War Cloud are one of my favorite bands on Ripple Music. Their hard work and dedication to 80s metal and hard rock is admirable. Their debut impressed me, but it's on the bands sophomore release State Of Shock that the Oakland bashers claw to the top. This is some of the most fun I've had listening to hard rock in years. State Of Shock is an outright banger with every track roaring forward with big choruses and NWOBHM guitars. It's hard not to have a good time bashing away to War Cloud.
What gets me about this band is how perfectly they are able to hone in on that 1983 heavy metal sound. While this record is certainly more 'metal' than their debut, fans of everything from Angel Witch to early Metallica are gonna find something to love here. It's rare to me to find a record that so perfectly understands the sound of that era of hard rock. With Thin Lizzy guitar harmonies confronting hard hitting rhythm sections War Cloud take advantage of their temporal separation to craft a more complete sounding record. State Of Shock is consequently compelling listening for anyone who loves the early 80s stuff.
As I was writing this it just clicked, what War Cloud are like is a thrashier UFO. Or maybe they are like what would have happened if those early 2010's bands like White Wizzard got their shit together. Suffice it to say - this is what California rock should be about. From the ballad-esque Dangerous Game to the heavy hitter that is Striker, War Cloud run the gamut of 80s rock tropes with aplomb bringing in more than a few of their own elements. Good times and singalongs crash into ripping guitar solos on State Of Shock. You are gonna want to turn this all the way up.
Find them on Facebook!
https://www.facebook.com/warcloudiscoming/
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