Somehow the band mixes aggression with melody in a way I haven’t heard for a couple of years. In the 4th song the band works that almost out into perfection, just listen to the solos and you will agree. As if we didn’t hear enough great heavy riffs yet, the band just continues in ‘The Deeper Depths’. The half spoken grunts see to it that it sounds very dark and together with the screaming vocals again a perfect blend of death and thrash. ‘Origin’ is a very fast song, with some screaming black metal influences. In ‘Spiralling Down’ the band shows that they also are into some darker a bit Opeth sounding and less heavy stuff, with accoustic guitar and cello included. What impresses me the most about Insurrection is the mature sound of the band. Sure the members have played in several other bands, but the skills are great. With a mix and mastering of Frederik Nordström everything sounds very balanced and heavy.
Is there nothing to complain about then? Well the only thing that bores me a bit after a while are the screaming vocals. There is too little variation and sounds the same in several songs after a while. Fortunately the more grunting ones compensate that a bit.
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DEATH SS, the Italian pioneers of Horror Rock / Metal, teamed up with Skol Records, and will reissue their classic early recordings in the form of four double CD albums. The limited edition series will include the following releases: “The Story Of Death SS 1977-1984” coupled with “The Horned God Of The Witches” (both recorded by the first line up of the band), “In Death Of Steve Sylvester” coupled with “Black Mass” (both recorded by the second line up of the band), and “Heavy Demons” coupled with “The Cursed Concert” (both recorded by the third line up of the band). Fourth in the series will be a double disc collection of all the original single and EP releases that DEATH SS published in the ’80s and in the ’90s. All the recordings will be mastered from the original sources by Bart Gabriel (CIRITH UNGOL, PAGAN ALTAR, SORTILEGE).
DEATH SS was founded in 1977 by Steve Sylvester, with the aim of forming a group that encompasses all its particular interests for occultism, horror films, erotic comics and rock music, in an original way. The singer, then just a teenager, decided to apply the concept of “glamor” with a strong visual characterization to five characters inspired by stories of terror: the Vampire (the singer), the Mummy (the bass player), the Werewolf (the drummer) , the Zombie (the guitar player) and the Phantom Of The Opera (the keyboard player). DEATH SS literally means “in DEATH of Steve Sylvester” – name chosen to mean the symbolic “DEATH” of the human state of Steve Sylvester (SS) and its rebirth from the beginning under the light of the Occult, without any political reference. Immediately considered a cult band for their shocking and theatrical live shows, they have influenced generations of other bands all over the world, being in fact to be considered as the progenitors of Black Metal, even if musically their formula has always been marked from a constant stylistic evolution record after record.
Their most recent studio album entitled “Rock ‘N’ Roll Armageddon” was released in 2018. Last year Italian label Black Widow Records released a triple CD compilation entitled “Terror Tales – A Tribute To Death SS”, that includes DEATH SS classics performed by bands such as WATAIN, SIGH or BULLDOZER.
More information:
www.facebook.com/deathssofficial
www.facebook.com/skolrecords
DEATH SS “Where Have You Gone” (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
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“A spell-biding performance by the Swiss masters of progressive, doomy folk (…)Cellar Darling live are an unmissable experience. 10/10”
– The Metal Report
Witness CELLAR DARLING’s haunting progressive concept album »The Spell« live on the Swiss release shows, in Europe with KATATONIA and in South America! More dates to be announced soon!
CELLAR DARLING’s concept album, »The Spell«, saw the light of day on March 22nd and immediately catapulted the Swiss trio into ‘album of the year’ candidate territory. Now they are bringing this tale of a girl who falls in love with death on tour! Unmissable shows carried by Ivo Henzi’s groovy riffs, the energy of Merlin Sutter’s powerhouse drumming, and the unforgettable voice of Anna Murphy who takes you through enormous highs and deepest lows as she sings the chapters of »The Spell«. Experience the new tracks as well as your favourites from the debut album »This Is The Sound« live!
