Description

2024 press on blue vinyl with insert.

Practice what you preach (cough) Manowars major label debut brought their self-styled brand of bass-driven, ear-splitting, macho heavy metal to a wider audience, raising concerns among long-time fans that their favourite stupid-but-excellent band had sold out to the same faceless institution they had assaulted in earlier songs such as All Men Play on 10. Clearly aware of this, Manowar lays rest to such fears in their customary way with the single Blow Your Speakers, in which Eric Adams yells his love of true metal and hatred of mainstream labels against a catchy, Village People-style backing chorus and stilted guitars. Something here is awry. Released three years after the last of Manowars previous four albums, which were released in rapid succession, as detailed in my review for Sign of the Hammer, the Fighting the World album likely represents the greatest disappointment of their career. It isnt their worst album by far, as the few releases of the past decade have all been disappointing in unique ways, but it represents a significant drop in quality and an unappreciated change in direction from the dark and epic heavy metal of their earlier efforts towards something resembling, in places, the false metal the band boasts so much hatred for. Blow Your Speakers and Carry On are blatant MTV contestants. The albums second half is an improvement. Particularly interesting is Defender, another epic vehicle for an Orson Wells narration, the frenetic Holy War and the final armageddon of Black Wind, Fire And Steel. Its both sad and embarrassing that Manowar had such a bad start on their major label debut, failing to live up their own standards and slogans as they struggle to weakly cobble together something more commercially viable, but at the same time decide to go overboard on the ridiculous lyrics and attitude that are the most off-putting aspect of even their best work. The following years definitive Kings of Metal would solidify Manowars ambitions and objectives forever after, making them appear even stupider in some ways but also much more focused and determined to spread their message, making Fighting the World an insignificant and hopefully forgettable stepping stone between the Manowar of the early eighties and the band that continues to grow ever more elaborate today.

Track list:
1. Fighting The World
2. Blow Your Speakers
3. Carry On
4. Violence And Bloodshed
5. Defender
6. Drums Of Doom
7. Holy War
8. Master Of Revenge
9. Black Wind, Fire And Steel