Let’s face it, life doesn’t offer too many second chances –and odds are even worse in the music business! So I don’t know what ‘ol Vic Hix did to deserve a second go ‘round, but he’s got that and more right now. See, after Vic’s old (new again?) band of ass-kickers Shok Paris fizzled out, he was able to hook up with fellow classic metal lover George Mihalovich and put together the equally as kickass Aftershok. Since 1996 this crew has been tearing it up, with the well-received UNFINISHED BUSINESS album, and now their long-awaited follow up, BURNING CHROME. If Vic did just one thing to right in the time since Shok Paris’ halcyon years, it was keep his powerful vocals intact – he rips just as much on this album as he ever did on Paris debut album, GO FOR THE THROAT. The fact that Mihalovich and crew come flying out of the gate with track after track of classic metal just adds to the magic. This isn’t just some nostalgia act though – Aftershok are as viable as any other “modern” band today – more so in many cases. Just take one listen to rumbling opener “Sons of Thunder” and you’ll be headbangin’, air guitarin’, and singin’ along in no time. It seems that now is the time for Aftershok to make their move, as more and more fans are beginning to discover there is more to 80’s metal than thrash and German power metal. Thanks to newcomers like Ignitor, quality traditional metal is on the rise, but Aftershok show that even old rock dogs still have a few classic riffs left in ‘em.

The wait is over and Burning Chrome, the follow up to Aftershok’s brilliant debut, Unfinished Business, is finally here. This new album picks up right where the previous one left off with more killer old school metal. Aftershok features the unmistakable voice of former Shok Paris vocalist Vic Hix, awesome guitarist George Mihalovich, bassist Nick G. and drummer George B. The title track, powerful “Dream Maker” and hard-driving “Livin’ on the Red Line” are guaranteed to kick your ass! Another highlight is “When Comes the Rain. There’s just something special about this band and their mid tempo songs. If you’re into fast cars, fast women and even faster guitar solos, you’ll love this CD! 6/6 STARS (Andy Laudano)

It is refreshing in the day and age of overblown power metal releases, to come across a sound that is both fresh and familiar at the same time. You may remember lead singer Vic Hix from his brush with fame in the 1980s as lead singer of Midwest rockers Shok Paris. Style wise, Aftershok pick up where Shok Paris left off, relying on straight-up hard rock/old school metal. With Burning Chrome you get nothing fancy, riffs aplenty, a few acoustic intros, all courtesy of guitarist George Mihalovich, class of which is 'When Comes The Rain'. At least three of the tracks remind me of old Accept, namely the title track, 'Riot' and "Bombs Away'. The vocal works of Vic Hix is best placed in the same style of ex-Rainbow throat, Graham Bonnett. So again, another old school influence. Terrific effort. 8.5 Allan Grusie

A few of you may remember the band Shok Paris from the 80s, and a few less probably know of their post-project known as Aftershok. That being said, you should probably learn about them. Heavily influenced by the more traditional great hard metal bands like Judas Priest or Accept, Aftershok have been rockin' the midwest for a number of years now. Their last release, UNFINISHED BUSINESS, was heralded by a lot of publications for it's seering guitars and for the continued attitude of vocalist Vic Hix. With BURNING CHROME, the band picks up right where they left off. BURNING CHROME features everything you might expect to hear from an old school band that refuses to change it's style or sound to sell additional copies of their CD. There's really nothing here where you'll go, "holy sh*t, they just reinvented the wheel". At the same time, anyone that likes powerful, driving melodic metal doesn't want that in the first place. Longtime metal vocalist Vic Hix is as potent as ever on BURNING CHROME. He's got a higher ranged voice with enough rasp in it to make his presentation convincing on each and every song. Songs like "Burning Chrome" or "Living On The Redline" showcase this metal behemoth's intensity, as does virtually every song on the disc. Most impressive on BURNING CHROME is the guitarwork of George Mihalovich. Mihalovich is a very traditional player who's intense rhythms outweigh the need or the thought of unleashing blazing solos. He sets the galloping tone on songs like "Against The Rage"; arguably the CD's best track. It's not that Mihalovich can't unleash when he wants to. It's just that he's a more concentrated rhythm player who's style leads for the entire song to rock instead of a building to a guitar peak, as most guitar driven bands do. Rounding out the sound are bassist Nick G. and drummer George B. Both cement the foundation on songs like "Riot" and "Do You Believe". Overall, BURNING CHROME is one great collection of melodic, classic metal that the Euros will love, while most Americans won't embrace at all. It's sad that the American ear is so intent on listening to such horrendous, trendy, cookie-cutter sh*t, because today's metal kid should be more tuned into Metal's great history. Aftershok is a band steeped in the sound of a better musical time. *PITRIFF RATING - 8/10 - *Aftershok aren't reinventing the wheel, but don't really need to either. Excellent, old-school metal album from a band that will undoubtedly do very well in Europe. Some of you new-schoolers might learn something by giving this a listen as well.