Watch the exclusive clip of ‘Death’ from the London YouTube studio here: https://youtu.be/d16y2g7vsB4
CELLAR DARLING will celebrate the release in their home country Switzerland with 3 shows in May:
02.05. CH Winterthur – Salzhaus
04.05. CH Solothurn – Kulturfabrik Kofmehl
05.05. CH Geneva – Undertown
Tickets are available at www.cellardarling.com/shows
Catch them in Europe with KATATONIA and WHEEL
20.05. LUX Luxembourg – Rockhal
21.05. D Cologne – Live Music Hall
22.05. D Berlin – Columbia Theater
23.05. D Hamburg – Gruenspan
24.05. B Vosselaar – Biebob
25.05. UK London – Islington Assembly Hall
South America headline shows (More dates and venue announcements coming soon!):
16.08. MEX Mexico City – TBA
17.08. GC Guatemala City – TBA
18.08. ES San Salvador – TBA
20.08. CR San José – TBA
21.08. PAN Panama City – TBA
24.08. CO Bogotá – TBA
25.08. PE Lima – TBA
28.08. RA Buenos Aires – TBA
31.08. BR São Paulo – TBA
01.09. BR Belo Horizonte – TBA
03.09. BR Rio de Janeiro – TBA
08.09. BR Curitiba – TBA
»The Spell« is available on all digital platforms as well as in physical collector’s editions version as a 2LP black vinyl or a limited edition 2CD digibook featuring an audiobook of Anna narrating the story of »The Spell«.
http://nblast.de/CDTheSpell
CELLAR DARLING are:
Anna Murphy – vocals, hurdy-gurdy, multi-instrumentalist
Merlin Sutter – drums
Ivo Henzi – guitars, bass
Visit CELLAR DARLING online:
www.cellardarling.com
www.facebook.com/cellardarlingofficial
https://www.youtube.com/cellardarling
www.twitter.com/cellar_darling
www.instagram.com/cellardarlingofficial/
www.vk.com/cellardarling
On March 22nd, Switzerland’s CELLAR DARLING will release their new concept masterpiece »The Spell«, which tells the story of a girl who falls in love with death. With the two previous singles, ‘Insomnia’ and ‘The Spell’, the fans could already see the band taking a turn towards heavy progressive rock while still not neglecting their folk roots.
This Friday, February 15th, the trio consisting of Anna Murphy, Merlin Sutter and Ivo Henzi will reveal another chapter of »The Spell« – their third single called ‘Death’. CELLAR DARLING once again surprise with the incredible variety in their music: an enormous, sweeping chorus that goes straight under the skin, bone-crushing riffs that do the song’s name justice, and a doomy instrumental section that quotes BLACK SABBATH and features an epic flute solo. The video for the epic track was once again created by Costin Chioreanu and will premiere on Friday at 15:00 CET at this link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDV_BeAZIUM
In addition, the band will be available for an online Q&A meeting with their fans right after the premiere, at the same link in the YouTube comment section. Drummer Merlin Sutter states:
“We will be hanging out in the comments section for one hour, where we’ll try to answer as many of your questions as possible — a chance for you to find out more about the song, the video, and the album!”
And stay tuned, Darlings: On March 8th, the band will unveil their 4th single, ‘Drown’, which has been chosen by hundreds of fans in an online voting.
