"Honour & Blood" is the fourth album from NWOBHM stalwarts TANK. Fusing a twin guitar assault with galloping rhythms and anthemic themes, TANK explored everything from love to war and many things in between. High Roller Records re-released much of TANK's back catalog, including this banger, on May 25, 2022.

In typical NWOBHM style, the record opens with a guitar driven track. "The War Drags Ever On" is a tale as old as time. This is the song about the battle for the soul, the struggle between Heaven and Hell. The riff is heavy, and the lead guitar work is on point. The rhythm is solid. The vocals are all grit and distortion with very little clean coming through. Algy Ward reminds me a bit of the singer for MOLLY HATCHET, Danny Joe Brown. They both have killer gritty voices that convey a lot of emotion with tone alone.

"When All Hell Freezes Over" is a bit of a slow burner. The riff is a bit more mid-tempo, and the lead work is more melodic. The song has a cool, chugging rhythm. The chorus is immensely chantable and the backing vocals add a lot of oomph to the singing.

Back to the faster style, "Honour and Blood" has some more intense lead work. The riff is heavier, and the bass moves faster as well. Everything about the song is just bigger and bolder. This is the primary anthem on the disc. The tempo drives hard, and the voice adds a lot of emphasis to the angst being espoused. It's clear why they chose to name the record for this track.

The interesting track is the ARETHA FRANKLIN cover of "Chain of Fools." They really dropped the tones, and it feels like they sped up the tempo. They do not even come close to the original in tone, but they do nail the feel of frustration. The gritty vocals give this a different texture, making it much angrier. They did a good job of making the track recognizable without just copying the song outright.

"W.M.L.A. (Wasting My Life Away)" and "Too Tired to Wait For Love" are both personal songs about the pain of relationships. You can't get to this phase without having first experienced the joy of the new love. Some will say this is inevitable, true love doesn't exist. Who am I to say? I do know I felt these tracks. I've lived them.

The disc ends on "Kill," another up-tempo song with a pretty cool rhythm. The guitar work is really nice, powering the song along at a great pace. The lead work is almost delicate in places, giving this song a feel of gentleness belied by the main riff. The chorus is a bit more melodic, and the vocals go almost clean in some spots.

TANK is a gruff, heavy band that can go melodic. They have some really good songs that are spot on, even still relevant in todays' society. It's always interesting to go back and listen to the past to hear how well it aged. This one did a good job of staying in tune with the human condition.