A forgotten gem of NWOBHM unearthed, polished, and sent to me in the post.
The other day, I received a small parcel from the UK. Inside? A CD copy of EPITAPH (2021), sent to me by Chris Harris—former guitarist of the long-defunct band APRIL 16TH. He asked if I’d give it a spin and review it in my NWOBHM section.
Of course I said yes.
Because how often does someone send you a piece of musical history—one they helped create?
Who Were April 16th? A Band Born Just a Bit Too Late.
APRIL 16TH were active from 1985 to 1991, a little after the core heyday of the NWOBHM movement. Their line-up remained solid throughout:
- Chris Harris & Lawrence Mills – guitars
- Dave Russell – vocals (and objectively excellent hair)
- John Fisher – drums
- Eric Puffet – bass
They released a demo cassette (Cherry Jam) and a single studio album, Sleepwalker, in 1989. But by then, the firestorm of NWOBHM had started to cool, and the band found themselves stuck between ambition and bad timing.
Signed Bands Had Labels. April 16th Had Their Wallets.
When I asked Chris what happened, he didn’t sugarcoat it:
“We wanted to succeed and therefore had to compete with signed bands who were supported by wealthy record labels. To compete we had to spend large amounts of money on big PA sound systems and elaborate light shows. Further ongoing costs were required to maintain regular press promotions..."
Eventually, it came down to two options:
Scale everything down and disappear quietly—or go out with some dignity.
They chose the latter.
“So I left APRIL 16TH and then Lawrence also left. It was a very sad day for me.”
Fast Forward to 2021: Enter EPITAPH
EPITAPH isn’t just a compilation. It’s a resurrection.
All available studio tracks from Cherry Jam and Sleepwalker, brought together as a proper album—the one that could’ve been. Should’ve been.
It was Lawrence who first planted the seed in 1999, making a few rough CD-R prototypes just for home use. But it took until 2021 for the idea to fully bloom.
“Seeing that prototype was enough incentive to ensure a professionally produced EPITAPH would, at some point, be made available.”
And in 2021, it finally happened—a proper studio-quality release, made from the original master tapes (unremastered, by the way—what you hear is what they played, live and raw). 500 copies pressed. No gloss. No tricks. Just the truth.
Still Making Noise, Still Making Music
Chris answered all my questions with detail and genuine heart. You can feel his affection for this band—even decades later, it’s still alive in him.
Vocalist Dave Russell just finished writing a book about the band. There are whispers of new music. Everyone’s still connected, still invested.
“I'm also involved in writing new music for the band as we are hoping to record some new material next year. We will be trying to construct new songs with each of us recording our individual section from our own homes with one of us acting as coordinator for the final mixing and mastering processes. ”
This isn’t a reunion tour. It’s a slow-burning epilogue that refuses to fade out quietly.
Let’s Talk About the Music
EPITAPH features 14 tracks and clocks in at 68 minutes. Most of the songs sit in the 3–5 minute range, but one towering exception stands out: Clapham Wood (7:46).
It starts slow—just a gorgeous guitar intro—then Dave’s crooning kicks in. The full band doesn’t arrive until 1:24, but when they do, it becomes a perfectly structured hard rock ballad, complete with a tempo shift halfway through. A standout track that earns its length.
The album feels like the 1980s. Not in a gimmicky way—in that authentic, sweat-soaked, pub-stage blues-and-solos kind of way. The kind where you smell the gear before you hear it.
Lawrence Mills, in particular, delivers consistently great guitar work—bluesy leads, groovy riffs, and tasteful solos that reward repeated listens.
Favourites? Glad You Asked.
- Clapham Wood – slow burn perfection
- Illusion – the most perfect lead guitar intro, full stop
- She’s Mean & Thursday’s Child – both bluesy, both packed with those sticky leads and hooks you’ll find stuck in your head for days
Final Thoughts
EPITAPH isn’t just a collection of tracks. It’s a love letter—to the band, to the era, to the idea of “what could’ve been.” And it’s clear that Chris, Dave, Lawrence, John, and Eric still hold that dream close, even now.
Chris, thank you—for trusting me with a piece of your history. You believed this little blog was worth sharing it with, and whether or not it reached thousands, I treated it like it mattered. Because it does. To me, it absolutely does.