Pre-orders for CELLAR DARLING’s sophomore concept album »The Spell« are available now and you can get the album as 2 CD-digibook (featuring 13 songs + an audiobook of Anna Murphy telling the story behind the concept), black vinyl or digitally via this link: http://nblast.de/CDTheSpell
The first two music videos, created by Costin Chioreanu, can be watched here:
‘The Spell’: https://youtu.be/nnLvaHHBJOc
‘Insomnia’: https://youtu.be/QeXDYjDV2mw
CELLAR DARLING »The Spell Tour«
Tickets: https://www.cellardarling.com/shows
w/ BLANKET, APPEARANCE OF NOTHING
21.03. UK Sheffield – Foundry
23.03. UK Cardiff – The Globe
24.03. UK Birmingham – Hare & Hounds
26.03. UK Norwich – The Waterfront
27.03. UK Hull – The Welly 2
28.03. UK Glasgow – Audio
29.03. IRL Dublin – On The Rox
30.03. UK Manchester – Academy 3
31.03. UK London – The Jazz Café Camden
02.04. NL Utrecht – De Helling
07.04. I Pavia (PV) – Dagda Live Club
09.04. I Rome – Traffic Live Club
27.04. F Bruguières – Echoes & Merveilles Festival
02.05. CH Winterthur – Salzhaus
04.05. CH Solothurn – Kulturfabrik Kofmehl
13. – 15.06. CH Interlaken – Greenfield Festival
CELLAR DARLING are:
Anna Murphy – vocals, hurdy-gurdy, multi-instrumentalist
Merlin Sutter – drums
Ivo Henzi – guitars, bass
Visit CELLAR DARLING online:
www.facebook.com/cellardarlingofficial
www.twitter.com/cellar_darling
www.instagram.com/cellardarlingofficial/
A Tribute To DEATH will be released on March 22nd, 2019, is a next tribute album from Antichrist magazine‘s tribute series! Here is a track-listing:
Torment Tool (Germany) – 1000 Eyes
Reject The Sickness (Belgium) – Suicide Machine
Symetria (USA) – Crystal Mountain
Dynasty of Darkness (International) – Symbolic
The Father of Serpents (Serbia) – Empty Words
Beltane (New Zealand) – Left to Die
SavageZ (Brazil) – The Philosopher
Searching For Reason (USA) – Voice of the Soul
Basement Torture Killings (UK) – Mutilation
Injector (Spain) – Within the Mind
Body Harvest (UK) – Spiritual Healing
Frosthelm (USA) – Overactive Imagination
Nethertale (Spain) – Lack Of Comprehension
Aetranok (USA) – Leprosy
Sichgart (Ukraine) – Legion of Doom
Unto the Wolves (USA) – Story To Tell
Rat King (USA) – Born Dead
Offal (Brazil) – Defensive Personalities
Wolftribe (Poland) – Pull The Plug
Hateful Agony (Germany) – Infernal Death
Abruptus (Mexico) – Land Of No Return
Keep an eye on updates!www.antichristmagazine.com
]]>Let me take you back to a time when internet, streaming or anything of the sort was science fiction. CD’s were still relatively new, but the little silver discs with the tiny covers were quickly gaining momentum. We first and foremost had vinyl. We also had cassette tapes, not because they were trendy, but because they were the norm and affordable, and we copied vinyls onto those cassette tapes like mad.
The year is 1988. Yours faithfully is 15 years old and in the middle of a period of time, which would define my musical taste forever. From a life were comic books and badminton were my two main interests, I’d move into a state were music and metal music in particular would be the interest to rule them all.
Ram it down, ram it down, straight through the heart of this town
I recently realised that 2018 marks my 30th anniversary as a full-blown metal fan. It was the year when I finally bought my first albums and KNEW in my 15/16-year-old bones that metal music would be the soundtrack of my life.
It all started two or three years before, when some of my class mates started listening to Iron Maiden, Beastie Boys, Accept, Slayer and Manowar. I didn’t like it much in the beginning, mainly because I would always tend to be a bit oppositional to what the others did and liked. Eventually, I’d admit even to myself that I was completely in love with the energy of this music and exactly that rebellious nature of the whole genre. It was primarily the TV programme ‘Monsters of Rock’ on Sky Channel that taught me more and more about this rebellious genre of music, which had so more power than the rock and pop music I was listening to at the time (e.g. Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, David Bowie, The Beatles).
The legendary Mick Wall from Monsters of Rock introduced me to Judas Priest and their cover of ‘Johnny B. Goode’. I was completely in awe. What had they DONE to that classic rock song? I had to own it. Immediately. There’s was no single, so I had to buy the album, Ram It Down, and as much as I thought it was a bit over the top to buy an entire album I didn’t know beforehand, I didn’t regret it. I loved the album, and I do to this day. This was towards the end of May 1988.
