498 - Unstoppable Force - Agent Steel - 1987

Here we have an interesting album. Despite this band's first album coming out in 1985, leaving little time for imitation, comparisons to "elite" 1980's bands is inevitable. Not that they are a clone of any band, but they seem to have borrowed elements from other bands. So we have Queensryche vocals, Iron Maiden guitars and Metallica (Kill 'em All era) bass & drums. The whole thing is wrapped in an early Fates Warning vibe, and the result is Unstoppable Force.

Certainly, there were better bands and albums in the era, but among the bands who died out early (there was a reunion, but it is not really worth mentioning) this is one of the better albums. I'm not sure why these guys fizzled out, maybe it was bad management or lack of support from their label, but my guess is they would have changed their style to fit in with either the thrash movement or the glam movement. Maybe it was their refusal to change that destroyed them.

In any event, this is a good example of a good band, which may have been in the wrong place at the wrong time. For me, it is good enough to land at number 498.