AHAB (GER) - The Boats of the Glen Carrig (CD, Napalm, 2015)

RATING: ****

Every time I listen to a new album from Ahab, the same idea occurs to me: they're coming closer to the shore they want to reach. They have been proud flagbearers of the funeral doom genre for over a decade, as you all know, and their music consistently progresses with every album - a tendency that "The Boats of the Glen Carrig" happily (well, gloomingly) confirms. Taking their inspiration from a novel written by William Hope Hodgson about a few survivors from a shipwreck who happen to meet with some definitely strange creatures, Ahab's 4th full-lenght album ultimately fails to conjure that indefinable feel of a band's crowning achievement - but it's far from being a problem, as a single listen will prove beyond doubt that they are sailing towards it and there's no stoping them at all.

The contemplative element of 2012's "The Giant" is obviously present here too, sometimes playing a decisive role in the proceedings. You simply won't be able to listen to the almost post-rock parts in "The Thing That Made Search" and take it as a simple moodsetter for the heavier segment, for instance: the intentions of the track are actually equally strong at the both ends of the spectrum. In fact, you have to search into this very gray area created by the contrast between (relatively) clear and (immensely) dark elements to understand what Ahab is trying to achieve. It gets particularly obvious when you take Daniel Droste's vocal delivery into consideration: he still owns a guttural voice that can make your windows shake, but his cleaner register is slowly but inexorably taking over. And it's not a bad thing, you know, as it enhances the atmosphere rather than softening it and brings some truly grandiose elements to the table. They are still to perfect the formula, that's for sure, as songs like "To Mourn Job" are a little bit too predictable for their own good - you will sure have figured out the album's formula by this point, and the explosions of doom rifferama of this particular track lack impact because of that.

But those among you who enjoy doom metal as funeral as it gets have nothing to fear, really. The overwhelming heaviness that is almost synonymous with Ahab is all over this new record, though many riffs are a bit more swift (perhaps "less crushingly slow" would describe it better) this time around. "Like Read Foam (The Storm)" deserves a mention, as it's easily the more upbeat song ever recorded by the group. On the other hand, "The Weedmen" is an immense triumph for Daniel Droste and Chris Hector, with no less than 15 minutes of swirling riffs that seem to have no beginning and no end, and I mean it in a good way of course. An effect that is enhanced by an excellent production job, that always highlight the right details to create an atmosphere that is consistently dense, sometimes even disturbing, but always quite impressive.

Maybe less tolerating doom metallers will miss the more typical (and less sophisticated) approach from the days of "The Call of the Wretched Sea" (2006), which is understandable to a certain degree. But even those who truly love the Ahab of old will probably agree that, despite being truly tremendous, the early recordings of the band are far more effective than original, playing relatively safe within the boundaries of their subgenre of choice. As time progressed, Ahab sailed beyond the mapped area of funeral doom's sea, and this journey finds in "The Boats of the Glen Carrig" its strongest chapter thus far. The Ahab of today is a stronger, more relevant entity that sounds like no one else and bear a flag all of their own. I'm sure they can do even better, and the shores of their magnum opus are still to be reached - but may the spirits of the ocean have mercy on us when they finally fulfill their doom-laden destiny.

Daniel Droste (V/G/K), Chris Hector (G), Stephan Wandernoth (B), Cornelius Althammer (D).

01. The Isle
02. The Thing That Made Search
03. Like Read Foam (The Storm)
04. The Weedmen
05. To Mourn Job
06. The Light in the Weed (Mary Madison)

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know!

OZ (FIN) - Turn the Cross Upside Down (EP, Wave, 1984)

RATING: ***

I suppose everyone will agree that "Fire in the Brain" was a huge achievement for Oz, taking this Finnish metallers several steps further in the European metal scene. Not that they became world beaters overnight, but the hopeless days of "Heavy Metal Heroes" were put far behind them and Oz looked and sounded like serious contenders from that point onwards. And what would you do after scoring such a magnificent goal, turning a seemingly hopeless scoreline around when no one was expecting it? You play safe, of course.