Here’s a clip from Monsters of Rock:
Justice is lost, justice is raped, justice is gone
Ram It Down started an avalanche of purchases. From then on, all of my pocket money went into the till of the local record store owner and the ditto second-hand store. I believe Testament’s Live at Eindhoven (1987) was next (I bought that on a trip to Germany), then Anthrax’s Spreading the Disease (1986), a Nazareth maxi (Cinema) (1981) and very soon, one of my mates sold me Master Of Puppets (1986). After that, I bought The Number of the Beast, Live After Death and Powerslave. The foundation of a collection was made!
Suddenly, I also discovered that these bands played live concerts. The first one I went to was Denmark’s own Artillery sometime during the autumn of 1988. The venue was tiny and there were probably 30 of us tops, but, hell, the energy was crazy. Banging your head in front of a real, live band was just something completely different. Then and there, it became an addiction to see more.
To this day, I don’t understand where I found the money. I was both picking up the back catalogue of the bands I discovered and at the same time, I’d get the new releases. And looking back, 1988 was a gargantuan year in terms of metal music.
Yours truly…aged 15, with parts of the growing collection:
At this point, I would like to write something like ‘the one release that outshines them all is this one’ or ‘unequalled among all of these albums was…’, but I hesitate. The number of gargantuan metal releases throughout 1988 was ridiculously huge. Examples? Well, let’s begin with Metallica.
My mum went to London on a business trip for some days in September, and crammed into her suitcase, she brought home with her the double LP …And Justice For All, which had been released the week before. Even though Master had blown my mind, Justice would turn out to be the Metallica album for me and certainly also one of my all-time favourite releases. I didn’t mind the thin sound and the infamous absence of bass, the songs very simply astonished the 16-year-old Thomas Nielsen. It’s still my favourite Metallica album.
That was by the way not all my mum’s generous suitcase contained; she also picked up the new Anthrax album, State of Euphoria, on cassette. I loved it. It was so much better than Spreading, and since I didn’t know Among the Living yet, State was truly the dog’s bollocks. Anthrax did mean a lot to me, and they would eventually also be the first international band I saw live in concert. This happened one year later, when they played in Copenhagen.
Silently screaming as I bang my head ‘gainst the wall
The support band for that same concert was Suicidal Tendencies who also found a big place in my heart. This was due to one of my mates from upper secondary level school. He introduced me to ST, and in 1988, they released the brilliant How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Can’t Even Smile Today, which was so different from the other thrash metal I knew. Mike Muir’s lyrics as well as his delivery was something else and the flow of the music was unique.
Thrash or be Trashed
And thrash certainly was gigantic in 1988, although the genre was actually already at this point wearing out. Other thrash grenades to emerge during the year included Death Angel’s Frolic Through the Park, the outstanding No Place For The Disgrace by Flotsam & Jetsam, Atrophy’s Socialized Hate, Realm’s Endless Wars, Forbidden’s power house debut Forbidden Evil, Helstar‘s A Distant Thunder, Australians Hobb’s Angel of Death’s eponymously entitled debut album, Swedish Midas Touch‘s (sadly!) only album, Presage of Disaster, Rigor Mortis‘ self-entitled debut album, Robb Flynn’s pre-Machine Head combo Vio-lence’s Eternal Nightmare, Toxik’s excellent techno-thrash album World Circus, Sanctuary’s Dave Mustaine-produced debut Refuge Denied, where the world of metal for the first time noticed the uncanny voice of the now sadly departed Warrel Dane, the debut offering Suffering Hour by tech-prog-trashers Anacrusis, and in Germany, beer-drinking maniacs Tankard released The Morning After, Sodom unleashed the live album Mortal Way of Live, Vendetta put out the fabulous Brain Damage and Blind Guardian’s debut release, Battalions of Fear also saw the light of day.
