More death beast appreciation!
posted on 10 Feb 2006 under category News
Review by Nin Chan of Diabolical Conquest is finally online:
http://diabolicalconquest.com/reviews/death_beast-the_wakening.htm (Dead Link)
HAILS TO EQUIMANTHORN!
(Link above is dead, as Diabolical Conquest webzine has transmogrified into “Transcending Obscurity” webzine. I dug up the review from the Wayback Machine - results below, or you can go to the new online link here:
http://www.transcendingobscurity.com/Webzine/D/337/Album.aspx ) (Dead Link again…)
Fuck it - the review is pasted below:
(Originally published February 2006 in Diabolical Conquest Webzine, review of Death Beast The Wakening by Nin Chan)
Man, knowing how much my comrade Lord Vic reveres the Exodus demos/Bonded By Blood, one can only imagine how much fun he’s having on this platter. Indeed, this bears a tremendous resemblance to ‘BBB’ (AKA the finest thrash metal record, period), both from a musical and lyrical/philosophical standpoint. This means, of course, that it merges sloppy, brazen, streetwise, outrageously violent thrash metal with an equally OTT homicidal/nihilistic edge, exuding the same Venom-on-overdrive brand of darkness/depravity that was so prevalent on Exodus’ magnum opus. Synthesizing the audacious demonic imagery and canny urban violence that defined ‘Bonded By Blood’ with menacing, caustic, MURDEROUS thrash metal that is equal parts Show No Mercy and A Lesson In Violence, Death Beast have pricked a vein that has remained un-bled by today’s more-Teutonic-than-thou neo-thrash miscreants, a fitting salute to American thrash metal at its darkest and most diabolical.
From the get-go, Death Beast are less than subtle about their influences- “Apocalypse Metal” is a DEAD RINGER for “Evil Has No Boundaries”, but while originality is far from their strongest suit, any shortcomings in innovation are compensated entirely by execution and SPIRIT, that intangible je ne sais quoi that permeates and flavours the best heavy metal with piquancy and zest. The vocals are strikingly brazen and frighteningly maniacal, Notorius Butcherus Poseurii channelling the merciless abandon of one Paul Baloff through the anguished desperation of ‘Darkness Descends’ Don Doty. The guitar tone is quite seizing in itself, bearing GREAT resemblance to recent Countess recordings/certain Bathory landmarks, while the clear, sonorous, omnipresent bass of Lord Vic provides a fitting juxtaposition/complement to the buzzsaw fuzz of the guitar. Drumming is suitably rudimentary, Black Tormentor making liberal use of the hi-hat/bass/snare pattern that has defined all of our favourite thrash metal moments, and the mix is so assertively authentic that it really is quite heartrending. The entire recording sounds very spontaneous, very ALIVE, very urgent, and save for the vocal overdubs/layering that Notorius employs to accentuate and amplify the hellish infernality of the recording, has all the grit and honesty of a live recording.
Generally, the songwriting is of a most impressive standard, “Apocalypse Metal” rumbling forth like “Evil Has No Boundaries” with a disturbingly melodic Heilig Vuur lead guitar line that provides a glaring contrast to the hack-and-slash rape-and-pillage that dominates the track. Near the close of the track (preceding a SQUEALING, WAILING tremolo-heavy solo), we are greeted with an absolutely AWESOME breakdown that should please all breakdown connoisseurs. “Enslaved Cadavers” is far more ‘Bonded’ in approach, a pummelling, spiralling, flesh-devouring mass of fierce Piranha-esque riffing that eschews subtlety entirely in lieu of dark, murky guitar lines and razor-sharp atonal solos. Again, a minute and a half before the track, ANOTHER GREAT BREAKDOWN, all supported by Notorius’ ominous, overdubbed Cronos-ish refrains of “joinnnn us!”. Total fucking greatness. Fast forward to “Blood Of Dionysus” and we are greeted with a stampeding, amphetamine-fuelled romp through Bulldozer/At War/NME/Bathory ‘S/T’ ‘Welcome To Hell’-isms, the rampaging rock n’ roll collapsing into a glorious ZZ Top honky tonk boogie that will certainly throw you for a fucking loop. It’s here that Vic’s bass production is truly highlighted (a feature that has prevailed on Rampage recordings as well, of course), his supple/subtle basslines providing a really cool foil for the ensuing madness.
Elsewhere, “Here Comes The War” appropriates ‘Bonded By Blood’s incendiary “Exodus” riff, which is a lofty order indeed, but one which Death Beast fulfil with reasonable aplomb.”Psychosis- Invoking Villainy” is the solitary reprieve offered throughout the record, a lumbering, ponderous drone topped with screeching, meandering lead pyrotechnics. Of course, such comfort is short-lived, and the madness resumes all the way through the Hellhammer-tinged grind of “Every Church Shall Burn”, the carrion-infested “Death Beast” (which shares “Exodus” fascination with pillage, pestilence and plague, haha) and the messy, nebulous “Agent Of The Reaper”, by far the most reckless, dirtiest sounding song on offer here (check out that churning, single-note-pounding Slayer bridge too, brilliant!) and two suitably enthused covers of “Witches Sabbath”/”Stay Hungry” that really remind me just how great Wage Of Fucking Mayhem really is. Considering this was Savage/Ronnie at their most Fate-esque, you’d be forgiven for mistaking this EVIL MASTERPIECE for a Shermann/Denner composition. While Notorius is no Nasty Ronnie (and really, who the fuck is?), to his credit he doesn’t make too concerted an attempt to ape Ronnie, and is all the better for it, imprinting his own personality upon a great cover (spurred, I suspect, by Vic’s own affinity for the band). “Stay Hungry” is somewhat less interesting, though it should serve as a reminder that Twisted Sister, were, indeed, once a highly formidable heavy metal outfit.
While I’m absolutely certain that this record will encounter its share of “been-there-done-that” naysayers (the likes of whom haven’t the slightest clue that CONVICTION and VIGOR are the most vital elements of every aggressive music recording), six listens later I am firmly convinced that this recording manages, to a large degree, to encapsulate, distil and subsequently channel a particular brand of Bay Area hellfire that has somehow remained neglected by today’s crop of Destruction-aping Johnny-come-latelys. Simultaneously, Death Beast manage to walk that tight rope between caustic menace and sardonic schlock, emanating a believably unnerving psychopathic edge without taking itself too seriously (read: black metal pantomiming). Pretty fucking great, actually.
[Score - 8.5/10] {Note - the score is on the DC site. Apparently TO ditched scores when they moved.}