Daniel's Forum Replies

I'm a big fan of the "Non seriam" album. I bought the CD upon release & thought it was a big step up from "Thy Mighty Contract". It's still my favourite Rotting Christ release to this day actually.

Tyrus - "Rats Will Have Their Feast" (2012)

Short-lived Melbourne thrash metal outfit Tyrus may never have recorded a proper album with their entire discography amounting to just a couple of short & obscure demoes but they still managed to cement their place in Australian metal folklore, mainly due to the role they played in the creation of the local thrash scene but also because of their association with other early Melbourne metal bands like Hobbs Angel of Death, Fair Warning, Depression & Mass Confusion who they shared members with. When I first took my first tentative steps out into the Sydney extreme metal scene in the very early 1990's, I would quickly find that there was an underground subculture that held aloft widely unknown artists (many from other states) as dark overlords of our chosen field & Tyrus would be mentioned in whispers as one of the founding fathers. In the years that followed I would repeatedly hear those lone Tyrus recordings at drunken after-parties at older metalheads homes so they would them become very much ingrained in my youth, perhaps more than they ever had a right to from a quality perspective. It's been many years since I've revisited them now but the discovery of this compilation of all of Tyrus' studio recordings has lured me in to see how they've held up an incredible 38 years later.

"Rats Will Have Their Feast" draws together the four songs from the self-titled 1986 Tyrus demo tape & the title track from the "Liar" single from the same year in a short nineteen-minute recap of the band's short three-year career. These appeared very early on the Aussie extreme metal story & I'd argue that if Depression's 1985 crossover thrash effort "Australia, Australia" E.P. is the very first Australian thrash metal release then the "Tyrus" demo tape may well be the first conventional thrash one although that's open for debate as there are other seminal recordings from 1986 floating around & it's impossible to know exactly when each hit the streets. Personally, I've always thought of the 1986 demo tape from Sydney's Massive Appendage as ground zero for Aussie thrash metal as we know it dropped in March 1986 but there were other players like Tyrus, Slaughter Lord & Non Compos Mentis whose demo recordings from that year may well have been released earlier. It's just a little hard to say.

The sound quality of the two recordings differs greatly with the demo tape sounding vastly superior. In fact, the demo sports a really good production job for a demo from the time actually with all of the instruments being presented in complete clarity & being well balanced. "Liar", on the other hand, sounds a lot softer & a touch flat in comparison with the guitars being slightly muted & further back in the mix. Tyrus' riff construction is super-basic for thrash & one gets the feeling that band leader Peter Hobbs (Hobbs Angel of Death) had essentially borrowed them from the "Baby's First Thrash Riff" children's hardcover. There's something about the songwriting that gives these simple mosh pit tunes some added weight though, in much the same way as the great Celtic Frost material managed to overcome a similar trait. The performances are very tight & well integrated which certainly helps with plenty of space left in the songs thanks to an element of restraint having been taken with the arrangements. This is naive, youthful metal music for people that live & die by the genre & I just happen to be one of them which helps greatly in the appeal of a release like this one which seems to take the speed metal-infused sound of the earliest thrash records like Metallica's "Kill 'Em All" & Slayer's "Show No Mercy" & blends it with the influence of the classic Venom material.

The material drawn from the "Tyrus" demo is of a very similar standard with all four songs being enjoyable. There's a fair bit of variety in tempo across the tracklisting which keeps things interesting with even the slower numbers like "Crucifixion" & "Shrine of Satan" maintaining a solid footing in thrash thanks to their dark feel & evil lyrical themes. Hobbs sounds quite angry here, much more so than on "Liar" where you can be forgiven for thinking it's a completely different person because he sounds nothing alike, & you can very easily detect the impact of Venom's Cronos on his approach. Opening track "Bubonic Plague" reminds me heavily of Slayer's "The Final Command" & I don't think that's a coincidence although the guitar solo section may well have been lifted straight off of "Kill 'Em All". The speed metal influence is very noticeable on "Liar" & I get the feeling that it may have been recorded prior to the demo but it's hard to say for sure. It's certainly not as successful as the demo material & is the clear weak point of the release. "Cold Steel Warm Death" possesses a similar speed metal backbone & (along with "Shrine of Satan") sounds a little more raw & abrasive than the first two songs taken from the cassette thanks to some variation in the production between tracks. 

While "Rats Will Have Their Feast" may not make for essential listening for the average international thrasher, it does offer a rare insight into the earliest attempts at emulating the thrash metal sound that had taken the world by storm a few years earlier. The fact that it took that long is really a testament to just how isolated Australia was from the rest of the world in a pre-internet era. These recordings will always hold strong nostalgic appeal for someone like myself who spent many late nights & early mornings raising their drunken metal claws to the sky to this material but it's actually held up pretty well by modern day standards too thanks to some pretty decent songwriting & a reasonably good sound quality so you could do a lot worse than to check it out.

For fans of Rampage, Renegade & Hobbs Angel of Death.

3.5/5

Here's my review:

Popular Swedish black metallers Watain first came to my attention around fifteen years ago through their 2003 sophomore album "Casus Luciferi", an experience that I really enjoyed which saw me venturing either side of it to indulge in the band's first & third albums in 2000's "Rabid Death's Curse" & 2007's "Sworn to the Dark". The latter offered me a similar level of appeal to "Casus Luciferi" & saw my interest in Watain being well & truly maintained while their debut album "Rabid Death's Curse" delivered a milder brand of entertainment which didn't encourage me to seek out repeat visits. Watain have very much lost their way with me since that time with the 2010's not treating them very well at all. Even my couple of live experiences have been fairly lacklustre to tell you the truth but things started to look up again with 2022's "The Agony & Ecstasy of Watain" seventh album which was their best work in a long time. It's been eons since I heard the Swede's first-up effort though & this month's feature release nomination would seem like as good a time as any to reassess the merits of Watain's early sound.

The production job on "Rabid Death's Curse" isn't amazing. I guess it's nothing out of the ordinary by black metal standards but Håkan Jonsson's drum sound is terribly lacklustre while bassist Erik Danielsson's vocals could probably have been better highlighted. It took me a listen or two to get used to but I eventually found myself coming to terms with it. This is a different sounding Watain to the one that most fans have flocked to anyway though as it's much less melodic & entirely more traditional in its take on the classic black metal sound. You won't find too many dalliances with Dissection-style melodics here as there are relatively few risks taken on "Rabid Death's Curse", so much so that I'd argue that most of us would likely not have come across this release if it had sported a different band moniker on the front cover. Most of this material goes for broke on the higher tempo blasting with much less time afforded to eerie atmospherics. There's a clear tendency to want to portray themselves as being "evil" too & it's easy to see that Watain were still fairly young & immature at this early stage with the band all still sitting within an age bracket of 18-20.

The biggest obstacle that I faced with "Rabid Death's Curse" can be found in the drumming of Jonsson. He clearly seems to fancy himself as a Marduk-style blaster but his ability to deliver on that concept falls noticeably short of the mark with his blast beats being very messy indeed. This flaw takes a lot of the gloss off of those sections & leaves me with the clear understanding that early Watain were at their best when they showed more restraint by slowing things down a touch. Guitarists Pelle Forsberg & C. Blom produce some more than acceptable black metal riffs here although they aren't always terribly original in how they go about creating them. You see, Watain were a little late to the table to get away with producing an album that sounds this familiar with the Scandinavian scene having well & truly peaked during the middle of the previous decade. Still... there's something about the classic black metal model that lends itself to well produced emulation, isn't there?

"Rabid Death's Curse" is essentially a flat line when it comes to quality & consistency with all eight tracks included sitting at pretty much the same standard. This leaves the listener with a tough task when trying to identify favourites amongst this lot as there are no clear highlights. In saying that though, there are no creative failures to speak of either so I've found myself enjoying the whole album, at least once I'd found a way past my issues with the blast beats. If I had to pick a few of the stronger songs then I'd probably go for opener "The Limb Crucifix", "Life Dethroned" & "On Horns Impaled" but I could just as easily have selected any of the other five songs too given how closely they sit to each other.

Despite the consistency in the tracklisting, there's can be no denying that Watain were not a top tier act at this stage of their evolution. In fact, I'd suggest that they sat smack-bang in the middle of the third tier which is where I place most of the artists that give me mild enjoyment without commanding much in the way of replay value. The Swedes would quickly improve on that position over the course of their next two full-lengths but I'd still suggest that "Rabid Death's Curse" was an acceptable first-up effort for a young band that was still discovering their own capabilities. It may not make any sort of bold creative statement but it does showcase an understanding for the genre from an aesthetic point of view with the atmosphere being suitably dark & grim & the song-writing being attractive enough to keep me engaged. The band would return much better for the run in three years time, this time having dropped guitarist Blom for a new three-piece lineup, & would begin their attempts at global domination with what I consider to be their best record, so one gets the feeling that "Rabid Death's Curse" was an essential stepping-stone in that process. It's just not necessarily an essential one for your average black metal listener, even if I think it's definitely worth a spin or three.

For fans of Valkyrja, Mayhem & Ondskapt.

3.5/5

Here's my review:

Finnish funeral doom metal masters Shape of Despair are an artist that I'm very much indebted to my brother Ben for having helped me discover many years ago now & I've followed them with interest ever since. I believe it was 2001's classic "Angels of Distress" that was the first of their releases to grace my ears & it made a significant impact on me at the time. That would have been around 2009 & I'm pretty sure that I've given all of Shape of Despairs proper releases a crack since then, along with their 1998 demo "Alone in the Mist". It's a credit to the band that literally all of these recordings were of a high quality but that somehow hasn't translated into a slew of high ratings from me at the Academy because I'm shockingly still yet to commit to an informed rating or review of any Shape of Despair release until today. Now would seem to be as a good a time as any though & what better way to begin than with a record that I've always felt would probably end up being one of my favourites in 2015's outstanding "Monotony Fields" fourth full-length.

With a lot of funeral doom metal, I find that my mood can play a role in my enjoyment of the music but that doesn't seem to be the case with Shape of Despair's stronger work. Their sound seems to transcend the limitations of the genre in many ways & you won't find a better example of that than with "Monotony Fields" which is ironically one of the least monotonous funeral doom releases you're gonna find. The word "atmospheric" is bandied around the metal scene far too often in my opinion but it would seem to be totally appropriate for Shape of Despair with the influence of genuine ambient music adding an additional layer of depth & emotional engagement. The glistening production job of Max Kostermaa beautifully highlights the depth & substance in this music too with the guitar tone being thick & full & the synthesizers washing over the listener with elegance & class so things never sound too dreary or repetitive. Both of the vocal styles of new male vocalist Henri Koivula (Throes of Dawn) are ridiculously effective with his ultra-deep growls proving to be truly cavernous while his cleans represent some of the highlights of an otherwise already stupendous creative effort. Female vocalist Natalie Koskinen (i.e. the ex-wife of former front man Pasi Koskinen) is used more sparingly but chimes in at the perfect moment to provide further melodic highlights to an already impressive soundscape the effortlessly pulls on my heart-strings, so much so that I felt close to tears at one point during this revisit which is no small feat these days.