The greatest speed/power/thrash album to come out of Germany that year, though, would be Helloween’s Keeper Of The Seven Keys Part 2, an album which, along with the rest of the pumpkin heads’ early albums, would influence an entire metal genre.
A very serious young man, doing his best to keep his cool during a family vacation to Greece. Very metal.
The root of all evil is the heart of the black soul
More of the greatest bands within the subgenre made an impact: Former Metallica guitarist Dave Mustaine would release the third Megadeth album, So Far, So Good… So What! The blistering cover of ‘Anarchy in the U.K.’ was phenomenal, as were ‘Set the World on Fire’, ‘Mary Jane’ and ‘In My Darkest Hour’. Well, it was just an amazing album, basically.
The last of the Big Four, Slayer, would also release one of their, in my humble opinion, best albums in 1988. South Of Heaven saw Slayer taking down the tempo a notch or two compared to Reign In Blood, but for me, it was a more nuanced album with lots more atmosphere than its predecessor. It remains one of my favourite albums to this day.
Another thrash band we need to mention are Testament, again one of my all-time favourite bands, who released their second album, The New Order, in 1988. It was less no ferocious than the debut, but no less popular with me. I liked how the Bay Area thrashers had everything under more control with this release, although they hadn’t lost the heaviness.
On the East coast, New Jersey’s finest also released one of the biggest albums of my youth: Overkill put out Under the Influence, which totally overwhelmed me with its mixture of thrash, punk and a thick, dark atmosphere. From the moment I heard that album, I immediately decided to get hold of everything they’d done before – and buy all their future albums. Which I did.
In Overkill’s neighbourhood, the crossover movement had been thriving with S.O.D. and Nuclear Assault, and the latter-mentioned released the scourging Survive album in 1988 – as well as the magnificent Good Times, Bad Times EP, which was running more or less non-stop on my record player. Also the S.O.D., Anthrax and Nuclear Assualt related band M.O.D. with Billy Milano in his prime released the hilarious Surfin’ M.O.D. It was a great laugh! Another New Jersey band took it even further in terms of extremity: Old Lady Drivers (OLD). This was grindcore with a theme, and a weird one to boot. I loved it.
The ceiling in my room towards the end of 1988…I was DESPERATE to find room for all those posters and magazine clippings!
I’ve got two faces
Further up north, in the French-speaking part of Canada, sci-fi-thrash metallers Voivod released Dimension Hatröss, a studio in oddness and inaccessible music…and yet, the song ‘Tribal Convictions’ caught my ears through the video that was aired on the Monsters of Rock show. ‘Tribal Convictions’ remains a song I keep returning to every now and then.
Some bands had begun to take things into an even more extreme direction than Slayer and the other thrash bands. Chuck Schuldiner and Death had already given name to a new brand of metal, namely death metal, and with Leprosy, they were perfecting the formula and in so doing amazed my mates and myself. In the Netherlands, Pestilence would soon give Death competition to the finish line. Their Malleus Maleficarum was also a masterpiece of extremity, although their expression and sound was different.
To consume all things material
In the UK, there were also extreme things going on. I was introduced to goregrinders Carcass sometime in 1989 and was utterly blown away by the brutally of Symphonies of Sickness from that year, and did the retrospective search in my local record store on the band’s debut from 1988, Reek of Putrefaction. Reek… was no less brutal, but perhaps less structured and therefore not quite as easy to digest as Symphonies. The cover, mind you, was over the top controversial and therefore hard not to love.
Bill Steer’s former playground of extremity, Napalm Death from Birmingham, England, released the scorching From Enslavement To Obliteration with later Cathedral front man Lee Dorrian as spoke person against injustice. Dorrian came from Coventry just like the death metal juggernaut Bolt Thrower, who also released their debut album in 1988. Not their best work, admittedly, but as we all know, they went on to produce some of the most crushing death metal there is.
