allied forces

REVIEW: Triumph – Allied Forces (40th Anniversary Box Set)

TRIUMPH – Allied Forces 40th Anniversary Box Set (Originally 1981, 2021 Round Hill Records RSD set)

Triumph is under-celebrated.  That’s a fact.  To the unknowing, they were “the other Canadian power trio with the high voice”.  To the Allied Forces, they were Rik, Mike and Gil:  Triumph!  And really incomparable to Rush except in superficial ways.  Finally, some of their back catalogue has received the treatment it deserves and that is Allied Forces, for its 40th anniversary.  Overseen by Andy Curran,* this vinyl box set (no CD) features some exclusive music and a wealth of goodies packed within.  The usual content like booklets and reprints, but also a little surprise awaits you inside.  Released for Record Store Day back in May, limited quantities were later made available for the schmucks like us who couldn’t snag one in time.

Allied Forces itself is pressed on a picture disc.  The brilliant yellow A-side shows bullet belts and a Spitfire.  Vibrant imagery that only serves to enhance the tunes you’re about to hear.  Opening with “Fool For Your Love”, the beautiful picture disc sounds great with low surface noise.  Rik Emmett goes deep with some wicked slide guitars, on a good time rocker sung by Gil Moore.  In the luxurious liner notes, Rik explains that there are four tracks of guitar layered.  Indeed, Canada’s greatest guitarist sounds nice and thick with a delectable crunch.  With a nice tasty riff to bite down on, this opener stands as one of Triumph’s most enjoyable pure rockers.

The iconic #8 single “Magic Power” introduces Rik’s acoustic contemplative side.  Triumph succeeded in marrying all their facets on Allied Forces, and “Magic Power” is a fine example of this.  It has a quaint folksy vibe, but when the electric guitar kicks in, it becomes a pop rock classic.  With lyrics about drawing a “magic power” from music on the radio, what could be fitting?  Mike Levine’s big Hammond B3 is the ultimate accoutrement.

“Air Raid” is an interlude, a sonic experiment honed at the band’s new home studio, Metalworks.  It serves as a war-like intro to “Allied Forces”, one of Triumph’s heaviest.  A rallying cry for the live setting.  According to Uncle Rikky, it’s Triumph letting out their Deep Purple side, and you can certainly hear “Speed King” and “Highway Star” in its DNA.  Gil Moore rips it up on drums and vocals.  Triumph at their most Purple, and powerful.  But to end the side properly, they go for a good-time party rocker in “Hot Time (In This City Tonight)”.  Of course in the live setting, this enabled Triumph to honour their host city every night.  Just change the words to “Hot time in Cleveland tonight,” as we’ll see!  With a hot boogie behind him, Rik Emmett sings some ongodly high notes and wails away a fresh solo laden with wicked licks.

Flipping the record over, Side B depicts a triumphant B-17 bomber dropping its massive payload.  A strong graphic statement.  “Fight the Good Fight” is the clear album centerpiece.  Built upon Rik’s 12-string depth, it boasts many strengths.  Gil Moore’s complex beat and Mike Levine’s keyboards accent the song and build upon its heart.  Emmett’s solo is a sub-composition until itself, as they often are with him.  It has peaks, valleys and hooks of its own.  Adding to the true weight of “Fight the Good Fight”, the liner notes add the wrinkle that the song was inspired by a battle with cancer.

“Ordinary Man” is one likely to split opinions.  Fans of the progressive side will love the choir and acoustic arrangement.  Rawkers will say, “bah, pombous prog bullshit!”  Gil expresses regret that they didn’t play it live; it certainly would have been a challenge.  Queen-like vocals and guitar layers would be hard to perform by a power trio.  Speaking of power, that kicks in around the three-minute mark.  That’s when the riffing starts; full-on metal mode.

