Cloven Hoof - let's talk

There are a few out here who remember them. My personal favourites are the Russ North albums, which had a distinct EUPM sound to them, as also tunes that stick. That said, it's hard to get "Layin' down, layin' down the law" from the David Potter era out of a few heads. I don't like the new sound at all- it's too close to extreme metal territory. What do you think? I like their sound more than that of, say, Diamond Head or Saxon.

Yeah, great stuff.

"A Sultan's Ransom" is gold. THE HIIILS HAVE EEEYES

A cloven hoof is a hoof which is cloven.

Also a very good band.

I don't own anything by them yet, but they're a good band.

Good band I personally prefer over Saxon and Diamond Head on any day. I need to pick that Dominator vinyl re-release Burried By Time And Dust did recently.

Here's a video from the 1980s- Mad Mad World (Sultan's Ransom)

A video of their latest (?) song - I'm your nemesis now

Maybe you'll like this vocalist a lot more - Russ North on Reach For The Sky (one of my personal favourites)

I STILL have no Cloven Hoof on NLTM. Ugh! I use to have Dominator on vinyl back in the day.

ultmetal wrote:

I STILL have no Cloven Hoof on NLTM. Ugh! I use to have Dominator on vinyl back in the day.

Get A Sultan's Ransom ult! I can't imagine you NOT linking that album!

Unfortunately, CH have pretty much turned to sh!t the last few years. That I'm Your Nemesis song is absolutely atrocious, and just listen to their latest craptastic tune:

I finally got a copy of A Sultan's Ransom and this album is killer! I am sorry that I had missed this album for all these years. It's a rock-solid collection of classy, melodic, power metal from these NWOBHM legends. Damn it's good!

Yes, I have also been listening to that one lately and it's a great one.

Wouldn't it have been interesting if Russ North won the audition over Blaze? Apparently he was the #2 choice.

I just ordered A Sultan's Ransom!

A Sultan's Ransom arrived in the mail today!

stormspell wrote:

Good band I personally prefer over Saxon...

To tell the truth, they ARE better than Saxon, they only lack in the quantity department.

Hear hear

I have the first long player CLOVEN HOOF from 1984 on tape and lp, FIGHTING BACK, DOMINATOR and A SULTANS RANSOM on vinyls, their comeback album EYE OF THE SUN from 2006 on cd and their ep THRONE OF DAMNATION from 2010 on cd.
I like them a lot of course (if not i dont have their albums ). I even saw them live ones in Spain.

My favourite Cloven Hoof album is Dominator. Unfortunately, that's the one album which has rather poor mixing/mastering, and sounds like it was recorded off microphones from a record player, even in the CD/MP3 age.

Their later albums have that painful, borderline extreme sound, which we don't like so much. Many of us agree they haven't found a suitable replacement for Russ North, and none of Matt Moreton, Ash Cooper and Joe Whelan can do a capable job on the mic- they just snarl, growl and screech, but don't sing. That would possibly explain why Russ North keeps joining the band every now and then- he once left the Hoof because he wanted to leave metal, only to get metal again and join them, not once, but twice.

That video for Contagion looks and feels fake- I mean, isn't that Russ North singing for them? The singer on that song sounds very unlike Russ North, and apparently it is guitarist Joe Whelan. I find it hard to believe that Russ North would record something this bad. And the lyrics, ugh, they're terrible.

This band has had way too many lineup changes for the few albums they recorded.

I reviewed A Sultan's Ransom on my YouTube channel:

.

Their new album has been out a few months ago. Much of the lyrics have a medieval theme, and they have Joe Whelan as their lead singer. Might take some getting used to, but the songwriting and recording seems decent.

Bump because I'm listening to Resist or Serve right now. Cool traditional metal. Check 'em out. You might like it.

So i am finally adding some cloven hoof to my collection. Earier today i ordered their self titled album along with Who mourns for the morning star. Can't wait!

I heard Dominator was reissued recently, or is about to be. I'll have to get that later this year.

Required Fields wrote:

I heard Dominator was reissued recently, or is about to be. I'll have to get that later this year.

I am planning to expand my cloven hoof collection. So hopefully i will pick up this one once i find it for a decent price.