On initial reflection, “Jaws of Death” is an album where none of the songs are outstanding, in the way that they jump out at you and make you love them. All the songs are solid and perhaps generic as a result, but in an age where singles were rarer, this album fits in with that ideal. There aren’t any songs here that you would immediately consider putting on a playlist of favourite tracks. There are no real standout tracks.
While Kai Hansen had provided lead guitar on three tracks of the debut album, for the second album the band brought in Stefan Leibing as the second guitarist, giving the band a true five-member platform, with both Tom Naumann and Matt Sinner providing keyboards on the album when necessary.
The opening of the instrumental “Jaws of Death” which then segues into “Final Embrace” is a good solid start to the album, coming at you in a fast tempo set by the double kick drums of Klaud Sperling, with a singalong chorus that makes the opening a good one. This is followed in quick succession by “Save a Prayer” which moves along a similar path with a nice solo break in the middle of the song. “Church of Blood” has more attitude in both music and vocals, the double kick drum driving the song along and Ralf’s vocals feel like they are more engaged and makes for a better listen, while “Into the Future” carries on along that same line of punchy drums and guitars and a great example of the range of vocals that Ralf Scheepers possesses.
The beginning of “Under Your Spell” brings about very strong similarities to the start of Judas Priest’s classic track “Out in the Cold” such is the similar way the keyboard opening sounds. Unlike that terrific song, this one is a bit dreary and just doesn’t quite manage to gather the momentum that has come before it. It sounds great, but it does feel like a missed opportunity to lay down a more memorable song. On the other hand, “Play to Kill” kicks back in at the right tempo and gets the album moving again in the right direction. A great guitar riff drives the songs and sets the stage for Ralf’s vocals to steal the show.
Moving into the second half of the album, the songs continue in the tempo that the band has set up in the first half, without any real change in which to differentiate what is going on. “Nation in Fear” is a case in point, sounding a bit stale and generic in song structure. “When the Night Comes” is a slightly slower tempo, a steady track that sounds very much like an AC/DC song. It’s an interesting cohesion within. Beyond this comes the final two songs, “Fight to Survive” and “Hatred in My Soul”, both which get back closer to what would be an optimum pace for this band, with Ralf again combining melodic vocals to create a more pleasing finish.
The band sounds great. Tom Naumann and Stefan Leibing on guitars do a great job and have some excellent moments when soloing. The rhythm of drummer Klaus Sperling and band leader Matt Sinner on bass is solid throughout and provide the platform, but for me it is perhaps just a bit too regimented for my liking. The double kick drums keep an even tempo throughout, which is probably just missing a bit of excitement to help lift some songs out of the average.
Trying to blend those high range vocals into the music being written is a tough task at any level. And this is where this just falls down a bit as well. Ralf Scheepers tends to sit back in a more comfortable vocal range than he has for some time throughout most of the album. As a result, it does give the songs a flatter feel musically, because we know what he is capable of. Perhaps in trying to keep his vocals in a safe zone with the songs he has cut out one of his best attributes.
Having been drawn into Primal Fear by the Gamma Ray connection on their debut album, it was a no brainer that I had to check out the follow up release in order to see just what the band could produce on their sophomore album. All of the right ingredients had been put forth on that first album without creating any massive waves. My hope was that the band would gel together better both musically and in the writing process and produce something that would be amazing. That may have been ambitious thinking on my part.
There is a trade-off between what you want and what you have. Primal Fear is a heavier version of the power metal genre because they stick with the dual guitar attack and tone out the keyboards to a bare minimum here. On the other hand, they also omit the super double-kick pace that comes with the speed metal aspect, and that drags the whole feel of the album back a little. And while everything sounds good here, there’s just a feeling that it is missing something that would have taken it to the next level.
I first ventured down the Primal Fear path just over 20 years ago, at the time when I was going down the Euro metal rabbit hole. The first album that I heard was actually the band’s follow up to this album, “Nuclear Fire”, and then “Black Sun”, both of which I loved immediately. Once I went backwards to get the first two albums, both seemed like they were a first step towards the sound that came on those two albums I first heard. It isn’t that “Jaws of Death” is an average album, it is just one where the band hasn’t quite found the best way to utilise their talents and find the sound that was to become their ideal medium. I have pulled out this album over the last week to catch up on what I have missed, as it has been a long time since I listened to this album, and overall my opinion hasn’t changed that much. The album is fine, but it doesn’t have the hooks you need for an album to grab you. Better was to come, at least in my opinion, and that was when Ralf pulled out his whole singing arsenal, and the band pushed harder and faster alongside him.
When it comes to the bands that led Europe through the 1990’s power metal explosion and into the 2000’s, Primal Fear is one of the flag bearers. Their style of music is not the keyboard-dominated one of many of the power metal bands of the continent and as a result they have the harder edge to their music that allows them to cross genres. Both the eponymous debut album “Primal Fear” and this follow up album “Jaws of Death” are a building of that style that Primal Fear took on as their own. As a result of finding their own style these two albums are both good without pushing the boundaries to their limits. That was something that came after this.
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