Review by Daniel for Omen - Warning of Danger (1985)

After making a big impact on the underground metal scene at their first attempt through their 1984 debut full-length "Battle Cry", Omen (& their label Metal Blade Records) were very keen to capitalize on the buzz that had built up around the band by releasing a follow-up in quick time. And the result was 1985’s “Warning Of Danger” album which represents the focal point of this review.

Importantly, Omen had maintained the four-piece line-up that was so successful on their debut & had unsurprisingly elected (or been forced) to stick with the same production team in Metal Blade Records head Brian Slagel & house engineer Bill Metoyer. The “Battle Cry” album had sported a fairly raw production job it has to be said. However it worked really well in complimenting the rough-edged intensity that Omen’s early works were built on & these days it’s hard to see how that album could have been so effective with a more polished & glossy sound. Well fear not. Things wouldn’t change much for its successor. In fact, I’d suggest that the production job on “Warning Of Danger” is just as raw, only this time the outcome is not all positive with the vocals & drums being mixed too loud & the rhythm guitar sound lacking volume, definition & oomph. Front man JD Kimball’s voice in particular sounds more than a little boomy too but thankfully you should be able to get used to these production qwirks after a couple of listens. It’s just interesting that the Metal Blade house production team hadn’t yet figured out how to consistently present their bands in a more professional & aesthetically appealing fashion despite a fair bit of experience.

Musically, Omen have come a long way from the debut with the level of musicality on display of a much higher level than you’d likely expect if you’d only just sampled “Battle Cry” for the first time. It’s clear that the band hadn’t wasted their time between recording sessions with the drumming & lead guitar work in particular being noticeably more refined & mature. There are also some smatterings of a more progressive approach becoming evident in tracks like the very Iron Maiden-ish instrumental piece “VBP”. (Don’t ask me what it stands for as I’ve got no idea.) This is a less riffy Omen than we’ve heard previously with more emphasis being placed on the song-writing.

“Battle Cry” had been very much a mixture of Paul Dianno-era Iron Maiden & Slayer’s “Show No Mercy” album but “Warning Of Danger” sees Omen dropping a lot of the thrashier stuff in favour of a few more power metal oriented numbers. J.D. Kimball’s vocal delivery is a touch less aggressive & gruff as he pushes for a more epic feel & despite my Slayer fanboyisms, I have to admit that it works most of the time. There are still plenty of obvious examples of Maiden worship scattered across the record but that’s not necessarily such a bad thing as it’s clear that Omen have been positively influenced by the ever improving levels of technical proficiency offered by their idols.

When you analyse the album on a track by track basis, you’ll find that there are just as many highlight tracks included on “Warning Of Danger” as there were on “Battle Cry” with the wonderful “Make Me Your King” being as good as anything Omen have delivered to date. But where the album falls behind it’s older brother is in its overall consistency with a couple more filler tracks included this time. It’s a real shame that the album closes out with what I regard as the clear weak point in “Hell’s Gate” too as it definitely lacks the energy & urgency of Omen’s best work & also happens to be the longest track on the tracklisting which compounds the error further. Surprisingly a lot of people rate this song very highly though so perhaps it’s a personal thing.

I do miss the more intense feel of the debut but can’t deny that I find myself raising an enthusiastic metal claw to the sky quite regularly here so it’s clear that “Warning Of Danger” is another strong effort from Omen. Fans of the blue-collar US power metal sound will find it to be right up their alley & when taken on its own merits this album holds its own pretty well against its more celebrated older sibling.