Arghoslent - The Entity
Cool things about this demo: It claims to have been recorded in Hell, the songs are all fairly memorable, they have a kinda unique sound, and their lyrics are pretty cool. Bad points about this demo: The vocals are good and raw, but too loud - they overpower the music; a thicker production would make the music, which is sorta Thrashy, seem heavier and more in sinc with the raw vocals. Now, both of my criticisms would easily be taken care of by a better studio - Hell is pretty low-tech. Check this out.
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Apocalypse / Mindrot - split
Three songs from Apocalypse and two from Mindrot. Apocalypse play a yelled-vocal heavy Thrash, but with the twist of a female singer. It’s interesting. Mindrot’s songs are not on either their EP or LP for Relapse, so that’s a nice plus. This may not be “the split to end all splits,” as it claims, but it is really impressive.
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Anathema - All Faith Is Lost
Here is a very good five piece Doom band from Liverpool. The vocalist, Darren White, sounds a lot like Nick Holmes from Paradise Lost, and for the most part, the bands does too. This four song demo has well written lyrics which deal with everything from religion to death. The only fault of this band is their lack of originality, but that’s OK, they are still awesome.
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Anacrusis - Manic Impressions
I think a few words on the production are in order: It is very clear and distinct. And that is something of a problem here, the instruments are too distinct. They sound too separate. Fortunately, this is not always the case, but when it is, it’s very annoying. Other than that, I found the lyrics to occasionally be too repetitive, as in the song “Paint a Picture.” If I never hear the phrase “I’ll paint a picture” again it will be too soon. But again, the lyrics are not always so grating and are actually pretty good where they don’t repeat so often. Vocally, Kenn is good; he usually sings in melodic way, but when the time is right he shrieks, not unlike the original vocalist from Death Angel. Musically, Anacrusis range from a lighter Thrash, to double bass driven, fast, heavy Thrash. A few problems hold this band back, but still, this is a solid effort.
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Agonize - Fall
Very thick and powerful production, with a sharp guitar sound. Growly vocals and interesting lyrics. And the songs are very energetic and I can even remember them. A little on the Thrashier side of Death.
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Impetigo - Ultimo Mundo Cannibale
Impetigo started out as a Hardcore band (didn’t they all) in July of ‘87. From there they added Scott as a second guitarist to attain a heavier sound. Ultimo Mundo Cannibale is the band’s heaviest release to date. The lyrics seem influenced by Carcass and Godflesh.
All This insanity opens up with a rape/wind storm which is pretty cool. The album is really bassy. Even a lot of the vocals are slowed down electronically to give them a deep, slow sound. The rest of the vox are in normal Death Metal fashion, though as usual terribly difficult to understand if I am doing anything other than reading the lyric sheet. This is a terrible shame because the lyrics are cool. What I can understand is the sound bites, awesome. One is a woman being stretched on the rack and whipped, among other things. The music is pretty speedy and rumbly, and the lyrics devastate. The only thing holding this back are the electronic, unintelligible vocals.
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Hellwitch - Syzygial Miscreancy
Hellwitch has been around for a long time (since October of ‘84). Since that time they have gone through innumerable line up changes with Patrick Ranieri remaining a constant forceful backbone. Finally Hellwitch’s current line up gelled with Patrick on guitars an vox, Tommy “McMarijuana” Mouser on bass and Joe Schnessel on drums. The album itself is pretty heavy and contains Hellwitch classic “Nosferatu.” The vocals throughout the album are sporadically modified; not a bad touch. Certain songs seem to flash back to the sixties, such as “Mordirivial Dissemination.” “Pyrophoic Seizure,” itself has a psychedelic intro. Most of the rest of this album is fairly swift. Give this one a listen sometime. You might like it.
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Malicious Onslaught - Rebellious Mayhem (Rehearsal)
This demo sounds much better than their earlier Thrashed Black. The production is improved and all three songs are more memorable, yet still heavy. Everything sounds more focused. I think the better production helps a lot. Ted’s vocals sound better too. Now I won’t say this is my favorite demo of all time - it’s not. But these guys have improved in both writing and recording and this demo shows the talent of this Deathrash outfit. And even though this demo contains only three songs, you can tell that a lot of time and effort was put into each of them.
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Malevolent Creation - 1990
Imagine a band that combines the sound of Sadus and Entombed! Get the idea? Needless to say, Malevolent Creation are the gods of Death. Comprised of: Phil Fasciana (guitar), Jon Rubin (guitar), Brett Hoffman (vocals), Mark Simpson (drums), Mark Van Erp (bass); they are a major force. This tape only has three songs: “Remnants of Withered Decay,” “Decadence Within” and “Impaled Existence.” But any one of the three would be worth the price of the tape by itself. I found the first song to slightly edge out the other two, but only just barely. It’s easy to see why Roadrunner signed these guys. I was also impressed when I got a copy of this after they were signed. That shows how dedicated they are. And what kind of people. I personally know of other bands that would have said to wait for their debut LP. You had better get a copy of this while there are still some left!
{Phil has weathered line-up changes galore, and never allowed his band to release a less-than-excellent album. And now, original singer Brett Hoffman has returned after an extended absence on their latest release, The Fine Art of Murder.}
[Notes in {curly brackets} are from the Metal Curse 1 - 4 Collected Edition (1999)]
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