Tank-This means war

Metal Mind
1983/2008



By 1983 Tank were still stomping ahead and this time Ward and the Brabbs brothers recruited a second guitar player in Mick Tucker. The metal scene in general may have been changing some, but "This means war" saw Tank sticking wholeheartedly to the same style of their previous releases. They continued to crank out unpolished and raw metal tunes like "Hot lead, cold steel", "Laughing in the face of death" and "Just like something from hell". In fact this album sounds a little under produced as I listen to it now. That sound might be very well in line with Tank's attitude and approach as their early material wasn't too much different from Motorhead.
This is simple, but pleasing metal that is very easy to get into and it's fun. The formula is fairly basic, but they know how to pull it off. I think that there is no doubt that their earlier albums were their best work. However in retrospect it is very possible that Tank's failure to become one of the NWOBHM bands to move on to the next level may have very well been due to the fact that they did not try to progress at all. Sure, I like the music and all, but metal was branching out by 1983 and bands were trying new things. I think Tank got left behind to some extent, but needless to say they are still a solid entry from the NWOBHM movement. This re-issue includes three bonus tracks plus a lyric booklet that even includes the cover art from the French version of this album.