Shortly
after uploading the
DARKSTARR-review
it struck me that the line about it being the rarest vinyl I've ever found
in Sweden wasn't quite true. I'm pretty sure this LP tops it. CRACKED
MIRROR seem to be one of the most sought-after NWOBHM-LPs in existence,
pretty much on the same level as
VOLTZ,
CLIENTELLE and
WARRIÖR -
possibly even the rarest of the bunch. Typically, you have to be a totally
uncritical NWOBHM-
lunatic of "hey-that-2nd-JAGUAR-LP-ain't-half-bad-once-you-give-it-a-few-spins"-proportions
to call this "seminal!" or "classic!". The fact is,
noone would give a flying FUCK about this album if it had been released
a couple of thousand miles east, north, south or west from whatever part
of ol' England's Green it originated from. First of all there isn't an
ounce of a hint of "Metal" on it and definitely nothing even
resembling prog as some rumors have suggested. It barely qualifies as
a hard rock record and that's solely thanx to the style of songwriting
on a few places and not the actual sound. Not that it's an extremely bad
rock record, it's just very common, homespun material. First and foremost
it's the really weak guitar sound that holds the music back. It's way
too low the mix and most of the songs seem to rely on the hammond leads
rather than the Mighty Six-stringed Axe of Metal. Diehard fans of the
later RAINBOW albums might get something out of this a.o.r./westcoast/boogie
stuff, but apart from some decent choruses on "Bomb Blast" and
"On Fire" there's absolutely nothing here for the average Metal
or NWOBHM fan.
It suddenly struck me how absurd it is that just because someone somewhere
mentioned this album in the same sentence as "nwobhm", I now
have to listen through this mediocrity more than twice, and then spend
an hour of my valuable time writing about it, just to set the record straight.
I'm the bloody martyr of truth I am....
This band was formed in East Sussex in 1978 and they only released this LP that is perhaps along with Widow the most rare and obscure LPs of the NWoBHM genre. The sound is typical NWoBHM that will please for sure the funs of British heavy metal. However, it is doubtful if you will ever find this because of the micro-quantity it was pressed. Let's pray for a re-issue!