The Live Release Thread - The Pit Edition

Kreator - "Live Kreation" (2003)

German thrash gods Kreator have been a true enigma in my life since my teenage years & have dominated the other Teutonic thrash heavyweights with great regularity, so much so that if I was to pick my own Big Four of thrash metal they would most certainly be included. Their 1986-1990 era is where it was all at for me personally & I’ve never seen much point in spending a lot of time with the band’s later releases as they’ve inevitably failed to live up to those lofty standards, despite what many diehard thrash aficionados may have you believe. For that reason, the concept of a double live album that comes a good five albums after Kreator’s classic period ended is a recipe that could go either way. A well programmed tracklisting that encompasses the best material from the more recent records combined with a well-placed array of classic era songs could work very well but any prolonged attempt to market the deeper cuts from the less celebrated releases may end up in Snoozeville. Thankfully, Kreator have got the balance just right with 2003’s “Live Kreation” which was compiled from a number of performances across various countries on the tour for 2001’s “Violent Revolution” album.

The most noteworthy element of “Live Kreation” is the production because it’s remarkably & confoundingly good, so much so that I have to question whether producer Andy Sneap has cheated a bit. You see, while Kreator had been one of the top thrash groups for eons by this point, their technical proficiency & perfect precision was never their drawcard. In fact, their general rawness was more the attraction a lot of the time but here we find Kreator functioning like a well-oiled Swiss watch with a wonderful guitar tone & performances that don’t put a foot wrong across the whole 103 minutes. I have to admit that I have serious doubts that front man Mille Petrozza can play this tightly while performing his vocals & thrashing out at the same time. It sounds much more like the two axemen were sitting on stools in a studio completely focused on ensuring that their techniques are spot on & their output is free of the slightest blemish. Regardless of this though, I choose not to dwell on it much as music is music no matter how it’s made & I’ve always appreciated quality production & performances.

Unsurprisingly, the tracklisting is heavily weighted towards the “Violent Revolution” record given that Kreator were touring for that release at the time with the first six tracks from that album appearing here but otherwise it would seem that the band & their management have gone to great lengths to make sure that they included songs from every Kreator album to the time with a good half of the album being sourced from the band’s classic era. The way the 24 tracks have been arranged is excellent as you never have to wait too long for relief if your interest is starting to drift a bit. Personally, I don’t think there’s a weak song on offer but I’d also suggest that the highlights mostly come from the expected inclusions with “Coma Of Souls”, “Terror Zone”, “Betrayer” (my personal favourite) & “Flag Of Hate” leading the way, closely followed by “Pleasure To Kill” & “Under The Guillotine”. Slower doom metal monster “Black Sunrise” is the obvious exception as I found it to be a wonderful inclusion that took me to unexpectedly atmospheric places. It’s rare that the later material is as thrashy or intense as the old favourites though with tracks like “Leave This World Behind” & “Golden Age” venturing right out into traditional heavy metal or even gothic metal territory.

Mille’s vocals are still full of spite as he spits out his lyrics with vitriol. He only goes off course a little when the older stuff gets really fast & intense on a couple of occasions. Drummer Ventor, on the other hand, continues on in the super-efficient, metronomical manner he’s done since 1990’s “Coma of Souls” while new Finnish guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö nails every run with clear competence. When you take all of this into account, it’s very hard to be critical of such a well-executed, produced & compiled release that’s so chock full of quality. I regard “Live Kreation” as a resounding success for a band that was already well past it’s creative prime & it sits very comfortably alongside similar releases from peers like Sodom, Slayer & Destruction.

4/5

Destruction - "Live Without Sense" (1989)

I’ve never found German thrash metal heavy-weights Destruction to be quite as compelling as Kreator & Sodom to be honest. I enjoyed their “Bestial Invasion of Hell” demo but their first couple of proper releases (1984’s “Sentence of Death” E.P. & 1985’s “Infernal Overkill” full-length album) did very little for me. It wasn’t until they started to go in a more sophisticated direction with 1986’s “Eternal Devastation” that my interest would start to be tweaked & they’d continue to build on that over their next couple of releases until they’d peak with my favourite Destruction album in 1987’s classic “Release From Agony” which was clearly their most complex & innovative record to the time. So 1989 would seem to have been the perfect time to release Destruction’s first live album in the cleverly titled “Live Without Sense” (a reworking of the titled of one of their songs “Life Without Sense”), wouldn’t it? Well, for me it was anyway. And the result is as enjoyable & impressible as it had the potential to be too.

