By 1982, the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, which had been burning bright for a good three years, was starting to show some signs of ailing. Some of the scene's key early bands, such as Diamond Head and Tygers of Pan Tang, were now releasing material that while palatable was slightly more commercial and lacked the underground edge that characterized these bands' earliest releases.Not so with Bristol's Jaguar. The group was just one of the many still-unsigned hopefuls when they released their debut single in 1981, the brilliant "Back Street Woman" EP. As 1982 dawned though they saw a member change in the form of new vocalist Paul Merrell, who was broken in for the April 1982 recording of the band's "Axe Crazy" single (tracks included here), which finally got them the attention of Neat Records, who then signed the band for their first proper full-length. That came in the form of the album being reviewed "Power Games," recorded at Impulse Studios in Newcastle in November '82.Wow! Far from going the direction of some others in the scene at the time to a slower and more radio friendly sound, here was a band that believed in capitalizing on the things that made NWOBHM music so great to begin with. That being, SPEED, rawness, and attitude taken from punk and melded with classy riffing and song structures that could only come from classic metal.Truth be told, Jaguar were not the most wildly original band in their scene (nor did they ever claim to be), as one or two of these riffs sound vaguely familiar, but they more than made up for it by being steeped in the qualities I mentioned and produce an album that is packed with catchiness and visceral energy from beginning to end. Some reference points might be Tank, Motorhead, and their labelmates Raven, along with a touch of the speed and aggression of U.K. '82 punk bands like G.B.H. If you enjoy any of the bands mentioned you will love this album. Can't so much name standout tracks because they are all strong.All in all, great early speed metal that was yet another NWOBHM precursor to the following year's "Kill 'Em All" by U.S. upstarts Metallica. Tune in and crank it up loud, and prepare to bang your head to Jaguar "Power Games." Highly recommended.