Switching over to the U.S., we’re rewinding to 2018, when Sacred Leather unleashed their only full-length album, Ultimate Force, via Cruz del Sur Music. Known for supporting heavy-hitting bands like Sacral Rage, Smoulder, Tarot, Tower, Attacker, Dark Quarterer, and Gatekeeper, Cruz del Sur made a fitting home for Indianapolis-based heavy/thrash metal outfit Sacred Leather. Although the exact formation date of Sacred Leather isn’t well-documented, they likely emerged around 2014. During their early years, the band’s sound was radically different. I was puzzled to see them categorized as "thrash" on Metal Archives—until I came across the Indianapolis Deathfast Volume 1 compilation, which includes Sacred Leather’s track “Night Hunger/Leather Sacred Leather.” This track is a gritty, raw, Motorhead-esque thrash-punk explosion, a far cry from what would come on Ultimate Force, but it made sense given that many members came from extreme metal backgrounds.
In time, they shifted toward the heavy metal revival wave of the mid to late 2010s, and that’s when Ultimate Force dropped. This album doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel—it’s pure, no-nonsense heavy metal worship. Everything here feels like a love letter to the ‘80s, from the atmospheric production to the songwriting and reverberating vocals. The guitar riffs are tight but not overly polished, giving them a fun, melodic edge. Even the album cover screams ‘80s, echoing Defenders of the Faith with its bold artwork: instead of a metallic beast, you get what looks like a leopard in full leap.
