Tarzen – ‘Taboo’ + ‘Madrid’

(Metallic Blue)

I’d heard some scuttlebutt about the impending reissue of these Tarzen albums mixed with some excitement and anticipation which piqued my interest in this release. So, I was hoping to uncover an undiscovered Eighties gem for myself! Anyone who already knows these albums will not be surprised I was mightily impressed and although they are very much of their time sound and style wise, I still loved what I heard.

1984’s ‘Taboo’ instantly gave me NWOBHM vibes, galloping guitars, gritty vocals and big choruses. It has a strong melodic edge so it veers me more towards NWOBHM at that end of the spectrum especially Lionheart, who are the most obvious sound alike band but given the bands overall style I’d throw Tygers of Pan Tang in the mix too. The album in its entirety which focuses on energy and rockers exhibits a lot of those NWOBHM traits and attitudes that were prominent in the early Eighties. It has a metallic groove with a classic rock foundation and is very melodic, even more so than a lot bands of the same genre in that era. It doesn’t surprise my they toured with Twisted Sister as these songs have a similar impact and I can imagine most these songs energising and making a crowd get involved in the live arena. ‘Taboo’ is packed with head bangers, fist pumpers and shout it out loud choruses that would make any Eighties rock fan smile with excitement.

Although there is five years between these albums I was genuinely surprised at how different 1989’s ‘Madrid’ sounds. It’s still as enjoyable and impressive but in a totally different way, Tarzen had definitely adjusted their sound to fit the times. Gone were the NWOBHM touches to be replaced with a smoother melodic rock sound, Think FM or Outside Edge and you’d be in the right place for how the band had evolved.

The fist pumping attitude of its predecessor was replaced with the slick and smooth emotion of AOR, which to be fair was very in keeping with what was popular in the rock scene at the time. Don’t get me started on the Keyboards I was almost a dribbling wreck with some of the more pompous and keyboard led tracks. There was plenty of supplementary Keyboards on ‘Taboo’ but on ‘Madrid they had more of a starring role.

‘Madrid’ just put a smile on my face, its fun, very uplifting, bright and breezy and much like its predecessor very much of its time. Although I think Outside Edge is the most accurate comparison, I did catch a touch of Harlan Cage on some of the more pompous tracks.

It truly is an unearthed gem for me I will get a lot of continued enjoyment from both albums. I do prefer ‘Madrid’ to ‘Taboo’ but given their differences they both satisfy different itches and both have their own strengths in different ways to fairly compare them. Melodic Rockers if like me you don’t already know Tarzen, change that NOW!

8/10

Essential Track - 'Pack Rules' (Taboo) - 'Glad All Over' (Madrid)

Review by Woody