Cinema of the Damned

   

Ozzy Osbourne – Speak of the Devil: Live From the Irvine Meadows ‘82

2012 – Eagle Rock Entertainment

Muthas, less than three months after the tragic death of guitar virtuoso Randy Rhoades, Ozzy Osbourne filmed a concert for a future broadcast on the fledgling MTV. Thirty years later this concert has finally gotten an official release on DVD after years of being only available as a crappy bootleg. As this concert was before the “Sharon Osbourne (aka Yoko Ono) fucking everything up with her soulless bullshit” days, it’s pure gold. Ozzy is in terrific voice here and his stage banter is kept to a bare minimum.  There is hardly an f-bomb to be heard in the entire set.  It’s refreshing to see a non-addled Ozzy owning the stage as a healthy, younger man.

Along for the ride with Ozzy are Rudy Sarzo on bass, Don Airey on keyboards, Tommy Aldridge on drums and Brad Gillis on guitar.  Brad had big shoes to fill; he pulls off Randy’s solos effortlessly and shreds like a maniac throughout the festivities. It’s sad that Gillis departed for Night Ranger shortly after this concert as it would have been cool to hear what he could have come up with on the next studio album.  Tommy Aldridge is his always excellent self, and Rudy Sarzo does his usual goofball bass antics.  Don Airey is up in the second floor(!) of the stage and is dressed in a hooded robe like a monk.  He adds all the proper keyboard textures and accompaniment without drenching the proceedings in poofery.  

It should be mentioned that even though this DVD is entitled Speak of the Devil, it has a completely different setlist from the album Speak of The Devil.  That was a quick live album of all Black Sabbath cuts hurriedly issued to compete with Sabbath’s 1982 live album Live Evil.  It also featured Brad Gillis on guitar so don’t be fooled into thinking the DVD is a companion to the live album of the same name. The setlist is your fairly standard early Ozzy affair, with all the hits from his first two solo albums. There are also three Black Sabbath cuts at the end of the concert – “Iron Man,” “Children of the Grave,” and “Paranoid.”  One superb track is the “Guitar/Drum Solo” which is a blistering instrumental affair with all the band members sans Ozzy.  It ends with Aldridge bashing his kit with his bare hands!  Now that’s Metal!  

The concert featured a massive two-level stage, pyro, lasers and even a dwarf named "Ronnie.”  Gosh, I wonder who that could have been referred to? Unbelievably, “Ronnie” hangs himself during “Goodbye To Romance” and can be seen swinging in the background from a noose!  You could do crazy shit like that in the 80s and nobody cared.

The video quality is decent but it must be remembered that this was shot on tape (not film), back in 1982, and as such is in no way hi-def.  If you are expecting some jump cut, multiple camera affair you are going to be sorely disappointed.  There are shots from the crowd and shots from the back of the stage, behind the band, as well as a few close-ups and longer shots, with a grand total of three cameras being used.  There are  zero extras on the DVD and an essay in the liner notes by Rudy Sarzo.

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The Bottom Line:  If you want to see Ozzy in his prime and hear the guitar wizardry of Brad Gillis, you need this DVD.  It’s a little time capsule back to the days when MTV actually played music and a man could wear blue tights with a red studded belt.  Well, he could if that man was Ozzy. 

Wrecking Your Neck (Part XVI)

Overkill – The Electric Age

EOne Music – 2012

Muthas, there are a few phrases that you will never, ever hear uttered in the world of Metal, such as “That Lars is a great drummer!” or “What a tender Slayer ballad” or “Overkill are a bunch of sellouts.” Especially that last one, because Overkill has been cranking out slab after slab of molten, pounding, pure steel since 1983 and they show zero signs of letting up.  They have never released a shitty album or buckled to trends in their entire existence.  Overkill has been called “The Motorhead of Thrash” for the strength of their catalog and their steadfast commitment to their signature sound. (As as an aside, does that make Motorhead the Motorhead of Motorhead? – huh?)

Here at The Metal Blog of Metal, we consider Overkill to be one of the true “Big Four of Thrash” bands (TM by Lars).  Let’s face facts, Metallica hasn’t been a Thrash band since 1988 and has sucked out loud since Metallica. Megadeth has always been clutching at the hem of Metallica’s cape and cranking out such shit as Risk along with some “return to form” albums that are middling at best.  Slayer hasn’t done anything interesting since Seasons, but at least they are consistent in their mediocrity.  Finally, Anthrax abandoned Thrash and wandered aimlessly from greatness (Sound of White Noise) to garbage (Volume 8), before finally crafting a great album with Worship Music. Through all of this nonsense, Overkill stood tall and unleashed nothing but excellent albums throughout Metal’s darkest days -- AKA the 90s. 

