Bang

Upon first listen, Bang’s 1971 eponymous debut sounds like another band vying to ride shotgun on the Black Sabbath bandwagon. But upon closer inspection, the Fort Lauderdale trio was bringing much more to the table than inspired imitations. With its biblical references embedded in the lyrics, the opening “Lions, Christians” may have inadvertently invented Christian-rock. And where most other proto-metal bands were only implementing use of a sole guitar player, Bang’s guitarist Frank Glicken made good use of his studio time by overdubbing some of the genre’s first ever “guitarmonies.” “The Queen” follows with a contagious riff that’s catchier than the vocal melody before “Last Will and Testament” downshifts with swirling acoustic guitars tastefully enveloped in spacey tape-echo effects and bass player/lead singer Frank Ferrara inflecting less like Ozzy to find his own voice (which sort of sounds like a young Robert Plant had he cleared his throat prior to tracking vocals). “Come With Me” takes on a heavy rhythmic swing, akin to what Grand Funk Railroad were doing at the time (check out Ferrara’s high-shrieked wailing at the end).