OLD SCHOOL REVIEWS

Pestilence - "Malleus Maleficarvm"
(Roadracer Records) 1988
Official Pestilence Website  
Pestilence - "Out of the Body" Video  

Since Pestilence will be one of the headliners at this year's magnificent Maryland Deathfest, I decided to go back and educate myself by checking out their first album. After listening to this baby front to back, I am convinced these guys were not only breast fed not on delicious titty milk, but also"Haunting the Chapel" era Slayer and the early Kreator. This is not backround music by any means. This riffs on this baby are one of a kind. "Commandments" builds in such an epic fashion it could easily be mistaken for a long lost Metallica track. It is the thrashiest song you'll find on this album. I am convinced the closing riff could make anyone headbang. Even Regis Philbin would start a circle pit if they played it on his faggoty show. Same goes for the catchy, yet ridiculously dark "Chemo Therapy". The riff that takes control of the song at the 2:58 mark solidifies this album as one of my all time favorites. If you are a fan of aggresive metal, you must own "Malleus Maleficarvm".

-Matt Stovall




METALLICA- "KILL 'EM ALL"
(Electra) 1983
Official Metallica Website  
Metallica - "Whiplash" Live '86  

Although I wasn't even born in 1983 when this album was released, I still love this classic thrash metal record by a "once" classic band. Before Pantera, before Megadeth, and even before Slayer. Metallica was thrashing' up the already fantastic genre of music that we know as Heavy Metal. This album added a much needed speed, sound and look to Metal in a time when Hair Metal and Glam Metal were the only things we had. With songs like "Seek & Destroy", "Whiplash", and a remake of Diamond Head's "Am I Evil?", How could you not get excited? To sum things up this is a must have in any Metal fan's collection. This album invented Thrash Metal and influence so many great bands such as, Slayer, Sepultura, Megadeth and Anthrax. God I love this album!

-CODY HARDIN




IRON MAIDEN- "THE NUMBER OF THE BEAST"
(Sanctuary) 1982
Official Iron Maiden Website  
Iron Maiden - "Run to the Hills" Video  

Ok, this may be my all time favorite album! Released in 1982 write after "Killers", this is Iron Maiden at their finest. I think this is such a great album because it introduced the world to one of the finest front men ever, Bruce Dickinson! Yes, yes, yes, Dickinson. With the songs, "Number Of The Beast", "Run To The Hills", and "Children Of The Damned"... THIS ALBUM ROCKS! In conclusion, get your leather pants, grow your hair out, and put on your Powerslave cut-off because this is takin' you back to the days when when Metal ruled and there was no Nickelback or Fall Out Boy to ruin the ear. If your a Metal fan you must have this album!

-CODY HARDIN




DWARVES - "…Are Young and Good Looking"
1997 (Sub-Pop)
Official Dwarves Website  
Dwarves - "We Must Have Blood" Video  

This is the longest and most awesome Dwarves album ever ! "Everybody's Girl" had plenty of people's toes tapping when it appeared on the Punk-O-Rama 3 compilation. That being the poppiest and friendliest track on there, it led people to seek out the rest of the album and subsequently proceeded to blow in their asses. "I Will Deny", "The Crucifixion is Now", and "I Want to be Your Pimp" are punk rock classics that shall never lose their luster. "You Gotta Burn" and "We Must Have Blood" are rockabilly infused burners that give me chills when I hear them. So go dig through the old vinyls and tapes to relive the good times with this great record.

