Recorded just before the band began cranking out their earliest hits on classic albums like
Lovedrive
and
Animal Magnetism
,
Virgin Killer
is the first of four studio releases that really defined
the Scorpions
and their urgent metallic sound that was to become highly influential. While there are no tracks recognizable to the casual fan like
"Blackout"
"Another Piece of Meat,"
on
, serious fans of the group treasure this 1977 collection. Some all-time
Scorpions
standouts like
"Pictured Life"
and the title cut have all the necessary guitar chops and fierce falsetto melodies to get even the most jaded
heavy metal
old-timer teary eyed with nostalgia. Perhaps
isn't as focused as the brilliant
or as tuneful as either
or
Blackout
, but the group's trademark enthusiasm (the single element that separated and defined them, especially during the occasionally over-serious days of the
New Wave of British Heavy Metal
) and dexterity shines through on this near-historic
collection. ~ Vincent Jeffries