Neckbreaker, Germany  - 'Majors And Minors' Review by (Pfälzer)

The troupe should really be full of juice again, as great as their performances have been in the last decade, both in the studio and on stage. But they too are among the victims of Corona, the tour to the outstanding Ritual" was cancelled, shortly afterwards guitar talent Mickey Crystal took his hat. With his successor Francesco Marras, the TYGERS OF PAN TANG are currently on hold, which is why the archives have been searched. After a re-release of “Ambush” there is now a compilation of songs from the last four discs called “Majors & Minors”. How much sense does that make with the underrated NWOBHM veterans?  To understand the meaning behind it one has to deal with the history of the band, which is divided into three phases, whereby one can more or less ignore the middle one. The formation already brought out a best of, which also comprised four discs, which were released in the years 1980-1983. At that time the wave was at its peak and Robb Weir and his men swam with them. On the review of the early years published by her label, the Major MCA, one could read the development well. From the rough early days, the more polished discs “Hellbound” and “Crazy Nights” with John Sykes on guitar and John Deverill as singer, to the commercial attempt “The Cage”. Whereby the latter failed and led the first out, a producer like the competitor DEF LEPPARD with "Mutt" Lange could not muster with Steve Thompson.

It was also Thompson who revived the band with an almost completely new line-up at the end of the eighties. However, he continued to use the rather poppy paint job, which is why “The Wreck-Age” and “Burning In The Shade” flopped. More than ten years later, Weir gathered new comrades with whom he performed in Wacken. But neither with the singers nor with the long players was the TYGERS OF PAN TANG lucky. The "Mystical" sung by Tony Liddell showed the range of the formation, but the songs and production sounded very stiff. Despite better songs, the modern counterpart "Noises From The Cathouse" with Richie Wicks on the microphone also went under. The salvation came in the person of the Italian Jacopo Meille, who joined the now sworn bunch of Weir, bassist Brian West, guitarist Dean Robertson and drummer Craig Ellis. With its enthusiasm and power, “Animal Instinct” was finally able to pick up on the early phase, as was the stylistically similar “Ambush”. While the first record by THUNDER man Ben Matthews was given a classic rock sound, controller legend Chris Tsangarides staged the successor more metallic.
You can hear two tracks from both albums, the driving “Let It Burn” and the anthemic “Hot Blooded” on one, “She” and above all the loud opener “Keeping Me Alive” on the other. Connoisseurs might miss pieces like “Rock Candy” or “Hey Suzie!”. During that time, Robertson and West said goodbye, who is touring the planet today as a backliner for URIAH HEEP.

For them Gav Gray came on the four and Mickey Crystal on the six strings, who could give the group an additional kick. His carefree and freshness owed to his young age is particularly noticeable in his brilliant solos, but he can also take over the action on stage with Meille. No wonder that the first joint work was given the definitive title "Tygers Of Pan Tang", it was the building block to make the fiver stronger than ever. The newly gained strength manifests itself in the four excerpts, whereby I would have liked to have put a different song on it for the glam-rocky “Glad Rags”. But titles like the brilliant opener “Only The Brave”, which also opens “Majors & Minors” and above all “The Devil You Know” transport their NWOBHM roots perfectly into the present. They were able to go one step further with “Ritual”, of which five contributions made it to the compilation. The orchestral version of “Spoils Of War” proves the confidence of the five. “Destiny” plays the melodic anthem, in return “Damn You!” reveals almost punk influences.

Two previously unreleased pieces can also be heard as an additional incentive to buy. "What You Say" is great with edgy riffs, offers a few vocal arrangements in the bridge and presents itself in an accessible way in the chorus. This also applies to “Plug Me In”, which is kept slower in terms of pace and builds a great bridge to classics such as “Slaves To Freedom”. Both are also included on the LP version, where, strangely enough, six tracks have been omitted, since it should have been better to use a double vinyl. There would have been room for a few bonus tracks, which are available here in the form of an additional live version of “Keeping Me Alive”. You could have put a few extra candies on it. So, you still have to deal with a good selection, which makes the TYGERS OF PAN TANG interesting for newbies, but can also introduce old fans to the new formation, collectors are allowed to strike anyway, because the material is consistently fun. (Pfälzer)

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