HORRID - The Final Massacre (BLACK TEARS - CD 2012)
I just got a bunch of promotional releases from
the Italian label called Black Tears and I knew straight away that among all of
them the first one, which I just need to listen to, would be the newest release
from Horrid. To those of you, who don’t know this band, let me just say that
they may actually be my favourite Italian death metal band from the old times
(nowadays it probably is Undead Creep, but I still like Horrid a lot), which
was formed already back in 1989 and released an impressive dose of music
through the years, of which I definitely like “Reborn in Sin” album from 2002
most. It is a killer piece of death metal, influenced by the Swedish legends…
and yeah, you should probably know that Horrid was an Italian answer to the
Scandinavian death metal, they even recorded some of their stuff at the
Sunlight Studio. So it is quite frustrating and funny that nowadays so many
bands repeat the old Swedish style, many got a quick recognition, while Horrid,
a band which was doing the same for over 20 years, is hardly known to anybody.
Well, maybe that’s because their recent “Rising from the Hidden Spheres” was
quite mediocre and wasn’t promoted too well? I don’t know really, but it’s good
to see this band coming out from the tomb once more and that they’ve opened the
new decade of their existence with the release of “The Final Massacre” – which
is a really awesome compilation release.
On “The Final Massacre” Horrid has compiled some of their rarest material,
I mean the killer “Blasphemic Creatures” MCD from 1999 and “Awaiting for the
Truth” EP from 1996. And on top of that there are four new tracks. Sounds
exiting, doesn’t it? Well, it does to me at least, because I know Horrid for
many years now and as I already said I really like “Reborn In Sin” album. It is
definitely great that Horrid has released “The Final Massacre”, as I never had
a chance to hear those two old releases, “Blasphemic Creatures” especially was
going to interest me a lot, as it was also recorded at the Sunlight Studio with
Tomas Skogsberg.
But “The Final Massacre” begins with the four
new tracks. I don’t actually know what do they mean by “new”? Does that mean
they’ve only just been recorded or maybe they’re just unreleased from the old
days? I’m afraid that while the musical content of “The Final Massacre” is just
excellent, then this release really begs for more detailed and better booklet,
as the one they’ve done is just poor, with absolutely nothing interesting in
it. I keep repeating while I listen to such compilation CDs or LPs that it is
just essential to me to
also get some detailed stories behind the old recordings, the old photos,
lyrics and anything else what would make the whole compilation really complete
and worthy. “The Final
Massacre” is very poor in that aspect and only the music really saves it from
being forgettable. Ha, but let’s go back to the music. There are four new songs
on “The Final Massacre”: “Intro / Land of No Return”, “Denied Life”, “Church of
Agony” and “Horrid 666”. And I can definitely say, with huge relief, that
Horrid seems to be in a great form. Those new tracks are really good. They’re
very brutal, very fast, but with many characteristic Swedish riffs or harmonies
here and there… I can say that while there is this Swedish touch present in the
music of Horrid, then it is slightly faster and more aggressive to bands like
Desultory or Gorement. Maybe Horrid sounds like some old Swedish demos, with
the lower vocals and rawer, very bassy production? Anyway I can say that those
four songs are really good, not the most thrilling death metal I’ve ever heard,
but definitely good and promising a very good album. I especially liked “Horrid
666”, which is more death / thrash metal song, very old school and not so
Swedish, with very low vocals (the whole sounds almost like someone played the
vinyl on 33 rather than 45 RPM hehe).
“Blasphemic Creatures” was definitely the stuff
I was most curious about from the whole compilation. And I must say that while
it was recorded back in 1999 it still sounds fresh and great, just like “Reborn
in Sin”. Both materials are quite similar actually and this is why I like this
MCD so much. Oh, I just love that guitar tone, so classic Swedish sound,
riffing, vocals… And I don’t care that Horrid was only following what the
Swedish bands were doing, especially as in 1999 there were only two or three
classic Swedish bands left on the battlefield, mainly Dismember, Unleashed and
Grave, while the rest has split up or changed the music (Entombed!!! WHY??),
forgetting about their death metal origins so easily. With songs like “The
Prophecy”, “Blasphemic Creatures” and “Is God Worthy of You” Horrid proves to be
more than just an average cut’n’paste type of rip off band, those Italians
really played killer music and I’m very surprised that they never went anywhere
further with any of their old releases.
So, to resume I can only say that I’m very glad
that something like “The Final Massacre” has been released and such awesome
pieces of music like “Blasphemic Creatures” were reminded to the maniacs.
Standout tracks: “The Prophecy”, “Blasphemic
Creatures”, “Is God Worthy of You”
Final rate: 80/100
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