"Turn the Cross Upside Down" (the EP, that is) is basically an attempt to keep momentum going, not only by recycling two of the finest songs from their previous opus ("Search Lights" and "Gambler"), but also by giving pride of place to a new song that honoured their recent output while giving credible hints of what was to come. "Turn the Cross Upside Down" (the song) starts with pretty epic twin-guitar harmonies before launching into a fast-paced attack that is very likely to put your neck in almost instant motion. Still, it's fair to say they are a bit less frenzied this time around, keeping a fair dose of drive while taking a tad more conservative approach when it comes to speed. The lyrics are not a showcase of poetic subtlety, that's for sure, dealing with satanic imagery in an ultra-clichéd fashion, but the chorus is so damn catchy that you should not be surprised if it stick to your mind for days after listening to it - not that the singalong section towards the end would leave any room for doubt! The songwriting is pretty ingenious, and Ape DeMartini's voice is in great shape, so I must conclude this song turns out victorious in its bloody battle against the lordian guards, or whatever.

The huge impact of "Fire in the Brain" would not be fully replicated by any future releases from Oz - though this humble EP got its share of belated media attention at the early 90s, with some people hinting it was something of a soundtrack for Norway's Inner Circle while burning a few churches... Yeah, a pretty bizarre assumption indeed, but nevermind. In fact, they would slow but consistently slide off the track in future releases, ultimately failing to ever recapture the sheer energy of their strongest record. In retrospect, "Turn the Cross Upside Down" (the EP, and the song as well in a sense) is as short and sweet as "Fire in the Brain" managed to be, serving as a sort of final chapter for a very exciting period in the band's career - one that lasted little more than 30 minutes in total! A fitting way for a band like Oz to reach their pinnacle, if you ask me.

Ape DeMartini (V), Speedy Foxx (G), Spooky Wolff (G), Jay C. Blade (B/V), Mark Ruffneck (D).

01. Turn the Cross Upside Down 4:26
02. Search Lights 3:17
03. Gambler 3:14

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know!

OZ (FIN) - Fire in the Brain (LP, Tyfon Grammofon, 1983)

RATING: *****

Some bands fail to impress, some bands improve, and some manage to overshadow their earlier efforts in a way that is even difficult to properly describe. No one who lend an ear for 1982's "Heavy Metal Heroes" - a lackluster semi-metal affair with redundant songwriting and a worryingly lack of musical enthusiasm throughout - could have the slightest idea on what was coming next for Oz. After some serious personnel changes, remaining members Eero Hamalainen (V) and Pekka Mark (D) reinvented themselves as Ape DeMartini and Mark Ruffneck, respectively, and infused new life to this Finnish outfit with the twin-guitar attack of Speedy Foxx and Spooky Woff (very mature nicknames, I know). But perhaps the most important change was the presence of Jukka Homi, who assumed all bass duties and the stage name of Jay C. Blade - and who also took to himself the responsibilities for songwriting, something that surely made a hell of a difference.

"Fire in the Brain" is not only a huge improvement on the hopeless mediocrity of their debut album: it's also one of the most intense and exciting records of the entire 80s metal scene, and I mean it. I don't know, maybe a good dose of self-criticism made them realize how uninspiring their previous effort was, and they decided to take the exact opposite road to the bitter end. Comparisons are few and far between: it sure has more than a flavour of NWOBHM to it, with Raven and perhaps Sweet Savage being the more obvious references, but it still has a maniacal element to their music which is all their own and precious few bands managed to achieve ever since. "Athletic metal", perhaps? It hits you hard, and then harder, and then even harder - almost like they mean it personally, almost like they're saying: "You wanted heavy metal, uh? Well, there you have it!"

Maybe "Fortune" is the closest reference to the early days of Oz, being much more hard rock than all-out metal - but it's still way more forceful and enjoyable than anything you can find on "Heavy Metal Heroes", so we're really dealing with a whole different entity around here. "Black Candles" is also a less hard-hitting number, being far more eerie and morbid than the rest of the songs. It showcases a somewhat ritualistic vibe, evoking images of a black mass with almost disturbing efficiency. This is also one of the finest performances of singer Ape DeMartini, so it's not like this song's less-frenzied approach is disappointing or anything: actually, it's one of the finest moments of the entire album.

But we're all here for the fast tunes, right? And oh man, there's a strong enough dose of those to really set your head on fire. The second half of "Fire in the Brain" is a particularly relentless assault, with virtually no time to breathe between tracks - not that I'm complaining about that, of course. Naming highlights is almost an exercise in futility, as the standard is pretty high throughout, but I just love the way "Gambler" (an instant classic, you listen to it once and you'll never forget it, believe me) metamorphoses into "Stop Believing", with perhaps the best rifferama of the entire album (the score the guitars play during the chorus is particularly impressive). Not that you should skip "Search Lights", "Fire in the Brain", "Free Me, Leave Me" or any other song - and not that you will ever want to (I'm positive you won't). No fillers, no prisoners taken, just unapologetic heavy metal to die for.