In the penultimate position, Rik’s classical instrumental (a Triumph institution) is “Petite Etude”, which also boasts some jazzy chords if you listen carefully.  Finally Rik ushers in the album closer “Say Goodbye” with more of that juicy slide guitar.  A pop rocker in the truest sense, and a Rik construction.  Mike and Gil seem a little cool on it in the liner notes.  It might not seem like the kind of song that fits on Allied Forces, but it does close the album on a really bright note, which is not a bad thing.  Mike’s Hammond B3 returns to add some integrity.

And that’s Allied Forces, a great album with no weak songs.  A solid 4.5/5 on a bad day.  But this box set has so much more to go.

“Magic Power” (Live in Ottawa 1982) is an exclusive 7″ single.  The A-side is the live version of the Triumph classic, unavailable elsewhere.  With the Triumph logo emblazoned on the right, a female mechanic services a World War II-era warplane on the sleeve.  As for the track, it’s a brilliantly energetic performance although you sure do miss that Hammond B3.  Still you can’t beat it for the electricity in the air.

The B-side was a bit of a mystery until we did a little digging.  “Allied Forces 2021” is not a re-recorded version by Triumph.  It is a new version by former Triumph guitarist Phil X, reportedly for an upcoming tribute album that’s in the works.  Phil’s version is way heavier, but he sings it pretty good and the solo work is absolutely wicked.  It doesn’t seem to say anywhere in the box that this version is by Phil X, but the RSD site credits the Bon Jovi guitarist properly.  It’s certainly far heavier than anything coming out of Jon’s camp these days.

A nice little bonus single here, and a nod to Phil X who helped keep Triumph going in the early 90s.

Live In Cleveland – 1981 will be the serious bonus here for many fans.  Although this concert was released on CD in 1996 as King Biscuit Flower Hour (In Concert), this is its first vinyl release and remastered at Metalworks.  By the time Triumph hit Cleveland, they were on their fifth studio album and had plenty of great material to play; all now classics.  Only a few tracks from Allied Forces had worked themselves into the set, the bulk of which is still made up of earlier material and long instrumental stretches.

From the previous album Progressions of Power, “Tear the Roof Off Tonight” opens on a Zeppelin-y party rock note.  Before you can say “Rock and Roll”, they’re into the second track “American Girls” from 1979’s Just A Game.  A nice tasty riff with bite, and two Gil Moore tunes in a row, the drummer working extra hard.  Dig that break into “The Star-Spangled Banner” right before the incendiary solo.

Rik’s up with the first epic of the night, “Lay It On the Line”, 12-string majesty ringing clear and true.

“Same old story, all over again.  Turn a lover into just another friend.  I wanna love you, I wanna make you mine…won’t you lay it on the line.”

Then Rik misses the mark and there are a couple extra power chords before he picks up the vocal where he left off.  Things that only happen on true untampered live recordings.  This passionate version of “Lay It On the Line” has some of Rik’s most incredible singing ever captured.  Period.

First new song of the night is “Allied Forces”, Gil going in extra hard on the lead vocals.  Rik screamin’ in the back.  Triumph were frickin’ hot in 1981.  “Allied Forces” is a work-out before Triumph lets loose some more serious epic material.  “Fight the Good Fight”, impressive itself, is followed by “Blinding Light Show / Moonchild”.  This is just a solid 15 minutes of compositional and instrumental brilliance.  Not to mention a lead vocal tour-de-force from Rik.  Serious drum thunder from Moore on “Moonchild”, and Mike Levine relentlessly laying down a melodic rhythm the whole time.

Gil demonstrations his ability to scat out a wicked song intro on “Rock ‘N’ Roll Machine”.  It ain’t easy to front a band from behind the drum kit but here he does a song intro to rival Paul Stanley.  They blast through that tune, complete with Rik’s signature solo, and then “I Live For the Weekend”.  It’s Triumph at their most Van Halen, boogying and soloing with the big boys.  Then it’s “Nature’s Child”, a drum solo, and an instrumental jam.  They exit on “Rocky Mountain Way” and “Hot Time (In Cleveland Tonight)”, two live standards.

