Reviews list for Nocturnus - The Key (1990)

The debut album from this Florida tech death outfit was a really big record for Ben & I back in the day after I picked it up on cassette shortly after release. I was absolutely blown away by the lead guitar wizardry while the unique use of keyboards & sci-fi- themes was also a major drawcard. I've been wondering whether I'd appreciate it as much in modern days though so I was a little hesitant going into my first revisit in many years. That hesitation proved to have some merit too because there's no doubt that some parts of the album sound less complete than others.

"The Key" opens in stunning fashion with the first three cuts all being genuine death metal classics in their own right, particularly "Standing In Blood" which is an all-timer for me. There's definitely a bit of a dip in quality after that though, even though there's nothing I'd say is weak as such. "Neolithic" & "Undead Journey" see me labelling the middle of the album as merely decent before things pick up in the back end with closer "Empire Of The Sands" being another wonderful representation of the Nocturnus sound.

I absolutely adore the super-shreddy lead guitar tone of Mike Davis & Sean McNenney. It's about as metal as it gets really. The keyboards can get a touch overblown during that middle section but most of the time they tend to stay away from anything too cheesy. Band leader Mike Browning is the clear weak point though, particularly his vocals but also his drumming to a lesser extent. Nocturnus' music is meant to be ridiculously over the top & some of Browning's beats feel a little underwhelming if I'm being completely honest. Still... there's no doubt that "The Key" is a very strong record that borders on my higher scores. You can hear Browning's former band Morbid Angel in not only the vocals & drums but also some of the riff structures. There's a similarly thrashy influence to the "Abominations of Desolation" album too only in the context of a much more overtly technical outlook with some of the riffs essentially being light-speed dual-guitar lead solos. It's amazing how Florida was coming up with so many forward-thinking & talented death metal bands at the time with Nocturnus standing toe to toe with artists like Death & Atheist. "The Key" doesn't seem out of place next to that company either although I'd suggest that, unlike those two acts that went on to greater things, Nocturnus peaked early &, as a result, are probably better suited to being a leader amongst the second tier of the Florida death metal hierarchy.

I heard this ages ago and wasn't terribly impressed, only affording it a measly three out of five, however I have come quite a long way in my exposure to and appreciation of death metal in the meantime, so a reappraisal is probably long overdue. First off, this is nothing like as technical as I remember it being and that, for me, is a big plus as I am not especially fond of technical death metal (or thrash metal for that matter). In fact, despite the fact that there is a lot of frenetic fretwork during the solos on The Key, I am not even sure this counts as technical death metal, or at least not by modern standards. One thing for certain though is that Nocturnus cannot be accused of producing an album that is a clone of other popular releases from the time, the numerous guitar solos and the inclusion of keyboards on a death metal album was certainly not de rigeur for the day.

The foundation of the album is solid, with some terrific riffs, a few of which still seem to hold a fair bit of thrash metal DNA and the rhythm section turn in a fine performance (especially listening to the FDR edition). The keyboards are an interesting addition and, unlike most other death metal bands that use them, they aren't used here for a gothic horror effect, but instead they are quite thin-sounding and reinforce the science fiction aesthetic that the band were striving for. The big draw here though has got to be the lead work of Mike Davis and Sean McNenney whose guitars howl and squeal through almost the entire runtime, it sounding like their fingers must have been an almost constant blur on their fretboards. The great thing with The Key is that the technical guitar work never interrupts the flow of the tracks, as one of my bugbears with tech-death is that the constant changes and shifts in tracks often robs them of forward impetus and leaves them floundering. Here the solos seem to add even more velocity to the tracks and gives them an increased impetus. The big letdown on The Key are Mike Browning's vocals which just don't carry the necessary evilness or strength that the better vocalists of the time achieved, being buried in the mix a bit doesn't help their cause much either and takes away a significant ingredient of top tier death metal bands of the early nineties.

So, in summation, Nocturnus but together an album that marked them apart from most of their competitors in Floridian death metal and in so doing helped lay the foundations for an offshoot genre of the still expanding death metal genre. I am not going to pretend that it has shot up to the top of my death metal appreciation list, but it is a much finer album than I gave it credit for way back when, the science fiction theme makes a nice change from the constant charnel house themes of their contemporaries and it is certainly an enjoyable enough listen.

1990 was another special early year for death metal when 3 bands expanded the boundaries of death metal to include more technical experimentation, sometimes reaching a progressive level, thus creating the subgenre technical death metal! Nocturnus is one of those bands.

I'm never really a super-fan of old-school death metal, given the Satanism and violent gore that occurs in the lyrics. Nocturnus added a bit of those lyrical themes mixed with a sci-fi concept, and even more surprising to the death metal community is the addition of keyboard atmosphere unusual at that time. They've also added more technicality to the sound as a bridge between Morbid Angel and what Death would have next. Nocturnus made a progressive twist in death metal, and d*mn it, there'll be more!

Starting the album perfectly is "Lake of Fire", with a nice beautiful keyboard intro that reminds of the intro of Edge of Sanity's debut, before unleashing furious tech-death chaos. The background keys in "Standing In Blood" are a nice touch there too. "Visions From Beyond The Grave" is another violent assault from the guitar, bass, and drums.

One shining highlight is "Neolithic", particularly the keyboard passage 3 minutes in that sounds almost like the X-Files theme. Seriously, that might've really inspired the theme of that sci-fi mystery show that came out 3 years after this album! More of that bass and drum assault appears in "Undead Journey". Next track "B.C./A.D. (Before Christ, After Death)" once again starts with a nice keyboard into before breaking the peace with massive thrashy deathly riffing. Let me say right here that "Andromeda Strain" is pure proto-melodeath B.C. (Before Carcass). The intro has one of the greatest evil yet melodic riffs in death metal.

"Droid Sector" has excellent riffs and sick soloing. Blasting through yet again is "Destroying The Manger" which highlights the controversial concept of a cyborg tasked with traveling back in time to kill Jesus Christ and create his own evil empire, like some blasphemous Terminator sh*t. "Empire of the Sands" is the perfect closing track, with f***ing beautiful keyboard atmosphere before the dark fury of awesome death metal riff wrath.

The Key is an amazing KEY to the tech-death sound these legends would help create. If it's out of print, it's probably because of that sci-fi-meets-anti-Christian concept that would not go over well with the public nowadays, and that's why it's a few points short of perfection. Still it's an easy album to look up for listening, and the music is worth it!

Favorites: "Lake of Fire", "Neolithic", "B.C./A.D. (Before Christ, After Death)", "Andromeda Strain", "Empire of the Sands"

The Key is such a unique album. Non-one has managed to make an album quite like it since. It sure has its flaws, but it was and is incredibly special in a genre filling up with clones and mediocrity. The artwork is awesome, the sci fi setting is captivating, the musicianship is jaw dropping. As a package, this is the real deal.

Nocturnus were pretty much the first death metal band to include keyboards and they didn't just add them for a bit of extra sound. They were an extremely important ingredient, adding layers of atmosphere to already dripping music. But it's without a doubt the guitar work of Mike Davis and Sean McNenney that take this to a whole new level. Their constant flow of leads are wonderful without ever being reduced to wankery.

If there is a weak point on this album it is Mike Browning. His vocal style of saying one word at a time throughout the album becomes annoying and his drumming is adequate at best. If this album had a better drummer and vocalist, it would be close to a top 10 album for me. As it is, it's a thoroughly enjoyable listen that benefits from multiple sessions. Unfortunately, they would never be able to match it again.