Tag Archives: thrash metal

Reviews, Videos

“Live In Japan” by Flotsam and Jetsam

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Artist: Flotsam & Jetsam
Title: “Live In Japan”
Label: Crash Music
Release Date: 2/21/2006
Genre: Thrash Metal
Rating: 6/10

Flotsam and Jetsam are considered one of the legendary Thrash bands from when the genre was building up a lot of steam in the early eighties. Despite having some kick ass music the band is most known for having once had Jason Newsted as their bassist. From humble beginnings the bassist went on to join Metallica for several albums. His band mates stuck with it and generated their own level of buzz remaining more of an underground force for Metal rather than something mainstream and easily found on all the Metal stations of the time. Japan was a strong supporter of their music and this concert filmed in Kawasaki at the Club Citta in 2005 finds the band performing their best material before an audience of sold out proportions. Mentioning Overkill at one point the band must have been part of a heavy hitter tour of some kind. The lineup for the DVD stands at Eric A.K. – Vocals, Edward Carlson – Guitar, Craig Nielsen – Drums, Jason Ward – Bass Guitar, & Mark Simpson – Guitar. A tight group and overall the concert is a good example of the band since they are performing mainly songs the cult following enjoys. It’s enough to give a new listener a fair idea of what the band is all about. There is a bonus video included on the DVD and the performance which runs at 55 minutes offers little else than sufficient head banging. Having recently left Metal Blade Records, this DVD comes to the listener/viewer courtesy of Crash Music. It would have been good for some more biographical information to be given, or perhaps a day in the life of feature that many are incorporating into such presentations.
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Music, Reviews

“No Hit Wonders” by Anthrax

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Artist: Anthrax
Title: “Anthrology: No Hit Wonders (1985-1991)
Label: Universal Records
Release Date: 9/20/2005
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating: 8.5/10

Heavy Metal & Thrash would be very different musical genres if not for many of the contributions made by New York based band Anthrax. Combining catchy lyrics and blistering riffs with thunderous drumming this band was special from the get go. They were energetic and intelligent and often showed a truly dark sense of humor with their material. Over the years there had been a number of lineup changes and while the music remained heavy there were subtle differences in some of its delivery. In 2005 the band would prove to have a banner year for on the 20th Anniversary of their release “Spreading The Disease”, the group reunited with all members of the “classic” lineup and celebrated with a World Tour. Once again the Metal Legions would get to experience Joey Belladonna, Scott Ian, Frank Bello, Charlie Benante and Daniel Spitz do what they did best together which was perform kick ass music. The release of “Anthrology: No Hit Wonders” takes selections from the following albums Spreading The Disease (1985), Among The Living (1987), State Of Euphoria (1988) and Persistence Of Time (1990), and also makes sure to use stuff from the EPs I’m The Man (1987), Penikufesin (1989) and Attack Of The Killer B’s (1991). It is a celebration of this era’s work and fans of the bands life at the classic lineup time will love this. The John Bush fans however might have a problem for none of the material that he performs on is featured here.
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Reviews, Videos

“Raw Video” by Pro-Pain

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Artist: Pro-Pain
Title: “Raw Video”
Label: Candlelight Records
Release Date: 4/19/2005
Genre: Thrash Metal
Rating: 5/10

With the release of “Raw Video” on Candlelight USA by Pro-Pain we have exactly that. A collection of raw footage of the band in concert and their videos but not much else. Honestly, this is very simply stated. There is no interview footage or real extras to speak of. Just solid thrashing metal delivered by a mainstay in the genre. This single DVD edition is split into two menu option, the first being the bands videos and the second a live performance shoot from Stuttgart Germany. Regarding the bands videos well the new viewer or casual fan should not expect to be amazed by their quality. On watching them you will find them to be very basic and not of the level of groups who had mass budgets to do this kind of thing over the course of their career. It’s a sad testament in most heavy bands lives I am afraid. The part one can be happy about if you followed them is that this seems to be all the videos that the group did.

As far as the concert portion goes I felt a little let down. Granted it’s a full show with 16 in your face metal tunes but the show was shot from what seems to be one or two cameras. There are not a lot of angles to the show just close-ups. Also the sound was very bad, and takes away from enjoying this overall. When I see a live video these days I feel that they need to work a little on the sound because so many other bands are pulling out the stops in this area. It sounds almost as if it was coming from only a handful of mics that were plugged into the board. None of the levels seem even and some sections there are ups and downs in volume.

My rating is based more on the quality of the piece than the band, as I give them credit for giving the fan base a double shot of their work. I am sure that the die hard fans of Pro-Pain are best served by this more than the casual listener. Yet there is always a chance that someone looking back on purveyors of the genre might enjoy seeing this.

Track Listing: Videos
1. Can You Feel It?
2. Down For The Cause
3. Substance
4. In For The Kill
5. Don’t Kill Yourself To Live
6. Time
7. State Of Mind
8. Make War Not Love
9. Pound For Pound

Track Listing: Concert
1. Pride
2. Make Some Noise
3. Fuck It
4. Draw Blood
5. Fed Up
6. Life’s Hard
7. Get Real
8. Stand Tall
9. Time Will Tell
10. In For The Kill
11. F.S.U.
12. Desensitize
13. Foul Taste Of Freedom
14. Shine
15. Make War Not Love
16. Political Suicide

Official Web site: http://www.pro-pain.com/

Reviews, Videos

“Seen Between The Lines” by Testament

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Artist: Testament
Title: “Seen Between The Lines”
Label: Escapi Music
Release Date: 3/8/2005
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating: 7/10

The Legions of Testament fans all over the world will enjoy the decision to re-issue this VHS release on DVD format. “Seen Between The Lines” was originally released in 1991 and for the DVD the footage has been cleaned up and remastered to better capture the quality available in this format. Primarily the footage is shot from the audience perspective or is not of a pro-level yet it is a great way to remember what Testament was like back in the day. The lineup for this piece was often referred to as the classic lineup of the band and featured Alex Skolnick, Chuck Billy, Eric Peterson, Greg Christian and Louie Clemente. Much of this footage was filmed during the “Clash Of The Titans” tour where the band was featured on the bill with Slayer and Megadeth.
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