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metal reissues galore xvii |
THE GOOD THE BAD THE UNSIGNED 5
Shroud Eater, From Exile, Portall, Al-Thawra, etc...
GOLD by JUSTIN GODFREY
From The Abominable Iron Sloth.
THE GOOD THE BAD THE UNSIGNED 4
Inswarm, Batillus, Final Redemption, Dirt Worshipper & More.
LIVING THE DREAM
by Jucifer's Gazelle Amber Valentine.
AGONIA RECORDS
Impiety, Aosoth, Temple of Baal, Inferno & More.
NOTES FROM NYC'S SCENE
By Flourishing's Garett Bussanick.
IT'S A 7 INCH EXTRAVAGANZA 2
Sons of Tonatiuh, Nazi Dust, Fetus Eaters, Lighthouse Project & More.
EXCERPT #1 "THE GREASE"
From a Book by Jucifer's Gazelle Amber Valentine.
THE GOOD THE BAD THE UNSIGNED 3
Of Legend, No Pity, Isthmus, El Supremo & More.
A JOYFUL NIGHT WITH THE MORIBUND CULT 2
Merrimack, Hiems, Dodsferd, Canis Dirus & More.
TALES FROM THE CUTOUT BIN XIV
Undercroft, Rademassaker, Bitch & More.
METAL REISSUES GALORE XVI
Arckanum, Realm, Brutality, Amen & More.
MILLIONS
Chicago Scene Report.
A JOYFUL NIGHT WITH
THE MORIBUND CULT
Dodsferd, I Shalt Become, Horna, Azaghal, Necronoclast & More.
TALES FROM THE
CUTOUT BIN XI
The Hidden Hand, Wurdulak, Gobblehoof, Insult II Injury, Master & More. |
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METAL REISSUES GALORE XVII |
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It has been months since the last installment of Metal Reissues Galore. I have enough material to fill at least three installments more. This time around we are expanding to other labels beyond the much appreciated work of Metal Mind and we go deep into more obscure European bands like Railway and Turbo. A couple of these I hadn't heard of before. They are all worth checking out. Read on and spread the word...
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My copy of Monolith came shrinkwrapped and its jewel case was wrapped in a cardboard sleeve. I don’t think this packaging method was put in place back when this classic was released in 1987, but I don’t see any info anywhere clarifying that this is an actual re-release. There is not even a website listed acknowledging that this recording has been re-released within the last fifteen years or so. The label’s website (Heavy Metal Records) only includes pretty basic info about this album and makes no mention of anything else, so I include Monolith in this reissues feature because it would make no sense to include it in the reviews section. Anyway, most people should already know this legendary crust band. Monolith is to me the pinnacle of Amebix’s career. It is flawless, punked up crustified thrash metal and is shaped by mid-tempo and well-nuanced riffs that recoil and thrash around in a methodical manner. Bassist and vocalist The Baron recalls a less vociferous Lemmy Kilmister but his approach is just as jagged and gravelly. Recorded and released right before Amebix split in 1987, Monolith comes highly recommended. MySpace |
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Featuring what is either one of the coolest or one of the goofiest pieces of cover artwork ever (that depends on who you are, I lean toward the latter) to grace a metal album comes the reissue of the debut recording by the German heavy metal outfit Mad Max. It was released independently in 1982 and would help get the band signed to Roadrunner in time for their sophomore effort Rollin’ Thunder. Maybe I am way too submersed in extreme metal, where relationships are rarely the lyrical issue but I find all the love-talking in the lyrics quite funny. “Can’t Live Without You”, “Hard Days Lonely Nights”, “Shake Some Action”, “Night Train to Paris”, etc, I haven’t seen song titles like those since the heyday of cock rock. I must admit though, Mad Max have a couple of infectious melodies, pretty lame gang choruses and a couple of songs that sound totally generic. The first four songs are the best, the second half of the album is weaker than that of a quadriplegic. It is all too soft for yours truly. Harder than Journey but softer than Skid Row. MySpace |
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I remember listening to Rites of the Black Mass when it first came out in 1992. A friend of mine was a huge Acheron fan, I thought they were OK. Today, I think this sounds slightly better than when it was first released. But maybe that’s only because my tolerance for this kind of death metal has gone up substantially. What I still don’t get is why they included so many intros. One would have sufficed. It is actually pretty annoying. Most intros are just goofy diabolic voices and church organ. That’s it. If they were trying to convey some evil vibe they failed miserably. Plus, they repeat this formula so many times it is hard not to analyze them and come to the realization that it just sounds ridiculous. Anyway, Rites of the Black Mass has been through a few treatments. It was originally released by Turbo Music and the reissue I now hold in my hands comes courtesy of Metal Fighter Records. The presentation is pretty bare and does not enhance the basic musicality of Acheron. This is death metal for beginners. Typical of the 90’s Florida sound. It was also produced by Scott Burns at Morrisound so you get the idea. MySpace |