Don't bother that much with individual songs anyway: the most important asset of "Fire in the Brain" is its exhilarating drive, a true flood of sheer energy that grabs you by the neck and just won't let go. These guys are not interested in conjuring a wide range of emotions: they want you to headbang from start to finish, until you cause some serious neck trauma to yourself - perhaps it's the way they found to fucking kill you, who knows? These guys are insane, I tell you. And that's why this LP is so short, running for a little more than 27 minutes in total: you just wouldn't survive if it was longer. "I'm the fastest, loudest, I'm the greatest - I am the best!", screams Mr. DeMartini at the very end of "Megalomaniac", and I don't think they leave much room for doubt here. Any self-respecting headbanger should add a copy of this one to his or her collection - if you still don't have it, ask no questions and go get it straight away.

Ape DeMartini (V), Spooky Woff (G), Speedy Foxx (G), Jay C. Blade (B/BV), Mark Ruffneck (D).

All songs written by Jay C. Blade, except 2 and 5 by Jay C. Blade / Spooky Wolff.

01. Search Lights
02. Fortune
03. Megalomaniac
04. Black Candles
05. Gambler
06. Search Lights
07. Free Me, Leave Me
08. Fire in the Brain

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know! 

OZ (FIN) - Heavy Metal Heroes (LP, Tyfon Grammofon, 1982)

RATING: **

Some bands take a while to fulfill their promises, as I'm sure you all know. I mean, you don't have to go further than Judas Priest or Deep Purple to find some conclusive evidence that the first album may not always be as groundbreaking as we would like it to be. Sometimes things need time to mature. The Finnish underground legend Oz took their first collective steps to stardom (well, sort of) in rather unauspicious terms with "Heavy Metal Heroes" - an LP that sounds even more pale and unsusbstantial compared with the sheer energy of its sucessor, the immensely enjoyable "Fire in the Brain".

They were a pretty different band of course. Kari Elo (G) and Tauno Vajavaara (B) are competent enough, but both seem to be far away from home in a heavy metal essemble, if you know what I mean. Come on, just take a look at the original front cover and you'll see some seriously non-metallic looks there. They never sound heavy, their contributions never bring any real dynamics to the table, and their lack of enthusiasm is contagious for all the wrong reasons. Pekka Mark (D) keep the beat and not much else, and Eero Hamalainen (or The Oz, his slightly ridiculous stage persona at the time) makes no perceivable effort to liven up such cheerless instrumentation, singing like he's in a boring job and it's only Wednesday afternoon. It was probably a career-saving decision that the latter two became Mark Ruffneck and Ape DiMartini and decided to start things over almost from scratch, as I seriously doubt Oz would ever raise any eyebrows without reinventing themselves as they did.

As for the songs, I think opening track "Hey You" gives a credible warning on what's to come. It's not exactly bad, but how are you supposed to feel electrified when the riffs are played with no heaviness, the singer just mutter the lyrics with zero passion, and the supposedly sing-along chorus is as exhilarating as spending 45 minutes stuck in a traffic jam? It's a particularly frustrating state of affairs, because it's clear for all to hear that the song could fare way better if played with just a little more enthusiasm. You can easily identify NWOBHM as an influence for early Oz, but it's nothing like Raven or Iron Maiden, being way more akin to the hard rocking side of that spectrum - and not a very rapturous one on emulating that, readers take note. A similar verdict can be applied to tunes such as "Capricorn Man", "Second Hand Lady", "Rather Knight", "In the Chains" and so on. There's not a single track that would stick out as particularly bad, but there's no redeeming songs around here either: all we have is a 33-minute ride through tepid, uninteresting semi-metal mediocrity.

That all said, please don't choose this record as an introduction to Oz, as you'll probably dismiss it straight away and risk missing out on at least one excellent album ("Fire in the Brain") and another pretty decent one ("III Warning") by doing so. You wouldn't reccommend anyone to get familiar with Judas Priest by listening to "Rocka Rolla", right? "Heavy Metal Heroes" is one for completists, for those who already love these Finnish maniacs for what they did best and are curious to learn more.

