Gates to Purgatory

Gates to Purgatory
Studio album by Running Wild
Released	October 1984
Recorded	June 1984
Studio	Caet Studio, Berlin [1]
Genre	Speed metal, heavy metal
Length	33:41
Label	Noise (Germany) Combat (US)
Producer	Running Wild, Horst Müller
Running Wild chronology
Gates to Purgatory (1984) Branded and Exiled (1985)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	4/10 [2]
metal.de	8/10 [3]
Rock Hard	9/10 [4]

Gates to Purgatory is the debut studio album by German heavy metal band Running Wild, released in 1984. It predates their piracy themes and has mostly satanically-influenced lyrics but also features songs with anarchic and libertarian (in the sense of European libertarianism) themes. It was in part of Gerald "Preacher" Warnecke's studies in theology. He left the band soon after the album's release to become a vicar.

Even though the album was not promoted, it was a sales success, selling over 20,000 copies in the first three months, and inspired numerous other bands worldwide. ^[3]

It was reissued in 2012 by Lemon Records and in 2017 by Noise Records.

Track listing

All tracks written by Rolf Kasparek except where noted

Side A

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Victim of States Power"	Warnecke	3:39
2.	"Black Demon"		4:29
3.	"Preacher"	Kasparek, Warnecke	4:26
4.	"Soldiers of Hell"		3:30

Side B

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
5.	"Diabolic Force"	Kasparek, Warnecke	5:04
6.	"Adrian S.O.S."		2:54
7.	"Genghis Khan"		4:13
8.	"Prisoner of Our Time"	Warnecke	5:26
Total length:			33:41

US and Canadian CD bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Walpurgis Night"	Warnecke	4:41
2.	"Satan"		4:08
Total length:			42:30

2017 remastered bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Chains & Leather" (from the 1983 Rock From Hell – German Metal Attack compilation)	5:10
2.	"Adrian" (from the 1983 Rock From Hell – German Metal Attack compilation)	2:44
3.	"Walpurgis Night" (from The First Years of Piracy )	5:19
4.	"Satan" (from the 1984 Victim of States Power EP)	4:08
5.	"Iron Heads" (from the 1984 Death Metal split album)	3:38
6.	"Bones to Ashes" (from the 1984 Death Metal split album)	5:17
7.	"Soldiers of Hell" (re-recorded)	3:22
8.	"Prisoner of Our Time" (re-recorded)	4:34
Total length:		67:53

• The bonus track "Walpurgis Night" cuts off very close to the end due to the condition of the master tape on most releases.
• The 1991 Japanese release contains the 1985 album Branded and Exiled.

Personnel

• Rolf Kasparek – guitar, vocals
• Gerald "Preacher" Warnecke – guitar
• Stephan Boriss – bass
• Wolfgang "Hasche" Hagemann – drums

Production

• Running Wild – producer, artwork
• Horst Müller – producer, recording
• D. Magnussen – photography

Cover versions

• The sludge metal band Kingdom of Sorrow did a cover of the song "Soldiers of Hell" in their album Behind the Blackest Tears .

References

1. "RUNNING WILD – the official website". running-wild.de. Archived from the original on 27 November 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
2. Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 297. ISBN   978-1-894959-31-5.
3. "Running Wild – Gates To Purgatory Review". metal.de (in German). 16 August 2012. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
4. "RUNNING WILD – Gates To Purgatory". Rock Hard (in German). 1 September 1984. Retrieved 10 March 2025.