Armored Saint--Delirious Nomad

Armored Saint--Delirious Nomad (1985) Rating--8.1

The band's second release is a testament to strong, straight-forward metal. There are solid riffs, smooth and strong vocals from John Bush, and plenty of attitude. What is missing, however, is a certain consistency of "catchiness" with the songs. Whereas there may be a super riff or groove present, the chorus doesn't follow through to make the song complete. Even after numerous listens, this remains to be a slight catching point for this disc.
If the songs lack a certain cohesiveness, then why the relatively strong rating? Well, for the very above-mentioned facets: the vocals are excellent-- mainstream 80s metal without the screams-- and the guitarwork laid down by Dave Pritchard is reminiscent of mid-80s Priest and Savatage.
In any case, this is still a vastly underrated band. If you're a fan of power metal and NWOBHM and are looking for a new addition to your collection, Armored Saint would be a pleasant surprise.
HOT CHOPS: Several absolute stellar riffs--"Nervous Man" has a great groove, and Bush cuts his way through in admirable style. Other strong Pritchard riffs/Joey Vera rhythms are on "The Laugh," "For the Sake of Heaviness," "In the Hole," and "You're Never Alone".
TRACK LIST: Long Before I Die/Nervous Man/Over the Edge/The Laugh/Conqueror/For the Sake of Heaviness/Aftermath/ In the Hole/You're Never Alone/Released

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