Still going strong after forty years - A review of Anvil's ''Pounding the Pavement''

When you purchase an Anvil record, you know exactly what to expect: tight old school heavy metal with occasional hard rock and doom metal influences shining through. This is also the case for the band's seventeenth album in forty years. What makes this release stand out is the relentless energy and passion the band still has after so many years. Anvil sounds hungry, juvenile and powerful from start to finish. The raw but distinct production only adds to this vivid spirit.

The record opens with the amusing ''Bitch in the Box'', a great rock song about a GPS that puts a big smile upon your face. Mission accomplished. The autobiographical and life-affirming ''Doing What I Want'' has an irresistible rhythm section and a chorus with cool vocal effects that add something new to the band sound without straying away from it. ''Nanook of the North'' is a tribute to Inuit culture and a reminder of the horrible things Europeans have done to North America's First Nations. Musically, it's a gloomy and plodding track with throat singing that easily stays on your mind as this record's most experimental track. ''Warming Up'' is a jazzy rock song with ambitious fills and rhythms that shows the great musicianship of the underrated Canadian trio.

Depending on the version you have purchased, there are two bonus with ''Don't Tell Me'' and ''Spark It Up''. Anvil wrote and recorded exactly thirteen songs and all of them were used for the different versions of this album. This shows the confidence of the band and the quality of the material. Pounding the Pavement doesn't include any fillers and only features solid to great material which is quite an accomplishment so late in the band's career. Obviously, a few songs sound quite alike or remind of tracks that have been written in the past. Anvil doesn't reinvent itself and this album isn't the band's greatest hour but it's surely among the band's better releases and a true pleasure to listen to. Fans of the band will like this and those who might have lived under a rock and aren't familiar with Anvil yet might as well start their discovery of the legendary heavy metal band here.

Final rating: 79%