Eero "The Oz" Hamalainen (V), Kari Elo (G), Tauno Vajavaara (B), Pekka Mark (D).

01. Hey You
02. Call from Your Eyes
03. Runnin' the Line
04. Rather Knight
05. Saturday Night
06. Second Hand Lady
07. In the Chains
08. Capricorn Man

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know! 

HELLOWEEN (GER) - Helloween (EP, Noise, 1985)

RATING: ***

The march of the German pumpkin towards world domination had a somewhat underwhelming start, if we're to be really strict around here. Helloween's input to "Death Metal" compilation in 1984 reached almost legendary status as the years passed by, but the two contributions from the band are far from spectacular: "Oersnt of Life" is full of energy, but suffers from a not-very-solid song structure, while "Metal Invaders" sounds way less impressive than it would be two years later in the "Walls of Jericho" LP. Still, Noise considered there was a fair bit of mileage to get from signing the group, and Helloween were allowed to record some more tracks for the purposes of an EP.

"Helloween" (the mini-album, that is) brings more promises than affirmations to the table, that's for sure, but there's more than enough elements to prove that Noise had done the right thing. If any casual listener presses the play button waiting for some typical melodic power metal to come out of the speakers, I warn you that it's not going to be the case. It was a time when another subgenre - speed metal - was defining its own boundaries, and Helloween made a decisive contribution to it way before the "Keepers" were even an idea to toy with. This speedy input is particularly clear when you listen to "Victim of Fate", where the guitars of Kai Hansen and Michael Weikath show off with almost arrogant dexterity, but also with youthful enthusiasm and energy. When it comes to the instrumental parts of this song, being fast is almost a predicate in itself - and still they keep themselves miles away from overplaying it, as the sense of melody creates one hook after another for great effect. That was, still in development, the strongest side of Helloween: their ability to be very dynamic without ever losing the emotional connection with the listener. From all their earlier efforts, "Victim of Fate" (despite the really cheesy atmospheric section in the middle) illustrates it in the most effective way.

"Murderer" is another song that helped forging European speed metal, with ultra-fast picking and a relentless drive that just never takes a breath - you know, playing drums as intense as Ingo Schwichtenberg used to do is still a challenge, even for the most respectable drummers out there. "Starlight" is also good, but it clearly points to a different direction, more akin with what would later become the trademark sound of Helloween. Though as fast as anyone would expect, it is more of a typical heavy metal song than the others, perhaps like an early Iron Maiden tune recorded on a tape that runs a bit faster than it should. Besides, the intro also shows the band's inclination to humor, being perhaps the very first manifestation of the "happy happy Helloween" spirit. Even though, to be point-blank honest, it's only funny the first time around: after repeated listens, you'll be wishing you could just skip the nonsense straight to the song.

The instrumentation is faultless, as stated above, and Kai Hansen's singing, though highly unpolished and sometimes a bit too raspy for comfort, fits the songs quite nicely most of the time. But it's fair to say that Helloween still had edges to iron out. "Warrior", for instance, is an unspectacular song with a weak chorus that really ruins the listening experience - and the uneven mixing of acoustic parts, fast (but aimless) instrumentation and less-than-impressive choirs in "Cry for Freedom" is almost laughable in places, easily one of the less accomplished songs from the entire Helloween's repertoire. Still, what we have here is a beast taking shape, soon to fulfill its many promises to the bitter end (that is fortunately yet to come, as you all know). Not only a must-have for dedicated Helloween fans, this EP is also a relevant listen for anyone who wants to understand the development of European metal as a whole.

Kai Hansen (V/G), Michael Weikath (G), Markus Grosskopf (B), Ingo Schwichtenberg (D).

01. Starlight (Weikath/Hansen)
02. Murderer (Hansen)

03. Warrior (Hansen)

04. Victim of Fate (Hansen)

05. Cry for Freedom (Weikath/Hansen)

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know!

