Sepultura - Arise (1991)

Arise is the fourth full-length album from Sepultura, and continues on in the Death / Thrash style that was utilized on Beneath the Remains. However, marks the point where the band began to experiment with their sound, using odd effects and injecting more groove into their music, as well as allowing some tribal percussion to make its way onto the album. Recorded in Morrisound and released in March 1991, this L.P. is both the end of the band's classic era as well as the beginning of its demise.

Musically, this album possesses a lot of similarities with its predecessor. In some cases, the riffs are less sterile and boring, yet there is an element that ruins much of this record. Rather than blasting ahead at break-neck speed, Sepultura takes every opportunity to slow things down and unleash pathetic groove riffs that kill the atmosphere. Following the rise of so-called 'Groove Metal' and 'nu-Metal', these songs have become even more difficult to listen to as they seem linked to such aural garbage. The fast-paced Death and Thrash riffs are incredible and demonstrate that the band could have done something really impressive, had they not been infected with the groove virus. Such riffs maintain a great level of intensity and display the band's skill as musicians. What the mid-paced parts show is that they were growing lazy and were losing touch with their Metal roots. It is quite unfortunate, as Arise is full of epic guitar harmonies and could have easily gone in another direction.

The production is what one would expect from Scott Burns, with the guitars sounding a little less defined and the bass more prominent than it should be. The sound is much too clean and plastic and is a far cry from such classic as Morbid Visions and Schizophrenia. Apparently, there was too much time to worry with the overall sound, in this case, meaning that they lost so much time playing with all of the new technology that they had never before been able to employ and the end result is over-produced and insincere. This actually suits the shift in the musical direction, which was obviously designed to appeal to a wider audience.

There is really nothing on Arise that was not done better on Beneath the Remains, in most cases. It is not a terrible album but, in light of what became of the band and the style of music that it helped spawn, it is to be looked back on with scorn and derision. This is what happens when you take a handful of apes out of the jungle and allow them to play around with modern equipment. Avoid this album and all the horrendous piles of trash that followed it.

Anthrax - Attack of the Killer B's (1991)

Released in the summer of 1991, Attack of the Killer B's is the last collection of Anthrax tunes to feature Joey Belladonna and sort of marks the end of an era. It is quite sad that things ended on such a sour note, as Persistence of Time showed the sort of seriousness that this band had lacked for many years. Whatever respect that they may have earned with that effort was lost with this abomination.

Attack of the Killer B's is not a completely worthless E.P. (perhaps the longest E.P. ever). The S.O.D. cover songs are quite heavy and aggressive. Benante's drumming is quite impressive, considering how much he has had to dumb himself down over the years. Of course, Joey is a much better vocalist than Billy Milano could ever hope to be. The cover of the Discharge track, "Protest and Survive", is also one of the better songs on here. This one was recorded during the Persistence of Time sessions and would have fit on that album much better than "Got the Time". "Parasite" and "Sects" aren't horrible, but they do not add very much.

The two live tracks, "Keep it in the Family" and "Belly of the Beast" would have been better left unheard. The band is not necessarily at their very best on these songs, so these recordings really just give off the impression that attending an Anthrax concert would be a waste of time. Sadly, these are not the worst tracks on this E.P.

"Startin' Up a Posse" and "N.F.B. (Dallabnikufesin)" just drag the listener back into the pointless realm of humour, which I have never been a fan of. It is perplexing how this band went from songs like "Deathrider", "Subjugator" and "Death from Above" to making pointless comedy tracks like this. The first is a mixture of country music and metal/punk, intended as some sort of commentary against censorship, but ending up as a mess of useless profanity and poor execution. The latter is supposed to be a mock ballad, and it simply isn't funny, nor would it be appreciated even if it was. Things like this are why many people never took Anthrax as seriously as their contemporaries.

The worst offenders on this collection of songs are the the horrendous "Bring the Noise" and "I'm the Man '91". While it is doubtful that Anthrax's forays into mixing rap and Metal directly led to the atrocities of Nu-Metal, this certainly did not help. I blame the Jew Rosenfeld for poisoning Metal with these jungle sounds and introducing unsuspecting white/European youths to this apish anti-culture that has since dominated the globe.

