Sacrifice
Tears
[Howling Bull]
First off, no - this isn't the seminal Canadian thrash band which had
a few records released through MetalBlade back in the late 80s, not
that you would be able to tell from the cover - the logo is a
direct rip off of the old Sacrifice (Toronto) logo, and I really think
that *this* Sacrifice (who apparently hail from Japan) should have
perhaps used something a little more distinct. But that's beside the
point, so I'll get on to the actual music...
This CD reeks of "Ride The Lightening" era Metallica - a bit thrashier in places, a bit "deathier" in others, and in others still, a Motorhead influence can be heard. The impression that I get is that Sacrifice are a band who haven't quite decided which metallic path to go down, and so they choose to throw in everything but the kitchen sink into the mix. This helps in one sense, as it makes the CD a bit more diverse than your average "thrash" album, but at the same time it also results in a lack of continuity. Some of the tracks (such as "Breaking The Silence of Night" (the most overtly Motorhead influenced track of the bunch - the "singing" reminds me of Cal from Discharge for some reason..perhaps it's the vocal phrasing?) and the VERY Metallica-esque "Your Soul") are quite enjoyable, but then there are others (such as the opener "Never Land Never Again") which are so run of the mill that they're painfully boring to listen to. One thing I should mention - while the music is reminiscent of "Ride The Lightening", the vocals are nowhere near what Hetfield used to do - Sacrifice's vocalist has a much gruffer voice, somewhat hoarse sounding at times, and as I've mentioned above, there's something about it which makes me think of Cal from Discharge...and while I don't think he's a particularly exciting vocalist, he's a good choice as he does have some balls behind him - plus if they HAD gotten a James Hetfield copy, this CD would have fallen into the realm of the ridiculously redundant. And I guess no review from me would be complete without me making some mention of the production - it's fairly good. Much like the music, it's nothing earth shattering but it does the job. I think a rougher production would have helped the band, as the sound they have on "Tears" is also a wee bit too Metallica for my liking.
Overall, this is a decent release but nothing to write home about. If you're a fan of (early) Metallica and other power metal-esque thrash, this might interest you...just don't expect the second coming or anything like that...
© 1999 chorazaim
This CD reeks of "Ride The Lightening" era Metallica - a bit thrashier in places, a bit "deathier" in others, and in others still, a Motorhead influence can be heard. The impression that I get is that Sacrifice are a band who haven't quite decided which metallic path to go down, and so they choose to throw in everything but the kitchen sink into the mix. This helps in one sense, as it makes the CD a bit more diverse than your average "thrash" album, but at the same time it also results in a lack of continuity. Some of the tracks (such as "Breaking The Silence of Night" (the most overtly Motorhead influenced track of the bunch - the "singing" reminds me of Cal from Discharge for some reason..perhaps it's the vocal phrasing?) and the VERY Metallica-esque "Your Soul") are quite enjoyable, but then there are others (such as the opener "Never Land Never Again") which are so run of the mill that they're painfully boring to listen to. One thing I should mention - while the music is reminiscent of "Ride The Lightening", the vocals are nowhere near what Hetfield used to do - Sacrifice's vocalist has a much gruffer voice, somewhat hoarse sounding at times, and as I've mentioned above, there's something about it which makes me think of Cal from Discharge...and while I don't think he's a particularly exciting vocalist, he's a good choice as he does have some balls behind him - plus if they HAD gotten a James Hetfield copy, this CD would have fallen into the realm of the ridiculously redundant. And I guess no review from me would be complete without me making some mention of the production - it's fairly good. Much like the music, it's nothing earth shattering but it does the job. I think a rougher production would have helped the band, as the sound they have on "Tears" is also a wee bit too Metallica for my liking.
Overall, this is a decent release but nothing to write home about. If you're a fan of (early) Metallica and other power metal-esque thrash, this might interest you...just don't expect the second coming or anything like that...
© 1999 chorazaim