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KILLER “The Grand Finale”
KILLER “The Grand Finale”
By Dr. Abner Mality
Well, that’s a wrap for KILLER…or so they say. We’ll see how that goes. I remember when I was going to college in the early 80’s and in between classes, I’d head to the local record store sometimes, where I saw a TON of import metal from that time. I surely remember “Ready For Hell” and “Shockwaves” from these down and dirty Belgians. Back then, they were pretty much a MOTÖRHEAD knock off featuring guys named Shorty, Spooky and Double Bear. Here at the end of the road in 2026 they are…still a MOTÖRHEAD knockoff.
To be brutally honest, KILLER has never been more than an average band and that’s being generous. Yet they are impossible to dislike and even though I can poke holes in “The Grand Finale” until the cows come home, I can’t hate this. The best description is “inoffensive nostalgia”. Surely if you liked those early 80’s albums, this will be up your proverbial alley.
The MOTÖRHEAD-isms start right away with “Loaded Gun”, only it’s not quite as raw and dirty as MOTÖRHEAD. Nothing wrong with that…there’s also influences from ACCEPT and JUDAS PRIEST here as well. “In The Eye Of The Storm” has a real PRIESTy aura to it and the ballad “Gone Too Soon” is very much in line with ACCEPT’s early ballads. But overall, it’s the MOTÖRHEAD influence that drives the band. On “Roll The Dice”, a guy from a MOTÖRHEAD cover band called MOTORHEADZ joins Shorty on vocals. Speaking of which, this guy is a stunningly average vocalist with a voice that doesn’t stand out at all.
One track I absolutely cannot abide is “Hard Day Coming”, which totally rips off SABBATH’s “Supernaut” riff without shame. This is bald faced theft! The album ends with the raunchy and utterly MOTÖRHEAD “What You See Is What You Get”, which could have been an out-take from Lemmy and the boys.
Shorty Van Camp is the last man standing from the original KILLER and more power to him. “The Grand Finale” is as average as every other KILLER release and that seems somehow fitting. With the exception of “Hard Day Coming”, this will put a smile on your face if you remember early 80’s metal.
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