Review MAD MAX ‘Wings of Time’

Mad Max belongs to the spearhead of German melodic metal since the beginning of the 80s. The band was founded by guitarist Jürgen Breforth and with ‘Heavy Metal’ the guys released their debut album in 1982. After the band had to face several line-up changes, Mad Max released ‘Night of Passion’, an album that helped them to become widely known.

The journey of Mad Max was not always a straight one and yet the band never gave up, which brings us to the year 2022.

With ‘Wings of Time’ Mad Max have a new album in the starting blocks and it is the first longplayer in the newer era without Michael Voss. Fortunately, an adequate replacement has been found in Julian Rolinger. Rolinger has a sense for the sound of the 80s. Whether it’s the catchy passages or a harsher timbre, Rolinger is in command of the entire spectrum.

‘Wings of Time’, so the title of the new longplayer, builds on eleven songs which reflect the classic Mad Max sound. There’s the rocking yet soulful ‘Best Part of Me’ as well as the peppy ‘When it Stops’. The latter song has a stronger AOR feel without being cheesy or trite.

On the other hand there are tracks like ‘Stormchild Rising’, a song that reminds of earlier times not only by the title. Mad Max put their foot to the pedal and show that they still have a lot of passion. ‘The Stage is For You’ is also pretty rocking and the opener ‘Too Hot to Handle’ shows Mad Max in good shape.

In a nutshell, ‘Wings of Time’ is an entertaining album that is fun to listen to. There is a positive vibe that runs through the album as a common thread and invites you to have a good time. This album comes across straightforward and fits perfectly into the warm late summer days of this year.