Mental Metal Obsessions

[Don Gately]

Sabbat I had an album of theirs, History of a time to come. I'm just thinking did Wolves in the throne room rip them off or am I wide of the mark

[open face surgery]

Ya, that doesn't make sense.

[Bürggermeister]

I had a Sabbat t-shirt with the tour dates on the back and the title "History of a Tour to Come", when many of the dates were still in the future. Deep.

[Eoin McLove]

Different Sabbat.

[open face surgery]

Love that Evoke artwork too. Great release as well.

[Eoin McLove]

Yep. I'll have to hunt down a CD or LP.

[Petardo]

Probably an unpopular opinion, but I think Renewal is Kreator's best album. Less unpopular would be Agent Orange being Sodom's best.

I agree with you, Renewal is the best thing they ever did. There's nothing quite like it, either by them or anyone else. It was amazing to read, in the liner notes of the recent reissue, that part of the reason was that Frank refused to tune down. He plays in standard tuning throughout so was forced to play something different to Mille almost all the time which, now that I know about it, makes so much sense why that album sounds the way it does. I love their earlier stuff but Renewal just has a unique vibe to it which they have never bettered. SodomI can take or leave. Agent Orange was ok but they're nothing special to me.

Another obsession of mine... Cynic. I first read about them in a Metal Forces pre-Human interview with Chuck, where he discussed the Spiritual Healing lineup falling apart and how he had gotten the best musicians in Florida to record this new, aggressive music. I was intrigued. As a result, I picked up Testimony of the Ancients and Unquestionable Presence, too, on the strength of them featuring one of the Cynic lads, based on the logic that "if they're good enough for Chuck..." These were the pre-internet days where you couldn't just listen to anything, anytime. Many purchases were made based on something I read, word of mouth, thanks lists or even someone, in a band I liked, wearing a band t-shirt in a picture. Human, UP and TOTA are still among my favourite albums to this day. I still remember the bitterness of opening the inlay to Individual Thought Patterns and finding out Reinert and Masvidal weren't on it. In fact, I'm not sure I ever got over that 😂

When Focus eventually came out, it was like nothing I had ever heard and the Cynic associated albums were among my main listening material through the dark musical wastelands of the mid-to-late 90's. Since then, I have continued to pick up anything featuring any of them. As the internet became a thing, finding out about Imperial Doom and On The Seventh Day... and being able to get those CDs on e-bay, learning about Portal and Gordian Knot, then Aeon Spoke, the joy of it all. That fucking Aghora album, when I found out about it, was like a light in the dark. The Cynical Sphere became invaluable and great to see there were other people out there who shared the obsession.

The reunion has delivered in spades and I'll pick up whatever comes out, be it new stuff or remixes, even though the post-Reinert and Malone years just won't be the same. Cynic is essential.

This is all fact. I also have a 30 year long obsession with Cynic. Been listening to Refocus all week.
Even more obsessed with Atheist. I became a bassist because of Piece of Time.
They're touring the US together right now playing my dream gig every night. No European dates sadly.

Also Renewal is the best Kreator album.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

Discovering Cynic and then all the bands in the same star system was a damn exciting time alright. I heard Cynic before Atheist, then there was Gordian Knot, Aghora, it was all so damn interesting. And, naturally, Death's hurtling course from death metal into the same zone. Couple of other bands Meister Bürgger mentions there that I never fully explored, must rekindle the flame and get on to that.

[Bürggermeister]

On a related theme, I see Watchtower, the ones who really opened the door to the technical stuff for me, are going to play in Germany in October. Might have to do the needful 😂

And a Sprial Architect reunion wouldn't be a bad thing either.

[astfgyl]

Probably an unpopular opinion, but I think Renewal is Kreator's best album. Less unpopular would be Agent Orange being Sodom's best.

