Veteran Polish hard rock act Kruk originally released Before He'll Kill You back in 2009, and Metal Mind Productions is reissuing it here along with a few live bonus tracks. If you are not familiar with this very fine band, Kruk play a melodic form of hard rock that is heavily influenced by Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Led Zeppelin, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, and Wings of Tomorrow era Europe, so of course you can expect some heavy hitting songs featuring blistering guitar riffs, tasty lead solos, Hammond organ & synths, and memorable melodies.
Most of these songs contain some irresistible hooks and memorable riffs, making them instantly addicting. "Lady Chameleon" busts out of the gate like a long lost track off of one of Europe's early albums, and "Be a Dream" & "The Guillotine", with their chugging riffs and raging Hammond organ, are a sure fire bet to please any Deep Purple or Uriah Heep fan. "Reality (It's A Foolish Cry)" delivers the prog rock, with lush acoustic guitar and synths creating some lovely atmosphere, while the heavy rocking and quite symphonic "The Escape" once again sees the band really knocking it home with some kick ass classic heavy rock. The near 9-minute "Dream Just A Dream" dives into crushing progressive metal territory, as Piotr Brzychcy lays down massive riffs and blazing Ritchie Blackmore inspired solos over some intricate arrangements. Vocalist Tomasz Wisniewski really soars on this one, sounding like a cross between Doogie White, Joey Tempest, and Ian Gillan. The moody "Paranormal Power Lasts" is a darker piece, with heavy riffs and brooding keyboards setting the tone, while the upbeat rocker "Out Of The Body" is sure to please any Perfect Strangers era Deep Purple fan. The album closes out with the textured title track, another lengthy piece that shows the prog-metal side of the band once again. Many guitar & keyboard layers are woven on this one, plus some really great vocal melodies...it's epic sounding in every way.
Metal Mind have thrown in a few bonus live cuts for this reissue, the catchy hard rocker "Be a Dream", the atmospheric, slightly bluesy " Rzeczywistość", and a raging cover of Deep Purple's "Knockin' at Your Back Door". On each track you can hear a very enthusiastic audience in the background, no doubt enjoying the delicious hard rock sounds the band delivers. Metal Mind's reissue comes in a nice little digipack complete with original artwork and lyrics, and well worth checking out if you missed this album the first time around.
Track Listing
1. Lady Chameleon
2. Be a Dream
3. The Guillotine
4. Reality (It's A Foolish Cry)
5. The Escape
6. Dream Just A Dream
7. Paranormal Power Lasts
8. Out Of The Body
9. Before He'll Kill You
Bonus tracks:
10. Be A Dream (live)
11. Rzeczywistość (live)
12. Knocking At Your Back Door (Deep Purple cover) (live)
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