Released on July 21st 1982, the second Loudness album Devil Soldier benefited greatly from the creative input of one Daniel McClendon, brother of one time UFO guitarist Tommy McClendon, who was drafted in to help with the sound of the album due to the lack of experienced studio engineers in Japan at the time. As per its predecessor, the album proved a great success in Japan and was awarded the acolade of best metal album of the year by the Japanese record industry. The album was indeed a well crafted affair, with strong songs, punchy production and the ever spectacular Akira Takasaki in effervescent form.