Also in the UK, a band that would have a massive impact on me a year or so later, namely Sabbat, released their debut on Noise Records. History of a Time to Come was a raw and rather shrill offering, partly due to the production, partly due to Martin Walkyier’s vocal, but there were good songs on there, there was no doubt about that. However, in 1989, they blew all my proverbial speakers with their Dreamweaver, based on Brian Bates’ novel The Way of Wyrd about a young Christian munk who is sent into the pagan lands of Britain. It’s a sublime concept album, no less.
Twist of Cain inside my bleeding heart, yeah
The US scene was not only about the being faster and more extreme in 1988. Manowar released the mighty Kings of Metal album, which spoke to the quest for adventure and the heroic in all of us boys. Guns N’Roses were riding on the success of Appetite for Destruction (1987) and put out GN’R Lies, which was a sort of whilst-we’re-waiting-for-a-proper-album release, but it showed a different side of the band with the fine acoustic tunes.
Glenn Danzig, the former Misfits and Samhain singer, took many by surprise by making a curve between metal and blues. Danzig was and is to this day a fantastic album, and in particular the song ‘Mother’ became an anthem for the tormented souls who followed Evil Elvis. My mom loved it!
On the melodic power metal front, Armored Saint gave the world Saints Will Conquer, a fine live documentary, which was my first encounter with the Saint, this wonderful and talented band fronted by John Bush. I saw Armored Saint in Berlin a couple of years later, at the oddly billed Rock Hard Festival (Obituary, Morgoth, Sepultura, Blind Guardian and the Saint). The atmosphere during the Saint concert wasn’t great, to be honest, which I found weird. The band never made it big commercially, but have been appropriately praised in later years after their return to the metal scene. Riot released Thundersteel, a great melodic power metal album that enjoyed many spins on my records player when I finally picked it up a year or so after its release.
By 1988, Ozzy had long since expatriated himself (or maybe Sharon decided that) to the States, and the band around the Ozzman certainly were Americans. Most notably his new, young guitarist, Zak Wylde, holds the blame for the No Rest for the Wicked being the most impressive of Ozzy’s solo albums. I am well aware that other fans might disagree wildly, but the artificial harmonies and sound of that album simply went straight to my head.
Kill Mary?
On the proggier side of life, Seattle’s Queensrÿche made their magnus opus in 1988: Operation: Mindcrime set new standards for concept albums and the quality of compositions in metal. This was the perfect album. The story, the vocals, the sound, everything. Queensrÿche never managed to top this album, although they made solid attempts throughout the years.
Not too far from the style of earlier Queensrÿche efforts were Crimson Glory. Their Transcendence album also offered fans of prog induced metal a more than decent alternative to the increasingly extreme direction the business was moving into.
Other less hard-hitting, but still superb offerings came from Impelliteri with Stand In Line, a vinyl that is still one of treasures of my collection. Also Sweden’s megalomaniac number one, Yngwie J. Malmsteen graced the ears of metal fans with his classical inspired music in 1988. Although it had nothing to do with thrash or death metal, the sheer strength of Malmsteen’s playing convinced greatly, and Odyssey continued the red line drawn up by Rising Force, Marching Out and Trilogy.
A snapshot of my 1988 memorabilia – most of the vinyls have been traded away for CD’s, but there are still a few left…
For All Those Who Died
Another Swedish artist offered a very different and definitely harder take on the metal genre the same year. In fact, this artist defined a sub-genre in its own right. With Blood Fire Death, Quorthon and Bathory began the transformation from being a prototype black metal meets Motörhead act to setting sails towards Viking shores. It was raw and brutal, yet, curiously epic in nature. As we all know, Quorthon would move on to explore this with great success on the next two albums, Hammerheart and Twilight of the Gods, in my view two milestones of metal music.
Another Swedish band set new standards in 1988: Candlemass released an epic lesson in doom metal when Ancient Dreams hit the shelves. With eight monstrously heavy tunes and Messiah Marcolin’s characteristic vocal, I was convinced from the second I laid ears to this. Black Sabbath was a clear influence, but Metallica was also a part of the brew. Amazing album.
