Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Sadus - Swallowed in Black (1990)

Those of us old enough to be fortunate to have been listening to metal in 1990 will remember what a fucking cracking year it was for albums. Among all the obvious choices like Judas Priest Painkiller and Danzig Danzig II:Lucifuge sit some lesser recognised gems and high on that list is Sadus Swallowed In Black.

My penchant for pure ripping thrash was more than realised here with an album that to this day sounds as ferocious and intense as the first time I heard it. However there is more to this album than just an all out balls to the wall assault, throughout the entire record the mastery of Steve DiGiorgio on the (fretless) bass is breathtaking and he compliments the guitar work perfectly. One of the most technical players of his time his contribution on here is nothing short of superb. Blend the wondrous complexity of the music with Rob Travis' harsh and scathing vocal style and you have a near perfect combination for one of thrash metals best ever records.

There's a tech death edge throughout most of the riffs on Swallowed in Black and its delivered with all the speed and fervour you'd expect from such a release as well. The songs are well composed and show a real maturity from the writers which compliments the musicianship perfectly.  It's very easy for technical thrash metal to become blunted by the twists and turns deployed but because the band utilised this death metal element so well, the pace and tempo lose no edge whatsoever and the whole combination is one vintage blend of varying taste notes.

It does go on a bit though and the album composition overall doesn't sit right with me in some regards, hence it didn't quite get full marks.  Still have a must have album for me though.