Live In Cleveland is not the definitive live Triumph album.  That will remain to be Stages, which had a better song/solo ratio.  This is however the heaviest live Triumph album and its rawness and unpolished veridity make it the perfect one to accompany this box set.  Listen to the whole thing in one sitting, is my recommendation.

There is a treasure trove of relevant Triumph goodies included inside.  Box sets sold in Canada included an exclusive replica poster for Triumph live at Maple Leaf Gardens, New Year’s Eve 1981.  For a show at the Gardens, it’s pretty ballsy for them to use a picture of Rik Emmett wearing a Habs shirt.  This box set is loaded with Rik in the Habs shirt!

Deke and I also received a Rik Emmett 2021 guitar pick taped to the front shrinkwrap of our sets.  Picks are the kind of added bonus we really appreciate.  Something material.  The included replica backstage pass is also cool, as it looks better than just a piece of paper.

There are lots of paper goods inside too including:  a massive 24″ x 36″ poster, three lyric sheets, three sketches, the booklet and Allied Forces replica tour book.  Plenty of photos and text to sift through.  There are interviews with Rik, Mike and Gil, and a song-by-song breakdown.  Everything about the making of Allied Forces from to the music to the iconic cover.

Hopefully the powers that be continue to honour Triumph’s history as it deserves to be.  Allied Forces is a triumph indeed but it’s ridiculous that it was released in such limited numbers.  Let all the fans have a chance to get one.

5/5 stars

Personal note:  This box set was released June 12 2021, for Record Store Day.  Deke and I tried mightily but were interviewing Andy Curran at the exact moment the box was released.  Having failed to buy the box, Curran advised us not to pay inflated second-hand market prices to get it.  “Something special is planned,” he hinted.  A few weeks ago, the remainder of stock was made available via Rock Paper Merch.  A kind viewer left a comment here with the link to buy, and both Deke and I managed to get one.  Thank you Andy, and thank you viewer!  It goes great with my official Triumph hockey jersey.

Advertisement

A Very Animated Four Hours: An Epic LeBrain Train List Show

Going into this show, I didn’t know what to expect.  I’m not a big animation guy, as you’ll see.  But this was one of the most fun shows we’ve ever done in the umpteen months of this show!  The discussions were funny, insightful, and passionate.  The picks were diverse with some consensus on key animated films.  There was a little bit of CanCon and a little bit of Kiss.  And a lot of fun.

Thank you to our awesome panel this week:

I also did a an unboxing of the brand new RSD Triumph Allied Forces 40th anniversary box set (Canadian edition).  You gotta see this puppy.  Check that out right at the start of the broadcast.  After which, the lists commence!

Thanks for watching everyone, this was a blast from beginning to end!

 

GUEST CONCERT REVIEW: W.A.S.P. w/ Metallica and Armored Saint – January 19, 1985

A treat for you boys & girls today!  A guest shot, a vintage concert review, and a significant one at that.  Remember when Metallica was just an opening act for mediocre bands?  Meat does.  And he’s back to tell you the story.  Enjoy the first guest shot of 2013, by Meat!