I agree with you, Renewal is the best thing they ever did. There's nothing quite like it, either by them or anyone else. It was amazing to read, in the liner notes of the recent reissue, that part of the reason was that Frank refused to tune down. He plays in standard tuning throughout so was forced to play something different to Mille almost all the time which, now that I know about it, makes so much sense why that album sounds the way it does. I love their earlier stuff but Renewal just has a unique vibe to it which they have never bettered. SodomI can take or leave. Agent Orange was ok but they're nothing special to me.

Another obsession of mine... Cynic. I first read about them in a Metal Forces pre-Human interview with Chuck, where he discussed the Spiritual Healing lineup falling apart and how he had gotten the best musicians in Florida to record this new, aggressive music. I was intrigued. As a result, I picked up Testimony of the Ancients and Unquestionable Presence, too, on the strength of them featuring one of the Cynic lads, based on the logic that "if they're good enough for Chuck..." These were the pre-internet days where you couldn't just listen to anything, anytime. Many purchases were made based on something I read, word of mouth, thanks lists or even someone, in a band I liked, wearing a band t-shirt in a picture. Human, UP and TOTA are still among my favourite albums to this day. I still remember the bitterness of opening the inlay to Individual Thought Patterns and finding out Reinert and Masvidal weren't on it. In fact, I'm not sure I ever got over that 😂

When Focus eventually came out, it was like nothing I had ever heard and the Cynic associated albums were among my main listening material through the dark musical wastelands of the mid-to-late 90's. Since then, I have continued to pick up anything featuring any of them. As the internet became a thing, finding out about Imperial Doom and On The Seventh Day... and being able to get those CDs on e-bay, learning about Portal and Gordian Knot, then Aeon Spoke, the joy of it all. That fucking Aghora album, when I found out about it, was like a light in the dark. The Cynical Sphere became invaluable and great to see there were other people out there who shared the obsession.

The reunion has delivered in spades and I'll pick up whatever comes out, be it new stuff or remixes, even though the post-Reinert and Malone years just won't be the same. Cynic is essential.

This is all fact. I also have a 30 year long obsession with Cynic. Been listening to Refocus all week.
Even more obsessed with Atheist. I became a bassist because of Piece of Time.
They're touring the US together right now playing my dream gig every night. No European dates sadly.

Also Renewal is the best Kreator album.

I've heard basically all the albums mentioned there but never really thought about it as the Cynic gang. Must give another run with that in mind

[Petardo]

On a related theme, I see Watchtower, the ones who really opened the door to the technical stuff for me, are going to play in Germany in October. Might have to do the needful 😂

And a Sprial Architect reunion wouldn't be a bad thing either.

Twisted Into Form are recording a new one. That's 3/4 of a Spiral Architect album.

[Carnage]

I've been playing Twisted Into Form (the Forbidden album) a lot lately, would the band have any sonic similarity to that? I see them likened to Cynic on Metal Archives, I was never a fan of them (or Atheist), so maybe not.

Re: Watchtower - I heard Control And Resistance a year or two after it came out and hated it (the vocals were the turn off), but my tastes have changed considerably since then. I must give it another go.

[Pariah Child]

Just fired in an order for a few Sabbat CDs and a tshirt. I nabbed Envenom, The Dwelling and Karisma... allow the obsession to formally begin 

Edit. I picked up the Evoke LS because the image is class but don't tell the Japanese that I haven't bought that album or they'll bar me from entry...

Landed yet? I've actually been listening to loads of SABBAT and METALUCIFER lately! "Karisma";is possibly my favourite LP. Their albums always offer a different twist of madness.

[Eoin McLove]

No sign of them yet but it'll take a while as usual to get down here. I had Karisma on YouTube last night and it sounds good alright. A very pronounced heavy metal vibe throughout. They are damn catchy. I had always just assumed they were typical black thrash but they have so much more than that going on.

[open face surgery]

Infernal Majesty - None Shall Defy and Deicide - Legion. I've got obsessed by these albums in the last few years. Separate entities. There really is nothing better and for me it's never newer albums that do that for me. When both of them clicked I felt like I was brand new listened to metal for the first time and it's ongoing. I dunno. Hammered drunk but they give me that feeling that it justifies my obsession.