There’s a great deal of nostalgia for original NWOBHM bands of whom only a few are still at it, including TOKYO BLADE, a band which rarely stopped and which can boast about having on board all five members of their 1984 line-up. As the veterans’ latest album, “Time Is The Fire” from last January proved, stopping is not an option anyway, but taking a glance over the ensemble’s shoulder never got in the way of creative development. That’s why the release of the collective’s box set on November 21st feels most welcome.
It’s not a simple compilation, though: while two out of four CDs that make “Beware The Blade: Classic, Rare & Unreleased 1983-2025” are indeed dedicated to the metallers’ best moments from the last four decades, from the team’s start and up to now, the other two feature a rare concert recording and a good number of pieces which have never been issued. In terms of added value, that works rather fine.
Beware The Blade:
Classic, Rare & Unreleased
1983-2025
CD 1:
1. Midnight Rendezvous
2. Mean Streak
3. Powergame
4. Death On Main Street
5. If Heaven Is Hell
6. Highway Passion
7. Sunrise In Tokyo
8. Night Of The Blade
9. Love Struck
10. Warrior Of The Rising Sun
11. Lightning Strikes (Straight Through The Heart)
12. Madam Guillotine
13. Make It Through The Night
14. Blackhearts & Jaded Spades
15. Monkey’s Blood
16. Stealing The Thief
CD 2:
1. Too Much Too Soon
2. Chains Of Love
3. Friend In Need
4. Hot Breath
5. Flashpoint Serenade
6. More Than A Pretty Face
7. Woman And Love
8. Dark Revolution
9. Story Of a Nobody
10. Life Leaves A Scar
11. Kill Me Till I’m Dead
12. Blood Red Night
13. Don’t Bleed Over Me
14. Moth To The Fire
CD 3 – Earthquake Festival, Holland, 1984:
1. Intro
2. Powergame
3. Mean Streak
4. Break The Chains
5. Death On Main Street
6. Liar
7. Midnight Rendezvous
8. Madam Guillotine
9. If Heaven Is Hell
10. Unleash The Beast
11. Sunrise In Tokyo
12. Killer City
13. Night Of The Blade
CD 4 – Unreleased:
1. Last Of The Renegades
2. Line In The Sand
3. Serenade In Black
4. Shout At The Dark
5. This Dying Light
6. Midnight Sun
7. Who’s Laughing Now
8. Hard Getting Over You
9. Save A Bullet
10. Hold Your Ground
11. Shadows In The Rain
12. Walk
13. Dead Forever After
14. The Weeping Wind