TALLICA

W.A.S.P. w/ METALLICA and ARMORED SAINT – January 19, 1985

By Meat

I was lucky at a young age to have the opportunity to see some great concerts.  The first concert of my life was at The Center in the Square in Kitchener, Ontario.  It was The Monks (remember “Drugs in my Pocket”?)  and I went with my childhood friend, Scott Hunter, and his mother.  I also saw the almighty Black Sabbath play the Kitchener Memorial  Auditorium, three days before my 12th birthday, on the Mob Rules tour on November 19, 1981. I saw Triumph on the Allied Forces tour play the Center in the Square, with my father not long after that.  But really my early concert experiences were mostly, and most memorably, with the aforementioned Scott Hunter.   I believe it was his uncle who had connections with a concert promotion at the time called CPI.  He would leave free tickets at Will Call for us at Maple Leaf Gardens or wherever the show was.  We saw the last Kiss tour with makeup at the time (Creatures of the Night tour) on January 14, 1983 with The Headpins opening.  Also saw the first ever Kiss tour without makeup (Lick it Up tour) on March 15, 1984 with Accept as the opening act.  As well as Motley Crue on the Shout at the Devil tour on June 10, 1984, at what is now the Ricoh Coliseum, also with Accept as support.   Many of these shows are quite memorable and monumental, but none so much as the first time I saw Metallica live.

I remember the first time Scott and I heard Metallica.  We would have a sleepover at his place every Friday night specifically because Toronto radio station Q107 had their “Midnight Metal Hour” on that night.  We would have first heard Metallica (“Seek and Destroy”) either late 1982 or early 1983, before Kill ‘Em All was even released.  Obviously it was an instant shot of Metal Up Our Ass!   Kill ‘Em All was released on vinyl and cassette on July 25, 1983.   I specifically remember  (but not exactly when) walking into a record store downtown Kitchener called Records on Wheels and buying that album, Anthrax’s Fistful of Metal and Van Halen’s 1984 on vinyl,  all during the same visit.   I also remember buying Metallica’s second album, Ride the Lightning, the day it was released.  Thanks to the World Wide Web, I know now that date was July 27, 1984. Starting grade ten that September, I was pushing Metallica on anyone that would be open to it at my high school.   There were a very select few of us who were die-hards and would have Sony Walkmans stuck to our heads at every opportunity possible.  Now I cannot recall if we got free tickets for this particular show, but I do remember how pumped I was when I knew I was gonna see Metallica live.

The bill was as follows: Armored Saint (with Anthrax’s John Bush on vocals), Metallica and W.A.S.P.  Yes you read that right.  Metallica was opening up for W.A.S.P.  I do know that further along on the tour, Metallica and W.A.S.P. would trade headlining sets due to the obvious buzz around Metallica at the time.  Here is a picture of an actual ticket stub of this show.  Note the price ($15.00) and Armored Saint being spelled wrong on the ticket.

ticket 1

One thing I will add before I go on.  Of all the concerts and bands I have seen multiple times live, it is kinda strange I only saw Metallica live twice ever.  One of the reasons for this is quite obviously that after their album Load (otherwise known as Mighty Load of Shit), I never really had a great interest in seeing the band live again.  But it is worthwhile noting that I have seen Metallica live twice and BOTH TIMES they were opening for someone else.  (The second time being the strange bill of The Black Crowes / Warrant / Metallica / Aerosmith on June 29, 1990 at CNE Exhibition Stadium in Toronto) Again, note the ticket price for this.  This was before The Eagles ruined ticket prices for all acts with the ridiculous prices for their shows.   To quote “The Dude”  I hate the fuckin’ Eagles.

ticket 2

So there we were, January 19th 1985 standing in line in front of the late great Toronto concert venue named The Concert Hall. It was freezing cold out, and windy too.   So since this was a General Admission event, standing in line braving at least -15 Celsius weather, you can imagine how cold and bitchy people were.  I recall the rush of metalheads being ushered  quickly into the venue.  The second I got in there I went straight for the merch booth and bought a Ride the Lightning tour shirt for me and a high school friend named Joe DeLeo.  After that, like seemingly everybody, I had to take a wicked piss.  After doing that, I was horrified when I tried to zip my probably really tight jeans back up, and couldn’t because my hands were numb from the cold.  My embarrassed horror turned to laughter as I turned my head to see dozens of much older and much larger long-haired headbangers all having the same problem.  Only in Canada I guess eh?

