So of course it was going to take more than a few spins of To the Frontlines to make a conclusive decision to its worth as an album with staying power. Interestingly enough, initial spins had me saying “yep, this is Züülalright,” which by itself would have been enough to dub it a mandatory purchase. But as the nostalgia curse wore off it became more and more apparent that To the Frontlines is a superior album, mainly because it is a more consistent one from front to back. Even better is that the new album takes everything that made Out of Time great and adds just enough diversity and a whole lot of consistency to make it worthy of being called an improvement.

Along with the same recording warmth and the indefinable feeling one gets from an album when it just “feels right,” come a slew of the kind of powerful ‘n classy head-banging anthems that mad Out of Time such a killer. It’s all about the galloping rhythms, the twin leads, the punch, and hooks on this sucker! Most representative are “Show No Mercy,” “Smoldering Nights” (the soloing here is just plain incendiary), and the battlefield glory and blood ‘n guts metal of what has become my favorite cut, “Skullsplitter,” which in some ways recalls the right stuff that made Iron Maiden’s “The Trooper” so magnificent. “Guillotine” and “In the Cellar” are knockouts as well, but what makes “Heavy Lover” another highlight are the 70’s hard rock vibes and an arrangement that at times is like a heavy metal filtering of the blazes set by everyone from Ram Jam to Pat Travers (not blatant, but it’s in there).

What ends up setting To the Frontlines most apart from its predecessor is the closing trio of tunes, starting with a damn fine instrumental called “Of the Fallen.” Even more so are the twin towers that follow: “Bounty Land” and “Waste of Time,” which clock in at a just-epic-enough eight and seven minutes, respectively. The former sports a mildly majestic mid-tempo gallop before the hammer is brought down with the Thor-like force. A little dreaminess coexists nicely with the higher voltage moments on “Bountyland,” the song also ramping up with glorious heavy metal power toward the end.

All of this boils down to To the Frontlines being a phenomenal album made by one of America’s best heavy metal bands. In the end, when taken as whole, I’d have to give it the nod over Out of Time. What is most needed is for Züül to achieve the widespread notoriety it so justly deserves. Do your part: buy the album and spread the word. Züül rules! It’s as simple as that.

Here’s an album that came out at the beginning of 2010 but is definitely deserving of a spot on the TOTD reviews list seven months later.  Released on indie Planet Metal, Züül‘s Out of Time will be a worthy competitor for album of the year, depending on who’s creating the list.  My guess is that anyone into traditional metal will dig this one, though I’ll openly admit it initially took a little while for the full effect of Out of Time to sink in and anchor itself.

Though at times rock-tinged, rest assured that Out of Time is almost exclusively metal, albeit in a pure, primal form.  The umlauts in Züül‘s name boldly attempt to prove this fact before the first track has even begun.  But once the album does get rolling, its heft becomes evident, builds momentum, and steamrolls just about everything traditionally-themed you’ve heard lately.  There are no frills, gimmicks or trends to be heard on Out of Time — it’s a raw clump of coal housing an unpolished gem deep within, and it’s damn near flawless.

Züül seem to take just as much influence from Thin Lizzy as they do Iron Maiden, so, as you can imagine, the material is galloping, powerful, and packed with great melodies, though there’s no pomp or theatrics.  It’s all killer and no filler, as the kids say — packed with excellent guitar harmonies, strong and woeful vocals, and an ass-kicking rock and roll backbone.  Truthfully, nothing is overdone or underdone, and each track is pure headbangin’, fist-shakin’ heaven.  “Out of Time,” “Executioner” and “Warhammer” are all standouts, though every other track is equally worthy of your time.

The reason behind being initially put off by Out of Time had to have been the vocals, which tend to ride the hard rock line more than metal, but they grew on me, and now I’m left wondering why it was even an issue in the first place.  Regardless, Out of Time is an honest, no-bullshit approach to heavy metal that’s simultaneously smooth yet gritty, and it gives the impression of translating perfectly to a live setting.  Fans of the previously mentioned groups, as well as maybe Manilla Road or Bible of the Devil, should check Züül out.