Culprit - Guilty as Charged (1983)^{Release ID: 10169}

Apparently the guilty as charged culprit of being one of the very first progressive metal is the (as of now) sole album by Seattle band Culprit, Guilty as Charged. Unfortunately, that theory has been debunked. I'm not sure how this album got tagged as progressive metal, when the sound is really just heavy metal and an early example of US power metal. And while there are prog-metal elements in the ways of Queensryche's Operation Mindcrime 5 years later, it's not enough to consider it prog-metal gate-opener...

Mislabelings aside, this is some great-a** sh*t! This is true classic heavy metal from Seattle, years before Nirvana's grunge sound took the city by storm. Such a shame they only lasted one album, though they've recently reformed with a live album and compilation. And the energy they have is like what Riot were doing at that time.

The 6-minute title opener has some heaviness in the guitar while staying melodic, which adds to the ambition. The fast pace has great variation to keep listeners awake. It's pretty much a grand example of the sound from both the album and the band. Also showing their heavy metal sound is "Ice in the Back". F***ing killer vocals and lyrics there! "Hell is but a flame..." When Jeff L'Heureux sings his highs, I get chills down my back like the title would imply. "Steel to Blood" continues pushing the guitarwork forward.

"I Am" is another great track, though sounding a little too mainstream. "Ambush" levels up the memorability as the catchy chorus is in sync with the focused instrumentation. "Tears of Repentance" is an amazing highlight.

Slowing things down is "Same to You" which has the melodic emotion of UK bands. The slow intro transitions through a mighty scream into that US power metal gallop that would be then adopted by German bands. With those f***ing powerful vocals and guitar, it's practically a bridge between Riot's first 5 albums and Thundersteel. "Fight Back" instrumentally made me remember a YouTube musician I forgot about for a while, Edward Sitnikov. I prefer his material though. "Players" plays off as a decent ending track.

All in all, Guilty as Charged is a solid underrated album, and more people need to hear about this band. A 2000 re-release includes a few live bonus tracks from one of their one-off reunion shows during their 25-year split including a cover of Queen's "Stone Cold Crazy". The leads and riffing throughout the songs make this a great offering. This was basically what people expected in heavy metal; lots of that 70s melody with a dash of the aggression hinted in later years or even later genres. What are you waiting for!? Wake up and smell the Culprit! The band Culprit's material, that is....

Favorites: "Guilty as Charged", "Ice in the Back", "Ambush", "Tears of Repentance", "Same to You"