(Australian 1979-1983, 1989-1999, 2014-present)
Bengal Tigers is a heavy metal band that formed in Melbourne in 1979 and were quickly signed to the emerging Mushroom label in Australia, and the famous Heavy Metal Records in the UK. The band has released a couple of EP's, one album, and despite a cult following have never achieved the crossover success they deserved.
They have split and reformed a few times throughout their existence. The band's style immediately reminds me of 80's hard rock, with its simple guitar-riffs and solos, slightly pouty vocals and rock-anthem choruses. Anything from AC/DC to Judas Priest applies as far as style is concerned. They continue to gig to this day and are regarded as pioneers of Aussie heavy metal.
Enduring early Australian metal pioneers who started pedaling their wares in the late 70's. A sound comparable to Judas Priest (Point Of Entry / Killing Machine era), the distinctive vocal vibrato of singer Gordon Heals, & razor edge riffs Barney Fakhouri will connect with fans of later 70's and early 80's Scorpions & Priest. Mid pace hard rock workouts "Break And Bend" & "Fallen Idol" has pumping bass & solid driving beat while "Nine Lives" and "Pounding Energy" pick up the pace for some solid workman like metal. Leather, studs & hair this is unquestionably pure traditional metal which is a very good thing indeed. [Written by Dave Harrison]
There wasn't a lot of metal in Australia in the early 80's, but Bengal Tigers were one such band, debuting in 1982 with the Metal Fetish EP. They toured quite a bit in their home country for years and years, even though they didn't get another release put out until the mid-nineties. Metal Fetish displayed a basic NWOBHM / Judas Priest style, not bad at all for the time.
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| Bengal Tigers Today |
Bengal Tigers split-up in 1983, perhaps before their 1984 Cheat On single was released. However, in 1989 the band reformed. In 1999, Peter-Budge left the band. They reformed in 2014 and are still gigging today. (For more recent information about the band, see metal-rules.com)
Metal Fetish E.P (1982) V's Metal Fetish E.P (1984)
This post contains both the original Australian pressing from 1982 with 4 tracks. and the worldwide release from 1984 which has 5 tracks. It sounds to me that the two different pressings are also completely different recordings too. I'm not sure, but I sort of prefer the worldwide press recordings, but they are both really good no matter how you look at it. People are under the impression that the first track, Nine Lives, is actually a mistake and that it should be titled Got To Deliver. However, from what I have found out from talking to various people who knew the band in the early 80's, this is false. Yes, it's title is "Got To Deliver", but at the time in 1982 it was actually referred to as "Nine Lives" by the band. Later on, it was renamed to "Got To Deliver" and consequently released under that name on the 1984 release. Hopefully that clears that up.
I've also added photos of the worldwide press record itself and the German ZYX pressing which is the same as the Heavy Metal Worldwide release. [Written by Brown-Sock]
This post consists of MP3 (320kps) ripped from vinyl (E.P) and audiotape (Bootleg) which were kindly provided by
Brown-Sock and Skids (from Ausrock) respectively. The Bootleg is taken from an audience recording and sound quality is pretty average, however it is what it is and for metal enthusiasts it is better than nothing.
The EP's are a much more enjoyable listening experience by far. Play them LOUD folks !
Metal Fetish (1982) Track Listing 01 Nine Lives *
02 Break And Bend
03 Fallen Idol
04 Pounding Energy
Metal Fetish (1984) Track Listing
01 Break And Bend
02 Heavin'
03 Got To Deliver *
04 Fallen Idol
05 Pounding Energy
* Same Track
Live @ Central Club, Richmond, Aust (26.03.1984)
01 Eletric eye
03 Got To Deliver
04 Burnin'
05 Heads Are Gonna Roll
06 Wishing Well
07 Strike While The Irons hot
08 Live Wire
09 Heavin'
10 Desert Plains
11 Break and Bend
12 Heavy Handed
13. Pounding Energy
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