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Necrosanct’s debut Equal in Death also boasts a pretty funny cover. I don’t even know what’s going on there. Three skulls. A couple of swords. Mountains. Rocks. The moon or a soccer ball with a skull drawn on it. I don’t know. What I know is that their death metal is at times just as disorienting. Not that it is too technical for its own sake or that it features such a wide arrange of riffs it only confuses us. Not at all. The problem here is pretty much everywhere. In a few cuts it sounds like the drummer is marching to the beat of another death metal band. In others, like “Besieged Citadel”, the vocals of Rik (simply Rik) are pushed to the back. The effect isn’t cool nor strange. It sucks. It is bizarre and uneven. The second half almost sounds like a whole different recording. “Sacrificial Lust” is actually a bit cool, despite all its clunkiness. Necrosanct were an English death metal band from the early 90’s. Equal in Death was first issued in 1990 by Metalworks and reissued one year later by Maze. Official Site |
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The cover artwork for this reissue of The Abyss’ two full-lengths makes Necrosanct’s debut look like a blank canvas. The colors are so loud they jump at you and put you in a chokehold. The nice Polish folks of Metal Mind have actually melt together the covers of each into one. The combination isn’t seamless. It is actually pretty absurd and like an elephant on a full stomach, it is bloated. But oh well. Extreme metal need not be totally senseful. For those who don’t know, The Abyss may have been the first black metal supergroup. It was formed by the full line up of Hypocrisy to indulge in the then burgeoning black metal sound. The difrerence between The Other Side (Nuclear Blast, 1995) and Summon the Beast (Nuclear Blast, 1996) is minimal. Both, in songwriting style and in quality. Both contain piercing riffs that flash at the speed of light and feature grandmotherly vocals. Both albums were also produced by Peter Targtgren who we all know as the leader of Hypocrisy and as a fame metal producer, therefore the aural difference between both recordings is minimal. MySpace |
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Using the word 'promising' when describing a long defunct band is the same thing as saying they did not achieve their full potential. It’s like saying they could have been good or great but they never got to that point. Then, using logic, we can say that they were just OK. That’s the word Metal Mind uses to describe German hard rock outfit Railway. Their self-titled debut (Roadrunner, 1984) sounds so fucking 80’s it may just be about the coolest record ever for all those looking to that decade for a source of inspiration. To me, this sounds like soundtrack music to a forgettable teenage comedy. It is totally forgettable. You can blast this album to 11 and still, it sounds like background music. And that’s where it belongs, in the back of the stereo. Official Site |
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The funny thing about all these bands that are getting reissued is that most date back twenty or thirty years and all still claim to be active. In some instances we are talking about people in their 50’s, all rocking out to like, ten people and claiming to have played an important role in the development of the style. Take Polish metal band Turbo for instance, they have been together since 1980 and only last year released an album. One Way, on the other hand, dates back to 1992 and is Turbo’s eighth full-length. What surprises me is how hard it is. For a band that started in 1982 anyway, I mean back then heavy bands rarely got to this thrashy moods. Which also informs me that Turbo may just be one of those bands that changes with the times. There are skills at play here, but not much beyond that. Dudes can play but their writing skills, even after a decade as a band is clearly in question. Official Site
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