The first half of the album is utterly stunning with three of the opening four songs (i.e. "Reaching the Innermost", the title track & "The Distant Dream of Life") sitting amongst the greatest metal music I've ever heard in my life. The re-recording of the title track from 2010's "Written in my Scars" E.P. (a bonus track on some releases) is equally as impressive & is a magical way to close out the release. The remainder of the material is all of premium quality too though with only "Withdrawn" failing to see me reaching for my more elite scores. This is funeral doom with hooks & they're as beautiful as you'll find in extreme metal with the keyboards of guitarist Jarno Salomaa playing a starring role throughout. As a long-time fan of ambient music, it's rare that you'll see that genre represented in such an accurate form on a metal record. It's also unusual to hear metal guitarists playing with such restraint in the interest of constructing more subtle yet fully realised atmospheric masterpieces. Shape of Despair just seem to have an incredible understanding of their chosen craft & the sound that they've created here amounts to significantly more than the parts that make it up.

I can't gush enough over "Monotony Fields" to be honest. It deserves a lot more attention than it's received over the years as it's often overlooked in favour of Shape of Despair's earlier works but is clearly playing in the same space in terms of class & quality. It's a rarified air that only the untouchable Esoteric have managed to reach with any sort of consistency & one that leaves me wondering how I could have left it so long to put pen to paper about an act that I've long admired. This is essential funeral doom metal that should be on every The Fallen member's playlist this month.

For fans of Doom:VS, Colosseum & Ea.

4.5/5

Here's my review:

I came to Norway's Extol fairly late in the game to be honest. By the time they first hit the underground in the late 1990's I was already heading for the exit door as far as metal music went & I wouldn't find myself returning to the scene until around 2009 which is when I first heard their 2000 sophomore album "Undeceived". It left quite an impression on me & received a lot of replays over the coming years & that experience would lead me to head back & explore Extol's 1998 debut album "Burial" & 1999 "Mesmerized" E.P., as well as to look forward to their 2003 "Synergy" third album which is the topic of discussion today. I don't recall revisiting "Synergy" over the many years since as it's generally been "Undeceived" that I reach for when I've looked for an Extol fix but Ben's introduction of the band's 2005 fourth album "The Blueprint Dives" to me a couple of years ago revitalized my interest in the band. I hadn't checked out that album before & it really hit the spot for me, despite it seeing Extol finally breaking free of the chains that tied them to their early extreme metal roots. It's been quite a while since I crossed paths with "Synergy" now, around fifteen years to be exact, but I held vague memories of it being a pretty decent release so this month's The Pit feature release nomination was most welcome.

Wow! "Synergy" jumps straight out of the gates with amazing complexity. It's one SERIOUSLY technical record performed by some incredibly ambitious & undeniably talented musicians. Extol's death metal roots had been completely cast aside by this stage in their evolution with the general consensus being that "Synergy" is a progressive tech thrash record. Look, there are certainly some thrash influences on display (i.e. Coroner, Believer, etc.) with three or four of the songs containing enough of a thrash component to justify the tag but the record is much better suited to a lone progressive metal tag when taken holistically as its scope is far more wide-reaching than the thrash metal genre allows for. The vocals of front man Peter Espevoll are quite raspy & a touch blackened, sitting somewhere between Meshuggah's Jens Kidman & a black metal shriek most of the time which is well suited to the occasional forays into tremolo-picked black metal territory. The links to Christianity are unfortunate but, in truth, they play very little role in the way the album plays out if you don't actively seek out the lyrics. The guitar solos of Christer Espevoll (Azusa/Benea Reach) & Ole Børud (Fleshkiller/Schaliach) are a real highlight & show both of them to be well on top of their chosen craft with a high level of sophistication displayed in the way they construct their leads. I can only imagine it must have taken drummer David Husvik (Azusa) a very long time to learn this material as it's heavily weighted towards unusual time signatures & polyrhythms. He does a splendid job of it though if you ask me.

The tracklisting on "Synergy" is very consistent with no weak songs being included to tarnish the overall impression left by the album. The high level of complexity does make it challenging for any of the numbers to really stand out from the rest as genuine classics but the struggle to balance out technical wizardry with ear-catching hooks is not isolated to Extol. It's been a perennial issue for ultra-progressive bands like this one over the years & if there's one area that Extol probably needed to improve a touch then that's it. Thankfully, we'd see them do a better job at it with 2005's "The Blueprint Dives" album which did contain a couple of true gems. If I had to pick favourites amongst this lot then I'd have to go with opener "Grace for Succession", "26 Miles From Marathon" &, my pick of the bunch, the thrashy "Paradigms". The quality does dip just a touch towards the end of the album with both the folk pop piece "Aperture" & thrashy closer "Nihilism 2002" being more acceptable than they are impressive but it's hard to complain as neither are exactly filler either. You get the feeling that Extol were likely beyond producing filler at this point in their careers given the strong grip that each member has on their chops & musical vision. Peter Espevoll's vocals can sound a touch one-dimensional at times & one gets the feeling that a more interesting clean singer may have been able to take the album to the next level.

I'm pleased to advise that "Synergy" is another high-quality & quite challenging release from an excellent metal band that sits very comfortably just behind "The Blueprint Dives" as an holistic package. It's actually surprised me a bit as I hadn't given it quite as much credit when I first encountered it back in the day. Perhaps it's not the most appropriate selection for a The Pit feature release given that it seems to be more closely affiliated with The Infinite but it's certainly exciting enough to encourage the thrashers out there when it hits on some of its higher tempos.

For fans of Believer, Azusa & Lengsel.

4/5

Sadly the inclusion of "Blood Empress" has reminded me how much the newest Unleash The Archers has bounced off of me. Just not a fan of their new direction, it's a whole lot of nothing to me. 

I tend to agree although there are a couple of great tracks included.

Seriously, how much do both Attick Demons & Aria sound like (read: clone) Iron Maiden?! It's particularly evident when there's a Maiden track included within close proximity too. I've always loved Maiden's "Public Enema Number One" too. I reckon it's a bit of an underrated gem in their back catalogue. That Aria song is really solid too & I've been really digging the Rage one lately. Can't say the same about the Heir Apparent track which I didn't enjoy much when I reviewed that album. The Witchfinder General track isn't really my bag either come to think of it.

Edge of Sanity – “Blood of My Enemies” (from “The Spectral Sorrows”, 1993)

Looks like you switched the October & November nominations Xephyr so I’ll just go with this one for November please.

Devin Townsend - "PowerNerd" (2024) [Progressive metal from Canada]

"Devin Townsend’s career is one of many distinct eras. He’s been the leader of Strapping Young Lad, the lynchpin of the Devin Townsend Project and the co-architect of country duo Casualties of Cool, all while maintaining his prolific and lauded solo project. Now, the polymath’s newest era starts with PowerNerd: a succinct but still progressive record that pulls from its mastermind’s childhood love of vintage rock. From the moment the title track ignites the record with a roar of “PowerNerd!”, Devin’s 28th studio project is a gallop of melody, noise and emotion."

Behemoth - "XXX Years ov Blasphemy" (2024) [Death/black metal from Poland]

Polish extreme metal giants BEHEMOTH have announced the release of their monumental anniversary concert "XXX Years Ov Blasphemy" which originally streamed online in 2021. The career-spanning show, held at and filmed on three different locations, has a total running time of 90 minutes, divided into three different acts. This very special set features fan favorites as well as a few selected deep cuts that BEHEMOTH had rarely played live before. For this event, BEHEMOTH went all in and took the concept of streaming shows during the pandemic to a whole new level, with a full production, incredibly detailed stage set-ups, breathtaking photography and a high-end sound recording. Way too good to only be seen or heard once, "XXX Years Ov Blasphemy" will now be officially released on October 25 as three-CD + Blu-ray, three-LP and digital album. As an appetizer, you can now watch the live video for the song "Cursed Angel Of Doom", which originally appeared on BEHEMOTH's first demo, "Endless Damnation", back in 1992.

BEHEMOTH frontman Adam "Nergal" Darski commented: "This project encompasses the BEHEMOTH mantra — connecting the ancients with the modern era by building a bridge through each decade. Join us in this celebration of black metal and unholy worship, as we continue to outlive Jesus Christ himself! We are delighted to put the spotlight on 'Cursed Angel Of Doom', the track that started it all. It signifies the beginning of an incredibly inspiring artistic journey that changed our lives forever. Legions — we hope you enjoy."

"XXX Years Ov Blasphemy" track listing:

Act 1

01. Chant Of The Eastern Lands

02. Lasy Pomorza

03. Summoning (Of The Ancient Ones)

04. Blackvisions Of The Almighty

05. Cursed Angel Of Doom

06. Pure Evil And Hate

Act 2

01. The Thousand Plagues I Witness

02. Decade Ov Therion

03. Christians To The Lions

04. 44 (The Youth Manifesto)

05. Heru Ra Ha: Let There Be Might

06. Chant For Ezkaton 2000

Act 3

01. Demigod

02. At The Left Hand Ov God

03. Alas, Lord Is Upon Me

04. Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer

05. Rom 5:8

06. O Father O Satan O Sun!

The Acacia Strain - "Live at Riip Fest 2024" [Metalcore/deathcore from Massachusetts, USA]

I really liked 2010's "Wormwood" fifth album from these guys so this could be worth a look.

Here's my review: 

Florida death metallers Obituary played an extremely important role in my teenage years. The late 1980's had seen me very quickly being transformed from a pimple-faced hard rock & heavy metal kid into a fully-fledged thrash nut off the back of the Big Four but it wouldn't be long before the lure of the darker & more intense death metal world would start to progressively increase the tension on the chord it had attached to the back of my pants when I first heard Death's "Leprosy" album. Some devastating experiences with underground metal radio programming would lead to me purchasing both of Obituary's first two albums (1989's "Slowly We Rot" & 1990's "Cause of Death") & I very quickly became a convert for life. The vocal talents of front man John Tardy left me gasping for superlatives & he's remained my favourite death metal vocalist to this day while the incredible doomy atmosphere & dazzling guitar virtuosity of James Murphy on "Cause of Death" have left it in the top echilon of the global death metal movement for all the decades since. By the time 1992's super-successful "The End Complete" album hit my CD drawer, I regarded myself as an Obituary tragic who had even secured dubbed copies of the early Xecutioner demos so my anticipation for 1994's "World Demise" fourth album was pretty much at the maximum recordable level & I'm not sure whether that actually had an impact on my feelings about the album but I've generally always found that I rated it a fair bit higher than other metalheads seem to. I've returned to it regularly over the years but have never gotten around to rating it until now so it'll be interesting to see where it sits against Obituary's highly celebrated earlier works.

