Forgotten Gems-Saint-s/t

If you of a certain age you probably recall a time when AOR bands ruled the airwaves. Whether you enjoyed that style or not is up to you. For myself I liked some bands but it seemed like for every solid band like Journey you had two annoying bands like Loverboy. AOR to me is a style I have to be in the mood for, but having it burned into my eardrums in the early 80's has giving me somewhat of an appreciation for bands that do it right. That brings me to an overlooked gem in this style. Not to be confused with the christian metal band of the same name and not to be dismissed for the lame album cover, this Saint played pure AOR with some hard rock touches. Their self-titled debut was released in 1984 and was hard to find. Retrospect released it on CD in 2006, but has since gone out of print. So were they any good? Opener "Desperate Times" is so much like Journey that you might be wondering if it was some bonus track that was left of the "Frontiers" album. Much of this album has definite similarities to what Journey did between 1978 and 1983 with maybe a touch of Foreigner thrown in. They don't earn many originality points for that approach, but if you are going to copy someone you may as well copy the best. I am not trying to dismiss Saint as just a copy band because that's not fair or entirely true. They possess a good knack for controlling the melodies and pace. Every song has plenty to offer for fans of AOR. When I am in the mood for this kind of music I frequently find myself pulling this one out for a spin. Definitely worth tracking down.

Saint-In the battle

Retroactive
2004/2010

This is a re-issue of Saint's 2004 release and at the time it was their first new studio album in 15 years. The band has been very active since then so it's interesting and check out this starting point of the second chapter of their career. Saint have always been a fairly consistent band on the christian metal circuit. They have been frequently compared to Judas Priest and this album primarily follows that style. Many of the songs are reminiscent of Priest's more mid-tempo songs from around the 1980-1982 period. Although they have always done enough to develop their own sound and I think that's they have been one of the better white metal bands around. They never quite cut loose with anything more than medium paced tracks and originality isn't their best trait. However they do know how to crank some pure metal with screaming vocals, a pounding rhythm section and some riffs that will get your pumping. I can't argue with that or the fact that on the first time through I repeated several songs immediately because I enjoyed them that much. Saint don't add a lot to the old school metal sound, but they do know how to do it in a way that makes you takes notice and appreciate them for sticking to the sound they started on back in the early 1980's.

Saint-Hellblade

Retroactive
2010

Saint have gone through some line-up changes since their last release. Now down to a foursome Jerry Johnson on all the guitar duties and Bill Brost replaces Larry London behind the drums. More important than who is involved is the fact that the band gets back to their real metal roots. This is much more like it. "Crime scene Earth 2.0" was a confused effort that tried to use effects and only held back the band's sound. With "Hell Blade" the band stampede through through some bone-snapping metal in the style of Judas Priest, Accept and Metal Church. Vocalist Josh Kramer shines through some Rob Halford like vocals as he never lets up. There is no fooling around or trying to keep up with trends as Saint just pushes forth solid metal tracks like "Hell Train" and "New World Order". No offense to former guitarist Dee Harrington, but Jerry Johnson handles the guitars effortlessly by himself as explodes with with a fury this band hasn't had in far too long. The production also adds to their cause as all sounds involved can be heard to the fullest. I was blown away on the first play of "Hell Blade" and enjoyed it even more on subsequent plays. My only complaint is that it all seemed to go too fast. Good to see this band back to form.

Saint-Crime Scene Earth 2.0

Retroactive
2008/2010

This album was self-released just two years ago, but now this version has new artwork plus it has been re-mixed and partially re-recorded. I always kind of liked Saint back in the 80's. Stryper got more attention for supposedly being "christian metal" for putting out radio friendly, sappy songs, but Saint were more concerned with playing metal and getting their message across than they were with album sales. This album is based around 80's classic style metal. However there is a major problem with this album and that's the effects that are all too often added to Josh Kramer's vocals. I don't know if this was intended to add something to their sound or not. All it really does it make Kramer sound like Rob Halford singing into a drinking glass or it may be Tim Owens singing a glass. The effects deprive the vocals of any power they could have and serve to dampen the overall sound and hold back much of the energy that could have been present. The music manages to make up for the above to some extent. It's very Judas Priest influenced metal that heavy on rhythms although not too big on pace changes. Even the music isn't allowed to just burst forward. The drums frequently have a tin-like quality and the guitars could have come up in the mix. I am not sure what overall sound they were shooting for, but the ideas only serve to restrain their material rather letting them hit their potential. There are some strong moments, but too often I was having to strain to hear parts or change settings on my CD player to hear it well enough. What a shame because I think this could have been a good album.