Pile of Skulls explained

Pile of Skulls
Type:studio
Artist:Running Wild
Cover:Running wild pile of skulls.jpg
Released:21 October 1992
Recorded:June – August 1992
Studio:Studio M, Hannover, Germany
Genre:Heavy metal, power metal
Length:50:35
Label:Electrola
Producer:Rolf Kasparek, Karl-Ulrich Walterbach
Prev Title:The First Years of Piracy
Prev Year:1991
Next Title:Black Hand Inn
Next Year:1994

Pile of Skulls is the seventh studio album by Running Wild, released in 1992. It is their last album with guitarist Axel Morgan.

The song "Jennings' Revenge" tells about the exploits of pirate Henry Jennings.

The lyrics of "Treasure Island" are based on the book of the same title by 19th century author Robert Louis Stevenson.

Critical reception

Pile of Skulls was met with mostly positive reviews from critics. Steve Huey of All Music Guide called it one of Running Wild's strongest efforts. While calling it too ambitious, he thought Pile of Skulls combined the group's trademark pirate subject matter with a unifying concept about corruption and abuse of power throughout history.

In a 2013 interview, Rolf Kasparek spoke about the song "Bloody Island" from the 2013 album Resilient and explained that the demo version of the song would've been a great fit on the album.

Track listing

Music and lyrics written by Rolf Kasparek, except "Pile of Skulls" by Kasparek and Axel Morgan and "Win or Be Drowned" by Kasparek and Piotr Smuszynski.

The 2017 Remastered version contains a second disc, featuring the following songs

Personnel

Additional Musician
Production