The wrath of the warrior, the sacred guardian, armed with jagged edged tip of the sword and fire in his eyes accommodating the demise of a desolate enemy finally meeting his unlawful resting place six feet underground waiting for the rats and worms to swarm his carcass. Not this is not going to be a review on some Viking Metal band coming to swarm your mind with dead corpses of their fallen adversaries, this group of young dudes from Puerto Rico named SACRED GUARDIAN, has been setting their musical direction similar to the classic years of Metal music, you guessed right it is the 80s. I might also add that the path these guys chose took a rather Americanized revolve than of the British kind, though there are clear constituents of the jolly good old NWOBHM and 70s British Hard Rock / Heavy Metal in the areas of IRON MAIDEN, JUDAS PRIEST, RAINBOW, BLACK SABBATH and a moderately spike of DEEP PURPLE, generally SACRED GUARDIAN galloped forward with a rigid affliction closer to 80s US Power Metal that carried them away through this current release like MANOWAR, CAGE, DIO and SKELATOR, their debut self-titled album via Stormspell Records, while doing justice to early Metal with an analogue like production rather than choosing the up to date stuff most bands tend to prefer nowadays.

SACRED GUARDIAN transpired as a foursome crew with good dynamics, producing a stalwart solo section that is ruled by the lone guitarist, Jose A. Blondet, letting off steam with potent licks and confident soloing, not too technical, but rather straight to the point. I also liked the rhythm section that reminded me of the early Metal years of NWOBHM, especially with the all so known melodic lines of both bass the rhythm guitar, composite bass lines provided by Raly Vega and a portion of the drumming of Miguel Droz merged like ball and chain with the impulsive old Speed / Power Metal as it was once forged by American hands. Gustavo Rodriguez presented a fine vocal range, not too emotive in my bill though his voice pattern seemed rather interesting with its proximity to Ronnie James Dio, Eric Adams, Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson, meaning immensely raspy but also melodic and high pitched in tone. Generally speaking, at first SACRED GUARDIAN's music seemed to me rather hackneyed with some crispy flavors and old school chops, pretty obvious stuff. On the other hand, after taking a few more listens, I conjured that this band had what it takes to defend the old flame with honor, affirming their victory over the enemies of the music and whoever challenges its might.

Take a ride through the vast realms of the "Ancient Prophecy", feel the deliverance of amazing melodies, creative vocals and right in your face rhythms. I also indulged the classic molestation of "The Last Rite", "Dark Ages" and the two Spanish distributed anthems of "Alma Inmortal" and "Ulises". SACRED GUARDIAN might sound somewhat generic, reprising the old stuff a little bit too much, not so convincing with some of their material that might have that epic edge but lacking that spicing to make something outstanding. However, with no doubt that for a debut, it is a rather decent presentation.