Review Summary: The sublime essence of heavy metal.
Hunting Time is an album that feels so far removed from the mood of most "un-glam" 80s metal. Instead of being a clinical thrash/progressive metal album with unrelenting technicality and skank beats for days, it somehow manages to be one of the flashiest and yet loosest sounding metal albums I've ever heard.
Straight out the gate, the stabbing synths that open up The Juggler let you know this album means business (think Nemesis by Obliveon). It crashes into action with a riff that your favourite NWOBHM band would have like to have stolen, had it existed then. The bass is a consistent driving force and lends the whole mix a tonne of momentum, thanks to the relentless playing and huge tone. The verse, however, establishes why this album rocks your socks, and mine too. Yukio Morikawa has one of the best voices in 80s metal, with a great combination of a wide range, aggressive tone, and at least some precision with the notes he's hitting. The guitars also have a great funky quality, alternating picking patterns between power chords and some neat licks that give a jammy, loose feeling, far removed from the laser-tight precision of thrash metal and more akin to a harder-hitting Van Halen. The drums are regimental and pulverising, giving a rock solid foundation for the guitars to spring from, but still have some great little fills. When the awesome chorus comes round and Yukio accuses you of being "just a juggler", you believe it - the playing and aggression of the band has so much conviction you'd be hard pressed not to yield.
Following one of the best openers possible is the title track, which is somehow even better. With an awesome tone-setting intro with some blues licks over a subdued bass, you know metal is in the area but it's cloaked. When the riffs hit, you s*** your corduroys (or at least KILL would). The verses manage to inject tonnes of life into pretty simple chords with the number of different ways Hiroya Fukuda plays them. Some eerie chanting sneaks its way in as well in the progressive pre-chorus, and then the chorus itself turns the track round completely with some incredible vocals on the part of Yukio. But metal is not all fun and games and tremolo picked riffs, as following the chorus the band slows down to an ominous, almost mournful passage with brilliantly operatic vocals, leading into an immaculately paced guitar solo. As a whole, the title track is the strongest here, and is easily one of the greatest metal tracks of the 80s. Evil Touch follows and whilst not quite as outstanding manages to be another excellent speed metal track with driving drums and a classic 80s metal vibe.
Whilst for the tracks so far listed, and later ones like Sleepless Night and Bottle Bottom, speed is the name of the game, Anthem are fully capable of slowing down for some movers and groovers. Tears for the Lovers is about as close as they get to a ballad, but is more akin to an epic, grand version of Accept's Losing What You Never Had. Mid paced and overflowing with both flashy embellishments and powerful vocal passages, it avoids many of the pitfalls of metal ballads by sticking to a consistently progressive feeling akin to Queensryche or Fates Warning, never softening up too much but slowing down a solid chunk. Jail Break (Goin For Broke) channels some cool Saxon vibes and is an extremely effective mid-paced stomper with riffs that may as well be the true sons of God. Let Your Heart Beat sounds like the more serious and ominous cousin of Jail Break, thanks to its heavy reverbed bass drums accenting the unusually steady and sober guitar riffs. The vocals command you to let your heart beat, which thankfully mine seems to already be doing, whilst some neat Castlevania-esque keyboards pepper the soundscape with accents and fills.
Structurally, Hunting Time is also near-perfect. Whilst it does open with its two strongest tracks, the overall package is basically rock solid, and introduces variety right when it should, around the mid course, without becoming too plodding or predictable from too many mid-paced stompers. At a relatively slim 38 minutes, it practically breezes by. The only way it could be better is if it paid me £30 an hour to listen to it. In all, you owe it to yourself to listen to this, and even if you aren't a fan of metal music, the sheer force and energy packed into these catchy songs cannot be exaggerated. It is unmatched for delivering the sheer spirit of heavy metal straight to your eardrums.
