Thursday, January 12: Silent Force, “Infatuator”
Alex Beyrodt was clearly looking to get his Judas Priest on when he formed Silent Force, as Infatuator’s title track was a straight-up Painkiller tribute with some Malmsteen-esque guitar and keyboard flourishes added in. And it actually worked: Beyrodt riffed like Tipton and soloed like Yngwie, while D.C. Cooper’s opening wail nearly out-Halforded Rob himself (well, at least Rob circa 2001, anyway). “Infatuator” was pure German power metal that didn’t really deviate from the formula, but it was a bit more urgent and aggressive (Andre Hilgers was a more frantic drummer than anyone not playing in Running Wild), and Cooper’s rough yet melodic vocals brought sorely needed grit to the proceedings. This was certainly more overtly metallic than anything Beyrodt played during his on/off runs with Sinner, and far outshone Mat Sinner’s attempts to sound tough. As such, “Infatuator” easily ranked among the best work of Beyrodt’s lengthy career.