Like clockwork, you could rely on those Jersey boys to drop a new disc every two years that restored your faith in Metal.  Hell, 1997’s From The Underground and Below singlehandedly restored this writer’s faith in Metal during its least popular period.  Sure, some albums are better than others, and some even become personal favorites, but they have always been satisfying.  Which brings us to their newest and sixteenth (!) release overall, The Electric Age.  Did Overkill sell out and release a nu-metal, screamo, angst fest? Of course they fucking didn’t.  That shit ain’t never happening in this world or the next, as Blitz, D.D. and the boys will be cranking out more albums in Valhalla for Odin’s crew long after they are done here.  

The band has stayed true to their signature sound of pummeling Thrash sprinkled with a bit of traditional Metal and a pinch of groove. The Electric Age is not the all out, balls-to-the-wall, Thrash of Ironbound but has a bit more melody and variety.  It’s still a face-blasting, shredding, album of pure titanium with such scorchers as “Come and Get It,” “Wish You Were Dead,” and “Save Yourself.”  The first single, “Electric Rattlesnake,” typifies the varied nature of the songs with Thrashy verses and choruses and then a slower mid-section that quotes Sabbath’s “Supernaut.”  Very cool!  Check out the video below for “Electric Rattlesnake” for a taste of the goodness.

In addition, the record label released a “lyric video” for the track “Wish You Were Dead” and it’s got badassery in spades.  Check it out:

See what I mean?  Skull-splitting Metal for the rabid Thrasher in all of us.  MOSH!!!

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The Bottom Line:  Buy this shit.  Don’t be some hipster asshole that whines about how Overkill albums all sound alike because it’s called a signature sound, you shitbird! The Electric Age is yet another superb album in the Overkill legacy and should be in your collection.  Buy or die!

As always, MAKE MINE METAL!!

    

Lay Down Your Soul To The Gods Rock ‘N Roll

3 Inches of Blood – Long Live Heavy Metal

Century Media Records - 2012

Bangers: Canadian Metal masters 3 Inches of Blood are back with their latest album Long Live Heavy Metal and it’s a triumph! As the title suggests, the album celebrates Metal in all its glory with pummeling tracks of pure brilliance. 3IOB’s songwriting has grown by leaps and bounds on this album with the band employing multiple tempos and styles of Metal. This is a natural progression from their previous album, Here Waits Thy Doom, which displayed more variety than previous efforts. Further, this is the second album without Jamie Hooper as co-vocalist and as a result, there are far fewer harsh vocals than on prior albums. This is always a good thing in the not so humble opinion of The Metal Blog of Metal.

What really sets Long Live Heavy Metal apart from previous albums is the way the band has skillfully blended their signature speedy Metal with more melodic parts. They’ve also loaded the songs up with a ton of hooks which makes this album one you will listen to over and over again. Check out the chorus in “Leather Lord” which reminds The Metal Blog of Metal of Judas Priest’s “Painkiller,” or “Dark Messenger” which is chock full of Maiden-esque, noodly guitar. The centerpiece is 3IOB’s tribute to Ronnie James Dio, “Look Out,” which is a superb track that has an excellent organ solo a la Rainbow. Check out "Leather Lord" below:

“4000 Torches” is infectious with a killer chorus that demands to be shouted at the top of your lungs. 3IOB offers up a track about Canada’s national pastime – hockey – with “Leave It On The Ice,” which rips off your face with its furious, Speed Metal attack. “Metal Woman” warns of a lady who's a “demon in the sack” which sounds less like a warning and more like a recommendation. “Men of Fortune” is an epic, seven-and-a-half minute track that features loads of melody and clean vocals. It’s the biggest departure for the band to date. Finally there are two instrumentals on the album – “Chief and the Blade,” which features a mandolin and a flute, and “One for the Ditch” which also has a mandolin and an organ. Normally instrumentals are skipped here at The Metal Blog of Metal but these are excellent and fit seamlessly into the album.

In keeping with the theme of celebrating all that is Metal, the album has a cover reminiscent of Venom’s At War With Satan. It’s very well done and the exterior is lettered in all gold ink, which is a very cool touch that looks great on the vinyl and digipak. The interior is presented as if it were an ancient tome with complete lyrics. It’s always nice when a band goes the extra mile in the presentation of their work. Hailz!

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The Bottom Line: Three Inches of Blood have released an excellent album with loads of variety, melody and hook. They have really stepped up their game with Long Live Heavy Metal and let’s hope the music buying public goes out and snaps this one up. Get out there and see them on tour and buy the album!