In the end, Attack of the Killer B's features a handful of worthwhile songs that are better off dubbed from someone else's copy or downloaded, rather than contributing money toward this pile of rubbish and multicultural propaganda. This release ended Anthrax's classic era with a whimper and ushered an age of total irrelevance for the band.

Pest - Belial's Possessed Wolves (1999)

Belial's Possessed Wolves is the second 7" E.P. from Pest, released on Northern Heritage Records in 1999 and limited to 200 copies. The material does not follow the style established on their previous releases, entirely, and this inconsistency may be one reason why the project was dropped. Nazgul has never been the brightest guy and even the best record he managed to put out (Satanic Warmaster's Opferblut) was rather uneventful as well. Here, listeners are treated to a couple of songs that sound as if they are from different bands, almost.

The first one is "Sabbath of Lust", which is a mid-paced track that creates an occult feeling, at first, though the dominant vibe is more in line with Death Metal than Black Metal. The vocals are deeper and some of the riffs follow typical Death Metal patterns, along with the boring drumming. Otherwise, this is mildly reminiscent of old Beherit, but not to any extreme degree. There is a decent lead solo, later in the track, but the stupid female vocals and ridiculous attempts at sounding evil just expose this as a poor effort, indeed.

"Possessed Wolves' Howling" is far better, starts out with an intro that seems to be trying to create a dark feeling, but fails to do so. The Bathory influence is still present here, but not as prevalent. This is a fairly decent Black / Thrash song, with decent riffs and an amusing chorus as the pronunciation reminds one of Gollum, from The Lord of the Rings, saying it as "wolveses". This would have been a better track without the deeper vocals added in, which always seems rather lame and ineffective. The final riff and lead solo are pure 80s worship, leaning toward more of a traditional Metal sound than the rest.

Neither of the songs are bad, but only one is worth repeated listens and even that is questionable if there are any other choices. Belial's Possessed Wolves is an average release, but not as good as the ones that Pest offered up before. This is definitely not worth tracking down, as the songs are available on the Hail the Black Metal Wolves of Belial compilation.

Venom - Temples of Ice (1991)

Temples of Ice is another one of Venom's forgotten albums, from the dark era when Cronos was no longer part of the band. Much like Prime Evil, it features some solid but average tracks and fails to impress. The cover art does not help any, as it looks like a screen capture from a Saturday morning cartoon. Again, this album shows a band that is not concerned with proving themselves to anyone, only in making an L.P. filled with sub-par music, disappointing anyone that was still hoping that Venom would have a return to form. Released in May 1991 on Under One Flag, this rare album has been disowned by the band, since then.

The music is rather boring and generic. It is not even all that thrashy, at times. It straddles the fence between 80s Hard Rock and traditional Metal, more than anything by this point. Dolan's pathetic vocals are still present, though now the effect is not as detrimental since nothing worth a damn has been presented, musically. The lyrical themes are much softer and more lame, rather than the occult, Satanic approach from before. Just the weak song titles and horrid artwork are enough to have the listener view the album as inferior. There are traces of Venom's old style, but mixed in with the stench of modernity. While being much better than Calm Before the Storm, the lack of a dark atmosphere and the terrible replacement vocalist make these albums exceptionally hard to enjoy. There are some interesting ideas to be found here, though none of them live up to their potential.

By 1991, Thrash Metal seemed to be dying out, anyway. It is too bad that the Second Wave of Black Metal did not explode for another year or two, as that might have been enough of a motivation for Venom to return to their roots and contribute, once again, to the sub-genre that they created. Instead, fans got a release that demonstrated just how much the band was running out of steam and creativity. That they could not even maintain the Thrash and ended up allowing more traditional Metal and Rock ideas into the arrangements was enough to prove that Venom had hit a dead end.

Temples of Ice is an interesting album and more of a curiosity than anything else. Do not bother going to great lengths to acquire this, as it is not worth the trouble and you will likely get bored of it in no time. This represents yet another missed opportunity that Venom had to regain credibility and relevance, but opted for a safe and boring album filled with bland songwriting and haphazard execution.

