This week tallied a whopping 9 records, which totaled a little over $10 bucks tax included. Don’t expect results like this every week, but hope it’s the last thing humans should lose. The first record that caught my attention was Nuclear Blast’s re-issue of Messhuggah’s debut Contradiction’s Collapse with their following EP None (3.5) included. These Swedes were still polishing their chops back then, but you could tell that there was something strange brewing. Plus, there was certain Pantera influence in their sound and a chubby guy with glasses in their ranks. I used to have a tape copy of Contradiction’s Collapse back in the day so it brings back memories. Even then Messhuggah seemed much more technical, elaborate and intricate than the rest. Also, the chorus of opener “Paralyzing Ignorance” does not actually sound like a chorus but like a part of the verse, and that, in my mind, was groundbreaking. I cherished this tape for a couple of weeks before a friend borrowed it, put it in his boom box and listened to it once. A week later some burglars broke into his house and along with some of his mother’s fake jewelry stole the damned thing with my tape inside. I was crushed for like a day and a half.

My second and third finds were Oppressor’s Solstice of Oppression (Pavement Music) and Hexenhaus’ A Tribute to Insanity (Active). They were placed right next to each other and I would bet a chicken fajita they used to belong to the same ex-metalhead. Having listened to both of these I can with all certainty tell you that I am not particularly fond of either. But lately I am in this ‘get all the trash, death and black metal you can get as long as they are under $1.99. kick’ is sick. I knew both of these by the covers and well, you can tell whether an album is metal or not either by the name, the logo, artwork or record label. The typical presentation of these two tipped me off in a nanosecond. Needless to say, both releases kind of blow in their own retarded way. Oppressor had an edge though; apparently they wanted to pull an Atheist on us. You know, like infusing weird time structures and getting all technical amidst their clearly limited chops. No wonder no one heard this one before. When I first saw it, I misread and thought it was Confessor; which is the reason why I bought it.

Hexenhaus is a different story. This is a Swedish band that came and went with zero fanfare. I listened to it three days ago on my drive back from work and it provided a few good laughs. Like every other record back in the late 80’s (this one is from 1988) it has an intro, which in this case is quirkily titled “It….”. Two things really stand out about this one; vocalist Nick (yes, simply Nick) has a really weak voice that gets especially hilarious when he sustains his syllables and elongates words like ‘hell’ into ‘heeeeeeeelllllll’. The second aspect that caught my attention is the awkward drumming of Ralph Raideen; not only is he not that good at keeping time but listening to metal drumming with little double bass makes you reflect about how times have changed for metal musicians.

Next, I got N.E.R.D.’s Fly or Die (Virgin) and if I could return it I would. I remember their first record sounding quite decent at the time it was released and when I actually got this one I got it under the assumption that this was it. Unfortunately, it wasn’t. Two-thirds of this band make-up the producing duo The Neptunes, whose credits include Britney Spears, Nelly & Jay Z. Some of the tracks are OK, but I doubt I’ll ever get back to this one. Maybe I should return it. I could probably get about 35 cents for it, enough for half a pack of gum.

Then I found Demiricous’ One Hellbound; a Metal Blade release, which made me happy because thus far this label has not been wise enough to send me any promos. I even went as far as buying a $3.99 copy of that fabulous The Red Chord album and writing a review on my own. Do you think I even got a thank you note? Nothing. Zero. Nada. Demiricous has been compared to Slayer, and I can see why. I really got bang for my buck on this one. Hell!, I’d even pay $1.50 for it. This band sounds like a more death metal-inclined Slayer, but the combination sounds better on paper than on recording. Some of this sounds more like Slayer than Slayer’s last three records.

Next, I got Darkthrone’s Ravishing Grimness EP (Moonfog) which made me happy because I had just browsed the $4.99 bin and had seen a copy of it but thought it was too pricey. In case you don’t know, Darkthrone is one of the most influential black metal bands in history. Certainly this release is not one of their early classics (if you are interested you shall look for A Blaze in the Northern Sky or Transylvanian Hunger) but it still features this duo’s trademark sloppy-as-fuck sound. Their style is lo fi, lo skills, old school, direct and totally undermines the ‘let’s get good at our instruments’ evolution. It is also not without a sense of humor and respect for other genres. They covered Siouxsie And The Banshees’ “Love in a Void” on their Too Old Too Cold EP.

I only had about two rows of CD’s to go when a label logo on the spine of a CD caught my attention. It read Teen Beat and I recalled reading a label profile on Magnet magazine a few months back. The name of the band is The Rondelles and the album is The Fox. This one came out in 1999 and features a sort of girlie garage rock that is 30% Sleater-Kinney without the genius guitar angularity and almost the exact same voice pitch of Corin Tucker. The insert provides zero information about the band, but I have since learned that they originally hailed from Albuquerque and later moved to DC. The drummer played standing up and currently plays in a NY band called The Witnesses. Bassist Darian ended up playing with The Mooney Suzukis for a little while, but probably bailed because 95% of their music is super lame.

The last two CD’s I got were also placed right next to each other. I picked the first one for two reasons; the name of the band is undeniably metal and the label. Deadbird’s The Head and the Heart was issued by Earache Records which back in the late 80’s and early 90’s were largely responsible for some of the most influential and genre-defining extreme music releases. It’s ultra heavy stuff with sludge parts, a brutal yet not guttural voice and a redundant thick guitar sound that simmers for long enough to write a goodbye note and tie a rope around your neck. This is a perfect example of my fifth tip which dictates; know thy labels.

Last but not least was Nebula’s Sun Creature (Man’s Ruin Records). This label was the brainchild of rock artist Frank Kozik and during its short lifespan managed to release tons of quality heavy rock. Among its most historic; the first Queens Of The Stone Age recordings. Nebula is led (guitars and vocals) by former Fu Manchu guitarist Eddie Glass and this release in particular sound very similar to the Fu’s. Even the vocal tone greatly brings to mind Scott Hill’s no-neurons-left stoner delivery.

So yeah, this week was abnormally good. Some weeks I walk in and walk out empty-handed. Others, I walk out with one dubious record in hand. Like that time I walked out with a copy of Skinny Puppy’s Last Rights only to later realize that I already owned that record. That does not happen very often but my point is made. Some days are simply better than others.

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