Now that we’re touching northern shores, Danish Kim Bendix Pedersen, better known by the name King Diamond, the former Mercyful Fate singer, released his third solo album, “Them”, during the summer of 1988. “Them” was the first part of the tale of young King, his grandmother and the house, Amon, which was to be concluded with Conspiracy in 1989. These two albums were huge in my world. Fine storytelling, lots of melody, lots of heavy riffs from the hands of Andy LaRocque and King himself.
Moving the pointer further south again, more traditional heavy metal was still massive in Germany. Running Wild were riding the waves of success for kraut metal and put out no less than two releases during 1988, and these Germans saturated one’s hunger for pirate adventures. Ready For Boarding came out in February, and Port Royal, the band’s fourth effort and their last album for Noise Records, came out during the Autumn.
In Switzerland, Celtic Frost, many thought, had lost it completely. Tom G. Warrior took the Frost into a completely new and unexpected direction with Cold Lake. The album was an attempt at glam rock and heavy metal, and had thus very little to do with the avant-garde mix of death, black and goth, which had formed the first albums. This was definitely not the high-point of Celtic Frost’s career.
On the periphery of metal, the 1988 releases that would eventually catch my attention were AC/DC’s Blow Up Your Video (although I never really got into AC/DC in any big way), King’s X‘s eminent debut Out of the Silent Planet and the funky heaviness of Living Colour on Vivid.
Seven deadly sins, seven ways to win…
So, as you can see, 1988 was in all respects a year to be reckoned with. The list of majestic releases seems to go on and on. But, hang on, one is missing! That’s right, the heavy metal band that stands above them all also released one of their master pieces in 1988; Iron Maiden gave birth to Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. If I were to point to one album that defines metal music, well, music in general, for me, this would be it. This was the album that had the right sound at the right time for me. It had the story, the tale that encompassed hope, fear, love, darkness, madness, everything. It was nothing like the other two great concept albums of that year, Operation:Mindcrime and “Them”. To me, the Brits quite simply killed the competition.
If you were there, you’ll probably know what kind of a monster 1988 was. If you weren’t, I suggest you check out some of the albums I’ve mentioned above. They’re worth it. For me, they still define the nature of metal music.
Below is a bunch of videos so you can check out some tunes from what is probably my best stab at a top ten of 1988 albums. You can also listen to our 1988 Spotify playlist right here.
Number 1
Iron Maiden
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
Song: The Clairvoyant
Number 2:
Metallica
…And Justice For All
Song: …And Justice For All
Number 3
Slayer
South of Heaven
Song: Silent Scream
Number 4
Queensrÿche
Operation: Mindcrime
Song: Operation: Mindcrime
Number 5
Judas Priest
Ram It Down
Song: Johnny B. Goode
Number 6
Anthrax
State of Euphoria
Song: Who Cares Wins
Number 7
Flotsam and Jetsam
No Place For Disgrace
Song: No Place For Disgrace
Number 8
Overkill
Under the Influence
Song: Hello from the Gutter
Number 9
Death
Leprosy
Song: Pull the Plug
Number 10
Danzig
Danzig
Song: Mother
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The live setting as opposed to studio albums have always been HateSphere’s force, although I must say that the band’s latest outing, Reduced to Flesh, toggles that notion slightly.
To put it in a word, the album is a hammer.
Why? Because things come together in a way I haven’t felt they’ve done for HateSphere before.
The constant of the album is no different from the past albums: the merciless thrashing beat draws the red line. But what is slightly different this time is that Pepe and the gang have taken the song writing one notch up.
I don’t know if maturity is the right term, but the fine intro to the album, the surprising chorus for ‘Ruled By Domination’ and the church organs used in ‘Lethal Mistakes’ contribute to taking things to a level where I don’t think HateSphere have been before. And they score pretty high on the groove-o-metre, by the way.
There’s a new level of coolness with this album, simple as that.
Vocalist Esben ‘Esse’ Hansen deserves a couple of words, methinks. Esse joined eight years ago, following in the footsteps of powerhouse performers Jacob Bredahl and Jonathan ‘Joller’ Albrechtsen, and some thought they would be hard acts to follow. They were, but Esse did well, although he wasn’t as agile on stage.
