Lady Beast-Lady Beast

Infernö Records
2013

"I am Lady Beast" Lady Beast front-woman Deborah Levine roars as this self-titled release comes charging forward like a hungry lion from the days of coliseums and gladiators! This Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 5-piece might not hail from my favorite place on earth (I'm a Browns fan after all!), but man alive if they aren't another perfect example of the greatness of true heavy metal I don't know what is! Deborah Levine is one powerful lead singer and this self-titled EP, which was originally issued in August of 2012 on LP, is another impressive re-issue from our friends over at Infernö Records. This female-fronted heavy metal act was formed by Deborah Levine and bassist Greg Colaizzi (Wrathcobra) back in 2009 and are already making a name for themselves thanks to their blend of traditional heavy metal and New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. Lady Beast, which is a great name for a band (female-fronted or not), draw from the likes of Dio, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Doro/Warlock, Scorpions, Accept, Saxon, Motörhead and Thin Lizzy to create their own sensational take on the genre. Seriously, where does Infernö Records find all of these great bands? First Death Rides A Horse and now this bunch?

Anyway, the band went through the usual line-up changes before settling down with the current line-up. Along with Deborah Levine and Greg Colaizzi Lady Beast is filled out by lead guitarist Tommy Kinnett, rhythm guitarist Twiz, aka: Christopher Tritschler (Carousel), and  drummer Adam Ramage of crossover act Oh Shit They're Going to Kill Us (another great name for a band!). Infernö Records will be re-issuing Lady Beast's 8 track EP on CD and cassette with the CD version only including a cool cover of "Ram It Down" by Judas Priest. Now, speaking of the band's choice of cover, which really is quite fun as well as being cool, Judas Priest are obvious one of the other big influences of the band. Tommy Kinnett's leads are straight out of the school of British heavy metal and add the perfect compliment to Deborah's forceful vocals. For a band with only one recording under their belt so far the talent level is superb as there isn't a dub to be found on this EP. With female-fronted metal bands suddenly springing up all over the place a band like Lady Beast needs to do a lot to stand out and yet, even as young of a band as they are on paper, the group has a maturity about them and a remarkably focused vibe. Lady Beast have a familiar sound to them that is comfortable and easy to get caught up. This is another new band that I could see making some serious waves even if the market is getting over-flooded with female-fronted heavy metal acts. My only complaint about this re-release is that even if you count the cover of "Ram It Down" it just feels too short. I'm left longing to hear more from Lady Beast now! Here's hoping that A) it isn't too long until the band issues a follow-up to "Lady Beast" and B) seeing as they hail from Pittsburgh they come down and play live in my part of Ohio soon!