Dagger - Not Afraid Of The Night (1985)

"I'm not afraid of the nigt, I'm not afraid of the dark..." yelps Dagger's vocalist, occasionally straining but his heartfelt message of metal actually acts as an endearing trait, Dagger's obscure mid '80s metal not as pompous as I originally expected. I'm digging the title cut, which is part glam anthem, part lightweight Dio. The band can also write a half decent vintage ballad too, 'As The Heart Falls Down' may not have the bombastic production of so many, but this is more than adequate and mildly pleasing '80s metal. Okay, so the titles aren't exactly great - 'Raise The Titanic' and 'Once Again We're Rocking' lay on the cheese, but musically each track is worth a lesson, even if Dagger lack the killer instinct. 6/10