Review Summary: "Prayers of Steel" is actually the first studio album by the legendary German power-speed metal band Rage!
After getting their first line-up established with Peavy Wagner (the only founding member currently in the band) on bass and vocals, Jochen Schröder and Alf Meyerratken on guitars and Jörg Michael on drums, the group re-recorded their demos, which together with some new songs composed this "Prayers of Steel".
The album was produced by Ferdinand Köther, owner and founder of Wishbone Records, a label with which the group signed a contract that would last until they changed their name to the final Rage. The production is professional and the sound is adequate, maybe a bit raw and with some lack of punch in the guitars. But at the end of the day, it sounds like a metal record made in Central Europe in the mid-80s should sound like.
However, those looking for the furiously fast Rage of later albums may be disappointed as this record is more focused on riffs than speed, denoting obvious influences from bands of the time such as Judas Priest, Iron Maiden or Saxon.
In any case, the album contains enough good moments to be enjoyed by fans of the most classic heavy-metal from the 80s, and it is undoubtedly essential to understand how the Rage that gave us so much good music (and still does) was born.
Best Tracks: Battlefield (fast and effective opening), Prayers of Steel (I especially recommend the version of this song with Victor Smolski on guitars, available on YouTube), Rise of the Creature (hard rock with hook) and Sword Made of Steel (the lyrics are clichéd and it's kind of repetitive, but I like the chorus and Peavy's vocals here)