Anthrax - Persistence of Time (1990)

Anthrax's fifth full-length album was a darker and much more serious record than those that preceded it. Persistence of Time was born out of the misery and anger that plagued the band during the recording process as a fire had destroyed their equipment and cost them their studio as well. There was also just the natural progression of a band that was maturing and becoming more comfortable with their sound and looking to take it to the next step of evolution. Unlike the more simplistic State of Euphoria, the band's fifth L.P. featured more complicated song structures and was anything but listener-friendly, for the most part. It seemed as though all the pieces were coming together and Anthrax had recorded their most cohesive album since Fistful of Metal, yet it was all soon to fade away. Just as they finally dropped the goofiness and got down to business, cracks began to appear and, before they could follow up on this, doom was soon to befall them. Released in August 1990, Persistence of Time marked the end of an era rather than the beginning.

I picked this album up, after having an experience with Among the Living so bad that I ended up returning it. This record was a completely different beast. Joey's vocals seemed to fit in with the music much better, and the more serious approach was a major reason for this. Instead of unleashing ridiculous lyrics in an annoying manner, his voice matched the darker feeling of the songwriting, in general. This was listened to, quite a bit, along with Megadeth's So Far... So Good... So What! and really helped me to give some of the other Anthrax albums a chance, rather than just giving up on them.

The tone of the music is dark and ominous, at times. There is a dismal feeling that permeates almost every song. The riffs are heavier and more focused, with more technical song structures than what was found on the previous release. Also, it sounds as if the songwriting favours the guitar riffs, moreso than the percussive rhythmic combination of guitars and drums. The bass also adds to the sombre and oppressive vibe. To go along with this, the songs are lengthier and more involved, requiring more of an investment from the listener as well. As such, the material is more difficult to digest and may prove to be too much for more casual fans. Songs like "Time", "Blood", and "One Man Stands" just roll over you like a tank of pure negativity, leaving you weak and vulnerable. For some reason, the cover tune "Got the Time" is the one song from Persistence of Time that the band most likes to play, even though it is the weak link of the record. The highlight of the L.P. is probably "Belly of the Beast", featuring some catchy guitar riffs and being a little easier to take in. "Discharge" is another good track, picking up the pace and delivering an energetic performance. Though some of the songs take time to grow on you, nearly all of them are memorable in one way or another.

There is no way to know, for sure, where Anthrax would have gone from here had Joey Belladonna not left the band. They may have still abandoned their trademark sound in a feeble attempt to update their music or they might have gone farther down the path of darkness and continued to evolve into a more serious band. Either way, Persistence of Time should have been the turning point where they left childish themes behind and took themselves more seriously, but it was not to be. This is, probably, the most solid release during the Belladonna era and is a safe starting point for anyone looking to explore this band's back catalogue. A must-have for all Anthrax fans and quite essential for Thrash Metal fans as well.

Venom - Prime Evil (1989)

Prime Evil is the sixth full-length studio effort from the legendary Venom. However, it is from the band's dark period, post-Cronos. Released in October 1989, this record saw the band making a comeback of sorts, abandoning the Hard Rock feeling of Calm Before the Storm for more of a Thrash Metal approach. This was an improvement, but still too little, too late. After Welcome to Hell and Black Metal, Venom ceased to exist for a lot of fans. Albums such as At War With Satan and Possessed were decent enough, but never managed to reach the same heights as their old stuff, at a time when the band really needed to deliver something extraordinary. After leaving behind their Black Metal days in an attempt at garnering mainstream attention, they still could have come back with an incredibly strong album and put themselves back on the map, but Prime Evil simply failed in this regard.

