Category: Music

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Decade of Aggression – Slayer

This review is easy to write.

I first got this album on double music cassette in about 1992. I had seen Slayer as part of the “Clash of the Titans” tour at Wembley Arena and really liked them. They recorded the video to “War Ensemble” at that particular concert. I think that some of the songs on this album were recorded at that exact gig that I saw. The tape version has since been supplemented by a CD version and finally an MP3 version on the NAS drive.

This is an AWESOME album.

If you only buy one thrash metal album then it had better be this one and then in all honesty you only need to play the first song as it covers all needs of guitar based turn-on.

My favourite songs on this album are (and I don’t apologise for the length of the list):

  • Hell Awaits
  • War Ensemble
  • South of Heaven
  • Raining Blood
  • Dead Skin Mask
  • Seasons in the Abyss
  • Mandatory Suicide
  • Angel of Death
  • Hallowed Point
  • Blood Red
  • Postmortem
  • Chemical Warfare

The atmosphere conveyed by these disks is brilliant. You can only find one better live album out there (Live After Death). This puts all others to shame. Get it. Play it. LOUD.

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Dark Side Of The Moon – Pink Floyd

I’m expecting some complaints after this communication and album review. First let me give you my personal story of “Dark Side of the Moon”.

I was about 14 and was visiting Lynda, my best friend’s Aunt. First she showed us the video to “Thriller” which was very exciting and then she told us to listen to a particular album. It was, obviously (?), “Dark Side of the Moon”. I can remember the gatefold album and looking at the cover. I don’t really remember listening to the music much but I seem to remember the catchy riff of money. The music had a lot of weird stuff going on.

Years later I remember describing Pink Floyd as “dull monotonous shit”. I think, overall, this is a statement I will stand by. “Dark Side of the Moon” I will accept is a classic and parts of it send shivers down my spine. That does not mean that I have to like everything by that band and it certainly doesn’t mean I have to accept them as geniuses.

BTW I probably will accept Pink Floyd as genius. Their music really does affect some people a lot. A lot more than I would consider suitable but they love. It just doesn’t bother me so much. Sorry about that. I think I can recognise the good but also you have to accept it does nothing for me. It’s a bit like religion. I understand the attraction to religion and its good points but for me it’s all rather offensive.

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Dark Roots Of Earth – Testament

I bought this album because I was going to see Testament play at KoKo in London. I know “Practice What You Preach” from my days at school and I thought I needed to know a few more songs and so I got their latest album.

Old Dog  applies to this album, but I would say it definitely works well. There’s a maturity in the song writing and it is also well produced. The anger is still there but reduced slightly from those heady days of teenage testosterone. They played a few songs live and they sounded good. There’s something funny about middle-aged rockers trying to maintain the anger at the establishment, but also becoming part of the machine they hated.

It’s worth a listen.

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D – HexRx

HexRx make dirty hellectro music. That’s quite curious because hellectro is rather dirty in itself. HexRx take many samples from horror films and then build “tunes” around them. I can listen for about an album at a time and then it’s time for something else.

I like it, I just can’t take too much. Listening is an experience, which is a bit of a theme with this album.

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D.O.A. – Throbbing Gristle

The full title of this album is:

D.O.A. The Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

This is seminal. When you take the members of Throbbing Gristle and look into their backgrounds and previous work you start to understand where they were coming from. In 1976 COUM Transmissions were doing this sort of crazy stuff. And modern day artists like to think that they are pushing the boundaries. I guess they are, but I can’t help thinking that it’s all been done before.

So, Throbbing Gristle, they made “music” to challenge pre-conceptions and to see how far they could take it. You might not like listening to it, but your life will be enriched for doing so (unlike a 1D album). You have to remember when this was made. 1978. The technology they were using was ground-breaking and their sound was something special. To understand the origins of modern industrial music you HAVE to include TG.

Favourite tracks include:

  • I.B.M.
  • Hit By A Rock
  • Dead On Arrival
  • Hamburger Lady (one of the most disturbing songs I have ever heard)
  • AB/7A
  • Blood On The Floor

Listen, appreciate, take some paracetamol (you’ll need it).

