RESURRECTIONS
Unearthing the latest metal reissues
OG SYRACUSE HARDCORE yobbos THE CATATONICS debuted with 1984’s semi-legendary Hunted Down EP (Southern Lord) [8], fusing the incipient brutality of thrash with the chaotic fury of punk before disappearing back into obscurity. Their entire recorded output is here on one disc, ensuring these caustic slabs of aggro energy are lovingly preserved for posterity. ENTOMBED were breaking out punk shapes on DCLXVI (Threeman) [6] in 1997, along with shades of stoner/ garage rock, leaving none of the deathly traces that first earned them a fanbase. It’s a fun, loud record with a raucous looseness and great thick sound, but a lack of substance and consistency hasn’t helped it age well.
PIST.ON’S Cold World+ (M-theory Audio) [4] is a reissue of an EP that came out in March (the nu metal also-rans’ first material in over 20 years), plus their self-released 2001 EP and a few tacked-on demos. The new stuff is better than the old, but that’s not saying much. Pist.on were enjoying ‘next big thing’ accolades when German headbangers PRIMAL FEAR unleashed their eponymous 1998 debut (Nuclear Blast) [8], to a chorus of giggles from the fashionable mainstream. Happily, the Germans had the last laugh. The record remains an exuberant classic of no-frills Teutonic power metal, Ralf Scheepers’ Halford-esque pipes confirming them as the go-to stand-ins for Judas Priest in the problematic Ripper era.
Those discerning tastemakers at Svart have exhumed another bit of overlooked Finnish metal history with THROMDARR’S Midwinter Frost – Complete Demo Tapes 1990-97 [8], developing from juvenile grind to doomy death to atmospheric black metal, retaining a frosty, cryptic appeal throughout. SORCERY’S 1978 Stunt Rock soundtrack [Riding Easy] [9] has been a highly regarded cult curio for decades, but it’s amazing how well this wacky period piece still stands up. The metallic elements – an irresistible blend of Blue Öyster Cult,
Alice Cooper and early Priest – hit surprisingly hard, and the quirky imagination and swaggering attitude elevate it to kitsch nirvana.
CHRIS CHANTLER