Sometime later, Armored Saint took the stage.  I remember them being great and how loud it was in there.  They were received well and that venue was filling up. While enjoying their set my buddy Scott gets my attention and points to the much-shorter person beside me.  Immediately I recognized him as Russell Dwarf from the Toronto band Killer Dwarfs. Their name was very apropos considering this band consisted of nothing but short dudes with long hair.  I can only imagine how this band got together.  Wonder if an ad went out that said.  “Metal musicians needed.  Must not be over 5 foot 6 inches tall and have long hair”.  I loved that first album.  If you don’t know of them, here is their first single and video.

It was time for the Mighty Metallica.  They started out with the first track off Ride The Lightning, the classic riff-monster “Fight Fire With Fire”.   At this point I was probably about mid-way to the stage in a sea of metalheads.  This was before the days of the “moshpit”.  This was more of a Hair Swarm packed with long-haired sardines covered in denim and leather.   It would have been about half-way through the show that I wormed my way to the front of the stage.  This was no easy task as I am sure you can imagine, however being only 15 and much smaller than the masses (with the exception of the Killer Dwarfs of course), there I was literally feet from what would become the best-selling metal band of all-time.  This brings me to a memory I will cherish forever.  The seemingly monstrous Cliff Burton was right in front of me.  I reached out and had in my hand, the bottom leg of his ragged bell-bottom jeans.  He tried to kick me in the face, and thankfully missed.  Can’t blame him either for trying to kick my head off, and honestly it was the first thing I thought of  when said legend died in a bus accident a year and a half later in Sweden on September 27, 1986. R.I.P. Clifford Lee Burton.  Check out this YouTube audio clip I found of Metallica playing “Seek and Destroy” from this exact show.  Gotta love YouTube.

Check out this set list of the show the next night in Buffalo at some place called the Salty Dog Saloon. (I couldn’t find the Toronto set list online but I am sure it is identical)

  • “Fight Fire With Fire”
  • “Ride the Lightning”
  • “Phantom Lord”
  • “(Anethesia) Pulling Teeth”
  • “For Whom the Bell Tolls”
  • “No Remorse”
  • “The Call of Ktulu”
  • “Seek & Destroy”
  • “Whiplash”

Encores:

  • “Creeping Death”
  • Guitar solo
  • “Am I Evil?”
  • “Motorbreath”

Which brings me to winding down this novel of a concert review.  How could W.A.S.P. possibly follow Metallica?  Well, I do remember chants of “you suck”.  I remember that the front was nowhere near as packed as it was for Metallica.  Maybe Blackie thought he could follow them by drinking fake blood out of a skull (which he did).  Here is a quote from Mr. Blackie Lawless comparing separate tours with both Slayer and Metallica and musing about this particular tour.

Blackie: I’ll tell you what was worse – us and Metallica.  It was our first or second U.S. tour.  It was us, Metallica, and Armored Saint.  When they (Slayer) went out with us, they were still an up n’ coming band, didn’t have a lot of fans, so there was a pocket of division every night.  With Metallica, I kid you not, it was like an invisible line was drawn right down the middle of the room, and half was theirs and half was ours.  It didn’t matter what we were doing on stage.  It looked like two opposing armies.  Sometimes we just stopped what we were doing and watched. It was a war.

I realize that the merit of music is subjective and it is all in the Ear Of The Beholder.  But lets face it.  W.A.S.P. really does kinda suck.  Some good moments but really not much to speak of.  During their set myself and others that with us were just kind of mulling about as most others were really.  It was during this time that a guy we were with named Kevin B. (nicknamed Little Dude) said that he saw Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson leaving out a side door during their set.  Now to give some perspective on this, this person was a known bull-shitter.  None of us believed him.  True story:  Kevin years later had trans-gender surgery and now is known as Treva. But anyways, we shrugged this off as yet another lie from Little Dude.  It was months later reading a Blackie Lawless interview in Circus magazine that I read this quote.  “Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson were actually at one of our shows in Toronto last year…. But they were not there to see us.”    A classic example of the Little Dude who cried wolf.

Meat