Written in Blood: Hard Music For a Hard World — September 1996

Solus
Slave Of Mind
Skin Mask 

A Canadian production company called Skin Mask sent me Slave Of Mind from the band Solus. The music rages itself into a fury from the first song, “Caustic,” to the last, “Core.” This is an album I think drummers will be especially interested in. The drummer for this band is amazing. The vocals are brutal enough to keep up with the rest of the band, but clean enough in parts to almost be understood. I only have one problem with this release. There is not one goddamn guitar solo on the entire thing. Man, I love a good solo. I’ll protect it like an endangered species if I have to. Other than that, Slave Of Mind hits the spot. 

Pro-Pain
Contents Under Pressure
Energy 

New York thrashers Pro-Pain have recently completed their latest album, Contents Under Pressure. These boys play with the cool, self assurance of knowing they’re damn good. The music isn’t overly complicated or extremely technical, though it is creative and intelligent enough to be thoroughly effective. The band’s philosophy of keeping themselves “down to earth” is also evident in their music. Pro-Pain keeps things simple and to the point. Lyrical inspiration seems to come courtesy of this twisted world, its inhabitants, and all that human nature makes us all capable of. Gary Meskil (vocals/bass) doesn’t consider himself to be as angry as he is just plain skeptical. His lyrics don’t offer solutions to all the world’s problems, but they do provide the kick in the ass which is often needed to find them. This album should do a lot for this band. 

OverDose
Scars
Fierce Recordings 

The band OverDose are set to release their latest album, Scars on September 17. Their last album, Progress of Decadence, marked their long awaited break into the U.S. market. The band has been around since 1985, and have five albums on the Brazilian based Cogumelo label. As of their last album, Fierce Records and the band have been enjoying OverDose’s increased commercial success. Progress of Decadence spent over 40 weeks on the U.S. college radio charts. The band’s latest venture Scars combines precision guitar work with an equally impressive percussion and vocal section. The band is unrelenting in their brutal style of metal. Well, “The Last Word” is a kind of kick back tune, so I guess they relent a little. OverDose came through Salt Lake about 2 years ago while on tour with Skrew. They were supposed to return last summer with the noise fest tour, unfortunately that tour crapped out long before it made it here. 

Floodgate
Penalty
Roadrunner 

Floodgate is one of Roadrunner’s latest signings. The band was formed by former Exhorder vocalist Kyle Thomas. I’ve been wondering what happened to Exhorder. Apparently, that band went to the big concert hall in the sky back in ’93. Since then, Kyle has taken up the guitar and worked on material for Floodgate. At least he had the sense not to go out and get a real job. The band’s influences, which include Sabbath, play a large part in their sound. Floodgate takes the traditional recipe for good rock n’ roll, and updates it with today’s metal feel. Kyle, a classically trained vocalist, feels this band gives him more room to express himself musically. The words, “one of the best new bands” have even been used to describe the band by Roadrunner VP, Monte Conner.

Corrosion Of Conformity
Wiseblood
Columbia 

The first time I saw Corrosion Of Conformity was in Felton, Delaware. I was probably in ninth or tenth grade. The show took place at an old, closed-down roller rink. I still have the C.O.C. concert shirt from that night. C.O.C. continues on with their ass-end heavy, southern-style, blues rock. Wiseblood, as well as their last two releases (Deliverance and Blind), marks a transitioning point for the band. Albums this band has released in the 1990s have had more of a metal sound and feel. C.O.C fans from the band’s early years might think I’ve missed the boat, but in my opinion the band has never been better. It may not be old school hardcore anymore, but it still has enough punch to have you stumbling out on the sidewalk muttering to yourself, “where are the rest of my teeth?” 

Earth Crisis / Snapcase / Strife
The California Takeover (Live)
Victory 

Hardcore fans, check out Victory Record’s, The California Takeover. It’s a live album featuring Earth Crisis, Snapcase, and Strife. The material was taken from an April 12, 1996 show that took place at Hollywood’s Whiskey A-Go Go. The CD contains four songs from each band. Track nine, “Ecoside” by Earth Crisis, was even dedicated to all of the people that went to the show from Salt Lake. This release really captures the raw energy of a hardcore show. You can hear the fans singing along through entire songs. Now that’s dedication. Well, especially when you compare it to last night’s Slayer show. The question went out to the crowd, “What’s the title track of our second album?” I don’t think anyone knew. Tom Arya didn’t seem too pleased. Here’s a chance to redeem yourselves. Anyone that can send me the name of the last song on side two from the album Hell Awaits by Slayer, will AT LEAST get one of the new Written In Blood Stickers. Send your responses (attention Written In Blood) to the address for SLUG in the front of the magazine.

Bile Teknowhore
Energy 

Experimental music takes us down paths we haven’t traveled, rather than trying to improve on an existing form of music. Since its beginning, the Long Island, New York based band, Bile would fit the definition of experimental music. Even though, the fact that it is experimental, leaves it safe from being completely definable. Bile combines metal, industrial, dance, techno, samples, etc., and forms them into a soundscape of the truly disturbed. The members of this band have also added 

genuine talent, which has been fostered for years in the New York underground, as both combined and individual efforts. The band’s first full-length release, Teknowhore comes two years after their debut EP, Suckpump. 

August was certainly a good month for live shows. I began by removing my leather jacket, Metallica t-shirt and motorcycle boots, scraping off the press on skull tattoos, taking off the studded wrist bands, and went to the Cure. Metal no, good yes. Next… Life Of Agony, Anthrax, and The Misfits. Was Athey anywhere to be found? Hell no! Punk. Don’t say you were there, I checked with the door half way through the show. Oh well, it was probably best we didn’t meet. I was crying in my beer all night after finding out Cannibal Corpse wasn’t coming. The next night, Victory’s Bloodlet and Relapse Record’s Neurosis rolled into town. The crowd responded favorably to Bloodlet’s style of “evil core.” Neurosis’s show left everyone pretty much mesmerized, though the floor erupted into a pit at various points during their performance. If you were into that show, Entheogen by Bloodlet and Through Silver In Blood by Neurosis will interest you. I rounded out my concert going experience this month with Slayer. I’ll talk about that later. —Forgach 

Read more Written in Blood by John Forgach in the SLUG Archives:
Written in Blood: August 1996
Written in Blood: May 1996

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