MEAN STREAK is a Swedish metal band formed in 2006. Some of their music gets into the thrash region by a bit, some delve into the hard rock arena, but most of their songs are just straight forward heavy metal. "Eye Of The Storm" is their fifth full length release and came out on El Puerto Records on July 17, 2020.

Many of the songs hail back to the 80s heyday of metal with the anthemic type song lyrics; angry, brash, and with a fist raised to the masses who oppose them. Good examples of this are "Heavy Metal Rampage" and "Stand My Ground". While not the most original themes, the songs are fun and catchy. The dual guitar melodies, sometimes coordinated and other times diverging for a fuller sound gives a depth that is pretty nice.

The record kicks off with the fatalistic "Last Nail In The Coffin", the prototypical song about how we are going to self-destruct due to our own greed and lust. This is the end of the road for humanity. "Sacred Ground" has one of the more melodic intros, but the riff is definitely heavy. Claiming that heavy metal is the religion of choice, and shouting that this is what we live for, this is the song you hear in the middle of many arena rock giants live sets. It's the song that describes why the band does what they do; play their hearts out night after night.

"Eye Of The Storm", the title track and trend setter for the record, is another song with a good riff and good bottom end. All the songs on this disc are solid. "Judas Falling" has some nice guitar work on the intro that showcases talent and decent writing skills. There is a flair, but also an ability to fit into the song as a whole. The transition to the lead section is competent.

There is nothing terribly complex about this record. The musicians are good. The songwriting is good. None of it is spectacular, but the hooks are catchy, the choruses are relatable and can be chanted by the listener at their discretion. The production is good. This is solid album by a good band. I think these guys might be in the wrong decade. They really should be touring arenas with in the 80s with bands like MOTLEY CRUE and DEF LEPPARD. They would have been huge then.