Crust punk is the direct ancestor of grindcore. It is an uncomplicated genre, featuring big but simple riffs, speed, a gnarly, fuzzed up guitar sound and left wing political sloganeering. We looked at some bands that could be called proto grindcore; bands that informed the spaztic blurr of what would be called the world's most extreme form of music, but still had one foot in crust punk. Also, these bands are incredibly British. Also, all these albums were released in the 80's. Also, go watch your mother have sex with Satan.
Discharge is the grand daddy of all grindcore and their first album, Hear Nothing See Nothing Say Nothing, is the genome of a million clone bands. They were the punk band that hardly any punks could get into, instead to be embraced by thrashers like Metallica and Anthrax, who covered their songs. Their songs are structured simply; based around shouted slogans, big riffs, and the D-beat, which is basically the blast beat at half speed. There is a special filthy aura that surrounds this highly influential album. Do not go here looking for fancy time changes and nimble fingered solos. Go here for primal raw power and outrage. This was Demon Scourge's pick for winner.
The next album, Bolt Thrower's In Battle There Is No Law, is the most blatantly metal of the three album. This is death metal that got lumped in with grindcore because of the pure white fury of the riffs and the primitive fury of the attack. The D-beat is quite evident, though many song shifting between blast beats and the crust punk staple. The songs, though a bit complicated for punk, definitely have a crusty feel to them, and the bargain basement production values enhance. But the riffs are on horse steriods. My pick for winner, dude. I am the Judgement.The last album, Doom's Total Doom, was the most grindy album of the night. It's basic hardcore with an incredibly filthy, sludgy feel. D-beats abound, the vocals are gruff and guttural, the lyrics political, outraged, and pessimistic. At over an hour long, this album drags, and the repetitive nature of the songs grate. But in short doses, this is the shot of trailer park meth that gets you going in the morning.
So I am (as you all know) a fan of the old-fasioned metal. I love the D&D imagery of the first metal blade bands and the razor sharp harmonies of classic speed metal. Don't get me wrong, I love death and black metal too, I can dig some good shred or grindcore, but if you come to my house you are far more likely to hear Savage Grace or Liege Lord than Watain. This was a night of metal comfort food, the meat and potatoes masters from days gone by, so withouit further ado...LET'S PARTY
Brocas Helm - Black Death
Here we have one helluva record. If you know Brocas Helm, you know that they are one of the most long-lived stalwarts of the underground metal scene. This, their second full length, is full of Cali thrash riffage with a real old school flavor, serving up tales of demons, wizards and nuclear war with a side of twin guitar harmonies to finish you off. I would group this band together with Manilla Road and Cirth Ungol as representing a kind of alternate musical universe for US metal where the more traditional Euro-style exists side by side with bay area thrash. I really like the gang vocals on Prepare for Battle and the strange, chaotic samples in Hell's Whip. The story goes that this album was supposed to come out in 1985, but due to disagreements with their label, First Strike, the band ended up releasing it themselves three years later. Who knows, perhaps people would have been more accepting of their style in those days, but their decision to blaze their own trail through the glory days of glam metal and grunge allowed them to develop their own unique sound. It is criminal that this band was never given their due given the quality of the first two albums, but you can hear their influence in Slough Feg, Hammers of Misfortune and other weirdo San Fran metal that followed in their wake. Let us simply thank the gods of metal that this tremendous trio saw fit to bless us with this music and that witch (hopefully) is to come.
Artillery - By Inheritance
I gotta say, I really love this Artillery album. These guys have hella chops and singer Flemming Rönsdorf busts it out with one of those great gruff yet polished vocal styles. You can really feel the aftershocks of the great thrashquake of the late 80's in the polished production. This style was dominant in the years of ...And Justice For All, State of Euphoria, and So Far So Good...So What. The lyrical themes explored on By Inheritance are far more in tune with the times than the other two albums we sampled. Anti war rants, indictments of society, a surprising anti-Kohmani tirade and assorted paeans to revenge and other tough guy subjects. I would describe the tunes as thrash metal with a splash of hard rock to spice up the pot (their decision to include a cover of a Nazareth song is telling.) This is most definatly a guitar lover's album, with brothers Mort and Michael Stutzer deploying an arsenal of devastating riffs, strafing the landscape with tight, technical playing. This is just a great thrash album that should be more known, I declare it the winner of the night!
Dark Wizard - Reign of Evil
Wait, how did these guys get in here? This album, while not the most astounding musicaly, is a pretty fun outing. They travel the same bloodstained medieval road that Brocas Helm does, but their music is a much more hard rock/NWOBHM variety of Tolkien inspired madness. Vocalist Berto Van Veen steals the show here, hamming it up in broken english like Sir Laurence Olivier in Clash of the Titans. He must have been quite a frontman, I noticed that one website suggests that their stage show featured characters called Mr. Nice and Doctor Doom, who came out of coffins (?) The same source also claims he "went crazy" and "joined a religionist cult." Make of that what you will, but one thing is for sure, his over the top personality lifts this album from mediocre to listenable.
Until next week, sultans of steel,
Horns
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