WARRIOR (UK) - Let Battle Commence (LP, Rainbow Sound, 1980)

RATING: ***

I think it's safe to say that Warrior's "Let Battle Commence" LP was one of the very first ultra-collectables of the NWOBHM revival, the scarce copies of their sole vinyl release from 1980 changing hands for impressive amounts of moolah at least since the first half of the 1990s. An early CD reissue by Vinyl Tap in 1994 helped things a little, but it was such a limited run that it also soon became a rare (and somewhat expensive) collectable. But the guys from Chesterfield (not to be confused with at least four other recording acts under the same name doing the rounds in UK at roughly the same time) signed the dotted line for No Remorse, a larger label with more widespread distribution, so I think the CD copies will be enough to finally meet demand this time around.

A well-regarded live attraction in their locality, Warrior decided to finance their debut LP themselves, with a small run of 500 copies being all their emptied wallets could afford to pay. The resulting album shows that the lads were already a strong enough unit, but still needed more time to fully mature as songwriters. The influence of Wishbone Ash is unmistakeable, with all that highly melodic twin-guitar work you can imagine, so don't go for it expecting to hear highly-distorted riffing or huge walls of sheer heaviness. Though in the midst of the British metal explosion, Warrior were mostly a 70's hard rock band, and their association with NWOBHM was much more a matter of timing than anything else. Which is not to say that their sole album is a bad effort, of course.

The production, though not really bad, is as basic as it could possibly be, an approach that probably helped the album to be done quickly but failed to give a distinct sound to the compositions. It's a shame that a promising number like "Warrior" didn't receive a more careful treatment, as I'm sure it could have become quite a powerful track under different circumstances. The songwriting skills of the lads are also a bit wavering at times: a song like "Long Stretch, Broadmoor Blues", though marginally interesting, is more boogie than anything more substantial, and ballad "Memories" is too lame (and even a bit naive) to leave any lasting good impression. I mean, I know damn too well how losing a loved one is a hell of a hard blow for anyone, but the Oh-God-I-can't-believe-that-she-died lyrics are too simplistic to barely scratch the surface of such feelings of grief. Oh well, they were all very young, so let's not be too hard on them.

Fortunately, we also have some good tunes on display, such as great opener "Let Battle Commence" (they really spent some time working on all those guitar leads, I guess), "Yesterday's Hero" (swifts from melancholy to energy with considerable finesse), "Invaders" (perhaps the closer we get to real heavy metal here, though I could easily live without the song's intro) and most of all "Ulster, Bloody Ulster", a heartfelt denouncement about the horrors of Northern Ireland's civil war. If I was kinda harsh with the lyrics of "Memories", I must say we sure have a huge improvement here (the line "the newsman says 'another one dead and Chelsea won one nil'" is truly brilliant stuff), and the song is quite individualistic as a whole.

As we all know by now, Warrior did not last for long after releasing its sole LP, with Dave Hewitt (V) and Kev Barsby (B) soon forming a new venture called Axis. It was also a short lived project, as Dave suffered a nervous breakdown while on stage and decided to quit the music business altogether as a result. Fortunately, he would reconsider, joining Stormwatch as a bassist (a band we're going to review very soon) and now plays industrial music in a project called Sukkerpunch. Kev Barsby is also active, playing in a local act called Bad Penny. The other lads seem to have vanished off the face of the Earth, but I would love to be informed otherwise, so please kindly get in touch if you happen to know better.

All things considered, I would say that "Let Battle Commence" is not the NWOBHM underground classic many still seem to think it is: most of all, it's not even a heavy metal album in the truest sense. But it does have its moments and the music it brings sound pleasant to my ears most of the time, so I think those less obsessed with the canons of heavy metal are likely to enjoy most of the ride. Fortunately, having a copy won't cost you half a month's salary anymore, which is a thing to be celebrated I guess. Music for those who love music, and all that.

Dave Hewitt (V), Steve Allsopp (G), Mick Bannister (G), Kev Barsby (B), Barry Bingham (D).

01. Let Battle Commence
02. Long Stretch, Broadmoor Blues
03. Night-time Girl
04. Memories
05. Yesterday's Hero
06. Invaders
07. Ulster, Bloody Ulster
08. Warrior

Special thanks to Metal Melts the Ice for the CD (Vinyl Tap version) images!

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know!

CRYS (UK-Wales) - Sgrech: Casgliad o Oreuon Crys (CD, Sain, 2006)

RATING: ***

It took a while longer than I anticipated (a good couple years, actually), but I finally got my hands in "Sgrech", a compilation that retells the story of Crys, surely the most successful Welsh-language heavy metal band ever (now that's a particular distinction, right?). Those who want to delve into detail may read my previous reviews if they like, but this humble CD is a good enough introduction if you know nothing about Crys and just happen to be curious about them. And it's also interesting for long-time fans (almost all of them living in Wales, I suppose), as there's also a new track called "Sgrech", the only song released by Crys in nearly 20 years now. 

