Chastain - Mystery Of Illusion (1985)

Arguably one of metal's greatest album covers and what the artwork hides is an evil little record made all the more sinister by Leather's ferocious vocal sneer. Chastain was a guitar master but not the sort of guy shrouded in his own noodling, oh no, Dave would create several metal masterpieces based around his driving riffs and ominous shredding, and 'Mystery...' is probably his finest outing. This none track debut clocks in at under forty minutes but every track is a surefire winner carved by the same powers that probably constructed the ring of Mordor! This is a fiery record, of that you can have no doubt, it rages through the ears with the likes of the brief but bombastic 'Black Knight' an scorching 'When The Battle's Over.' Any kids desperate for a dose of real metal back in the '80s would have found this opus bang on the nail, Fred Coury's drums march with the orcs and Leather Leone is just a formidable voice. There's nothing more you could want from a burning metal opus, so, dive into the cover, smell the leaves of the forest and prepare to battle all evil - but take heart dear warrior for you shall be accompanied by the wizard that is Chastain. 8/10