My Music Page

This page is mainly thumbnail reviews and comparisons, so that people might be able to discover some new music that they otherwise would have never thought to try.  I make no claims to the completeness of this page.  I am not a music expert by any means, and I cannot play an instrument even under threat of death, but I know what I like.  This is stuff I like, if you have similar tastes, this info might help you diversify your collection.  If not, <shrug>.

Reviews

Here are some reviews that were originally posted on Amazon, which is where the links take you (obviously).

Darkthrone
Transilvanian Hunger
Darkthrone's weakest effort since becoming Black Metal  
I know this is considered a classic and many feel it is Darkthrone's best work, but I am going to have to disagree. In addition to being repetitive, it's boring. Repetition isn't always bad but here they seem to play the same unimpressive song over and over and over and over. How anyone can claim that this album is better than A Blaze In The Northern Sky or Panzerfaust is beyond me. Each of their other albums (except the first) has a fine mix of tempos and styles all of which have a distinctive Darkthrone sound. If you are just getting into Black Metal and want to hear some of the founding father's works, try Panzerfaust or Total Death instead of this one.

Destruction
Sentence of Death / Infernal Overkill
Incredible German thrash metal  
Destruction was one of the best thrash metal bands to come out of the 80's and probably *the* best German thrash band. There is an incredible improvement in the musicianship between their first album, Sentence of Death, and their second, Infernal Overkill. Sentence of Death, while fun and good in parts (particularly Total Desaster (sic)), sounds like the band were kicked awake and given 20 minutes of studio time to do the recording. Infernal Overkill though, is incredible. The difference in quality is astounding, with the band showing its appreciation of classical music in some of the song structures. The best songs are probably Bestial Invasion and Black Death and the seriously impressive instrumental Thrash Attack (which sounds like it could have been written after channeling Beethoven during a séance). 

If you like thrash or even death metal, give these guys a try, you will not be disappointed.

Hellhammer
Apocalyptic Raids
One of the heaviest albums ever made! 
As with a lot of genre defining albums, I did not enjoy this album when I first listened to it. After several listenings, though, I was hooked! I wore out the grooves on my vinyl copy and was ecstatic when it was finally released on CD. Sure, the music is kinda sloppy, sure, the vocals are agonizing...but they all come together and form one of the most brutal musical experiences I've ever heard. All of today's death metal bands owe a huge debt to Hellhammer (and also Celtic Frost, which is the reincarnation of Hellhammer). The amazing thing about this album is that the songs are very catchy! You'll find they stick with you for quite awhile after listening to them. I think the highest compliment I can pay to this album is that 15+ years after hearing it for the first time, Triumph of Death still gives me chills. If you like any kind of metal you should own this CD...even if it is just to experience how heavy an album can be.

Voivod
War & Pain
Total 80's brutality that grows on you...  
It took me quite a while before I realized that I liked this album. What at first seemed like a completely haphazard blur of thrashing guitars, drums and screams, grew over several listenings into a coherent whole. I think the reason that they sounded so raw and unfocused at the time was that they were helping to pave the way, and there were few other bands to compare the sound to. The best cuts are probably the title track, Voivod, Blower and Warriors of Ice. If you enjoy any sorts of thrash or death metal, give this album a couple of listenings, I don't think you'll be disappointed. 

If you enjoyed later Voivod albums this may not be your cup of tea. There are few similarities between their early stuff (War & Pain, RRROOOAAARRR, Killing Technology) and their later stuff (Nothingface, Angel Rat, etc.) several of which I have not even listened to.

Cirith Ungol
Frost & Fire / King of the Dead
One of the best metal albums to come out of the 80's  
Let me start by saying that I think that Frost & Fire is a much weaker album than King of the Dead. King of the Dead is one of the few albums from the 80's that I will still listen to on a regular basis. Cirith Ungol's music is vaguely similar to early Black Sabbath (Sabotage era) with rather high-pitched vocals. Usually I dislike this type of singing but the mix of the vocals and the music transcend any problems. The vocals *are* an acquired taste, as with bands like Burzum (though Tim Baker's vocals are far from being like Count Grishnacht's wailing). If I had to make a comparison the vocals might be likened to early Voivod, say the War & Pain album. The music is clean and well produced and is very memorable, I find myself humming the bass lines for several days after a listening. If you have never heard any Cirith Ungol, skip past the songs from Frost and Fire and go straight to Atom Smasher, King of the Dead or Finger of Scorn. Their version of Toccata in Dm is really incredible, and is played straight, not as a "metal" version. I've wracked my brain trying to think of a band that they sound like for a comparison, but they really don't sound like any other bands. If you're looking for something different, give them a try.