As always, MAKE MINE METAL!

Fire In The Brain - Again!

Oz – Burning Leather

AFM Records - 2011

Muthas, one of the great, unsung 80’s Metal bands was Oz from Finland. They released the absolutely cracking LP, Fire In The Brain, in 1983, but they never were able to top that album or break through into wider popularity. They released a few more decent records and then split up in the early 90s and the Metal world assumed that Oz was done for good. Well, much to everyone’s surprise, Oz reformed in 2010 with 3/5 of the original lineup – vocalist Ape Demartini, bassist Jay C. Blade, and drummer Mark Ruffneck. As you may have guessed, those might not be real names, unless Ape is possibly some sort of simian relative of Warren Demartini of Ratt. In 2011, Oz announced that they were going to be releasing their first new album since 1991 – Burning Leather.

Burning Leather contains 11 cuts – five new and six re-recorded classics (note that the sticker on the case is incorrect as it claims the exact opposite.) The songs are interposed with the first being new, the second re-recorded, the third new, etc…. Here at The Metal Blog of Metal, we usually cringe when we hear that an artist is releasing re-recorded tracks, as that normally means shitty versions of your beloved favorites on the abysmal Deadline/Cleopatra label (please see Dokken’s 2010 Greatest Hits for a particularly egregious example.) Fortunately, that’s not the case here, as Oz treats us to excellent renditions of their classics with great production. Ape is in fine voice and the songs are treated with the reverence they deserve without any attempt to “update” or “modernize” the already excellent compositions.

All the re-recorded tracks are the cream of the band’s output with not one crap song. The album includes the godly “Searchlights,” “Fire In The Brain,” “Gambler,” “Total Metal,” and “Third Warning.” The highlight of the re-recorded tracks is the difficult to obtain “Turn The Cross Upside Down,” which is the most toe-tappingest song written about burning churches, ever!

All of these tracks are essential to any Metal collection, and now you can get them affordably on one disc. Burning Leather is worth it just for these six cuts, but what about the five new songs? Believe it or not, these five cuts are also excellent and slot in beautifully alongside the classics. Oz had always been able to craft traditional Metal songs with tons of hook and they still do that in 2011. “Dominator” is the lead single and starts the album off with the kind of Metal that the world is sorely lacking. No frilly-shirted, keyboard-laden, female-fronted crap here, no sir. Check out the video below for a taste of the excellence.

“Let Sleeping Dogs Lie” is also fantastic with that old, Scandinavian, glory Metal on display. “Seasons In The Darkness” achieves an Accept-like level of stomp as it obliterates lesser music that stumbles into its mighty path. “Burning Leather” is also superb, with a speedy pace and an undeniably catchy chorus that induces much headbanging. Wrapping up the new songs is the anthemic and pulsing “Enter Stadium” which is just begging to be played at your local arena. Hailz!

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The Bottom Line: Burning Leather is a stunning return from a long gone Metal legend. Any headbanger worth his denim and leather should snap this up. Oz deserves your support so get out there and buy it!

As Always, MAKE MINE METAL!

Brand New Heavies

Angel Witch – Dead Sea Scrolls

3 Inches of Blood – Leather Lord

Bangers, a couple of new releases are hitting the racks at the end of March and both promise to be excellent. First up is the new album, As Above, So Below, from the long dormant NWOBHM band, Angel Witch. Lead vocalist/guitarist Kevin Heybourne is still at the helm and still sounds great. Check out the first single, “Dead Sea Scrolls” for a taste of the intricate, classic Metal. Fantastic!

Canadian masters 3 Inches of Blood will unleash their 5^th album, Long Live Heavy Metal, on March 27 and if the lead single, “Leather Lord” is any indication, it should be killer. Check out the song below with its “Painkiller-esque” chorus. Hailz!

Far Beyond Pathetic

Metallica – Beyond Magnetic

Warner Brothers Records 2012

Muthas, following the colossal turd that was Lulu, Metallica rushed out this 4 track EP of material left over from the Death Magnetic sessions. One can envision Lars and James freaking out over the shitty sales figures for Lulu and desperately scrambling to release anything to try and salvage some of the goodwill they built up with Death Magnetic and the Big Four concerts. Mission not accomplished.

Several things become readily apparent upon listening to the EP. First, James can no longer sing with any power and his voice is reedy and thin. In fact, he sounds horribly screechy and whiny on all four tracks. Second, Lars’s drumming is still terrible and simplistic. Plonk, plonk, plonk. How did this dipshit ever manage the drumming on …And Justice For All? Baffling. Third, the band is completely out of lyrical ideas. Does anyone really give two fucks about substance abuse as a theme? We all know that you are a degenerate drunk James, but I don’t need to hear about it ALL THE FUCKING TIME! In fact, you were more interesting and creative when drunk, so crack a bottle of Jack and have a toot and get creative again.

