Paul Chain - Detaching From Satan (1984)^{Release ID: 4419}

The Next Link

The first half of the 80's was a massive and hellish explosion for heavy metal, with the inspiration for all types of satanic and evil music burning, swirling, and forming all kinds of interesting variations around the world that would shape how many metal sub-genres would be played today. Some inspirations burn a little slower and more sinister than others, and that's where Italy's Paul Chain drew his inspiration for this short classic of Traditional Doom Metal. Sluggy Sabbath-esque riffs combined with the driving drums and vocal style of NWOBM and more emphasis on atmosphere thanks to some lo-fi synths and sound effects give this experimental album a strangely passionate but slightly confusing impression.

Paul Chain's vocals take the spotlight for most of the album, with his range being strained more often than not as he goes for an abundance of high notes and wails on the first two tracks, with "Occultism" closing out with some fitting low, guttural barks. I actually enjoyed Chain's performance most of the time but the effects and overall production are what kill any enthusiasm I had, with the echo/reverb on "Armageddon" cutting in and out at different volumes and the low spoken word effects on "17 Day" not really hitting their mark. What does hit the mark is the riffs and overall guitar performance of this album, which have that tried and true mixture of old-school chug with Sabbath-like accents. Each track showcases a differing and well done style of riff from the slow and accented "Occultism", the driving and chuggy "Armageddon", the more progressive shred-fest of "Voyage to Hell", and finally the classic Doom style of "17 Day". It's a real shame that the production on some of these tracks, especially "17 Day", buries the guitar performance under overblown vocal effects and synth. Even the drums, which seem a bit more poignant on "Occultism", really hide the guitar which, for me, is the standout part of this album.

What's most fascinating for me travelling back to the beginnings of Doom Metal is how much more extreme the genre has gotten from these humble beginnings. As someone who mostly listens to newer metal releases, Detaching From Satan doesn't even resemble a Doom Metal album until "17 Day" because my expectations of a Doom release are aligned with the likes of Bell Witch and Runemagick. Nowadays the evilness of Doom releases are cranked up to epic proportions, since Paul Chain's first EP hardly even scratches the surface of the atmospheres of hatred and misery modern Doom albums can achieve. The only sections that gave Detaching From Satan that signature Doom Metal vibe were clunky and gratingly low quality, and most ended up not fitting the style of the rest of the song to begin with.

For a beginning EP at the infancy of a genre there is some great guitar work and "17 Day" is a fantastic example of how the Doom Metal package can all come together, but the rest is too rough either in production or ideas for me. There are a ton of influences packed into this initial attempt showing that regions other than England have what it takes to take Sabbath's fundamental Heavy Metal style and take it in a different, but effective direction.

Detaching From Satan was Paul Chain's first release following his split from the legendary Death SS and was a four-track EP with Chain writing the songs, playing guitar and organ and performing vocals, helped out by drummer Enrico Giampaoli and bassist Paolo Giannotti. After an organ and sound effects intro, "Occultism" kicks off with a doomy Sabbathian riff, heavily informed by the NWOBHM, so having a quite rock-y feel to it. In it's mid-section Chain's guitar lead takes over and we are treated to an extended solo before things get back on track. I actually quite enjoy Chain's singing here, but I can understand why others may struggle with it as it is very reedy and he certainly isn't the most gifted vocalist in the world, yet I feel it really suits the lo-fi aesthetic and general weird vibe of the EP.

"Armageddon" is up next and after a quite substantial, choral, hymn-like intro, we are treated to another terrific, pounding riff that Witchfinder General would have been proud to have written, followed by another display of Chain's demented guitar shredding. "Voyage to Hell" follows a similar template, but here the vocals sound even more demented as Chain tries to add a harsher edge to his singing performance and often sounds genuinely unhinged. Closer "17 Day" is the EP's longest track, running for just short of eight minutes and here his vocals are probably least weird-sounding with him lowering his register a bit and even sounding almost normal. After two or three minutes, an eerie organ interlude insinuates itself into the track, acting as prelude to another extended solo as Chain allows himself to let it all hang out with a climactic ending.

