BC Rich Warlock Revenge review

When you absolutely have to club someone to death, but need to play a gig immediately afterwards, the BC Rich Warlock is the only choice.

After 26 years of twists on the Warlock design, this latest model is called the Revenge, suggesting that if it gets a bad review, it'll hunt us down like a dog and make us sorry. Let's hope it doesn't come to that, eh?

BC Rich hasn't said much about the Revenge, presumably because the only real departure is a polar bear paint job and a flat top instead of the usual bevels. Still, it was easy to draw our own conclusion on the target audience.

The Revenge's £210 price puts it one rung above the stock Warlock (£165), but several below the Calibre Warlock (£875), and therefore implies the patronage of the metaller who is starting to play gigs and take things more seriously.

The spec of this beast seems to support that as well, offering solid - if unspectacular - woods and hardware, and packing in two angry BDSM humbuckers for our playing delectation.

Guitar hacks might get jaded at the glut of Warlocks, but judged on its own merits as viewed by a young rocker, the Revenge is one of hell of a guitar for the money you part with.

Physically, it's textbook BC Rich, meaning that you can fret notes and move around the neck fast.

Tonally, we're hearing a good metal growl, with decent sustain and a fantastic sneer at the bridge, but not quite as much character as you'll find further up the range (and the price scale). All told, we liked it - and we're not just saying that so it doesn't come and hurt us...