Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Running Wild
Label: Noise Records
Released: 1989
Rating: 5/5
»Death Or Glory« ticks every musical box to be crowned the best album in Running Wild’s history, which makes it one of the classics of a Teutonic heavy metal scene that’s getting more and more creatively spent these days. Captain Rolf Kasparek, a.k.a. Rock ‘n’ Rolf, and his crew successfully steer the listener on this epic studio odyssey through the shameful and glorious chapters of human history, back to the days of pirate battles, the Napoleonic wars, assorted past blunders of the Roman Catholic Church and plantation slavery. Along the way, on »Death Or Glory« they pair the classic Teutonic metal manners, led by Rolf’s thundering vocals, a heap of brutal guitar passages and rattling double bass drum assaults, with some orchestral elements and, once, even Scottish bagpipes, which makes it the most varied album of their entire career, and one that still sounds surprisingly fresh today.
After managing to keep the same lineup that played on the previous album, the excellent »Port Royal« (1988), Rolf succeeded in establishing stability and continuity, which was a truly rare thing in his long career as the undisputed dictator of the German ‘pirate metal’ scene. »Death Or Glory«, which with the opening »Riding the Storm« and »Bad to the Bone« contains two of the five best-known and best-loved songs of their career, bends under the weight of pompous, punchy guitar passages, the kind that rule above all on what are by now long-standing live classics. Most of the music and lyrics were, as usual, created by Kasparek, but this time the creative process was spread around surprisingly democratically, as bassist Jens Becker (who later joined Grave Digger), guitarist Majk Moti and drummer Ian Finlay also left their mark as songwriters. Finlay in particular was an equal partner in writing some of the best songs on »Death Or Glory«, but that didn’t buy him a longer stay in the band, since he had to say goodbye, along with Moti, just a year later after the end of the tour.
The aforementioned crusher »Riding the Storm«, which may even be the best opening track in their story, kicks off with an epic intro that practically buckles under the weight of mighty guitar passages and triple-guitar harmonies. Compared to, say, Iron Maiden, those weren’t all that common with Running Wild, so it’s still a joy to hear them wherever they pop up. The furious rhythmic rush of the Becker-Finlay duo grinds up everything in its path, while Captain Rolf delivers his ever-combative, thunderous pirate chant, and it’s not hard to picture him standing on deck in the middle of a storm with a bloody saber in one hand and a glass of rum in the other. The intense ‘pirate’ atmosphere, with its cry ‘for freedom,’ hardly lets up and carries on happily into the melodic metal anthem »Renegade«, which sounds like Kasparek’s autobiography. Moti’s solos are short, in line with the length of most songs on the album, but inventive and refreshing enough to lighten the ever-combative rhythmic shades a bit. The short ‘rap’ bit still sounds like a funny surprise today and adds even more to the overall energy, especially at the expense of the pompous, multi-voiced chorus.
The gloomy »Evilution« surprises and delights once again with triple-guitar harmonies that conjure up an almost baroque atmosphere. That atmosphere returns several times in the later parts and fits the album’s lyrics perfectly. Rolf, as is his habit, rails once more against the historical villainy of absolutist monarchy and the Church. »Running Blood«, another achievement packed with melodic, epic guitar passages, features an instrumental intro reminiscent of Russian folk music from the days of the tsars, which conjures up the Siberian cold and, above all, the image of Napoleon’s failed march on Moscow. The lyrics are about the Inquisition, about which Mr. Kasparek has always had plenty of ‘nice’ things to say. The epic instrumental »Highland Glory (The Eternal Fight)«, which judging by the title is probably dedicated to the Scottish rebellions against the English, is one of the most intelligently structured pieces in the whole of Running Wild, and at times, thanks to the sheer amount of complex guitar harmonies and witty rhythmic improvisations, especially Becker’s clever bass lines, it even sounds progressive, which was truly unusual and rare for this band. Moti’s guitar creativity was inspiring, which in the end cost him his spot in the band, just like most of his successors.
