STS 8 Mission - The Mystery Of Time (1990)
Posted: 24 Mar 2026, 12:43
STS 8 Mission - The Mystery Of Time (1990)
Year : 1990 (Atom H Records Edition)
Style : Heavy Metal
Country : Germany
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 99 mb
Bio:
Formed in 1989 in Germany location Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia.He plays 1986-1988 as Forced Entry, 1988-1989 as The Pakk, 1989-1996 as STS 8 Mission.Forced Entry formed in 1986 with Harry Amthor on vocals, Mike Gare and Rüdiger Blindert on guitar, Achim Meyer on bass and Willi Schwäbig on drums. Their debut album was released in 1988 only on vinyl. It has become a hard-to-find gem for collectors. Shortly after the album came out, the band changed their name due to another “Forced Entry“, a thrash band in San Francisco. First as The Pakk and then released three albums as STS 8 Mission.
Album:
Great debut full-length album.Well I guess vocalist Xaver Drexler and his slight accent here and there might void my point here, but if you gave this album a spin without knowing about its whereabouts you'd probably make more comparisons to US metal bands of the time, as this doesn't sound like what most German bands were doing back then at all. With the style STS 8 Mission plays here bands like Heir Apparent, Fates Warning, Crimson Glory, Commandment, Savage Grace's second album, etc all easily come to mind and they definitely know what they're doing.The vocalist here really takes the spotlight more than just a few times, he is an incredibly clear singer spending most of his time in the higher zones with tons of shrieking abound (sounds like Scanner's SL Coe with a clearer voice and larger range). He seems to nail a lot of notes and steadies his range almost flawlessly, quickly displayed right off the bat on the first track Might Call and from then on he never slips up. Thanks to the excellent and classic production here those who enjoy 'soaring' vocals will probably love this guys singing.The band breaks the typical power metal mold by creating extremely melodic rhythm's, mixed in with the melodic vocals, choruses, and well everything, there is a huge melodic focus here with the entire album. The majority of the tracks here, slow or not, are all very catchy and after just a single listen you'll remember hits like Might Call, Lost Command, and so forth. A lot of this is thanks to the graceful hooks and harmonies that surround several parts of each track, along with some great solo's. As with the bands mentioned previously these guys manage to be very melodic, catchy, and 'softer' while not venturing into mainstream-esque territory.All in all the album is very strong and overly consistent. The material is mainly made up of fast tracks to a few mid-paced songs, though they are all rather diverse with some unexpecting changes in the structures and everything. The mid-paced tracks like None Of Your Business, Calling In The Dark, I'll Never Lose My Way, and Mystery of Time don't really follow a simplistic formula at all. The music progresses a lot and by the end of several of those tracks they get pretty epic and uplifting. The faster more aggressive numbers like Mighty Call, Lost Command, and Guardians Of The Lost are a bit more up front but almost too catchy and memorable with some powerful choruses. Really, that's what has to be stressed here more than anything else - these guys are insanely melodic. This is definitely something I'd actually recommend to classic US metal fans more than anyone else, especially for those who enjoy the bands mentioned above and are pretty much wanting to hear Germany's answer to Heir Apparent.
Line Up:
Xaver "Hobbit" Drexler (R.I.P. 2010) - Vocals - See also: ex-Capital Rose, ex-Forced Entry, ex-Gun Barrel, ex-Joker
Thomas Schmitt - Guitars - See also: ex-Red Circuit, ex-Q-Squad, ex-ZE:US
Rüdiger Blindert - Guitars
Roland Wedel - Bass
Willy Schwäbig - Drums
Production:
Recorded At – Phoenix Studio
Cover, Painting – Arndt Müller
Engineer – Jörg Stegert, Ralf Freudenberg
Photography By – Volker Beushausen
Producer – STS 8 Mission
Songwriter [All Songs By] – STS 8 Mission
Tracklist:
01. Mighty Call 04:41
02. None of Your Business 04:09
03. Calling in the Dark 04:36
04. Always Lying 05:44
05. Lost Command 05:08
06. I'll Never Lose My Way 03:52
07. Desperate Child 04:23
08. Mystery of Time 05:28
09. Guardians of the Lost 04:00 (CD Bonus Track)
Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/
Year : 1990 (Atom H Records Edition)
Style : Heavy Metal
Country : Germany
Audio : 320 kbps + all scans
Size : 99 mb
Bio:
Formed in 1989 in Germany location Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia.He plays 1986-1988 as Forced Entry, 1988-1989 as The Pakk, 1989-1996 as STS 8 Mission.Forced Entry formed in 1986 with Harry Amthor on vocals, Mike Gare and Rüdiger Blindert on guitar, Achim Meyer on bass and Willi Schwäbig on drums. Their debut album was released in 1988 only on vinyl. It has become a hard-to-find gem for collectors. Shortly after the album came out, the band changed their name due to another “Forced Entry“, a thrash band in San Francisco. First as The Pakk and then released three albums as STS 8 Mission.