"World Demise" saw Obituary displaying signs of an internal battle of sorts. On the one hand, we see a band that already had a very well-defined sound & who is very comfortable to stay within those parameters with the album once again being recorded at Florida's notorious Morrisound Studios with legendary death metal producer Scott Burns. All of Obituary's albums to the time had been recorded in this fashion so this was hardly a leap of faith. The band's lineup had remained the same as the one that saw original lead guitarist Allen West returning to the fold for "The End Complete" after Murphy had finished his duties with "Cause of Death" so there was definitely a lot of consistency around the Obituary machine at the time & when you first hear "World Demise" you won't be terribly surprised with what you hear initially. There are subtle differences on display that are worth discussing though. Obituary's first album "Slowly We Rot" saw them blending a doomy Celtic Frost sound with a thrashier & more up-tempo Slayer one. We'd seen the thrash influence easing a little over time but "World Demise" sees them predominantly steering away from their faster material, instead focusing on more restrained tempos with the groovier elements they'd worked into their riff structures being further amplified to become the main focal point & the Celtic Frost inspiration being further embraced & celebrated. The album still sounds very much like Obituary but they'd certainly limited their focus a little towards a groovier form of death metal that West would later take with him to his Six Feet Under project. The cover artwork indicated that Obituary might be starting to take a more socially conscious approach with their lyrics too & I tend to think that's got some merit to it although John Tardy had never been big on structured lyric sheets, instead tending to improvise with random words & phrases. The most noticeable addition to the Obituary sound though was the inclusion of a number of samples, some taking the form of industrial sounds that are layered over the death metal. While this is an interesting idea, I feel that the band have failed in that endeavour as these samples are poorly integrated & seem to be fairly random in the way they've been tossed into the mix. They really don't add anything to the music, instead only acting as more of a distraction than anything.

Despite these changes, if you were already a fan of Obituary then you'll feel very much at home with "World Demise". The rhythm section of bassist Frank Watkins & drummer Donald Tardy tie in so tightly with rhythm guitarist Trevor Peres that you'd be forgiven for thinking that they were conjoined twins. In fact, it's hard to argue with the idea that Obituary might have been the tightest death metal band on the planet at the time & when you toss in a wonderfully thick & heavy Scott Burns production then it can only lead to a positive outcome as far as I'm concerned. Frank & Donald provide the perfect platform for the endless string of heavy-weight Peres riffs that Obituary have built their career on while John Tardy was at the pinnacle of his powers at this point with his delivery sounding as monstrous & pissed-off as we'd ever heard from him before. Allen West's lead guitar performance is the clear weak point for me personally as I've never thought he was much of a talent on his chosen instrument. James Murphy's insane melodic solos on "Cause of Death" had only provided further weight to my pre-existing opinion that a top-level shredder could take the band to all new levels & it seems a shame that West's return had seen that potential being limited.

The tracklisting is very solid indeed & I've found myself enjoying all twelve tracks included. There are a couple of less impressive numbers in the super-groovy "Redefine" & the more basic "Lost" but the tight performances & excellent production job still give those numbers a level of enjoyment that makes them more than acceptable. The remaining ten songs are all excellent, if not terribly different from Obituary's previous work with the riffs & vocals feeling fairly familiar for the most part. There are a couple of absolute gems here though with "Paralyzing" comparing very well to past glories & the incredible closer "Kill For Me" sitting amongst Obituary's finest work. My copy of the album contained a bonus track called "Killing Victims Found" which sounds a little closer to Obituary's previous albums but is also very good & I can't help but think that the album would have been stronger if they'd replaced "Redefine" or "Lost" with it.

Overall, I can't deny that "World Demise" is the least impressive Obituary album to the time but I think it still sits fairly comfortably alongside "Slowly We Rot" & "The End Complete" to be honest so I would still suggest that it's heavily underrated & should be essential listening for fans of the band, particularly given that I don't think they've matched it in terms of consistency or quality in all the years since. This is one tight & chunky slab of Florida death metal that doesn't try to be anyone else but Obituary while still trying a few new ideas with varying levels of success. I can deal pretty easily with the groovier feel & still really enjoy "World Demise" a good thirty years later so I'd encourage fans of their earlier work to check it out if you haven't already.

For fans of Morgoth, Six Feet Under & Celtic Frost.

4/5

My early Obituary rankings look like this:

1. Cause of Death

2. The End Complete

3. Slowly We Rot

4. World Demise

5. Xecutioner's "1987 Demo"

6. Xecutioner's "1986 Demo"

Here's my review:

By the middle of the 1990's, Chicago industrial metallers had become very much a stable inclusion in my life. From the time that I first discovered them through their 1989 breakthrough fourth album "The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste", I'd been captivated by their exciting high-tech world of future-thinking music for the coming robot apocalypse, but once Ben discovered them then things started to escalate as we explored each important release from their back catalogue together. 1988's "The Land of Rape and Honey" was very popular in our household during the first part of that decade but it was the trio of "The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste", their 1990 live album "In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up (Live)" & the incredible career-defining 1992 fifth album "ΚΕΦΑΛΗΞΘ [Psalm 69]" that really took things to the top rung of the metal spectrum. "ΚΕΦΑΛΗΞΘ [Psalm 69]" had quite simply changed our worlds so there was huge anticipation around the release of their follow-up during the first half of the decade. Unfortunately though, the four-year gap between albums saw my attention veering off further into extreme metal territory &, by the time 1996's "Filth Pig" finally saw the light of day, my enthusiasm had waned a touch. Ben would purchase the album on CD & it would be some months before I actually got around to hearing it as I was no longer living at home. By the time I did, I'd already had the chance to hear & read a little bit about "Filth Pig" which was generally thought to be a step down for Ministry so it's hard to say whether that left me with any internal biases or not but the album did seem to me to be a little disappointing when compared to the three that came before it. I still quite liked it but it didn't get many replays after those first few listens & I haven't returned to it since so my memory of what it contains was a little hazy going into this week's revisit. Thankfully though, I've been rewarded for the faith I've kept in band leader Al Jourgensen because "Filth Pig" is a very solid record in its own right, if not the classic that so many people would have been hoping for.

It probably would have been very easy for Ministry to pump out "Psalm 69 Part II" & continue their rise up the ranks of the commercial metal ladder but "Filth Pig" is an altogether different kettle of fish. It's a much darker, less immediate & far less accessible record than people were expecting with some major creative differences to previous works which in many ways reflect the mentality of Jourgensen at that particular point in time. There are very few up-tempo moments on "Filth Pig" & you won't find many goth club anthems like "NWO", "Just One Fix" or "Jesus Built My Hot Rod" either. Instead we get a slower, druggier & more introspective record with much less of a reliance on electronics & samples. The use of dissonance in the guitar work often borrows from genres like sludge metal & noise rock & you'll struggle to identify anything that touches on the thrash-inspired riffs of "Psalm 69". In fact, this is a much less riff-based record in general. Jourgensen's signature heavily-effected gurgly vocals are still there & are a feature of the album but his lyrics reek of someone that's in quite a lot of pain, who holds a fairly negative view of the world & who is struggling with their own infamy to an extent. The brief touches of tongue-in-cheek humour & a fair chunk of the brightness & excitement had been sucked out of Ministry, at least from a surface level, so "Filth Pig" requires a deeper investigation if you're to uncover its value which can be found in the fact that this is indeed some dark & heavy shit at times.

The tracklisting kicks off in very strong fashion with the first two tracks (industrial metal opener "Reload" & the slower sludge metal dirge that is the title track) both being very solid indeed. In fact, I'd suggest that the title track is a genuine Ministry classic that sits comfortably alongside the band's best work but things drop off a touch for the remainder of the A side. "Lava" & "Useless" are both pretty decent but I really struggle with "Crumbs" which has a very loose song structure & sounds completely underdone. Things pick up significantly for the start of the B side with a string of three excellent pieces in a row, ending with the brilliant industrial metal anthem "The Fall" which is the other clear highlight of the album for me. As with the A side though, things descend back to a merely acceptable level for the closure of the album with the last two rockier tracks (including the popular cover version of Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay") failing to meet the same sort of standard as the more captivating first part of each side. When viewed holistically, the stronger material clearly outweighs the less essential stuff but I do think that the tracklisting could have been evened out a bit to ensure a more even spread of the better songs rather than bulking out the start of each side with the back end feeling a little less vital.

I've noticed that "Filth Pig" seems to be tagged as an industrial sludge metal record on some competitors websites & I can kinda see where they're coming from but that's not entirely accurate as the sludge component isn't regular enough to warrant a primary tag. Despite the fact that this is a less electronically reliant record than we'd come to expect from Ministry over the years, "Filth Pig" is still first & foremost an industrial metal release with the sludge & industrial rock components playing more of a supporting role. It's a very good one too & it's made me reassess my position on its merits. While it may not compete with the classic trio of releases I mentioned previously & is undeniably a step down from the lofty heights that Ministry were playing during their peak creative period from 1989-1992, I do think that "Filth Pig" should still be regarded as an essential release for those with a penchant for their particular brand of heavy music. Yes, it's probably the least impressive thing they'd done since their early synth pop & EBM records of the mid-80's but that's not to say that it's won't still be a quality inclusion in your collection that offers a point of difference from Ministry's previous work. I don't believe I've heard anything Ministry have released since this record (at least not the full releases anyway) but I'm led to believe that there's not a lot of meat on them bones so I'd suggest that this gives "Filth Pig" even more value for fans who may be desperately trying to revisit the band's heyday. This is a largely overlooked & mildly underrated release in the band's back catalogue that deserves a little more attention in 2024 than it generally receives so I'd encourage you to check it out.

For fans of White Zombie, Prong & Godflesh.

4/5

How is "Useless" weird though? Sure, it utilizes dissonance fairly heavily but that's hardly unusual for industrial metal, is it? I quite like "Useless" actually. "Crumbs" is the only track on "Filth Pig" that I struggle with.

Dismember - "Indecent & Obscene" (1993)

For many extreme metal fans, the filthy Swedish death metal sound is the epitome of what death metal is all about. It's thick & noisy BOSS HM-2 Heavy Metal pedal guitar tone & up-beat, punky beats give it a lovely balance of savagery & accessibility. For me personally though, I've always preferred the more sophisticated & brutal US sound, even if I've been able to appreciate the way that the Swede's go about their craft. I was exposed to artists like Entombed, Carnage & Dismember very early on in the death metal story & had always found them to be interesting but rarely did I find myself making regular returns to these records which was telling. Entombed's classic "Clandestine" sophomore album was one of the rare exceptions & I still regard it as the clear pinnacle of the movement today with every other record simply competing for second place. Dismember are generally regarded as the undisputed runners-up & I did quite like their first two proper releases "Like an Ever Flowing Stream" & "Pieces" as well as two of their three early demo tapes but it was rare for me to place them into regular rotation like most death metal fans did. Despite that, I still found myself purchasing 1993's "Indecent & Obscene" sophomore album on CD upon release & I recall finding it to be one of the better Swedish death metal releases & my favourite Dismember record to the time. I've recently found myself wondering exactly where I'd place it in terms of the entire movement though so it's been on my radar for a return visit for some time now.

