NEVERMORE - In Memory (CENTURY MEDIA - MCD 1996)
Mini albums of big, more mainstream bands is
not something what I am particularly interested in, because usually they just
contain uninteresting material, some leftovers, songs which weren’t good enough
to be on the full length albums or some other fillers (live songs, covers,
etc). Take for the instance mini albums from Vader and Behemoth – none of them
really is worth a damn crap. The same goes for Satyricon, who usually put quite
miserable miniLPs (unless they slay with ultrafast and merciless slab like
Sarcofago’s cover). But here we have minialbum from Nevermore and well, I must
say that it contains some of the best songs, which this Seattle progressive /
groove / heavy metal band has ever recorded.
“In Memory” is opened with “Optimist or
Pessimist” and damn, it definitely is the most aggressive and thrashing of all
Nevermore songs ever. Maybe it is because the band found a second guitar player
– Pat O’Brien, excellent guitarist, who now slays and rips the guts with his
axe in Cannibal Corpse – or maybe the band just wanted to throw some of their
anger and frustration, but the song is really damn straight forward and
relentless. But don’t expect the whole “In Memory” to be like that; and maybe that’s
why Nevermore opens this MCD with such a furious way, as the rest of the songs are
much calmer, more majestic, melancholic, sorrowful and sad. So, you’ll find
here excellent “Matricide”, “In Memory” and a pure metal ballad “The Sorrowed
Man” – each will catch your attention with beautiful melodies, harmonies,
catchy and memorable parts and excellent vocals of Warrel Dane, not to mention
the great performance of other Nevermore members. And really this material is
just top quality, even “The Sorrowed Man”, which is a pure, sorrowful metal
ballad, does sound great and very emotional, so I like it a lot, even if
usually I don’t listen to such music too much. But for sure “Matricide” is a
song, which stands above the rest – it is just phenomenal, but the title song
is also equally memorable and intriguing. I really like the emotions, the
tension and the whole feeling of Nevermore music in these two songs, when they
mix the sadness with anger and how epic these two tunes are. Additionally “In
Memory” contains quite interesting cover of Bauhaus, which for sure is one of
their darkest and most sinister recordings. I also like the way they mixed two
Bauhaus songs into one; very nice idea.
My version of “In Memory” – which is Century
Media’s re-release form 2006 – contains also a bunch of bonus songs. They all
are just demo versions of songs, which ended up on “Politics of Ecstasy” album
and don’t get me wrong, they all are good songs, but to hear their demo
versions is not something truly remarkable, especially as I prefer their
normal, album versions a lot more, but anyway it is always nice to get
something extra. Actually “In Memory” was recorded during the same recording
session as “Politics…”, but as it got different mixing and mastering so it
sounds different, what Warrel underlines in his liner notes in the booklet. All
in all I must say that “In Memory” is just excellent release and I strongly
recommend you getting it, even if you’re not really a fan of such music. In my
opinion Nevermore stands in their own league and is a band, which can be liked
also by maniacs of more extreme styles of metal. I am a proof for that.
Standout tracks: all
Final rate: 95/100
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