-Rob"Bubbs"Harris




ACID BATH-"Paegan Terrorism Tactics"
( 1996 ) Rotten Records
Official Acid Bath Website  
Acid Bath - "Bleed Me an Ocean" Live  

As grunge started to die down in the mid-nineties, there were still many bands like MELVINS, BUZZ-OVEN, and ACID BATH who were making slow sludgy tunes, but without the fluffy riffs and catchy hooks associated with the grunge/alternative scene. ACID BATH in particular is one such outfit that, for only having released a couple records, is cited as one of the most influential groups in all of metal. Paegan Terrorism Tactics is an album that never gets old, no matter how much you listen to it. Songs like "Bleed Me An Ocean" and "Venus Blue" resonate in the mind and stay there for good. And have you ever listened to the acoustic masterpiece "Dead Girl"...ON WEED ? Its definately an experience to be enjoyed.
Not all the tunes here are slow though, there are plenty of blastbeats and death vocals to get your blood flowing like a twelve year old girl. ACID BATH may be gone forever, but before they went, they left us with one of the greatest albums of all time. Paegan Terrorism Tactics is a must have!

-Rob"Bubbs"Harris




The Exploited- "Beat the Bastards"
( 1996 )
Official The Exploited Website  
The Exploited - "Beat the Bastards" Video  

With the huge resurgance of thrash crushing skulls around the world, I thought I would raid the old tape collection and see if I could dig up something from the thrash bands of yesteryear. And boy did I find one ! The Exploited are better known for crusty punk classics like Punks Not Dead,
Lets Start A War, and The Massacre. But in '96, the barmy ones released an album too fast, too heavy, and too metal to be considered a punk record. Beat The Bastards is so undeniably thrash, I bet any of today's headbangers site this album as a huge influence. Songs like "Police TV", "Don't Blame Me", and "Massacre of Innocents" hit you like a fuckin' wrecking ball, leaving nothing but a shivering bloody mass. Every single track on this is designed to make you question whether or not you are really ready to be this tough. If you think Good Charlotte is a punk band, this record might actually kill you. Well thats all for this installment of From The TapeDeck. So dust off your cassettes or records or whatever, and give Beat The Bastards a good listening.
- Rob"Bubbs"Harris




MANOWAR- "Fighting the World"
( 1987) ATCO music

Official Manowar Website  
Manowar - "Black Wind, fire, and Steel" Live  

Let me start off by saying, if you don't know who MANOWAR is, then you have no business calling yourself a metal fan.
Most people will tell you that Battle Hymns or The Triumph of Steel are the best albums from the "Kings of Metal", but my personal favorite is 1987's Fighting the World. There are nine tracks of glorious headbanging, fistpounding metal majesty contained within. I would suggest wearing a back brace or getting a spotter, because this shit is extremely heavy."Black Wind, Fire, and Steel" and "Holy War" are two of the most brutally powerful songs
in the entire MANOWAR catalog."Blow Your Speakers","Carry On", and "The Defender" are classic anthems that speak to the warrior inside us all, telling us to stand and fight for that which we hold true. There are some who think MANOWAR is some kind of joke, like nobody could take metal that seriously. Well, let me say this. When the Gods come to wipe the weak and the lame from the earth, and take the true believers to Valhalla, Fighting the World will be the soundtrack to which they ride.

-- Rob "Bubbs" Harris







TWISTED SISTER- "Stay Hungry"
1984 ( Atlantic )
Official Twisted Sister Website  
Twisted Sister - "Burn in Hell" Live '84  

Lets get something straight right now, TWISTED SISTER is not some poser-pussy glam band. They may have worn the makeup and the frilly clothes, but underneath all that shit was a tough as nuts metal juggernaut. Stay Hungry is probably the most overlooked albums in the group's history. Sure it gained some notice with the success of " We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock", but I don't think most people outside of TS's diehard fanbase got much further than that. "Burn In Hell" is not only one of the heaviest riffs of all time, but it makes me think of that scene in Pee-Wee's Big Adventure when they are filming the video for this song and along comes Pee-Wee with Santa Claus and Godzilla to fuck it all up. Ahh...good times. Moving on, there are so many killers on Stay Hungry like "Don't Let Me Down", "The Beast","S.M.F.", and of course the Horrorteria story of "Captain Howdy" and "Street Justice", which of course was eventually released as a movie entitled "Strangeland", starring none other than Dee Snider himself. And who can forget the most awesome ballad ever in "The Price"? Bottom line, if you want some straight up, from the gutter, kick ass metal, get in your Delorian and travel back to '84 so you can bang your skull to this bonafide classic.
-Rob"Bubbs"Harris




