IN FOR THE KILL!

Budgie's fourth album, whilst not quite so groundbreaking as their debut or Never Turn Your Back On A Friend, sees the band continuing to be at the forefront of the early heavy metal scene. The power trio seem more confident than in previous outings, which makes the diverse range of styles they play an engaging listen. Running From My Soul, for example, is a heavy take on fairly traditional rock and roll, whilst thunderous album closer Living On Your Own is a slower, doomier, Sabbath-inspired number.

The album also includes an updated version of Crash Course in Brain Surgery, a track the group had previously released as a single - a pounding piece of proto-speed metal which particularly showcases the skills of Burke Shelley, the group's bassist and vocalist. Shelley's bass style for this album is harder and heavier than ever, at points reaching hypnotic intensities comparable to the sort of performances Lemmy was dishing out in Hawkwind at the time.

At the same time, the album doesn't quite hang together as well as Never Turn Your Back On a Friend. It was churned out rapidly in the space between two intense tours, and whilst the process of touring had clearly made Budgie a tighter unit, they also feel a little bit more conventional - like they're beginnign to compromise here and there to conform to the expectations of a 1970s hard rock audience rather than producing any novelties to match their earlier work. Budgie's career to this point had provided ample proof that Budgie do not deserve the comparative obscurity they've faded away into, but ought to join Sabbath and Judas Priest in the early metal pantheon. In For the Kill isn't a classic that will convince doubters by itself, but it is further evidence in support of that position.