The whole "blood & guts/gore" thing was probably at its peak in 1993 with a lot of acts competing against each other to see who could shock the public the most &, in doing so, give themselves some additional hype & street credibility by getting their cover artwork banned. Dismember had already created some controversy off the back of a song called "Skin Her Alive" from their debut album so it was no surprise to see them trying to replicate that media exposure with the front cover of "Indecent & Obscene" which is unapologetically gruesome. From memory I think this was probably a factor in me picking the release up so early because I remember thinking that it'd be banned or censored shortly afterwards which would give my CD some added value. The band had returned with the same line-up that had recorded their first full-length & would once again record at the infamous Sunlight Studios in Stockholm with legendary Swedish producer Tomas Skogsberg. The result of their efforts sounds a little different to "Like an Ever Flowing Stream" & "Pieces" though with the overall production being noticeably cleaner. The classic Swedish wall-of-sound guitar crunch is still there but it's nowhere near as noisy as it had been up until that point & I think that element was something that attracted me to "Indecent & Obscene" more than other similar releases of the time. Everything is easily discernable in the mix with the excellent vocal performance of front man Matti Kärki (Carbonized/Carnage/General Surgery/Murder Squad/Therion) being given plenty of room to move over the top. The guitar solos are probably the only area where I think Skogsberg got it a little wrong as they sound unusually restrained at times given the carnage that surrounded them. In fact, the technical ability of lead guitarist David Blomqvist (Carnage/Entombed/The Dagger) was still fairly basic anyway so the solos wouldn't have been anything to write home about regardless to tell you the truth.

"Indecent & Obscene" kicks off in splendid fashion with opening cut "Fleshless" being my favourite inclusion on the album & a powerful way to begin proceedings. The short two-minute blast of energy that is "Eviscerated (Bitch)" is my other clear standout as it invariably manages to get my blood pumping. The remainder of the album hasn't quite hit the same sort of levels I expected of it given my lofty expectations though to be fair. I don't think there are any weak tracks included per se but there isn't anything that I'd suggest is particularly classic though either with the remaining seven tracks all being no more than decent. It's not mentioned all that often but there's a little more groove to this material than there was previously & I think you can hear the impact of Entombed's ground-breaking "Wolverine Blues" on Dismember to an extent, even if I wouldn't suggest that any of these numbers are fully-fledged death 'n' roll songs. There are certainly elements of that sound at play here though & perhaps that's why I've struggled to commit as I've never been the biggest fan of that style, despite holding a fair bit of respect for "Wolverine Blues" as the clear protagonist of the movement. Closer "Dreaming in Red" even sees Dismember adding a fair bit of melody to their sound, so much so that I'd suggest that it should qualify as melodic death metal.

Going into this revisit, I was fully expecting to come out of it with a solid four-star rating that would place "Indecent & Obscene" above Dismember's earlier releases in the death metal pecking order. That hasn't ended up being the case though & I've found the comparisons with the Swede's earlier releases to be much more closely fought. I think I'm gonna have to admit that I enjoy "Like an Ever Flowing Stream" the most of the three records these days but there's very little between the other two. I'm gonna have say that my gut tells me that I enjoyed my recent revisit to 1992's "Pieces" E.P. just slightly more than this resitting of Dismember's second album though so it's gonna be resigned to third place for the moment. I do recall really digging 1989's "Reborn in Blasphemy" demo tape during my tape trading days though so perhaps it might be worth checking out again at some point to see if it might actually usurp the lot of them. As it stands though, "Indecent" & Obscene" is another decent effort from one of the leaders of the Swedish death metal movement & I'm sure it'll offer plenty of appeal to the Swedish diehards but my misgivings about the style that Dismember plays have once again seen my rating being capped at a less than spectacular (yet still more than respectable) level.

For fans of Entombed, Carnage & Grave.

3.5/5

Depression/Gash - "Australia & More" split album (1986)

A split album that's comprised of tracks from Depression's two 1985 releases in their self-titled debut album (3.5 stars) & "Australia, Australia" E.P. (4 stars) as well as female-fronted Melbourne hardcore punk band Gash's self-titled 1986 debut album (3.5 stars). It's a pretty decent listen too with the tracklisting being predominantly hardcore punk but with a fairly strong crossover thrash component in some parts, particularly through the section comprised of the "Australia, Australia" E.P. I certainly enjoy the Depression side more but Gash aren't a bad little punk outfit either. The link between the two bands is that Depression guitarist Smeer played drums for Gash so they used to perform quite a few shows together back in mid-80's Melbourne.

3.5/5

The God Machine - "Scenes From the Second Storey" (1993)

Wow! What a fucking debut album this is then! San Diego's The God Machine have produced an epic 77-minute journey with a foot in each of the alternative rock & post-rock camps while also dabbling with a bit of alternative metal here & there. The vocals sound very much like Perry Farrell (Jane's Addiction/Porno For Pyros) at times. It's incredibly classy, ambitious & fully-realized for a first-up effort & I've completely fallen in love with it.

For fans of Quicksand, Slint & early Helmet.

4.5/5

Paradise Lost - "Icon" (1993)

I have a shocking admission to make ladies & gentlemen. Despite being a fan of English doom/death godfathers Paradise Lost from as early as 1991's "Gothic" album, I've honestly never regarded them as a top tier metal band. While I found Nick Holmes' death growls to be a highlight of the bands early material, I also struggled a bit with the very basic nature of the compositional work & a bit of inconsistency in the song-writing. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say that I've never really enjoyed releases like 1988's self-titled demo tape or even the band's debut full-length "Lost Paradise" for that matter, instead having to settle for some mild entertainment from "Gothic" & 1989's "Frozen Illusion" demo as far as Paradise Lost's early works go. Strangely though, I'd gone out & bought 1992's "Shades of God" third album on cassette upon release without really knowing what I was getting myself into. It was an another generally positive experience but saw Paradise Lost starting to transition into something a little different from the doom/death sound they'd built their reputation on to that time. Holmes' death growls had gone halfway towards a cleaner delivery &, in doing so, sounded a little awkward while the death metal component was all but gone with the album being better described as conventional doom metal with some gothic elements here & there. It left me wondering where these Poms would go with their next album but my interest in the band was obviously still alive as I would pick up a digipack CD version of 1993's "Icon" fourth full-length as soon as it hit the shelves & would eagerly consume it for several months afterwards.

"Icon" sees Paradise Lost having fully completed their transition into what's generally regarded as being one of the primary figures in the gothic metal movement. The attractive gothicisms of the cover artwork had a positive effect on me & was possibly one of the reasons that I committed to buying the album after not ever fully committing myself to the band's earlier work. The Simon Efemey production job represents another aesthetic positive for "Icon" with the record sounding really crunchy & bright which was a considerable improvement on his output with "Shades of God". It gave "Icon" a much greater level of accessibility than Paradise Lost's previous efforts which has probably gone a long way to explaining why I like this record more than anything they'd done previously. The band had kept the same lineup throughout their existence to the time which I'd suggest was also a contributing factor in their successfully having continued down the path of reinvention they were taking with each successive release too.

The biggest thing that I noticed about "Icon" upon first laying it into my CD player as a kid was that Holmes' vocals were different again from the ones I'd struggled with a little bit on "Shades of God". This time he'd dropped the growling altogether & concentrated on delivering some admittedly still fairly aggressive clean vocals that sounded very much like he was trying to be Metallica's James Hetfield in terms of both tone & phrasing. That's not necessarily such a bad thing though as he does suit the music around him very well. The problems start to become evident in his general singing abilities though as his performance is noticeably pitchy throughout the album, a flaw that I've definitely found much more difficult to overlook in 2024 than I did back in 1993. It was only after I'd finally accepted Holmes' vocal limitations that I began to see "Icon" in a similar way to that which saw it becoming a mainstay of my playlist during the mid-1990s. Musically though, "Icon" represents a noticeable step up in class for Paradise Lost with the song-writing being clearly their most consistently strong to date. Lead guitarist Greg Mackintosh has finally developed an understanding of his technical limitations & works within them with his leads no longer suffering due to his lack of theoretical understanding.

The sound that "Icon" championed is a little difficult to describe holistically as it doesn't really sit all that comfortably within the standard "gothic metal" model. For starters, the gothic component isn't all that strong although I've struggled to find a better descriptor for the album which seems to hover around a number of different subgenres. There are clear thrash metal & heavy metal elements at play here & I'd suggest that Metallica's "Black Album" was quite influential on the more accessible direction the band had decided to take, particularly given the timing of the release which came just two years after Metallica had changed the world with their monumental commercial success. There's a much doomier aesthetic to how they present that influence here though, without resorting to actual doom metal all that often. You should expect to hear a lot of chuggy, mid-tempo riffs that benefit greatly from the crunchy production job & are well served by the improved song-writing quality too.

"Icon" was easily Paradise Lost's most consistent record to the time & likely still is. On this revisit I've found myself gaining enjoyment from all but one of the thirteen tracks on offer with the wishy washy "Weeping Words" being the only genuine failure on offer. There are a few huge highlights for me here with the doomiest inclusion "Joys of the Emptiness" being my personal favourite. I was also blown away by the brilliant gothic closer "Deus Misereatur" which is a wonderful way to finish the album. "Colossal Rains" is another gem that takes me right back to my teenage years & it's been interesting that it hasn't necessarily been the tracks that I adored the most as a kid that I've placed up on a pedestal in my more mature age, although there are a number of other very solid examples of the more refined new Paradise Lost sound here too.

Going into "Icon" I was fully expecting to dish out one of my more elite ratings given the impact it made on me in my youth. After all, I still regard it as the best Paradise Lost release I've heard to this day. Unfortunately though, it hasn't quite delivered a top tier result, even if I have maintained my opinion of it as the band's finest hour. I guess I just don't rate Paradise Lost as highly as most other people seem to & some of that will no doubt be due to their lack of sophistication when compared to the other members of the Peaceville Three, both of whom I regard as being ultra-premium examples of their type. Still, there's no denying that "Icon" is one of the best gothic metal records I've ever heard & I'm somewhat relieved that it hasn't ended up dipping below its even more accessible younger sibling "Draconian Times" after all these years.

For fans of Tiamat, Sentenced & Moonspell.