Album:
Great debut full-length album.Well I guess vocalist Xaver Drexler and his slight accent here and there might void my point here, but if you gave this album a spin without knowing about its whereabouts you'd probably make more comparisons to US metal bands of the time, as this doesn't sound like what most German bands were doing back then at all. With the style STS 8 Mission plays here bands like Heir Apparent, Fates Warning, Crimson Glory, Commandment, Savage Grace's second album, etc all easily come to mind and they definitely know what they're doing.The vocalist here really takes the spotlight more than just a few times, he is an incredibly clear singer spending most of his time in the higher zones with tons of shrieking abound (sounds like Scanner's SL Coe with a clearer voice and larger range). He seems to nail a lot of notes and steadies his range almost flawlessly, quickly displayed right off the bat on the first track Might Call and from then on he never slips up. Thanks to the excellent and classic production here those who enjoy 'soaring' vocals will probably love this guys singing.The band breaks the typical power metal mold by creating extremely melodic rhythm's, mixed in with the melodic vocals, choruses, and well everything, there is a huge melodic focus here with the entire album. The majority of the tracks here, slow or not, are all very catchy and after just a single listen you'll remember hits like Might Call, Lost Command, and so forth. A lot of this is thanks to the graceful hooks and harmonies that surround several parts of each track, along with some great solo's. As with the bands mentioned previously these guys manage to be very melodic, catchy, and 'softer' while not venturing into mainstream-esque territory.All in all the album is very strong and overly consistent. The material is mainly made up of fast tracks to a few mid-paced songs, though they are all rather diverse with some unexpecting changes in the structures and everything. The mid-paced tracks like None Of Your Business, Calling In The Dark, I'll Never Lose My Way, and Mystery of Time don't really follow a simplistic formula at all. The music progresses a lot and by the end of several of those tracks they get pretty epic and uplifting. The faster more aggressive numbers like Mighty Call, Lost Command, and Guardians Of The Lost are a bit more up front but almost too catchy and memorable with some powerful choruses. Really, that's what has to be stressed here more than anything else - these guys are insanely melodic. This is definitely something I'd actually recommend to classic US metal fans more than anyone else, especially for those who enjoy the bands mentioned above and are pretty much wanting to hear Germany's answer to Heir Apparent.
Line Up:
Xaver "Hobbit" Drexler (R.I.P. 2010) - Vocals - See also: ex-Capital Rose, ex-Forced Entry, ex-Gun Barrel, ex-Joker
Thomas Schmitt - Guitars - See also: ex-Red Circuit, ex-Q-Squad, ex-ZE:US
Rüdiger Blindert - Guitars
Roland Wedel - Bass
Willy Schwäbig - Drums
Production:
Recorded At – Phoenix Studio
Cover, Painting – Arndt Müller
Engineer – Jörg Stegert, Ralf Freudenberg
Photography By – Volker Beushausen
Producer – STS 8 Mission
Songwriter [All Songs By] – STS 8 Mission
Tracklist:
01. Mighty Call 04:41
02. None of Your Business 04:09
03. Calling in the Dark 04:36
04. Always Lying 05:44
05. Lost Command 05:08
06. I'll Never Lose My Way 03:52
07. Desperate Child 04:23
08. Mystery of Time 05:28
09. Guardians of the Lost 04:00 (CD Bonus Track)
Download links for all albums only on our blog here: http://goodmetalandhar.do.am/