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Antithesis – The Ivy

Went to see a few bands at The Ivy in Sheerness last night. I was most interested in the band called:

The Antithesis

I’ve seen this band a number of times and really enjoy their music. I thought they were good. Also saw Where’s Billy? who were ok. It was an enjoyable evening. Thanks Dave.

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Crunch – Impellitteri

In about 1990 I was given a music cassette with “Stand In Line” by Impellitteri. I was stunned. It’s a brilliant album with some seriously cracking songs and heavy riffs. Fast forward 15 years and I noticed that there was a double album deal on Amazon for some Impellitteri stuff. I bought it.

This is very much speed metal in the vain of Yngwie or Gamma Ray. My concerns were raised after playing the album through a few times. Let me show you the titles:

  • Beware of the Devil
  • Slay the Dragon
  • Fear No Evil
  • Speed Demon

My curiosity was piqued and I did a little Wikipedia-ing. This is what they say there:

Chris and I and Ken Mary are all Christians, but James and Ed and Glen, our touring drummer, don’t necessarily proclaim themselves as Christians, so it’s not a Christian band.

The themes of the songs are religious. I would say they are a Christian band.
Does this affect what I think of the music? Yes.
Should it? Probably not, but then I think that religion is immoral and particularly offensive and serves no place in the modern world.
Do I still listen now and then? Yes, I quite like the style, it’s worth a play now and then.
I still think that “Stand In Line” is stunning.

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Cross Road – Bon Jovi

I bought/downloaded/borrowed this originally because I wanted some Bon Jovi on my phone but didn’t want to buy the original albums. I sometimes go for “Best Of” albums because you are meant to get the best of that artist. I don’t think it always works out like that though. It appears that there are restrictions on the songs put on these “Best Of” albums. Also, some albums work as albums and you should listen through the whole thing.

So, I have since bought the albums I like and so only have a few songs left in this. The six songs left are:

  • Someday I’ll be Saturday night
  • Blaze of Glory
  • Prayer ’94
  • In and Out of Love
  • Runaway
  • I’ll Be There For You (version 2)

I’m not sure why I still have the last song there. I find both versions really tedious. When I saw the Jovi at Twickenham I just wanted “I’ll Be There For You” to stop. I also hate key changes. Look, get the original albums. There’s a reason the Jovi are as big as they are, it’s good stuff.

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Senser – Camden Underworld

Along with Andy, my sister and niece, I went to the Underworld in Camden to see some bands. This was an important gig as I was taking my niece to see some proper music for the first time [she confessed that she has seen Olly Murs but didn’t say it loud enough to cause threats of physical damage to us].
The line-up was:

  • Ingested
  • Senser
  • DJ Starscream

We got the train into St Pancras and then walked the twenty minutes to Camden High Street. After some food and a drink in the World’s End pub we entered the venue and I showed my guests around the delights of the basement. Ingested were on first. They had shouty vocals. They weren’t the worst example of this type of music I had seen but they weren’t that good either.
The main reason I had wanted to come along this evening was that Senser were playing. I have liked their stuff since I was, ok, let’s just say since about 1994 and I saw them once before in Southsea! I like the music and the sound that they have. I thought they were really good. They played two new songs, I think, and the rest I knew. Very good, very energetic. I’m glad my niece saw these as her first proper band. All good stuff.
DJ Starscream was on next. He is the DJ from Slipknot. We tried it. But it’s not our stuff. We left and went for coffee. That’s not down to his ability to play, I’m sure he’s very skilful at what he does, but it left me cold.

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Crazy World – Scorpions

Old dog, old tricks.

I bought this album on music cassette in the late 80s, I’m ashamed to say it but it was probably not long after “Winds of Change” was in the charts. A good ballad is always an indication of a good band as long you then forget the ballad (they annoy me).

This album is a stunner. It’s exactly the sort of music I like. There’re songs with gang vocals, guitar slides, cheeky riffs, excellent bass work, it’s as though the Scorpions know exactly what sort of music works well in an arena. Given how long the “boys” have been around it’s no surprise that this album is well-crafted and wonderful.

I like all the songs. It’s precisely the sort of album that, when in the correct mood, you can play in its entirety.

Highlights:

  • Tease Me Please Me
  • Don’t Believe Her
  • Restless Nights

 

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