4/5

Here's the November feature release nomination list:

THE FALLEN: Daniel, Ben

THE GATEWAY: Saxy, Andi

THE GUARDIANS: Xephyr, Karl

THE HORDE: Ben, Daniel, Karl, Vinny

THE INFINITE: Saxy, Andi, Xephyr

THE NORTH: Xephyr, Daniel, Ben, Karl

THE PIT: Daniel, Vinny, Ben

THE REVOLUTION: Daniel, Andi

THE SPHERE: Andi, Daniel

October 2024

01. Monstrosity – “Shapeless Domination” (from “In Dark Purity”, 1999) [Submitted by Karl]

02. Vader – “Blood of Kingu” (from “De Profundis”, 1996) [Submitted by Daniel]

03. Gruesome – “Frailty” (from “Frailty” single, 2024) [Submitted by Karl]

04. Séance – “Skinless” (from “Saltrubbed Eyes”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

05. Malevolent Creation – “Dominated Resurgency” (from “Stillborn”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

06. Pungent Stench – “Viva La Muerte” (from “Dirty Rhymes & Psychotronic Beats” E.P., 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

07. Dark Millennium – “Below The Holy Fatherlands” (from “Ashore The Celestial Burden”, 1992) [Submitted by Daniel]

08. Grave – “Harvest Day” (from “Hating Life”, 1996) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

09. At The Gates – “Within” (from “The Red In The Sky Is Ours”, 1992) [Submitted by Daniel]

10. Blood – “Dogmatize” (from “Impulse To Destroy”, 1989) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

11. Cancer – “Patchwork Destiny” (from “The Sins Of Mankind”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

12. Necrot – “Cut The Chord” (from “Lifeless Birth”, 2024) [Submitted by Karl]

13. Miasma – “Baphomet” (from “Changes”, 1992) [Submitted by Daniel]

14. Edge of Sanity – “The Spectral Sorrows/Darkday” (from “The Spectral Sorrows”, 1993) [Submitted by Karl]

15. Vital Remains – “I Am God” (from “Forever Underground”, 1997) [Submitted by Karl]

16. Liers In Wait – “Maleficent Dreamvoid” (from “Spiritually Uncontrolled Art” E.P., 1992) [Submitted by Daniel]

17. Undeath – “Brandish The Blade” (from “More Insane”, 2024) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

18. Brujeria – “Leyes Narcos” (from “Matando Gueros”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

19. Witch Vomit – “Endless Fall” (from “Funeral Sanctum”, 2024) [Submitted by Karl]

20. Bolt Thrower – “Eternal War” (from “Realm of Chaos”, 1989) [Submitted by Karl]

21. Spawn of Possession – “No Light Spared” (from “INcurso”, 2012) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

22. Inferi – “No Gods But Our Flesh” (from “Vile Genesis”, 2021) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

23. Dehumanized – “P.C.C.R.” (from “Beyond The Mind”, 2016) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

24. Dying Fetus – “Unbridled Fury” (from “Make Them Beg For Death”, 2023) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

25. Putrid Pile – “Severed Head Memento” (from “Collection of Butchery”, 2003) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

26. Suffocation – “Depths of Depravity” (from “Pierced From Within”, 1995) [Submitted by Karl]

27. Brodequin – “Of Pillars & Trees” (from “Harbinger of Woe”, 2024) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

October 2024

01. Candlemass – “A Tale of Creation” (from “Tales of Creation”, 1989) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

02. Crowbar – “No Quarter” (from “Crowbar”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

03. Dread Sovereign – “Twelve Bells Toll in Salem” (from “For Doom The Bell Tolls”, 2017)

04. Acid Mammoth – “Black Rites” (from “Acid Mammoth”, 2017) [Submitted by Sonny]

05. Tarkus – “Tema para Lilus” (from “Tarkus”, 1972)

06. Black Flag – “Three Nights” (from “My War”, 1984)

07. Have A Nice Life – “There Is No Food” (from “Deathconsciousness”, 2008)

08. Black Sabbath – “Snowblind” (from “Vol. 4”, 1972)

09. Disincarnate – “Immemorial Dream” (from “Dreams of the Carrion Kind”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

10. Samael – “I Love The Dead (666)” (from “Rebellion” E.P., 1995) [Submitted by Daniel]

11. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – “Gaia” (from “Omnium Gatherum”, 2022)

12. Amenra – “Razoreater” (from “Mass IIII”, 2008) [Submitted by Sonny]

13. Cruciform – “I, To The Heavens Shall Lift My Eyes” (from “Atavism”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

14. Decomposed – “Procession (of the Undertaker)” (from “Hope Finally Died…”, 1993) [Submitted by Daniel]

15. Benediction – “Forged in Fire” (from “Dark is the Season” E.P., 1992) [Submitted by Daniel]

16. Spectral Voice – “Sinew Censer” (from “Sparagmos”, 2024) [Submitted by UnhinderedbyTalent]

17. Nails – “No More Rivers To Cross” (from “Every Bridge Burning”, 2024)

18. Thou – “Narcissist’s Prayer” (from “Umbilical”, 2024)

19. Chat Pile – “grimace_smoking_weed” (from “God’s Country”, 2022)

Godflesh - "Don't Bring Me Flowers" (from "Pure", 1992)

Unbroken - "D4" (from "Life.Love.Regret.", 1993)

Rage - "Sent by the Devil" (from "Black in Mind", 1995)

Hemotoxin - "Malediction" (from "When Time Becomes Loss", 2024)

Satyricon - "Walk the Path of Sorrow" (from "Dark Medieval Times", 1993)

Walknut - "Skinfaxi" (from "Graveforests & Their Shadows", 2007)

In Mourning - "Past October Skies (The Black Lodge Revisited)" (from "Shrouded Divine", 2008)

The Amenta - "An Epoch Ellipsis" (from "Revelator", 2021)

Cruciform - "Proboscis" (from "Atavism", 1993)

Absu - "Descent to Acheron (Evolving to the Progression of Woe)" (from "Barathrum V.I.T.R.I.O.L.", 1993)

Blood Duster - "Vulgar Taste" (from "Fisting the Dead", 1993)

Mortem - "Exhumer" (from "Amputator", 1993)

Skeleton of God - "10 Second Infinity" (from "Urine Garden", 1993)

Edge of Sanity - "Tales..." (from "Nothing But Death Remains", 1991)

Damaged - "Ultra Mild" (from "Do Not Spit", 1993)

Rage - "The Icecold Hand of Destiny" (from "Black in Mind", 1995)

Anthrax - "Only" (from "Sound of White Noise", 1993)

Cathedral – “Phantasmagoria” (from “The Ethereal Mirror”, 1993)

Type O Negative – “Bloody Kisses (A Death In The Family)” (from “Bloody Kisses”,1993)

Paradise Lost – “Joys Of The Emptiness” (from “Icon”, 1993)

Depression - "Australia, Australia" E.P. (1985)

Until recently, my exposure to Melbourne hardcore punk/crossover thrash outfit Depression was limited to their 1988 sophomore album "Thrash Till Death: Studio Tapes" which I picked up on while still a just a young chap that was finding my way in the Sydney extreme metal scene of the early-to-mid 1990's. I tended to associate with members of older bands at the time, often through my girlfriend who was fairly well connected & knew everyone that was everyone in the local scene. We used to frequent metal shows & goth night clubs on weekends, events that often ended up continuing on at someone's house so that the debauchery that was going on at the club had the opportunity to play out more fully behind closed doors. It was at these after-parties that I'd discover a lot of the more underground Australian metal releases with them being played at loud volumes by older & more experienced metalheads while everyone partook in whatever ungodly shenanigans they were into at the time. It was in that environment that I'd first hear Depression who I was led to believe had transitioned from their early days as a hardcore punk act for that particular release. I knew pretty much fuck-all about hardcore back in those days so I assumed that Depression's second album would be the only one of their releases that might interest me but my experiences over the last few weeks have proven otherwise & have also shown me that this Melbourne act played a far more significant role in the early Australian thrash story than they're generally given credit for, being largely absent from the conversation on documentaries such as "Thrash or Fuck Off!" which details the early players who contributed to the birth of the thrash metal movement in this country.

By late 1985, Depression had put out a fair bit of material from the time they first formed in 1982. There are a couple of early demos floating around with 1983's "Body Dump" tape being a relentless, high-speed hardcore assault that struggled to contend with a rubbish production job. 1984's "Money Chain" single saw the band starting to add more variety of tempo & incorporating chuggy, palm-muted riffs that were more commonly found in metal, a concept would be further expanded on their self-titled debut album that would be released in March of 1985. In fact, "Depression" would actually include four or five genuine crossover thrash tracks amongst the twenty-six short bursts of energy it contained & some of that material would likely have represented the most extreme music to come out Australia to the time as far as I can see. The "Australia, Australia" E.P. would appear eight months later in November 1985 &, unlike most local metal historians, I believe that it's here that the Aussie thrash (& subsequently extreme metal) story first begun.

"Australia, Australia" contains nine short tracks that fly by in quick succession but there's enough variation in their approaches to allow the individual tracks the chance to differentiate themselves from one another. The E.P. still sounds very much like a hardcore release from a production point of view with a layer of dirt & grime having been allowed to protect the song-writing from ever becoming too accessible & this is further accentuated by the snotty punk vocal delivery of Spike whose journey with Depression would end after this release. Original drummer Danny had been replaced with Nothing Sacred & future Hobbs Angel of Death skinsman Sham Littleman who delivers a high energy & very capable performance here but would move on to other things before Depression's next studio effort. The most noticeable difference between the "Depression" album & "Australia, Australia" though is the significantly increased ratio of punk to metal in the guitar work of band leader Smeer whose riffs now appear to unapologetically showcase the influence of bands like Slayer, Anthrax & Exodus which made for a much more appealing prospect for this ol' thrasher. In fact, the role that this component plays in the sound & feel of "Australia, Australia" is so important in its aesthetic that I find it impossible to understand how the E.P. hasn't been claimed as a crossover thrash record previously with no sign of any such connections being found online outside of the band themselves claiming that their sound combined punk & metal in interviews. When you listen to the releases of the other supposed early thrash bands of the local scene from the same period (see Nothing Sacred, Renegade, Prowler, Armoured Angel, etc.), you'll discover that Depression were really the only ones who had any right to claim that they were a genuine thrash metal act too which makes their omission from the discussion even more perplexing.

Of the nine songs on offer, I'd suggest that seven of them have a strong enough metal component to be tagged as crossover thrash while the short & violent "TV Lies" & "Dirty Fucken USA" stay predominantly in hardcore territory & "The Plan" takes kind of an each-way bet. This is all good shit though with Depression continuing to prove themselves to be capable song-writers by not delivering a single dud track. The energy levels are infectious & I honestly struggle to keep still during this record which can only be a good sign given the importance of the physical reaction in music of this intensity. Regardless of which genre they should rightfully belong to, it's hard to deny that the title track, "TV Lies", "The Box", "Eternal Genocide", Copper Chopper" & closer "The Side Up" are all really solid & enjoyable anthems for a misspent youth &, while I'm not usually all that big on crossover thrash, I'd have to suggest that this leaves "Australia, Australia" sitting up in elite territory when it comes to my more favoured crossover releases which is really saying something.

It's honestly baffling that a release like this one has managed to not only go unrecognised by the Australian metal scene for so long but has also failed to gain the sort of attention it deserves from the hardcore market too from what I can see online. While I may not be the most knowledgeable reviewer on the topic of hardcore history, I definitely know good music when I hear it & this is it ladies & gentlemen. It's also worth noting that 1985 would be the year that the earliest crossover thrash releases of any note would first see the light of day on a more global scale (S.O.D.'s "Crab Society North" demo & "Speak English or Die" album, D.R.I.'s "Dealing With It!" album, Slaughter's "Surrender or Die" demo, Concrete Sox's "Your Turn Next" album, Corrosion of Conformity's "Animosity" album, etc.) so that makes "Australia, Australia" a little more significant from an international & historical perspective as well, particularly given that I regard it as a stronger record than a good chunk of those releases. Now, if that sort of statement doesn't encourage the old skate-punk in you to explore this criminally undiscovered Aussie gem then I'm not sure what will. Get stuck in guys!

