In the good old days of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, there were countless bands treading the boards with enthusiasm and commitment, granted, the varying talents were as diverse as the imaginative names. One of those who deserved so much more started out calling themselves Killer before changing to Genghis Khan but when the opportunity came to get their exciting sound onto vinyl they changed to Tokyo Blade.
Their self-titled debut was as good as any of their contemporaries who had better luck as fate (well, their record company actually) decreed that despite the rest of the band’s efforts, original vocalist Alan Marsh should be replaced. On hearing this Alan quit even though he and the band had finished the follow-up, Night Of The Blade. Although occasionally audible on that fine release, Vic Wright was the singer and, to be fair, he was pretty damn good. However, thanks to guitarist Andy Boulton and High Roller Records, we, at last, get to hear it the way it was intended. It will sound familiar to Blade fans, as Vic just replaced Alan’s vocals but still used his lyrics and melodies… however to diehards, Alan was the vocalist and, having heard this ‘new’ one back to back, I have to agree. It has more bite and attitude that we always associated with the band both live and on the debut.
No need for me to dig too deep – just listen again to tracks like the titular lead off song or ‘Warrior of the Rising Sun’ , ‘Attack, Attack’ , ‘Madame Guillotine’ or even the United meets My Sharona loveliness of ‘Love Struck’ and lie back, smile and remember what NWOBHM was all about because Tokyo Blade embodies the best of it and this release puts the record straight at last.
