Soldier of Fortune

Loudness | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 21, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Wounded Bird Records
• ASIN: B0009OUBUQ
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #230,883 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Loudness was a Japanese hard rock quartet that had numerous hit albums in the 80's and early 90's. Soldier Of Fortune was only available as a high priced Japanese import, so now fans can buy it at an affordable price, thanks to Wounded Bird. 2005.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There is a new remastered version released in Dec 2009, February 8, 2010

By 

Iron Skull - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soldier of Fortune (Audio CD)

I would not get this, but rather order directly from Loudness website or Amazon Japan for the remastered version.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great album, lousy reissue, October 9, 2009

By 

Justin Gaines (Northern Virginia) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Soldier of Fortune (Audio CD)

Loudness's 1989 album Soldier of Fortune was one of the Japanese metal band's more controversial releases. Replacing original vocalist Minoru Niihara with American singer Mike Vescera (ex-Obsession) was obviously a cynical maneuver by Loudness and/or the record label in order to break through to a wider US audience. Watering down the band's heavy metal sound (however slightly) in favor of the more popular hair metal style was another. Neither of these decisions endeared the band to their longtime fans, nor did they really succeed in making Loudness a viable US act.

Whatever you may think of the decisions behind the new lineup and musical direction, the end result is actually pretty impressive. Mike Vescera probably wasn't the best fit for this band, but the fact is he's a much better singer than Niihara, and he does a terrific job on Soldier of Fortune. It doesn't hurt that guitar wizard Akira Takasaki turned in an outstanding performance as well, and that the songs - despite a couple of missteps ("Lost Without Your Love" comes to mind) are both accessible and still very "metal" at heart. Great melodies, smokin' guitar work, and a powerhouse vocal performance...there's a lot to love here.

Soldier of Fortune really is one of the better Loudness albums, and one that people shouldn't write off simply because of the vocalist change or the politics involved. It doesn't have quite the same exotic charm as Thunder in the East or Lightning Strikes, but it's a very well written and executed metal album, and one that should appeal to most fans of the 80's metal scene.

Edition Notes: Wounded Bird reissued Soldier of Fortune in 2005. The album has not been digitally remastered, and the sound quality of this reissue is - to be blunt - horrible. Of course, so is the original version. No bonus material either. If you have the original 1989 CD, there's absolutely no reason to replace it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A searing release - Loudness hits the spot, February 15, 2006

By 

Paul Lawrence "'EJL'" (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soldier of Fortune (Audio CD)

Wow. This was my intro to this band I'd only heard underground rumblings about. This album can be listened to from one end to the other. The searing class of the guitar playing. How this wasn't huge can only be down to a few reasons - a) bad luck or b) poor management or c) the band not being American. My guess is C given that even in 2005 one foreign band was told by their american record company "why would we want bands from overseas when we have our own bands" (not to mention any names).

I'd love to sit here and talk about each track but your better off just buying this album and enjoying it. Michael Vescera is in top form, nobody can accuse him of not trying to make this work - at least in the studio. One track I must mention is Demon Disease. Listen to the damn lyrics. Foreboding but uplifting and that's not an easy line to walk. Not to mention that by the time this album is over you need something emotional to let you down from the blast you've just experienced.

Alas the band didn't hit this high very often, I've reviewed a couple of their other albums for anyone who'd like to check out my thoughts on some of their other releases.