Blitzkrieg: The Boys From Brazil Street: 1981 Revisited - Volume One

Will you survive the Blitzkrieg?

You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.

For a few heady months during 1981 Leicester’s Blitzkrieg were considered one of the most exciting bands of the burgeoning NWOBHM. Their reputation built on demo tracks and the Buried Alive single on Neat Records, the original line-up of the time, featuring main writers Jim Sieroto (lead guitar), Ian Jones (rhythm guitar) and Brian Ross (vocals), unfortunately split later that year.

But Blitzkrieg, the B-side to Buried Alive, gave the nascent Metallica – and early US thrash scene – some very useful pointers indeed. Blitzkrieg, of course, popped up alongside Diamond Head’s Am I Evil? on the flipside to Creeping Death. As a signature tune, it takes some beating, and features twice on this trawl through the archives, which pulls together three demo sessions, from November 1980, and February and May 1981.

Sadly, and somewhat inevitably, the sound quality is pretty poor. The first three tracks from 1980 are the worst: the drums sound like a hail of bullets hitting biscuit tins and riffs buzz like a swarm of wasps armed with chainsaws trying to escape your speakers. The remaining 13 tracks are better, but still not great.

However, if you can forgive the sonic inadequacies and repeated songs (Armageddon appears three times), the magic lies in the sheer energy of the recordings. The band’s ferocious attack is something to behold, with memorable riffs and Sieroto’s lightning solos firing off in all directions. Good stuff, but ultimately one for the NWOBHM trainspotters only./o:p

Essi Berelian

Whether it’s magazines, books or online, Essi has been writing about rock ’n’ metal for around thirty years. He has been reviews editor for Classic Rock and Metal Hammer, rock reviews editor for lads mag Front and worked for Kerrang!. He has also written the Rough Guide to Heavy Metal and contributed to the Rough Guide to Rock and Rough Guide Book of Playlists, and the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles (13th edition). Most fun interview? Tenacious D – Jack Black and Kyle Gass – for The Pick of Destiny movie book. An avid record/CD/tape collector, he’s amassed more music than he could ever possibly listen to, which annoys his wife no end.