“Hate Is A Train” blatantly rips off the riff from “Fuel,” and as a result sounds like a leftover from Reload. Vomitous. “Just A Bullet Away” has the most unintentionally hilarious lyrics with the line “Suck on the barrel, Suck on the barrel.” It’s a shame really because musically, this is quite a good track with a nice grooving riff. “Hell And Back” is probably the least annoying track, but it's still marred by James's pathetic vocals. The EP mercifully concludes with the terrible “Rebel of Babylon,” which is yet another shitty track about alcoholism. If I want a song about Babylon, I will listen to the godly “Gates of Babylon.”

On the positive side, the EP is only 4 tracks and Kirk plays some nice riffs and solos. Also, it’s only $5, but I could have paid somebody $5 to punch me in the face and the experience would have been more pleasurable.

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The Bottom Line: Save your money. For the record, Death Magnetic was the least organic-sounding album that we've ever heard here at The Metal Blog of Metal. Zero flow. Too bad really, because there were many choice riffs that could have grown into something. Beyond Magnetic is the same shit. Blargh.

But It Goes To Eleven

The Top 11 Metal Albums of 2011

Here it is Bangers, the eleven golden champions of face-ripping, ear-splitting, skull-crushing HEAVY METAL for the year of our unholy lord, 2011.

11. Megadeth – Th1rt3en

This follow up to the excellent Endgame was a bit lackluster. The album was recorded in just seven weeks and it shows. The best track on it is the thrice previously released “New World Order” but this new version is crushing. Not a bad effort but not exactly great and the album title sucks ass.

10. White Wizzard – Flying Tigers

Another great disc of bass-driven, traditional metal from this L.A. band. Half of the album is an exceptional concept about alien conquest which is explained in the well appointed CD booklet. White Wizzard are one of the best of the NWOTHM and this album cements their greatness.

9. Portrait - Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae

Fantastic Swedish traditional metal that’s heavily influenced by Mercyful Fate. Amazing guitar tone, leads and riffs dominate the album and require vigorous and sustained headbanging. This is a big step up from their first full length release in terms of quality of the songwriting and vocals.

8. Twisted Tower Dire – Make It Dark

The fifth full-length release from these North Carolina Metallers is an excellent collection of hooky, traditional Metal. This also gets the vote for best liner notes/booklet of the year.

7. Wolf – Legions Of Bastards

These Swedes unleashed another great album and a worthy successor to Ravenous. Check out “Skullcrusher,” “Full Moon Possession,” and “Tales From The Crypt” if you want to hear how traditional Metal should be done.

6. Widow – Life’s Blood

There must be something in the water in North Carolina because Life’s Blood is the best release of Widow’s career. Ripping guitars, great vocals and catchy songs demand your attention. Buy or die!

5. Cauldron – Burning Fortune

Canadian headbangers deliver another fantastic album that could have been released in 1984. These guys know how to craft mid-paced songs that are hooky as all hell. Hailz!

4. Saxon – Call To Arms

Biff and the boys unleash an amazing album that easily competes with the masterpieces from their early catalog. The album flows beautifully with nothing but excellent cuts and should be in every Metalhead’s collection.

3. Anthrax – Worship Music

Quite possibly the strongest Metal comeback album of all time. Anthrax released their best album since 1993 much to the shock of the Metal community as they had been written off as irrelevant for years. Joey slips into the songs seamlessly, the writing is focused and the band is tight. Welcome back guys, you’ve been missed.

2. Orchid – Capricorn

One of The Metal Blog Of Metal' favorite bands, the first full length album from San Francisco’s Orchid continues the excellence displayed on the band’s earlier EP, Through The Devils Doorway. Everything is perfect on this release, from the creamy guitar tone, the superb vocals, booming bass, eclectic drumming and the beautifully appointed double-gatefold CD packaging. Orchid have crafted not just one of the best Doom Metal releases of all time, but one of the best Metal releases of the past decade. Just buy the damn thing already.

1. Vicious Rumors – Razorback Killers

Killer! VR finally found the lead singer they have been searching for since the untimely demise of Carl Albert in 1995. New vocalist Brian Allen is a perfect fit and Geoff Thorpe takes full advantage of Allen’s vocal abilities. The songs are white-hot, molten slabs of Metal perfection which demand the listener throw up the horns like a maniac. It’s great to see a long suffering band achieve greatness after soldiering on in obscurity for years. Buy this immediately!