For fans of D.R.I., Suicidal Tendencies & S.O.D.

4/5

Ben, please add 2012’s “Rats Will Have Their Feast” from Melbourne thrash metallers Tyrus. 

Finnish doom/death outfit Swallow The Sun have a new album coming out entitled "Shining". I've enjoyed everything I've heard from these guys over the years so I've got this one on my list to check out during the year. I don't think I got to their last few releases though so it'll be interesting to see where they're at musically these days.

Dream Theater - "Live at the Marquee" E.P. (1993)

By the time I finally got to Dream Theater's first live release "Live at the Marquee" some time around 1997/98, the Boston progressive metallers had become one of my very favourite metal bands. I'd been blown to pieces by their classic second & third albums (1992's "Images & Words" & 1994's "Awake") which had seen me further indulging in their 1989 debut album "When Dream & Day Unite" & 1995 "A Change of Season" E.P. & my urge to seek out more of this wonderfully complex yet inherently catchy metal music seemed to hold no boundaries. Of course, it would only be a matter of time until I'd pick up a CD copy of 1993's "Live at the Marquee" E.P. which was recorded in London on 23rd April 1993 as a part of their European tour. The tracklisting includes a selection of material taken from Dream Theater's first two albums as well as an instrumental jam piece called "Bombay Vindaloo" which they only performed on a handful of occasions & was never recorded. It also contains as a short intro track called "Another Hand" that was written specifically for the tour & was intended to be a smooth segway from "Another Day" into "The Killing Hand". At 47 minutes in length, this certainly looked like an attractive prospect for me at the time & it didn't disappoint either as I'd soon find that Dream Theater were a remarkable band in a live environment too, an experience that I've since partaken in first-hand on a number of occasions.

The lineup for "Live at the Marquee" is the same one that recorded the "Images & Words" album with new front man James LaBrie having been with the group for a couple of years by that stage. Keyboardist Kevin Moore (Fates Warning/OSI) was still onboard & would remain a part of the band for another year or so until after the "Awake" album. This was arguably my favourite Dream Theater lineup given that it would produce two of my three favourite albums from the band so it was hard to imagine that this E.P. could produce anything other than a series of diamonds as long as the production job was up to scratch. I wouldn't say that it's perfect but I don't think there's much to complain about in that regard either with all of the instrumentalists being easily identified & nicely separated & LaBrie being given ample room to soar over the top.

It's easy to simply assume that a Dream Theater live release would produce a series of dazzling technical feats & let it wash over you but I don't honestly think that's giving them enough credit because they are truly a remarkable talent & one that I'm not sure has been matched in the decades since. Each member is a highlight in themselves & it really depends on which are your instruments of choice as to who you'll froth over the most. For me personally, it's guitarist John Petrucci (Liquid Tension Experiment) who I regard as the greatest axe-man ever to pick up the instrument. As an old shred-head myself, that's really saying something too because I was raised on a smorgasbord of the most talented virtuosos the 1980's & early 1990's had to offer but this guy simply takes his phrasing & understanding of melody & note choice to its ultimate extreme &, in doing so, never fails to leave my jaw on the ground. LaBrie's performance is also worthy of special attention as he would appear to have been right in his sweet spot at this point in his career with no sign of a dud note or a wavering, uncertain vocal. His tone is as pure as we'd heard from him too & he brings another element to the two tracks taken from "When Dream & Day Unite" which was recorded with underrated original singer Charlie Dominici. The rest of the band kinda works in small teams with Petrucci & Moore laying down a series of intertwined yet incredibly intricate runs & celebrated bassist John Myung (The Jelly Jam/Platypus) & metronomic drum legend Mike Portnoy (Flying Colors/John Arch/Liquid Tension Experiment/Metal Allegiance/Neal Morse Band/The Winery Dogs/Transatlantic/Yellow Matter Custard/Adrenaline Mob/OSI/Sons of Apollo/Twisted Sister) effortlessly reproducing some of the most rhythmically demanding & complex metal music ever written.

The tracklisting is impeccable & had me salivating before I'd even pressed play on my first listen. Opening any progressive rock/metal release with the unbelievably complex "Metropolis (Part 1: The Miracle and the Sleeper)" would surely a devastating effect on any fan of this style of music & the execution is so meticulous that it's almost hard to believe that we are listening to humans & not some sort of higher beings from outer space. The two tracks that are taken from "When Dream & Day Unite" have never sounded better & are buoyed by the fresh production job & LaBrie's added layer of accessibility & class. The prog rock fueled ballad "Surrounded" is probably the least significant inclusion but it's still performed with heart & finesse while their can be no denying the emphatic statement that is closer "Pull Me Under" which is arguably one of the pinnacles of the entire progressive metal movement & will likely be labelled as the highlight of any set it's a part of for all eternity. Interestingly though, it's the improvised jam piece "Bombay Vindaloo" that's left me most enamored with "Live at the Marquee" as it contains one of the greatest examples of guitar playing I've ever heard in my life. When I think of what the instrument is capable of after all these years, I often think of this track as it encompasses everything that I aspired to be in the late 1990's & this single track makes the entire release worthy of my hard-earned cash, even if the rest of the E.P. had been found to be nothing more than filler. Thankfully though, that's anything but the case.

Wow! This revisit has really thrown a cat amongst the pigeons for me as I've rarely held "Live at the Marquee" up as highly as I'm about to. I regard both the "When Dream & Day Unite" & "Images & Words" albums as genuine progressive metal classics but I'm gonna take the bold step of claiming that this E.P. is even better than anything Dream Theater had produced before. Hell, five of the six songs are classics in their own right & "Surrounded" is pretty fucking solid too so it's really hard to see any chinks in the band's armour off the back of this muscle-flexing outing. Dream Theater have produced a series of wonderful live releases over the years but I can't see how any of them could be too much better than this one & it's hard to imagine why "Live at the Marquee" hasn't received more kudos over the years as it's rare to see it claimed as one of the prog metal master's more essential releases. I'm gonna have to assume that it's the E.P. format that's responsible for that as that's the only conclusion I can come to. There's not a doubt in my mind that "Live at the Marquee" should be essential listening for every member of The Infinite though.

For fans of Symphony X, Rush & Liquid Tension Experiment.

4.5/5

Nothing Sacred - "Deathwish" E.P. (1985)

Sometimes even the most committed of metal historians can have their opinions influenced by circumstances if they're not careful. A preconceived notion of what you should expect from a release can often play a role in how you'll react to a record upon the first listen or two & that's why it's really important to give music at least a few listens before making a judgement on its value. I've rarely seen a better example of that than with the 1985 debut E.P. from Melbourne five-piece Nothing Sacred, a release that I've generally despised over the many decades since I first heard it as a youngster. It's only recently that I listened to it with fresh ears & realised that I'd been WWAAAYYY too harsh on it. The only explanation I can come up with is that I was put off by the release's having been consistently linked to thrash metal when, in reality, there's almost no sign of that genre to be found amongst the four songs included here. When I finally managed to tackle "Deathwish" with unbiased ears I discovered that it's actually not a bad heavy/power metal record though, & one that deserves to be heard too.

Nothing Sacred had been around for a couple of years by the time "Deathwish" was recorded & had managed to build up a significant live following in their home city too. Their only demo recording had come in the form of a live demo that showcased an entire set from a show that sounds like it was a headline gig given the engagement levels of the audience who seem to be well across the band's usual setlist. That demo included a number of cover versions from bands like Metallica, Judas Priest, Savatage & Motorhead as well as a series of well-constructed originals that compare fairly well with the covers for the most part & I quite enjoyed the release overall, despite a few flatter numbers & a questionable vocal performance. The instrumental capabilities of Nothing Sacred were clearly pretty well developed even at that early stage & that comes across very clearly on "Live", despite the dodgy recording quality.

Given the pre-internet release dates of "Live" & "Deathwish", it's actually not that easy to place them into a Nothing Sacred timeline. Both seem to be listed as 1985 releases & I've seen an interview where the band state that "Deathwish" was recorded in 1984 & released the following year. I get the distinct impression that the E.P. hadn't been released at the time of the live recording though as front man Mick Burnham never mentions it when announcing the couple of tracks that were taken from "Deathwish". I also consider it to be a little strange that Nothing Sacred didn't play half of the E.P. that night, instead resorting to several weaker numbers. That leaves me wondering whether "Live" was actually recorded in early 1984 or whether the band are telling porkies about "Deathwish" being recorded in 1984 but I guess it really doesn't matter all that much. What does matter is that Nothing Sacred have produced a pretty good first up studio effort here & one that I've misjudged for most of my life.

The four songs included on "Deathwish" clock in at just under twenty minutes with not a second being wasted. The production is fairly basic as you'd expect from an underground Australian release from the mid-1980's but it's certainly acceptable & allows the song-writing to showcase its wares well enough. The performance of the band is once again very good & you can easily tell that Nothing Sacred have played their fair share of Iron Maiden cover versions over the previous couple of years. I'm particularly impressed by the way Mark Woolley (Hobbs Angel of Death) & Richard Snape incorporate their lead guitar work into the song structures because it highlights a clear understanding of the role that melody plays in the way a song can build & release tension. The rhythm section of bassist Karl Lean (Hobbs Angel of Death) & drummer Sham Littleman (Depression) are rock-solid too & prove that they're no slouches when they get the opportunity to throw themselves into an energetic Maiden gallop or a tremolo-picked speed metal riff. Burnham's vocals still aren't perfect & he's certainly not one of the more capable heavy metal front men on the international scene but he delivers a much better performance than we heard from him on the live demo & I found myself getting used to him fairly quickly, despite the occasional pitchy moment.

It's hard to deny that my feelings on Nothing Sacred's links to thrash metal were warranted because there's fuck all here. I've seen the band stating as much over the years too so it's not surprising that the young teenage thrasher I was when I first experienced "Deathwish" struggled a little with it from a stylistic perspective. Now that I've accepted Nothing Sacred for what they are though, I've found them to be really pretty easy to stomach. The live demo was mainly a heavy metal release although there were a few speed & power metal number chucked in there as well as the obvious thrash cover in Metallica's "The Four Horsemen". Here we see Nothing Sacred starting to emphasize the epic side of their sound a little more which places "Deathwish" somewhere between Iron Maiden's NWOBHM sound & the more muscular & epic US power metal one. The two songs that are shared with the live demo were obviously some of the more power metal inclined inclusions on that release so I guess "Deathwish" was always gonna feel a little more power metal oriented & I think that's a good thing because I've enjoyed that aspect of the record.