On »Marooned«, Running Wild return to their ‘home’ pirate territory, where a distinctly warlike atmosphere takes over again thanks to the multi-voiced chants and especially the hymnic, epic-melodic chorus. The central guitar phrase is almost ‘iconic’ and recognizable from a mile away, while the epic triple-guitar harmonies once again demonstrate why this album is the prime candidate for the peak of their entire discography. The rebel anthem »Bad To The Bone« is still one of Running Wild’s most beloved classics (live and otherwise), which is no surprise, as it’s a full-blooded metal anthem with a combative message, uncompromising guitar passages and a melodic chorus that sounds like a call to rise up for a shackled, humiliated people. »Tortuga Bay«, a tale of the most famous hangout of the Caribbean pirates, is also among the album’s better moments, with Captain Sparrow, that is, Rolf, back ‘in his element’ thanks to his passionate vocal thunder, while furious guitar volleys fire all around him and a drumming stampede charges on mercilessly.
Surprisingly, the title track, »Death Or Glory«, is the least interesting and least successful piece on the album, with a nondescript chorus where the most fun is Rolf’s vocal ranting at all the injustices of this world, while the central arrangement even sounds a little comical. The epic treat »Battle Of Waterloo« fares much better. It’s the best piece on the whole album, and through its intense atmosphere it successfully evokes Napoleon’s final fall and his farewell to the dustbin of history. The instrumental intro on Scottish bagpipes nicely paints the arrival of Wellington’s army, while the furious guitar passages and rolling drum fills immediately call to mind a war march before the start of a great battle. Later on the epic guitar harmonies awaken again, while Mr. Kasparek once more finds himself successfully in the role of the epic ‘narrator’ of some of the darkest chapters of bloody human history. The closing track »March On«, an epic pirate finisher and a call to carry on with the rebel way of life, wasn’t even included on the original release of the album because of the time limits on LP length, which was a shame, since it successfully rounds out the sonic picture of »Death Or Glory.
The 1999 reissue, released on the tenth anniversary of the original, contains some very interesting bonus tracks, led by the rather commercially minded single »Wild Animal«, a hugely fun and melodic piece with an atypical glam/hair metal chorus. Running Wild never sounded as commercial as they do on this track, either before or after. It’s obvious that Captain Kasparek wanted to build on the unexpected success of »Death Or Glory«, when almost 9,000 people showed up for the gig in Düsseldorf, but it never went beyond a mere attempt. The popularity of classic heavy metal dropped drastically with the arrival of the nineties, but Running Wild didn’t change their musical mission one bit and stayed strict sonic traditionalists, which had both positive and negative consequences.
»Chains And Leather« is a successful remake of a classic metal anthem from »Branded And Exiled« (1985), and with its improved production it sounds much better than the original. »Tear Down The Walls« is a battle hymn soaked in stinging phrases, which despite a rather gloomy intro turns out to have a surprisingly melodic chorus. The epic closer »Störtebeker«, yet another energetic tale of the little man’s fight against the depraved rich, is dedicated to the German Robin Hood, the Hamburg pirate and folk hero Klaus Störtebeker, who was beheaded in 1401 on charges of piracy by the obscenely rich Hanseatic League, that is, the forefathers of modern capitalism. Numerous legends arose after his death, the best known being the one where Störtebeker’s beheaded body rose up in front of the crowd and walked past his 11 condemned comrades before the executioner tripped it. The Hamburg senate, after the executioner had put to death another 11 of Störtebeker’s fellow sufferers, supposedly asked him whether he was tired of all this head-chopping. The executioner grinned and said it was a mere trifle and that he could chop off the heads of the entire senate as well. For that remark he was executed himself, and his head was cut off by the youngest member of the senate.
‘Many who wanted to climb to greatness will end up like a pig in a sea of filth if they leave behind the name of a criminal,’ Dante once mused, providing the inspiration for the central message of »Death Or Glory«, probably the best album in the entire history of Running Wild. The central message, that excessive wealth and wallowing in luxury and fat bring bitter death sooner or later, while the poor man is left with ‘just’ basking in righteous glory and posthumous honor, just like what happened to, say, 90% of Slovenian poets and writers, is more relevant today than ever, which means that »Death Or Glory« has passed the test of time with flying colors. At the same time, this masterpiece is also a great starting point for anyone who wants to get to know Running Wild in the easiest possible way.
Lineup
Rolf Kasparek – vocals, guitar
Majk Moti – guitar
Jens Becker – bass guitar
Ian Finlay – drums
Production
Running Wild
Track list
1. Riding the Storm
2. Renegade
3. Evilution
4. Running Blood
5. Highland Glory
6. Marooned
7. Bad to the Bone
8. Tortuga Bay
9. Death or Glory
10. Battle of Waterloo
11. March On
Bonus tracks:
11. Wild Animal
12. Tear Down the Walls
13. Störtebeker
14. Chains and Leather