“Live Without Sense” is a well-produced & executed summary of Destruction’s career to the time. The production does a good job at balancing the raw electricity of the band’s studio work with a consistent clarity that sees every instrument owning its own space. The only criticism I would have there is the snare sound which does highlight drummer Olly’s position as the weak point of the band. It’s just a little intrusive which makes the simpler beats sound more basic than they might otherwise have done. The guitar work slays here though, despite the fact that both men think they’re better than they actually are. The consistent use of high-end techniques such as classically-influenced sweep-picked arpeggios was certainly pushing both musicians limitations but they somehow manage to get away with it due to the fact that they’re simply so cool. Yes, some of the lead solos are a bit sloppy but they also sound quite inspired & fuelled by Satan himself. Front man Schmier & I have had our differences over the years & that’s not been totally been ironed out here with those high-pitched squeals I struggle with so much still popping up from time to time but it’s hard to deny that he sounds pretty bad-ass for the majority of the run time.

The tracklisting offers a nice mix of material with inclusions from every record in Destruction’s back catalogue. I don’t think it’s any surprise that the tracks that appeal to me the least (“Thrash Attack”, “Invincible Force” & “Bestial Invasion”) are drawn from the 1984/85 period releases but thankfully they’ve benefitted from the band’s greatly improved chops & now sound significantly more tight & professional than they originally did. This gives “Live Without Sense” an impressive level of consistency with all of the more recent material being exceptionally strong. In saying that though, the only track that I regard as a genuine thrash classic is “Reject Emotions” with its darker atmosphere reminding me of Slayer’s more mid-paced material. The more technical songs like “Dissatisfied Existence” work really well & often see me reaching for Coroner comparisons which can’t be a bad thing. I could really do without the inclusion of an unaccompanied guitar solo & two humorous interludes (i.e “Pink Panther” & “In The Mood”) though as they each represent slight blemishes on an otherwise exceptionally solid tracklisting. The guitar solo may impress those that aren’t trained musicians but I’d suggest that Eddie Van Halen & Randy Rhoads can rest easy as their crowns are in no jeopardy.

“Live Without Sense” is an excellent example of a thrash metal live album & won’t disappoint any fans of Destruction or the genre in general. In fact, I place it behind only “Release From Agony” in terms of the band’s overall discography with the clear production & strong tracklisting making it an attractive listening option for someone like myself that wasn’t convinced by Destruction’s more crudely presented early releases.

4/5

Testament - "Return to the Apocalyptic City" E.P. (1993)

Ben & I had been pretty big fans of Californian thrash metallers Testament for a good four years by the time this six-track live release hit the streets in 1993. I'd enjoyed all of their records up until that time but the last couple had seen the impressive quality levels of the first three Testament albums dipping a touch so I wouldn't say that I was busting to get my hands on their next record but I still found myself parting ways with my hard-earned cash for this little live release as soon as I noticed it's ball-tearing cover artwork sitting on the record store shelf. "Return to the Apocalyptic City" offers four live tracks which were recorded at a recent show at the Los Angeles Palladium as well as a studio cut from the sessions for 1988's "The New Order" album & a shortened version of "Return To Serenity" from Testament's latest record "The Ritual". All of this material is entertaining, particularly the live versions of "Over the Wall", "So Many Lies" & "Disciples of the Watch". My favourite inclusion is the studio cut "Reign of Terror" though which is the fastest & thrashiest number on offer & had been popping up in Testament live sets since way back in 1984 when they were still known as Legacy. The performances are all strong, particularly the guitar solos of Glen Alvelais & Alex Skolnick which are a real highlight. The production is also much better than the awful sound quality Testament had to contend with on their only previous live release in 1987's "Live at Eindhoven" E.P. which gives "Return to the Apocalyptic City" a clear edge over that record in my opinion. This one should definitely interest most Bay Area thrash fans, even if its format makes it fairly inessential in the grand scheme of things.

For fans of Metallica, Exodus & Megadeth.

4/5