PAUL DI’ANNO’S WARHORSE – Warhorse (Album Review)

The anatomy of a throwback.

Living in the shadow of the heavy metal colossus that is Iron Maiden is far from an enviable disposition, but Paul Di’Anno has been making the most of his situation and continually making music that expands upon his monumental accomplishments with his former band. Even a recent bout of health setbacks that has seen him performing from a wheelchair has done extremely little to dampen the energy and attitude that has become synonymous with this NWOBHM stalwart.

While passing trends did see his musical style occasionally incorporate elements of thrash and modern groove metal, Di’Anno has been a name that has generally remained synonymous with metal in its most traditional form. Case and point is his latest musical venture dubbed Warhorse and its eponymous debut, which finds this founding father of British heavy metal reaching back far into the primordial era of his career to remind all with open ears of the power that lay in their favorite genre’s formative period.

The mechanics behind this concise dose of old-school metal magic are largely the product of the Croatian guitar duo of Anti “Pupi” Pupacic and Hrvoje Madiraca, both known in their locale for their work with the Split-Dalmatia-based thrash project Rapid Strike. Handling not only the songwriting duties on this undertaking but also emulating the classic dueling shredder formula pioneered by Judas Priest’s Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing, then taken in an even more iconic direction by Iron Maiden’s Adrian Smith and Dave Murray; one might suggest that they are the true masterminds of Warhorse.

But one would be remiss not to note that Di’Anno brings far more to this project than just his name, as the decades of punishment he’s brought upon his voice both on the road and living the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle scarcely shows between his signature guttural punk growl and still clean and competent croon. The session contributions by internet personality and Mercyful Fate bassist Becky Baldwin and the kit work of local drummer Petar Santic also play a pivotal role in shaping the lion’s share of these songs, alongside numerous other guest players.

It should be noted that while this is an album that is sonically in line with present-day production practices, one can’t help but be bowled over by the sheer amount of 80s traditionalism oozing from each of these songs. The principal influence is definitely that of Di’Anno’s own 4-year stint between 1978-1981 with Iron Maiden, combining the raw vitality of “The Soundhouse Tapes” demo with the rustic metallic edge with an occasional progressive bent that typified the 1980 self-titled debut and 1981’s “Killers.”

The opening foray and title entry “Warhorse” proves a highly engaging blend of Judas Priest-inspired drive and dive-bombing lead guitar gymnastics (often sounding a horse’s neigh and trading blows with a sample of one) and Maiden‘s signature melodic guitar riffing, tempered by a more every man grit out of Di’Anno’s vocal onslaught and concise song structure that just misses the 4-minute mark despite sounding epic enough to go on for 6 or 7. Similar auditory excursions that blend this same sense of speedy metallic drive with a melodic edge fit for the arena include the fist-raising protest song “Stop The War”, the hard rocking romp “Get Get Ready”, the quasi-thrashing crusher “Go” and the swinging closer and potential “Running Free” sequel “Going Home”, all exercises in accessible catchiness with a technical edge.

Along with the explosive array of metallic thunder are some rather jarring yet effective asides into lighter territory that also reminisce upon Paul’s iconic tenure with the most successful act of the NWOBHM. Though more of a heavy-hitting entry, “The Doubt Within” makes a few rather haunting asides into more atmospheric territory via sudden acoustic guitar passages before the chorus section and even some slightly symphonic keyboard additives, and Di’Anno’s performance sees a more nuanced mixture of clean and dirty that helps to bridge the sonic divide quite effectively.

Promotional single “Here Comes The Night” treads a fairly similar path, though comes off closer to the keyboard-drenched character of several recent projects under the Frontiers Records moniker. “Forever Bound” really plays up the acoustic angle and almost listens like the long-awaited successor of “Strange World”, though it ends up landing on a triumphant gallop more indicative of where Maiden went afterward with Dickinson and sees Paul actually put on a more operatic presentation.

That being said, there are a couple of questionable entries that come along with an otherwise rock-solid package in the quasi-industrial misfire “Precious” and the slapstick metal reinterpretation of Chuck Rio’s classic hit “Tequila”. The latter does come with a very self-aware sense of comedy on the part Paul and his flock, but it just feels woefully out of place amid a bunch of more serious and well-crafted entries, while the former doesn’t quite seal the deal in the hook department and just seems to meander on a mid-paced groove for 4 minutes.

These two blemishes aside, Warhorse is an album and a project that definitely has legs, and will hopefully be running at full horsepower in the coming years. For a guy who has been written off many times, Di’Anno has absolutely come out with a solid slab of metal here that fans of where the genre was between 1979 and 1983 should find easy to enjoy, ditto the throngs of younger traditional fans still in the throes of the NWOTHM craze.

Released By: Bravewords Records
Release Date: July 19th, 2024
Genre: Heavy Metal

Musicians:

• Paul Di’Anno / Vocals
• Anti “Pupi” Pupacic / Guitars
• Hrvoje Madiraca / Guitars
• Becky Baldwin / Bass
• Petar Santic / Drums

“Warhorse” Track List:

1. Warhorse
2. Get Get Ready
3. Go
4. top The Wa
5. The Doubt Within
6. Here Comes The Night
7. Tequila
8. Forever Bound
9. Precious
10. Going Home

Order “Warhorse” HERE