ICED EARTH- "The Dark Saga"
1996 (Century Media)
Official Iced Earth Website  
Iced Earth - "I Died for You" Unofficial Video  

Anyone who is a fan of metal and/or comic books knows that "The Dark Saga" is one of the most important releases of 1996. Not only was it spot on with following the first 20-25 issues of the ultra-popular SPAWN series( Image ), but it was also a message to head bangers around the world that this kind of metal was not dead, despite efforts from certain groups to tarnish the good name of our beloved music. Songs like "Violate" , "Vengeance is Mine", and "Depths of Hell" are solid rockers that tell the story of some of Spawn's greatest foes, The Violator , Billy Kincaid, and Malbolgia, while "I Died For You" and the title track are more heartfelt ballads telling of the undying love Al Simmons has for Wanda, his widow who married Terry Fitzgerald, Al's best friend. Another notable track is "The Hunter" , which contains one of the tightest riffs created by mortal hands. Overall, this is a well crafted masterpiece by one of the genre's most respected outfits.
-Bubbs




TSOL- "Dance With Me"
1981 (Frontier )
Official TSOL Website  
T.S.O.L. - "Code Blue" Live  

One of the best early 80's punk bands, TSOL made a serious statement with "Dance With Me". Pure punk rock fury is displayed on classics like "Sounds of Laughter" , "80 Times", and "Die For Me". And who doesn't love the necrophilia ridden "Code Blue' ? You can ask any punk if they like TSOL, most will say 'Fuck Yeah !' , and some will say 'No, but "Dance With Me" is an awesome record'. While the band's popularity was masked a little by bands like MISFITS , they have managed to stick around in one form or another , playing shows and releasing albums. This is definitely something I would recommend to any punk rock fan who wants to go back to the roots of this amazing genre.
-Bubbs




SNOT - "Get Some"
1998 (Geffen)
Official Snot Myspace  
Snot - "Stoopid" Video  

In 1998, nu-metal bands were coming out left and right. Most sucked, but there was the occasional group that would come forth with something interesting. Sadly, one of the greatest groups to be lumped into that genre only got to release one album before losing their lead singer to a car accident. That band was SNOT, and the singer was the phenomenal Lynn Straight. "Get Some" is not your run of the mill, late 90's bullshit. Mixing metal, funk, and punk rock with the occasional hint of hip-hop without sounding like Limp Bizkit, SNOT was definitely the stand out band to watch in '98. "The Box", "Alarm Clock", and "Get Some" are examples of how to mix these genres and not sound false or rushed. My personal favorite track is "Mr. Brett", a punk rock anthem about Brett Guerewitz (Bad Religion) , the president of Epitaph records who raised the prices of his labels records to obnoxious prices when taking over the label. Who knows what would have become of these guys had Lynn not died, but before he left, he gave us one of the strongest vocal beatings of all time.
-Bubbs




BAD RELIGION - "Against the Grain"
1990 (Epitaph)
Official Bad Religion Website  
Bad Religion - "Anasthesia" Live  

"Against the Grain" is the most musically complex and lyrically potent BAD RELIGION album ever, and that's saying a lot considering Greg Graffin and his affinity for big words. Fans of this legendary band would agree with me when I say that songs like "Anastesia" , "Blenderhead", "Entropy", "Unacceptable", "The Flat Earth Society" and the title track are amongst the best in the BR catalogue. I for one, have been listening to this album regularly for almost twenty years, and I have yet to grow tired of it. Love 'em or hate 'em, BAD RELIGION have earned their place at the top of the punk rock mountain by continuing to press on and push themselves musically , and releasing good album after good album. This is certainly a gem not to be overlooked.
-Bubbs

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