Despite my earlier struggles with the release in general, the tracklisting is actually very consistent with all four songs being worthy of your attention. The more atmospheric number "Old Man" is possibly the weaker of the four as it's chorus hook is a little flat but it still manages to bring enough to the table to keep me interested. The clear highlight is closer "The Curse" which is also the most clear-cut power metal tune with Burnham's lyrics traversing the typical fantasy topics the genre is known for. "No Rest" & the infamous title track are also pretty good though & you can see why the band had built up such a strong local following because they compete well with their international competition as far as professionalism goes.

After this experience, I'm gonna have to apologise to Nothing Sacred. I hate to admit it but I've allowed my own preconceived biases to impact my affection for what was actually a pretty important release for my home country's local metal scene & I'm a little ashamed of it too as I pride myself on my ability to separate myself from that rubbish. Oh well... better late than never I suppose. Despite the fact that "Deathwish" has no right to be referenced as an early Aussie thrash record, it's a pretty reasonable heavy/power metal release that will very likely offer some appeal to most of our The Guardians members so if that's you then I'd encourage you to check it out.

For fans of Iron Maiden, Prowler & Iron Angel.

3.5/5

Type O Negative - "Bloody Kisses" (1993)

My life was incredibly interesting back in the middle of the 1990's, although that's not to suggest that it was always pleasant. I left home at 19 years of age to run away & live with my Philippino girlfriend who I was very much in love with at the time but she had a string of fairly serious character flaws that would see me being perennially engulfed in a world of drama & emotional turmoil. I would go through some enormous highs & lows during this period but would also have to grow up very fast. We were an intrinsic part of the Sydney metal scene at the time with our social network lying almost exclusively between the bands that I played in or with but the metal community was still quite small in Sydney during that period which led to a lot of crossover with the goth scene. Every weekend we'd all congregate in the CBD at a small pub called Century Tavern before heading off to the metal gigs on Friday nights & the goth night clubs on Saturday nights. Despite all of the chaos within my relationship, we felt like we were a part of something special, kind of a close-knit group of kindred spirits. Because of our gothic indulgences, the CD collection we would spin in our home would include a combination of metal & goth-related releases with most of the goth material being brought to my attention by my partner after she was introduced to it by her goth friends. Amongst those releases was Type O Negative's 1993 third full-length "Bloody Kisses", a record that she became enamored with after we'd repeatedly danced our asses off to the two big goth anthems "Christian Woman" & "Black No. 1 (Little Miss Scare-All)" on dark, smokey, late-night dancefloors. I have to admit that I didn't find the album to appeal to me half as much as it did to her but I certainly didn't mind it. It would be 1996's incredible "October Rust" that would see me properly converted to Type O Negative though & it would become somewhat of a life-changer & a crutch for me after our tragic break-up. I'd subsequently follow the band into 1999's excellent "World Coming Down" fifth album after Ben purchased it on CD & those two records would be where my Type-O sweet spot would remain for the next 25 years. I'm not sure I've returned to "Bloody Kisses" in all that time to be honest & some of that may be due to the memories that are tied with it but my curiosity has been peaked recently after I noticed just how divisive our members opinions seem to be on it. Let's see how it's fared all this time later.

The production jobs on "October Rust" & "World Coming Down" both played a major role in their appeal with the glistening, full sound of the former & the cold, suffocating one of the latter being almost as important as the music itself. The sound of "Bloody Kisses" isn't as fully realised in my opinion. It sounds a little thinner but isn't bad as such. The signature down-tuned, fuzzy bass & guitar tone is obviously there but I don't think that the bigger sections of the album reach the same heights as the weight of the combined sound isn't as substantial. It's a very lllllooonnnnggg record though with the total run time amounting to a massive 73 minutes, a factor that does have an impact on my enjoyment of the overall package if I'm being honest. It feels like the band have needlessly attempted to extend "Bloody Kisses" & this comes very much at the expense of consistency with the album containing a whole string of different subgenres, often amounting to short interlude-style pieces with greatly varying degrees of success. There can be no doubt that "Bloody Kisses" contains some very strong material but I'd suggest that it also showcases some very misguided creative endeavours & a questionable sense of humour.

Yes, humour has always played a part in the Type O Negative experience & I for one wish that they'd opted to keep it out of their musical lives because we have very different ideas about what is funny & I don't think there's much of a place for humour in gothic metal anyway, is there? I mean, isn't the whole attraction meant to be the dark, brooding yet still quite beautiful atmospheres being created? I would have thought so anyway & Type O Negative have regularly crossed the boundary walls of that aesthetic over the years but rarely as often as they do on "Bloody Kisses". Take the opening track "Machine Screw" for example which seems to be a depiction of a woman having sex with a machine. Does that really present femininity in a way that women will be proud of? Personally, I find it to be quite repulsive & offensive to women & wish the band had simply got on with creating the wonderfully emotive gothic metal they've become known for. I'm aware that women find deep-voiced front man Pete Steele to be really attractive but can we really overlook these failings? He clearly has a warped view of sexuality in my opinion & I find it to make me feel really uncomfortable at times. We'd already heard him pushing the politically correct line further than it should go on the Carnivore records & I for one wish that he'd left it with his previous band.

Anyway... you'll rarely find a record that's more inconsistent & driven entirely by its highlights as "Bloody Kisses". The best material generally takes the form of the longer songs & can reach some fairly transcendent levels at times, generally off the back of Steele's miserable tales of loss & the interesting melodic decisions the band have made to accompany him. The doomy title track is the clear classic here for me personally while I also really enjoy "Christian Woman", the clever cover version of Seals & Croft's "Summer Breeze" & solid closer "Can't Lose You". A couple of the interludes are really cool too such as the industrial "Dark Side of the Womb" & dark ambient piece "3.0.I.F." but then we have to balance those highlights out against a string of poor creative decisions & silly, tongue-in-cheek humour through tracks like "Fay Wray Come Out & Play", "Kill All The White People", "Set Me On Fire", "We hate Everyone" & "Too Late: Frozen". Thankfully the stronger material outweighs & overpowers the weaker inclusions, perhaps only due to the increased length afforded to the more significant tracks on the fourteen-song tracklisting.

Despite its failings, "Bloody Kisses" isn't a bad record when viewed holistically. It's simply not the classic release its so often reported to be though & never comes close to approaching the two records that succeeded it, particularly "October Rust" which resides a good two steps above this effort. For that reason, I've often found myself struggling to understand the hype around "Bloody Kisses" which is often referred to as the band's finest moment by some fans. I simply can't see it while I'm sitting through some of the sillier tunes included here & even the best material like the title track serves as a reminder that Type O Negative would do that stuff even better in years to come.

For fans of Moonspell, Paradise Lost & later Woods of Ypres.

3.5/5

Armoured Angel - "Baptism in Blood" demo (1985)

Some of you are probably aware of the impact that Canberra trio Armoured Angel had on me as a young fella. In fact, they actually played a big role in me starting my own band to begin with. Their 1989-1995 period material was universally strong, beginning with more of a thrash metal sound on their demo tapes before transitioning into their trademark death metal once their proper releases started hitting the shelves. I saw them play live on a number of occasions & still look up to them in almost a fanboyish fashion even today. Interestingly though, I'd never checked out their earliest recording before now. It's a crude, poorly-produced demo from 1985 when they were still a four-piece & included only the one member of their classic lineup in bassist Glen "Lucy" Luck.

"Baptism in Blood" is a 25-minute, six-song affair that never hints at the extreme metal sound that Armoured Angel would pave the way for in this country, instead championing a rough & ready heavy metal sound that borrows equally from Motorhead & the NWOBHM. The musicianship is very basic & the vocals are patchy at best. I do quite enjoy "(I Am) The Beast" but the rest of the release is pretty much a throwaway so I don't know who would be picking up the re-release CD or retro t-shirts that have been on offer in recent years. This is a far from essential release & there was much better Aussie heavy metal around at the time too.

For fans of Motorhead, Venom & Holocaust.

2.5/5

Earth Crisis - "Firestorm" E.P. (1993)

Back in 2012 I had a close friend that was going through a pretty hard time on a personal level but had started to embrace metal music as a not only a form of release but also a way of connecting with me. We would head out to live shows quite often at the time & she was generally pretty open to learning about all styles of metal so there were often gigs that we attended where neither of us knew much about the headliners. One such gig would be an Earth Crisis show at Sydney's Manning Bar in February of that year & we bought tickets for it with plenty of time to spare so I decided to explore what Earth Crisis had to offer in the weeks prior. This led me to checking out all of the New York metalcore legends' back catalogue to the time in quick succession, starting with 1992's super-raw "All Out War" E.P. & finishing with their latest release to the time in 2011's "Neutralize the Threat" seventh album. While a few of their records left me fairly cold (see "All Out War" & the run of three albums from 1998 through to 2001), there were some entertaining listens to be had elsewhere with their peak period coming between 1993's "Firestorm" E.P. & their 1996 sophomore album "Gomorrah's Season Ends" (which was my favourite at the time). Earth Crisis ended up being pretty disappointing live & my friend found the violent crowd of dickheads to be pretty hard to tolerate so it wasn't the best night I've ever had but my relationship with a couple of Earth Crisis' best releases has been maintained & I've been looking forward to revisiting them again in recent times.

1993's "Firestorm" E.P. very much represents their coming of age as a band. While the "All Out War" 7" single sounds more like a demo, Earth Crisis' second proper release sees them being catapulted into the metalcore limelight with a vastly more mature & well-defined sound. The production job is excellent which gives the simple arrangements enough weight to hit the listener right in the chest with the band's tight & chunky New York hardcore-inspired riffage. Earth Crisis certainly stay well within their capabilities here as they were far from being virtuosos but they seem to really know their limitations & work well inside those parameters. In fact, the guitar work on "Firestorm" is particularly basic, so much so that virtually any guitar novice could tackle this material with confidence. But it's also entirely effective as the song structures are fluent & there's miles of room left to highlight the outstanding vocal prowess of angry front man Karl Buechner who I find to be comfortably the focal point of this release. His aggressive delivery feels entirely authentic & you'll genuinely believe that he's lived his lyrics.

The E.P. contains just the four songs, the first two of which are joined together & represented as the one lengthy track. All four are worth hearing but it's the first three that are where the real gold is here with the title track remaining as Earth Crisis' signature tune to this day. My personal favourite is mosh pit anthem "Unseen Holocaust" but I could just as easily have selected "Firestorm" or "Forged in the Flames" as there's not a lot between them. Closer "Eden's Demise" contains a few riffs that I consider to be a step down from the rest of the material on the E.P. but it's still more than acceptable so "Firestorm" is a rewarding & consistent release that sees Earth Crisis flexing their muscles with a newly found purpose.

So, is "Firestorm" Earth Crisis' best work? Well, I didn't think so up until now but perhaps I might have to reassess that position. One thing's for sure, I'm definitely more open to 90's metalcore now than I was when I first checked out the Earth Crisis back catalogue so I can see some of my scoring being bumped up a bit. I'd also suggest that any neck-tattooed, ear-stud wearing metalcore kid worth their salt should have an appreciation for "Firestorm" as one of the fundamental building blocks of the scene they now love so much. Perhaps it's not significant enough to crack my top ten list but it's a thoroughly rewarding & entertaining listen that never over-extends itself & stays right in Earth Crisis' comfort zone for its entire fifteen-minute duration.