So, this neat 19 minute EP is quite effective as a calling card for Paul Chain as if he is "putting himself into the shop window", so to speak, after his departure from Death SS. His catchy riffs and dextrous guitar solos are the main raison d'etre of these four tracks and I think it also does a good job of displaying Chain's quirky character. I like this quite a lot and it is an interesting release in the development of doom metal, particularly in his home country of Italy and shows the guy as an intriguing character having a quite singular style.

The Italians hadn’t made much of a blip on the doom radar up until 1984 with only a few extremely underground demos & singles from acts like theatrical horror metal personalities Death SS & the progressive rock inspired Black Hole seeing the light of day by that stage. But the Italian doom scene was about to get a firm shot in the arm with this little E.P. representing the most important & highly regarded Italian doom release of the 80’s.

The catalyst for this landmark came in 1979 when Death SS guitarist Paul Chain decided that he needed another avenue to express his heavier & more experimental & improvisational side so he formed a side project by the name of Paul Chain Violet Theatre which gave him something to do during the long breaks between activity with Death SS. The bands co-existed until 1984 when Chain decided to disband Death SS & this enabled him to focus all of his attention on recording his debut solo release; a four song EP entitled “Detaching From Satan”, which seems to be a reference to the fact that Chain had grown tired of the Satanic approach that his former band had taken with their lyrics & imagery & was a clear sign that he was looking for a change of direction.

Interestingly, the Violet Theatre featured appearances from several Death SS members so Paul wasn’t trying to distance himself from the band altogether but one of the most unique aspects of the record was the complete lack of traditional lyrics. It’d likely go straight over your head if you weren’t made aware of it but Paul is actually using a self-devised language of made-up sounds or phonetics in place of actual words & I find it be very effective. Perhaps it even makes it easier to make the vocals fit the music if you think about it because there’s no need to jam phrases in just to suit a lyrical storyline. But that’s not the only unusual element of “Detaching From Satan” as it’s just as ambitious from a musical point of view.

The production is very raw & lo-fi but strangely this seems to give the music an authenticity & charm that it might not have possessed otherwise & I actually think it enhances the overall package. The drums are very loud in the mix & the rhythm guitar sound has that dirty layer of distortion that early Black Sabbath, Witchfinder General & Hellhammer were known for while the bass guitar bubbles away in praise of Geezer Butler’s more bluesy early 70’s outings. Sometimes the recording seems to show signs that the master tape has decayed somewhat… again having a positive effect as it adds a further layer of mystique to the atmosphere; only increasing Paul’s underground metal credibility. There’s a distinctly 70’s feel throughout with lots of experimentation & a very live feel; particularly to the improvised lead work. There are lots of effects employed during the over-the-top Hendrix-inspired psychedelic guitar solos & the unhinged vocal arrangements & the regular use of choirs & church organs gives the record a noticeably gothic atmosphere.

Vocally, Paul sounds quite similar to Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant during most of this material with the obvious exception being the closing doom metal epic “17 Days” where he employs an approach that’s much more in line with gothic rock artists like Bauhaus. I really enjoy his performance which has a lot of character & is a nice foil for the consistent procession of ultra-heavy Black Sabbath riffage. The overall package is almost reminiscent of a 70’s D-grade horror film soundtrack at times but the strong sense of melody prevents it from completely alienating the listener. There are moments of unbridled evil & others which exude a more epic feel but despite the unusual & often quite morbid atmosphere, I don’t think “Detaching From Satan” is quite as whacked out as most people make out. Especially if you’re already well acquainted with the highly ambitious & experimental Italian progressive rock scene of the 1970’s. In fact, on more than one occasion I found myself feeling quite similar to the first time I heard Norwegian avant-garde metal outfit Ved Buens Ende……

Anyway… I’d encourage all fans of Black Sabbath, Witchfinder General & Pagan Altar to give this one a crack because it’s a great little record.