As everyone would expect, the pinnacle of Crys' career - the "Rhyfelwr" and "Tymor yr Heliwr" LPs, released in the early 80s - is generously represented here, with no less than 10 tracks out of the total of 13 songs included. Not a bad move really, as both albums never saw proper CD reissues and probably never will, so I guess this compilation will be the only chance to hear remastered versions of "Pendoncwyr", "Barod am Roc", "Mwg", the excellent "Gwlith Y Bore", "Rhyfelwr", "Rociwch Ymlaen" and other important tunes of the band's repertoire.

As a fan (perhaps the only Crys' fan outside the UK, who knows?), I think that including only "Edrych am Nerth" from 1995's "Crys Roc Cafe" CD was a little too harsh on it ("Cefnogwyr Y Byd", for instance, could have made it onto this compilations without much effort) and the fact they left a song like "Cwrdd a Gofid" (perhaps my all-time favorite from Crys) out of the album is a total disgrace. And it was a nice move to include a song from Crys' humble 7'' single debut from 1980, but why they picked up the predictable "Lan Yn Y Gogledd" instead of the way more forceful and individualistic "Cawd Symud" is beyond me. But one has to make some choices, you know, and I guess they know way better than me what really made a difference in their career, so I'll give them credit for putting this compilation together in the first place.

And what about "Sgrech", the only previously unreleased song around here? Well, it's the first (and only to date) chance to hear new lead guitarist Grant Roberts, who filled the shoes of original axeman Alun Morgan as he was living in Canada at the time of recording. Unfortunately, it may also become a permanent replacement, as Morgan passed away in 2012. The song starts a lot like AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" (come on, you sure know what I mean), soon turning into a typical heavy/rock tune with basic instrumentation and a catchy (yet very simple) chorus. Liam Forde's voice sure matured with time, but still it's perfectly recognizable, and new man Roberts have some aces up his sleeve, delivering some tasty leads and a pretty respectable solo. All in all, a good enough song for such a commemoratory release, though not in the same league of Crys' finest compositions.

I'm not sure if there's any hope for a new album anywhere in the future, as Crys seem to be happy to keep a low profile, getting together at long intervails for a few low-key gigs and not much else. They all have lives outside of music now, and perhaps a full-scale reunion, even if for a small period of time, will never be a worthwhile endeavour for the lads. I mean, the Welsh-language music market is hardly a thriving one nowadays, let alone if you're in a hard/heavy band, so why bother? Still, I'll keep my fingers crossed - who knows, recording stuff is relatively inexpensive these days, maybe they just get the bug for writing music again... That would make me glad, really. 

Liam Forde (V/RG), Alun Morgan (LG), Scott Forde (B), Nicky Samuel (D). Also performed: Caryl Parry Jones (BV), Mark Thomas (G), Grant Roberts (G), Wyn Jones (K), Verden Allen (Organ), Richard Morris (Synth).

01. Lan Yn Y Gogledd (L.Forde, S.Forde) 3:04

02. Roc a Rôl (L.Forde, S.Forde) 4:19

03. Merched Gwyllt a Gwin (L.Forde, S.Forde) 4:23

04. Dyma'r Band Cymraeg (L.Forde, S.Forde, N.Samuel, A.Morgan) 3:50

05. Mwg (L.Forde, S.Forde, N.Samuel, A.Morgan) 4:46

06. Edrych am Nerth (L.Forde) 5:00

07. Gwlith Y Bore (L.Forde, S.Forde) 6:00

08. Rhyfelwr (L.Forde, S.Forde, G.Williams) 8:00

09. Barod am Roc (L.Forde, S.Forde) 3:34

10. Pendoncwyr (L.Forde, S.Forde) 3:25

11. Nos Sadwrn (L.Forde, S.Forde, G.Williams) 3:48

12. Rociwch Ymlaen (L.Forde, S.Forde) 4:31

13. Sgrech (L.Forde, S.Forde) 4:03

Have you been involved with any of the bands mentioned here? Have any extra info and/or corrections? Please e-mail me at drequon@gmail.com and let me know!