Back to walk the plank, man the sails or clinging to the magic of Rock N' Roll? It doesn't show clearly on the face of the Adrian, assuming the old pirate stance as if roaring through your membrane, therefore, you would have to direct your attention closer to the new shindig called "Resilient" of the comeback RUNNING WILD, led by Rock N' Rolf Kasparek. Merely a year passed since the official studio return of RUNNING WILD to the Metal ranks with the release of "Shadowmaker", and here they are at it again, revealing new irons. Frankly, one of my deepest, and darkest, wishes was that Kasparek will retain the early pirate / epic like classic Heavy / Speed Metal outbursts of the 80s and 90s. With "Resilient", via SPV / Steamhammer Records, I can't say that my wishes weren't partially fulfilled; however, it became quite clear that Kasparek, rather slowly, has been turning RUNNING WILD into a mixture of the band's early legacy along with hefty attributes of his other Hard Rock ventures such as GIANT X and TOXIC TASTE. The Adrian might not be as foreboding as back on the glory days, but it still has it within to bite hard.

In contrast to the Rockier "Shadowmaker", which really surprised me back when it was revealed, and not because suddenly after three years Kasparek decided to revamp RUNNING WILD, but due to its musical perspective as a follow up to the failed "Rogues En Vogue", "Resilient", appeared, at first at least, as a journey back to the 90s. Eventually it wasn't, as it led me to the notion that the old RUNNING WILD spirit might still be within the tracks, yet Kasparek's vision of the music changed. Excluding the magnificent iconic epic "Bloody Island", which had me back into the lungs of the early 90s classics of "Pile Of Skulls" and "Black Hand Inn", and the catchy emblem "Fireheart", recalling the past grandeur even with the slight rockier drive, "Resilient" is a new kind of Adrian, a new type of RUNNING WILD. Establishing a front of Heavy Metal melded with Teutonic Hard Rock encirclement, following a considerable ACCEPTian dirge that turned out to be fairly addictive. Furthermore, I must incline to the fact that Kasparek, as a singer, still has what it takes to front. His voice might be slightly weary, yet there is that fire of the past within his lungs. Subsequent to the known RUNNING WILD sound pattern, which has been eagerly maintained by Kasparek all these years, these songs were disclosed as melodic, mid tempo crunchers, common Kasparek type soloing, riff based tracks in manner yet with a traditional selection of Kasparek's style of riffing shaped in an Hard Rock version. "Crystal Gold", featuring quite a hooking main riff that drove me crazy and a heck of a chorus, "Desert Rose", one of the closest to be an impeccable Hard N' Heavy routine, it feels RUNNING WILD, but it screams something else, foreign to this band.

Probably one of the album's ills is that the riffs repeat themselves and of course there are the near identical songs' formulas haling time and time again. It also happened on earlier RUNNING WILD material, yet I'm afraid that "Resilient" is nothing like the older albums. Nonetheless, it is a good release, still far from being an incarnation of the previous class, but has enough vigour and 80s Metal perception to keep the fans' hunger in check. Kasparek aimed at being easy and memorable, and so he did. As far as the music goes, it is a trip back to the basics of Metal, confined with Hard Rock, low on speeds and up through the mid tempo town. Even if you are a fan of the band's old legacy, you should check this one out.