Whiplash
Messages in Blood:
The Early Years
[Displeased]
This disc fucking kicks ass - hails to Displeased Records for putting this gem out. All too
often early demo/bootleg compilations are obvious cash-ploys, but in this particular case
the quality of the final product shows that someone really cared about putting this
together. For those who don’t know, Whiplash were a mid-80s three-piece thrash band
from New York who recorded two great albums for RoadRuiner Records before changing
times and tastes took their toll. However, those first two albums (Power and Pain and
Ticket to Mayhem, both reissued on one CD, also by Displeased) were insane thrashing
masterpieces - this was a band that lived up to its name. Messages in Blood captures that
early vibe of sheer, breakneck speed the band had, in the form of the band’s two demos
(1984’s Thunderstruck demo and 1985’s Looking Death in the Face demo) plus two live
shows from mid/late 1985.
Putting demos from the cassette age onto CD can be a tricky proposition because of the sonic clarity of the CD format - you either have to correct for the hiss/tape noise, and thus sap the high-end and vibrance from the sound, or live with the dirt. The demos do have a bit of that ‘old tape warble’ to them, but basically they weren’t cleaned up a single bit, and so they sound as raw and energetic as they first did over 15 years ago. Most of the songs from these two demos ended up on the first two albums, so if you have those you basically know what to expect; if not, it’s fucking insane, speedy thrash with relentless drumming and riffing and some really harshly-shouted (but still melodic) vocals that are almost death-metallish in intensity. "Respect the Dead", "Spit on your Grave", "The Burning of Atlanta"... the list of great tracks goes on and on.
The second half of the disc, as I mentioned before, are two live shows: a soundboard mix from Dover NJ’s Showplace (Aug 16, 1985) and a crowd-tape(?) from CBGB’s on November 27, 1985. Despite the two different sources, the mixes and clarity on both are very good - you can hear everything, there’s a decent but not overpowering amount of crowd noise, and the performances prove that the speed and tightness/precision the band showed in the studio was NOT studio trickery. Between the two shows, only about half the songs are repeats of demo tracks, which is good - the rest are other songs that appeared later on the albums except for one ("Killing on Monroe Street") which doesn’t appear anywhere else.
The packaging and presentation is what pushes this album from great to awesome - there are a few classic photos inside, but the 8-page booklet is also packed FULL of liner notes, anecdotes, and stories written directly by the band members themselves, describing the stories behind the demos and shows. Also, this 19-track disc is pushing 78 minutes, and overall only five songs are repeated twice (i.e. live and on a demo, or on both demos or both live shows), so it’s packed full of classic mid-80s thrash - definitely worth the purchase price. Highly recommended.
© 2000 lord vic
Putting demos from the cassette age onto CD can be a tricky proposition because of the sonic clarity of the CD format - you either have to correct for the hiss/tape noise, and thus sap the high-end and vibrance from the sound, or live with the dirt. The demos do have a bit of that ‘old tape warble’ to them, but basically they weren’t cleaned up a single bit, and so they sound as raw and energetic as they first did over 15 years ago. Most of the songs from these two demos ended up on the first two albums, so if you have those you basically know what to expect; if not, it’s fucking insane, speedy thrash with relentless drumming and riffing and some really harshly-shouted (but still melodic) vocals that are almost death-metallish in intensity. "Respect the Dead", "Spit on your Grave", "The Burning of Atlanta"... the list of great tracks goes on and on.
The second half of the disc, as I mentioned before, are two live shows: a soundboard mix from Dover NJ’s Showplace (Aug 16, 1985) and a crowd-tape(?) from CBGB’s on November 27, 1985. Despite the two different sources, the mixes and clarity on both are very good - you can hear everything, there’s a decent but not overpowering amount of crowd noise, and the performances prove that the speed and tightness/precision the band showed in the studio was NOT studio trickery. Between the two shows, only about half the songs are repeats of demo tracks, which is good - the rest are other songs that appeared later on the albums except for one ("Killing on Monroe Street") which doesn’t appear anywhere else.
The packaging and presentation is what pushes this album from great to awesome - there are a few classic photos inside, but the 8-page booklet is also packed FULL of liner notes, anecdotes, and stories written directly by the band members themselves, describing the stories behind the demos and shows. Also, this 19-track disc is pushing 78 minutes, and overall only five songs are repeated twice (i.e. live and on a demo, or on both demos or both live shows), so it’s packed full of classic mid-80s thrash - definitely worth the purchase price. Highly recommended.
© 2000 lord vic