Metal Underground.com

It’s not hard to figure out these San Francisco biker enthusiasts. The Road Vikings love to ride their bikes down the PCH 1 (Pacific Coastal Highway) with the wind blowing through their hair, with the smell of salt and the sound of waves crashing over the roar of their hogs. This is true freedom! Being part of the biker culture also means listening to certain bands and types of music. These dudes certainly dig the biker zeitgeist of hard rock and heavy metal. They bring the tradition of ‘80s-born bands like Dio, Manowar, Jackyl and Skidrow to their latest opus “Requiem For An Outlaw Biker.”

One could imagine The Road Vikings jamming some rally as bikers’ old ladies get out on the floor, show off what they got (and what you can’t have). If you touch, their men will kick your ass, then drink your beer. “Requiem for an Outlaw Biker” will gallop across your wind pipe - it’s an inspiring ode to the outlaw biker.

“The Road to Valhalla” is a great Manowar-inspired ballad to the fallen Norse warrior. Dan Bryant really pushes his vocals on this track. His opening guitar notes on howler “Full Moon” bring to mind Iron Maiden’s penchant for magical string tapping. Also, notice the intricacies of his solos on “I Burn in Hell.” Bryant is a talented musician, and one would expect that considering he’s played with Jeff Becker (David Lee Roth Band) and Marty Friedman (ex-Megadeth.)

The Road Vikings will probably beat me down for saying this (bikers are TOUGH!), but the main issue here is one of oomph. Sometimes the group holds back in places where the music dictates some faster or balls-ier material. Case in point, the break-up song “Head Wind” features excellent gallops and finger tapping, but the overall tone of the song is just too happy to convey his sadness. The group also brings in some proto-metal influence like Deep Purple in the keyboards, which also hurt the track.

“Requiem For An Outlaw Biker” should find appeal among fans of the above-mentioned bands, as the album has concepts that fans of these bands and the biker culture should dig. It’s not without it’s issues, though. One of those flaws is sounding wimpy at times, which is the case with many power metal bands, but the skill and song writing are well above many of the new ilk wearing old hats.