Fear No Evil＜限定盤/Clear Vinyl＞

1985's Fear No Evil picked up exactly where Grim Reaper's well-received debut See You in Hell had left off, with the band working as best they could within their limited creative boundaries to deliver another strong set of vigorous, blue-collar British heavy metal. Hey, it had worked just fine the last time out, and it's not like the band knew anything else. As was to be expected, Fear No Evil reprised its predecessor's crunchy, simplistic riffs while injecting singles candidates like the title track and "Never Coming Back" with the occasional sonic refinement and increased sense of melody. Other songs, such as "Let the Thunder Roar," "Fight for the Last," and "Final Scream" (with its awful, pointless intro) alternate the requisite demonically inspired lyrics with Judas Priest's patented "let's go rock out" approach. But listeners were seemingly already getting tired of the group's workmanlike formula, and the album failed to match the debut's success in America or elsewhere. Grim Reaper would regroup for a final attempt at a comeback, but that was not to be. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia