#alan marsh

Tokyo Blade’s first album positioned the UK band as a fun hybrid of early Iron Maiden and Van Halen.  And its penultimate track really had it all: a galloping riff, frantic drumming, frenetic lead guitar and a catchy and anthemic chorus, running about 6 minutes but feeling less than half that long.  “Sunrise in Tokyo” may have appeared during the final stages of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, but it was one of the strongest tracks to come from the scene, as it contained all of the rawness and energy but added a sheen of intensity that matched nicely with its melodic flourishes.  And Alan Marsh’s vocals were like a more perfect version of Joe Elliott circa 1981. This was exactly the sound that Tokyo Blade should’ve expanded upon for their next record, but unfortunately the band fired Marsh and decided to adopt Pyromania over Killers as its primary influence, hastening their slide into obscurity.  But there was no beating “Sunrise in Tokyo”, so perhaps it wasn’t surprising that the band didn’t even try.

“Powergame” opened Tokyo Blade’s first album and speedily announced the band as late-period New Wave of British Heavy Metal contenders.  And were it not for bad management and worse decisions (not least of which was the decision to re-release Tokyo Blade with a different title and altered tracklist), the song could’ve heralded a proper Phase 2 for the NWOBHM, since it had all of the scrappy charm and amped-up energy of the original scene, as well as Alan Marsh’s naïve but enthusiastic vocals, but also boasted Andy Boulton’s Eddie Van Halen-influenced shredding, which brightened up the tune and highlighted Tokyo Blade’s strengths.  As it was, “Powergame” played like a proper NWOBHM anthem, and indeed ranked among the best tunes from that era, and was a natural highlight on an album that was actually full of them. Unfortunately, this was as good as it got for the band, as a whole slew of missteps ultimately did the band in before they could really lift off.

Tokyo Blade’s first album positioned the UK band as a fun hybrid of early Iron Maiden and Van Halen.  And its penultimate track really had it all: a galloping riff, frantic drumming, frenetic lead guitar and a catchy and anthemic chorus, running about 6 minutes but feeling less than half that long. “Sunrise in Tokyo” may have appeared during the final stages of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, but it was one of the strongest tracks to come from the scene, as it contained all of the rawness and energy but added a sheen of intensity that matched nicely with its melodic flourishes.  And Alan Marsh’s vocals were like a more perfect version of Joe Elliott circa 1981. This was exactly the sound that Tokyo Blade should’ve expanded upon for their next record, but unfortunately the band fired Marsh and decided to adopt Pyromania over Killers as its primary influence, hastening their slide into obscurity.  But there was no beating “Sunrise in Tokyo”, so perhaps it wasn’t surprising that the band didn’t even try.

Postman Pat makes long-awaited return after ‘intensive care’ A Postman Pat collection box that was smashed in a callous act of vandalism earlier this year has returned after spending months being repaired by a local craftsman. Full story: https://www.cumbriacrack.com/2019/07/22/postman-pat-makes-long-awaited-return-after-intensive-care/

Autumn At The Lake by Alan Marsh

1983. Tokyo Blade

1983. Tokyo Blade

  Alan Marsh     Andy Boulton      John Wiggins   Andy Robbins   Steve Pierce