and rock genres, Street Fighter are at their most epic and majestic, pouting profusely with grandiose poise - 'Sister Moon' a marvellous metallic slab of heavy hitting hard rock. And it's an instrumental too! I'm so engrossed in listening to the band I almost didn't notice there wasn't a vocalist - that's how fucking intoxicating the bands music is! Bringing a very good album to a close, 'Nordic Noise' is probably the most bombastic and hard hitting of all the songs on offer - oozing an intensity that no other song has! Definitely sat in the heavy metal genre, 'Nordic Noise' is infectious, sing a long-able and full of head bang ability.    
             
Overall, a sparkling array of heavy metal and hard rock, Street Fighter have delivered one of the years biggest surprises.    
             
             
Review by Iron Mathew Collins    
             
Reviewed for Metal Gods TV    
             
             
Top