The worst aspect of this L.P. would have to be the awful vocal performance of Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan. He lived up to his nickname, completely demolishing any chance that these songs had at being enjoyable. Most seem to think that he was a good replacement for Cronos, since he utilized a gruff vocal delivery, but his efforts are rather uninspiring and mediocre, at best. To make matters worse, he has an irritating habit of rolling his r's, almost all the time. This is so annoying that it kills many of the songs. This could have been a better album, had they found a different vocalist or managed to, somehow, bring Cronos back into the fold. Still, there was never any possibility of this being great since the songwriting is so average. There are some pretty good thrash riffs, here and there, but the majority of the tracks are average. In some ways, this picks up from where they left off with Possessed but, just like that release, there is just something missing. Prime Evil lacks the one or two really killer tunes that would have helped to push it to a higher level. That said, the music is definitely more in line with the band's roots than the preceding record. Most of these songs are quite solid, just not great. The only bad ones are "School Daze" and the re-recording of "Live Like an Angel, Die Like a Devil", which only goes to show just how far Venom had fallen. The playing is a little tighter, but the atmosphere is totally gone and the vocals are horrendous.

The production is good but still more on the raw and under-produced side. The drums are slightly to high in the mix, but otherwise everything is as it should be. The band had not joined many others in going for something slick and modern, yet, and still retained an older type of sound. The guitars are the driving force and it shows in the production. If only more time had been spent on the songwriting and arrangement.

Prime Evil is a solid Thrash Metal album and much more worthy of the Venom name than Calm Before the Storm. However, it is average and the new vocalist makes a good deal of the material difficult to listen to with his cringe-worthy performance. This is worth a listen, nonetheless, if you are able to get past the flaws. It does not hold up to the band's older releases, but it is alright when looked at as a separate entity.

Pest - Hail the Black Imperial Hornsign (1998)

Hail the Black Imperial Hornsign is the second demo from the Finnish Black Metal band known as Pest. This was a side-project from members of Horna, seemingly possessed by the need to pay tribute to the early Bathory releases. This cassette was released on Demonion Productions in 1998, though one could easily mistake this for having risen from the black abyss well over a decade earlier. The overall sound and style is in the same vein as The Return..., with a bit of Under the Sign of the Black Mark tosses in for good measure.

I first heard this band on a friend's radio show, late one night. The song "Satanic Winter" was mixed in with a lot of 80s Black and Thrash Metal and fit in so well that I did not bother to question its origins. I simply assumed that it was some hidden gem that I had missed out on, but was fortunate enough to eventually discover anyway. Upon learning that it was only a couple years old, I was pleasantly surprised to know that there existed bands that still had the desire to keep the old sound alive.

This demo is dripping with old school spirit, mostly a morbid obsession with old Bathory. There is nothing here that would have seemed out of place on Quorthon's second or third releases. The music is mostly mid-paced, even the thrashier parts are never all that fast. Only "Riding Under the Sign of the Horns" picks up the pace and gives a nod to the Second Wave. There is a bit of synth mixed in, but only to add an eerie effect, rather than turning this into some symphonic trash. The atmosphere is dark and ugly, yet not completely oppressive. The main riffs of "Satanic Winter" and "Towards the Bestial Armageddon" are energetic enough that you are more likely to spend the night headbanging than sacrificing virgins under the full moon. However, there are some sections that are a bit more pitch-black than the rest.

The production is pretty good for the material, with the riffs coming through very clearly and yet still retaining enough of an ugly tone to suit the material. The rumbling of the bass is audible, adding another dimension of apocalyptic gloom to the proceedings. The mix is really appropriate, with everything being at the right level. Drums are clear as well, but not so much that they smother the rest. The vocals are also features in the proper way, not drowning out the music as some bands like to do. This is very much driven by the guitar riffs and, as such, the guitar is the most dominant element here. For a mere cassette demo, the sound here is remarkable and it has all the quality of a mid-80s studio album.

Despite the presence of Nazgul, Hail the Black Imperial Hornsign is a high-quality release and one that is sure to appeal to fans of old school Black / Thrash. The Bathory influence is undeniable and you may find yourself rocking out to "Born For Burning" by the time this is over, just because this really puts you in the mood to revisit the classics. This is the strongest release from Pest, and the most consistent. Nonetheless, the primary way anyone will obtain this now is to pick up the 2003 compilation CD, Hail the Black Metal Wolves of Belial, which features this demo as well as the following mini-albums. Seek this out and listen at full volume.