The thing is, though, that Esse has grown to be the voice of HateSphere and he certainly cements that position with Reduced To Flesh with an impeccable vocal performance. What the attentive listener will notice is that Esse has developed his little tag, similar to Thomas Gabriel Fischer’s ”urgh” and Barney Greenway’s ”uh”; Esse has his ”blah”, and he does that oh so well. The ultimate expression of spite, right there.
“How sad it must be to be you”, the chorus goes for the tune ‘Petty’. Nope, I’m happy as a geezer with this one, lads. Killer stuff.
]]>The new record opens dark with a dragging tempo and as soon as Christian opens his mouth, I recognize the band. The next song ‘Lovers Die’ is softer and has some modern influences, in fact the style does remind me a bit of Morgoth in their Feel Sorry For the Fanatic period. ‘Insubstantial’ is a track that could have been on their debut album. It is impossible to describe the music, it is in fact a kind of combination of their first 2 albums and more. The strength of the album lies in the fact that every song is different, but that can also be their pitfall. You have to be rather open minded and a fan of several genres to really like such an album. But if you are, you will find a lot to enjoy, especially when you give the album some time to grow.
If you dig a combi of styles such as doom, death, black, thrash, and progressive, dark, tempo changes, jolty rhytmns and variation are things you like, this Where Oceans Collide can be your new favorite 2018 album. The unique voice of Christian together with their exquisite style does make this something extraordinary.
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Azrath-11 drummer Asmodeus Draco Dux tributed to one of the most important bands in the Metal history and in his career!
‘Death was, and still is, one of the reason which pushed me play drums in a more technical, intricate and creative way!’
Asmodeus D.D. said
‘Together with my beloved “Human”, “Symbolic” had an incredible impact over me; Gene Hoglan literally schocked me with his outstanding and overcreative drumming, groovy and tasty, filled by mindblowing chops! It was about time to give ’em a proper tribute, an humble homage for such a talented and unique ensamble!’.
You can see the video below.
LINK:
– Azrath-11 –
www.facebook.com/azrath11doctrine
– Punishment 18 Records –
]]>NIGHTMARER guitarist Simon Hawemann comments:
Our track ‘Death’ marks the inevitable end of ‘Cacophony of Terror’ – it is the final stage of a battle that was never meant to be won. My inspiration for this song was all too real: I had to witness a person close to me decease over the course of several days. The riffs and sounds in ‘Death’ reflect the heavy breathing, the tortured moans, and the spasms of a dying human being – sights and sounds that are burned into my memory forever. This experience served as a morbidly twisted foundation to give death itself an appropriate soundtrack. Once it’s all over, ‘Death’ seamlessly makes the transitions into ‘Swansong’, which offers nothing else than just the relief of not having to fight any longer. One could not exist without the other, so we’re premiering both tracks merged into one today. We are thrilled to have joined forces with Alan Dubin (KHANATE/GNAW), who lent his terrifying voice to ‘Death’. His piercing screams serve as the perfect personification of the demon that lurks in the plagued mind of the album’s protagonist. Without further ado, embrace death!
Track-list
1. The Descent (1:36)
2. Stahlwald (3:31)
3. Skinner (4:38)
4. Bleach (3:59)
5. Cave Digger (3:25)
6. Fetisch (4:46)
7. Tidal Waves of Terror (3:23)
8. Ceremony of Control (4:48)
9. Death (4:52)
10. Swansong (1:27)
Total playing time: 35:23
Current line-up
John Collett: vocals
Simon Hawemann: guitars
Paul Seidel: drums
Recording line-up
John Collett: vocals
Simon Hawemann: guitars
Paul Seidel: drums
S. Braunschmidt: bass (studio only)
Guest musicians
Alan Dubin: vocals on “Death”
Ferenc Petöcz: additional samples on “Cave Digger”
Links
http://smarturl.it/NightmarerShop
www.facebook.com/nightmarercult
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