EXCALIBUR from Bradford, England, was a legendary NWOBHM band that released the great The Bitter End, EP in the mid 80’s, and their first album, One Strange Night in 1990, which was also nice, but quite more melodic. Here we deal with the new remastered version of The Bitter End EP which contains a previously unheard original mix of the classic 6-song album, as well as the original mini album as released by Conquest Records in 1985. There is also the demo version of 3 songs of the EP, plus “Nightmare”, a demo track which was not included in the original album.
Those who have heard the EP, know that we are talking about some songs which are amongst the best moments of NWOBHM. “Devil in Disguise”, “Only Time Can Tell”, and “Haunted by the Shadows” are three amazing songs full of lyrical heavy metal melodies in the vein of TOKYO BLADE, VIRTUE, and LYADRIVE with chilling guitar solos and vocals. The title-track “The Bitter End” is also very good, a mid-tempo classic metal track, where the essence of the 80’s British heavy metal stems from each note. The EP is completed with “I’m Telling You”, and “Come on and Rock”, two straight-forward heavy metal tracks, less epic and atmospheric than the previous songs, but their speedy and hard rock-ish attitude, win you over. The demo song “Nightmare” which wasn’t in the original EP is also great, simple, but raw and pure NWOBHM with a very nostalgic feeling.
The album offers a great deal of satisfaction for a NWOBHM fan, but also to those who like classic 80’s heavy metal full of guitar and vocal melodies. This new release brings EXCALIBUR back to the fore, and this is something that both the band and the fans deserve, since The Bitter End is considered nowadays a classic British heavy metal album with nothing to jealous, in terms of the rest well-known heavy metal bands of the 80’s. Note that, the new release will be available on CD for the first time, but there will be limited colored vinyl editions, as well as a special limited-edition box set.
