Forgotten Gems-Arrow-Diary of a soldier

A.R.S.
1986

Sweden's knocked out a 12 inch and then followed up with this four song EP in 1986. This is very likable melodic metal. When a band had a full time keyboard player you don't expect the music to be really heavy.Fortunately Arrow have a good balance between heavy rhythms and sweeping melodies. The opener is the title track and it reminds me quite a bit of early 22O Volt. The balance I mentioned above is very much in playon the title track. "Straight to your heart" is up next and it's a little slower, but another fine outing with some impressive vocals. "Tonight's the night" is easily the best track on the album though. The sound here is early European power metal and it's about a year before the mighty Helloween would adapt a similar sound on their first Keeper of the seven keys disc. The album raps up with the ballad "Until the end of time" which reminds me slightly of the Scorpions. A good song, but I would have prefered the album not ended on a ballad. It's frequently hard to gage a band by an EP and unfortunately this would be it for Arrow, but they offered up an impressive album to remember them by.