For fans of Disembodied, Living Sacrifice & Merauder.

4/5

What a voice the chick from Infected Rain has! She makes that track a ripsnorter. The Linkin Park track is absolute gold. I absolutely love the chorus hook & it stays with me for days. Funked myself around the lounge room to Mr. Bungle while cleaning the house this morning & didn't mind that Living Colour tune either. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the early tracks from Animal Alpha, Bad Omens & Bring Me The Horizon to be honest. There was some nice, heavy, yet still inherently catchy material there. Rage Against The Machine fans will definitely enjoy the back end of the list as there's an obvious influence in two or three songs. 

Prowler - "Blood & Honour" demo (1985)

This five-song demo tape represents the earliest recordings from Melbourne progressive metal outfit Taramis who you may know from their 1988 debut album "Queen of Thieves" which is widely believed to be the earliest example of a more progressive metal sound to come out of Australia. You won't find any of that here though as "Blood & Honour" still sees them residing primarily in the traditional heavy metal camp with the occasional step out into US power metal territory (see the closing title track). The vocals are pretty pitchy & go off the rails at times but the band is pretty capable from an instrumental perspective which is not surprising when you consider that they'd paid their dues as a cover band. Iron Maiden were obviously the major influence & you can see that very clearly most of the time, particularly on highlight track "Vengeance" & the instrumental piece "3rd Day 9th Night" which borrows pretty heavily from Maiden's early instrumental works. Of the five songs on offer, I struggle a bit with the opening & closing numbers, mainly due to the flat vocal hooks & delivery, but the remaining three songs that make up the middle of the demo are all worth hearing & I found myself enjoying the experience overall. You won't find anything too extreme here but "Blood & Honour" does possess a naive charm, even if it's entirely inessential.

For fans of Iron Maiden, Manowar & Taramis.

3.5/5

Cryptopsy - "Ungentle Exhumation" demo (1993)

I was lucky enough to pick up a high-quality dubbed copy this early demo tape from the Canadian brutal death metal masters shortly after it was released through one of my Neuropath band mates who had somehow gotten their hands on an original copy. It was right up my alley too & saw me giving it lots of revisits that year. I'd also suggest that it contributed to Neuropath taking an increasingly more brutal musical direction over the next few years. Interestingly, despite being a huge fan of the brutal death metal subgenre & having played in a notable band myself, I've never rated Cryptopsy's two most celebrated records (i.e. 1994's "Blasphemy Made Flesh" & 1996's "None So Vile") as highly as most other extreme metalheads seem to. In fact, I don't even like "Blasphemy Made Flesh" much & I think that some of that likely comes back to my initial experiences with Cryptopsy. This demo simply sounds much better than their debut album with the production job being much more accomplished than you'd expect from a release of this type. I've never enjoyed it when Flo Mounier tries to play ridiculously fast blast-beats because he simply couldn't pull it off (at least not in the mid-1990's) so it's always left me bemused when people talked about him like some kind of a god. Those that possess a deeper understanding of extreme drumming must surely know better. Anyway.... there's a lot less of that here & the vocals don't sound as ridiculous either which leaves "Ungentle Exhumation" sounding a touch less overthetop & with a few less obstacles to gaining my affection. The two tracks that bookend the release are where the real gold is with opening number "Gravaged: A Cryptopsy" being my pick of the bunch. This is savage shit for fans of savage music only but it does it really well, so much so that I rank this demo as my second favourite Cryptopsy release behind 1998's "Whisper Supremacy" album. There wasn't much more extreme music than this at the time.

For fans of Suffocation, Lykathea Aflame & Wormed.

4/5

Really digging the four-track run from Jag Panzer through to Annihilator. I wasn't familiar with the Jag Panzer track either so it kinda ripped my face off. I don't generally like Gamma Ray much but this track is one of the ones that I don't mind. The Glacier track is nice & ballsy & "Dream of Mirrors" is my favourite track from "Brave New World" too so I've been enjoying my time with this month's list, despite never really being able to get into that Sortilege track.

Nothing Sacred - "Live" demo (1985)

After checking out the 1985 demo tape from Renegade this week, I thought I'd also give the 1985 "Live" demo from fellow Melbourne-ites Nothing Sacred too as they're often referred to in the same conversations around the earliest Aussie thrash metal bands. This thirteen-song live set sounds like it's been recorded at a fairly well-attended headline show & includes a number of well-received cover versions from popular international bands like Metallica, Judas Priest, Savatage & Motorhead amongst a collection of original material that would appear to be quite familiar to the audience so one would have to think that Nothing Sacred had already built themselves a pretty decent following off the back of their live shows. The recording quality is typical of the time & will be a struggle for those that don't come from the tape trading scene but it's certainly listenable & you can make everything out pretty comfortably. The instrumentation & song-writing is really quite mature for an unreleased band but I have to say that the vocals are patchy at best. There's very little in the way of genuine thrash metal here either with the majority of the material sitting in the heavy metal space with US power metal & speed metal also playing a role. The only real thrasher is the cover version of Metallica's "The Four Horsemen" as far as I can see so I'd suggest that Depression & Renegade were slightly ahead of Nothing Sacred in terms of extremity & thrash metal credentials at the time. Still... this is a better listen than the Renegade demo in my opinion & I've ended up quite enjoying the experience even if I'm unlikely to return to it again in the future. The cover version of "Ace of Spades" that closes the set comes across particularly well in the live environment & is my pick of the material.

For fans of Iron Maiden, Prowler & Motorhead.

3.5/5

Opeth - "The Last Will and Testament" [Progressive rock/metal from Sweden]

Some new releases that I'll be checking out in the coming weeks:

Suffocation - "Cérémonie" live video [Brutal death metal from New York, USA]

Full of Hell - "Live at Blackandje Fest 2024" [Grindcore from Maryland, USA]

The Crown - "Crown of Thorns" [Melodic death/thrash from Sweden]

Chat Pile - "Cool World" [Noise rock/sludge metal from Oklahoma City, USA]

I really dug their 2022 "God's Country" debut album so I'm looking forward to this one.

Sunami - "LDBBB Fest 2024" [Metalcore from San Jose, USA]

I quite liked the self-titled 2020 E.P. from these guys so this could be interesting.

A new release that I'll be checking out in the coming weeks:

Kreator - "Live in Chile 2023" live video [Thrash metal from Germany]

Depravity - "Silence of the Centuries" E.P. (1993)

Finnish death metallers Depravity were only together for a relatively short time & released only a very small amount of material but it was strong enough to gain the attention of the extreme metal underground which led to me picking up both of their E.P.'s through the tape trading scene. I believe it was their 1992 "Remasquerade" E.P. that first graced my ears but it impressed me enough to see me seeking out the follow-up "Silence for the Centuries" which was a little stronger & seems to have developed somewhat of a cult following over the 31 years since its release. Deservedly so too in my opinion because, listening back now, one has to wonder why Depravity weren't more well known back in the mid-1990's.

"Silence of the Centuries" is a five-song affair that spans just 21 minutes but leaves a lasting impression nonetheless. It doesn't attempt anything you haven't heard before but is unanimously successful in everything it undertakes. The mastering does tend to be a little variable with the volumes differing a little from track to track & the MDM-Studios production job can sound a touch different with each song too but I feel that this element only adds to the release's mystique. The Depravity formula is simple yet both efficient & effective. It takes the rock-solid, muscular, crunchy BOSS HM-2-driven Swedish death metal sound & combines it with the more atmospheric, moody & melodic sound of their Finnish homeland. It works an absolute treat too with the eerie yet qwuite beautiful lead guitar component being a clear feather in Depravity's cap.

The musicianship levels of the four instrumentalists is well up to the task with the rhythm section of bassist Petri Ilvespakka (Diaboli) & drummer Matti Johansson (Korpiklaani) laying the perfect platform for the guitars & vocals to work from. The Entombed-style tremolo riffage of the twin guitar attack of Elias Viljanen (Diaboli/Sonata Arctica) & Olli are another major protagonist in the direction of this material with the melodic hooks proving to be highly memorable & a touch more atmospheric than you would normally expect from your dime-a-dozen Swedish mob, kinda like Darkthrone delivered on their debut album "Soulside Journey". In fact, there's also the occasional reference to black metal in the way the riffs are constructed too which adds layer of intrigue for me. The only lineup change from 1992's "Remasquerade" E.P. is the replacement of front man Petro with newcomer Martti who had also appeared on the "Phantasmagoria" demo earlier that year. While Martti's delivery isn't anything terribly original, his deep, dark death grunts work really well with the Depravity sound & remind me of Benediction's Dave Ingram at times although they're a little less intelligible.

The short tracklisting is entirely without blemish but I will say that "Silence of the Centuries" is a touch top-heavy. The opening three tracks are easily the best ones with the opening title track being my personal favourite. The last two songs ("Phantasmagoria" & "Vacuum of Thoughts") are both pretty decent but seem like a step down from the earlier tracks. Still... it's hard to be too critical because Depravity have produced an excellent release here & one that compares very well with its Finnish death metal peers. While it may not try anything too bold, it does manage to borrow from the Swedes in a fashion that still sounds undeniably Finnish which is a testament to the band's maturity & class. I think most death metal fans will find something to enjoy with "Silence of the Centuries" without having to make a huge investment of time. I do have to wonder whether the fact that Depravity's recording career was so fleeting has contributed significantly to their underground following because I have to admit that it does add a little but of extra intrigue to a release that still clearly belongs in the second-tier of the genre.

For fans of Cartilage, Abhorrence & Demigod.

4/5

I recently revisited the seminal 1987 debut album "Total Armageddon" from legendary early Australian thrashers Renegade & quite enjoyed it which got me wondering what their earlier demo tape was like given that Renegade are often a part of discussions around the earliest examples of Aussie extreme metal. The four-song tape is generally well put together with the sound quality being more than acceptable for a demo of the time. The four tracks see Renegade jumping around a little bit stylistically & you can see the band are already in a transition phase from a classic metal sound towards a more exhilarating speed/thrash metal one. Two of the four songs were familiar to me from the album with opening track "Black Ritual" being the clear highlight & seeing Renegade taking on a fully-fledged thrash metal sound similar to "Show No Mercy"-period Slayer. The other album track "Lucifer's Reign" combines heavy metal & Anthrax-style thrash for more of a speed metal feel with the vocals going a bit rogue & hinting at a Cirith Ungol-esque shrieky tone. I found that song to be a little flat on the album & it's left me with similar feelings here. "The Executioner" takes the form of a traditional Judas Priest-style heavy metal number while closing speed metal number "Cold & Evil" is pure Motorhead worship but neither quite hit the spot for me unfortunately. Overall, I've found Renegade's demo to be fairly inessential as it hasn't added a lot to my life. "Black Ritual" was certainly one of the earlier examples of genuine Aussie thrash metal though.

For fans of Motorhead, early Razor & "Show No Mercy"-era Slayer.

3/5