Once again, I need to take you back in time. It was the year 1984 when I stumbled over a cheap priced compilation LP in one of my local record shops that I immediately bought to discover some new bands. The title was “Scandinavian Metal Attack”, the cover graced by a painting Swedish artist Mårten Eskil Winge did in the 19th century (“Thor’s fight with the giants”) and it featured five bands up to then unknown to me. Asides from BATHORY, there was also the only band from Finland on this compilation that got my attention. Their name was OZ and they contributed ‘Fire In The Brain’ and ‘Search Lights’ , two very fine classic Metal songs. Thus it was no question for me to get their 12” single “Turn The Cross Upside Down” a few weeks later when I found it in a mail order list – yes, that was already a popular way to find obscure records back then. I just loved the A-side song, as it fitted the provocative quite Satanic attitude 14-year-old me displayed. It was not easy getting full albums from OZ back then, as they were released by small companies from Scandinavia that were poorly distributed. So I was pretty happy to find that their third full-length “III Warning” was released by major label RCA later in 1984. It was no question that I got the album quite soon. Yet I was a little disappointed when I listened to the album, as it featured no song that really went over the top like the already mentioned songs. With that in mind and the Thrash invasion rolling, I lost track of OZ and haven’t listened to “III Warning” for quite a long time. But that changed now as High Roller recently put out a no-nonsense re-release of the album. So after decades (literally), I rediscovered OZ and “III Warning”. And with the mellowness of age, I have to say that this album is a nice contemporary document, reminding me of the storm and stress of the early days of Heavy Metal. Of course most of the songs sound a little dated now, especially those from the B-side of the original album, still being not more than quite solid classic Metal songs. But the opening title track (correctly named ‘Third Warning’ here) still is a fine Metal song with a good drive and fine lead guitar parts. The either driving ‘Crucified’ and to a certain amount also ‘Runner’ are worth listening as well, if you’re into classic Metal with a certain dose of nostalgia. But the real highlight of this re-release is the only bonus track. Originally only available as a 12” (with two songs from the second OZ album “Fire In The Brain”) and on the second (and last) part of the “Scandinavian Metal Attack” compilation series, ‘Turn The Cross Upside Down’ is the most popular song OZ ever wrote. And this popularity is for a good reason. It’s a real Heavy Metal anthem, with great guitars in the intro piece and a chorus I could still sing along after all those years. In retrospect, it reminds me of very early RUNNING WILD and might have been a highlight even on “Gates To Purgatory”. It is not an exaggeration to say that ‘Turn The Cross Upside Down’ alone is worth getting this re-release of “III Warning”. If you need more info, visit www.facebook.com/ozofficial (as the band is active again today) or www.facebook.com/hrrecords