The first time I heard of BLACKSLASH is when I was to review their 2018 album "Lightning Strikes Again". To say that these Germans from Donaueschingen in the Black Forest surprised me, would be an understatement. I still think that is a very good album. Going back in time, the band was formed in 2007, so has been going for some 15 years. "No Steel No Future" is their fifth full length album in all those years, and the fact that Iron Shield is releasing this should give you an inclination on which path you need to follow to find these guys musically.

Yes, you guessed it, they play Old School Heavy Metal. And they do that with some pizzazz, because this is no old farts music, this is proper headbanging stuff. After a bit of an intro a very energetic riff gets your attention, and when the band come in all together on "Queen Of The Night", you will know what you're in for. Melodic and heavy into one is the best way to describe this. Like I said, the riff is energetic, and somehow BLACKSLASH have been able to maintain that attitude all through the full "No Steel No Future" album. Kudos for achieving that are in order.

The one thing that does surprise me is that the songs themselves seem to have become simplified in comparison to what these guys produced before. That doesn't matter, but it makes keeping up the quality of the tunes into more of a challenge. Thankfully BLACKSLASH aren't afraid of picking up the gauntlet and going at it all full speed. To me it means that although I feel that this is quite good, on "No Steel No Future" I am missing the extra layers that their music used to harbour. There's nothing to discover beyond what you hear in the songs, no hidden agenda, no extra dimensions that could suddenly appear. My opinion is just my own, but to me this feels as if BLACKSLASH have discarded a very much needed coat and are struggling to keep warm all the time.

For those who never have heard BLACKSLASH before, this might actually be a perfect introduction. Why? Because, if you like what you hear on "No Steel No Future", which still is quite a good album, you might even like their more evolved music they did before even more. Well, you know there's only one way to find out.