Album Review: Blinding Force by Incursion (No Remorse Records)

Incursion continue their revival with their full-length release, Blinding Force, due out on the 11th of November via No Remorse Records.

Traditional heavy metallers, Incursion, released a new EP in 2020 called The Hunter and I must admit, at the time I just assumed they were another top-notch entry into the New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal (NWOTHM) genre that has had a resurgence in the last 5 years. Turns out that wasn’t the whole story, Incursion weren’t so much New Wave having originally been active as a band in the early to mid 80s, The Hunter, and now Blinding Force, is more the resurrection of a band. You can be forgiven for not knowing they heralded from the golden era of metal. They were active in their hometown of Miami, Florida and released no music formally other than featuring on a locally produced cassette compilation of Florida hardcore and metal bands in 1985.

In 2018 the three original members Maxx Havick and Michael Lashinsky on guitars with Buddy Norris on drums got back together with the intent of finally performing and recording their wealth of material. The line-up was completed by Stone James on bass and Steve Samson on lead vocals and they recorded The Hunter. That EP, released by No Remorse Records in 2020, was highly acclaimed in the underground metal scene, and two years later, with thunderous glory, Incursion return to present their full-length album Blinding Force.

For fans of bands such as Raven, Jag Panzer, Riot City and Traveler, Incursion are Steve Samson on vocals, Maxx Havick and Michael Lashinsky on guitars, Robbie Crede on bass and Dan Douchette on drums.

Blinding Force was produced by the band and engineer Chris Short (Alestorm) and mixed and mastered by Jorg Uken at Soundlodge Studios (Anvil, Ravager, Slaughter Day). The artwork was masterfully done by Marcos Miller (Desaster, Decimator, Mental Horror). With 9 tracks to get stuck into, Blinding Force gets underway with the title track. An emphatic guitar driven start jumps into a catchy, traditional track with strong vocals, a nice drum and bass rhythm and some headbanging riffs. Vocals are solid and jump into higher tones showing Samson has plenty of range. It’s a meaty track, quite slow paced though which was a bit of a surprise. Keeping the steady pace, we do get a sweet solo that sits nicely in the track. It’s a decent song, maybe just a little underwhelming and not quite having the energy or aggression the title leads you towards. More “steady pressure” than Blinding Force.

Vengeance brings that energy I am looking for though with a much more raucous affair. Wicked drums and quick riffs will get a crowd moving. The simple gang vocal chorus is effective, and the vocals keep mixing up the tones quite nicely. The solo is strong, again, but this song is all about the frenetic rhythm driving the song from the drums and bass lines that leaves you feeling pumped.

Running Out has a wicked intro. The guitar lines are solid and then the drums build up into it before all joining together for a strong, mid-tempo rhythm that is supremely catchy. I really like the extra backing vocals in the build-up to the chorus and in the chorus itself. There is a really neat flow to what Incursion are doing on this track, it just feels good to listen too. It has the fastest and most fiery solo on Blinding Force so far too and is a genuine banger.

The Sentinel has the unenviable task of following that track but does a great job, starting with a decent bit of riffing it drops down into an eerie melodic song with plenty of atmosphere and an opportunity for the vocals to really stand forward in the mix. I must also mention who cool it is to be a handful of songs in to Blinding Force but to have so much variety in pace and style so far. The soaring vocals in the verse lead add additional power and passion in the chorus which also sees the instruments bring the crunch back. Another strong solo helps elevate the song even higher.

The Rites and Master of Evil are our next two tracks. The Rites really smashes it with the drums and bass rhythm again, something that stands out across most of this album. The whole track is built on this stampeding style rhythm which is just pure ear candy and makes you want to move around in the pit. Master of Evil brings the energy back up to Vengeance levels with a short blast track of quick drums and riffs, a simple chorus and a wicked solo. Its a simple enough old school track but really, really good and this continuous change in pace and energy across the album is really helping ensure your attention is held.

Strike Down has a neat drum beat intro before drawn out guitar notes join in and a gang vocal “whoah whoah” section completely blows my mind. It’s another fresh entry into this album of creativity. The song has a really interesting structure and some off kilter ideas. A melodic, dark verse suddenly stops and switches to a lone bass line. Tapping drums eventually join in, then guitars and then boom, here comes a solo. That’s a little bit of genius right there. What a clever track, well played Incursion. The song all comes back together with a nice enthusiastic rhythm and strong vocals before heading into another banging solo. And we have a new favourite.

We approach the end of the road with the penultimate track, a short energetic blast song called Hang ’em High. It’s a fast paced, well sung and straight forward enough track that has some really memorable guitarwork before we head into the end game with Riot Act. We close with quality though and that comes right from the off with a riff and rhythm that possesses your body and gets that head banging before you even realise it. That rhythm is then recycled and jumps in tempo and crunch to then form the backbone of a quick and heavy track. Again, like across the whole of Blinding Force, the vocals are strong, and the drums are top notch. The riffs, the lead guitars – there is clearly a wealth of talent in the band, and it shines through clearly across Riot Act, and the whole of the album.

Blinding Force got off to a slow start with the title track being the opener. It’s a good song, that’s not the issue. I just felt like it maybe shouldn’t have been the album opener as it is too slow and steady to represent “Blinding Force”. That minor complaint aside, what a fun and exciting album this turned out to be! Lashings of creativity and variety comes in the form of differing song structures and changing tones and pace while always feeling rooted in the traditional style. A clearly talented group, you can Incursion rapidly rising to the very top of the NWOTHM genre if their output stays anywhere near to Blinding Force’s level of quality. It’s an exciting album that keeps you on your toes with its twists and turns in each track and will leave you with a big smile on your enthused face.

Grab a preorder now, from their Bandcamp or at least make sure you get your stream ready for the 11th of November.

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