Malevolent Creation - Retribution (1992)

The second release from MC provides a wrecking ball to the house of metal and destroys it like it were a house of cards. MC took no prisoners, a battering ram of a death metal act who threw the thrills out with the garbage and decided to hit where it hurts the most - all over! Technically brilliant and truly monstrous, from the drum massacre of Alex Marquez to the sonic guitar attack of riff monster Rob Barrett, this takes all we know and love about death metal and simply screws it in the brain a little further. The brutally ominous 'Coronation....' and the Morbid Angel-esque slab of 'Slaugher Of... which comes with twisted riffs of total chaos. Malevolent destroy whether it's at a breakneck speed or a kid-tempo chug, 'Eve Of The Apocalypse' combining both, complete with piano intro and sadistic riff. Certainly one of death metal's finest acts who've existed through so many trends and yet continued to cast ominous shadows to remind the trendy folk that watching over them is a bewildering force. You can run but you can't hide.

8/10

Child's Play - Rat Race (1990)

Not sure if this is sleaze metal, it all seems a little too timid if you ask me, occasionally scratching at the back door like a leopard but when you peek through the cat flap it just turns out to be a moggy! 'Wind' may indeed get in your hair as a sultry candle burner whilst a blues injection seems vital for the band to make their record seem streetwise. Came at a time when metal was neither here nor there - Child's Play didn't really latch on to a scene and probably didn't have the ability or swagger to either. A handful of half-decent tracks, 'Day After Night' and the boozy 'Good Ol' Rocking Roll' might get the lads up for a jiggle but if bands like the mighty Love/Hate couldn't make an impact then Child's Play had no chance. Strange album covers almost suggest some lo-fi Brit indie record!

6.5/10

XYZ - XYZ (1989)

A slightly flaccid offering from a heavily influenced Dokken act who have the rather unfortunate name of XYZ - leaving them not only way down in the alphabet but also low down in the bargain bins probably. Well no, it's not all bad but this record lacks any sort of bite, drifting as an almost standard fare into the realms of mediocrity never to be heard again. Okay so the tracks often appear on You Tube but in today's age everything is on You Tube isn't it ? I think it's worth checking out any metal from the '80s even if this one passes by without effect - I'm hearing a hint of Scorpions in there too alongside the pomp of 'Maggy' and various other faceless cuts. All abit to simple - in fact as simple as A,B,C!

6/10

Brutality - Screams Of Anguish (1993)

After the Florida scene blew up in the late '80s and early '90s, death metal became a major force in propelling the heavy metal scene to new, murderous levels. Brutality were a fine technical death metal act who were rather underrated despite coughing up this bloody pile of sonic metal which at once had the ability to not only decapitate but also experiment. Chesty vocals accompanied by a mid-tempo pounding groove always works well within this scene but it's not long before the band up the anti with those trigger drums and crushing hyper riffs. 'These Walls Shall Be Your Grave' and 'Spawned Illusion' tear the flesh with ease, but like so many bands of this ilk Brutality, despite the severity of their name, drift effortlessly into cosmic voids too - 'Spirit World' is a haunting acoustic instrumental that would, no doubt, lead your listening grandmother astray before battering her senseless as another bout of aggression lurks around the corner.

Decent death metal indeed, now go and clear up grannies flesh from the carpet.

7/10

Circle Of Soul - Hands Of Faith (1991)

Circle Of Soul kinda emerged as the last embers of funk metal and alterno-metal had dissipated in metal's dying black sky. Thankfully, those who got to listen to COS would have found much to enjoy as the funk trend pretty much spiralled out of control and most of the bands disappeared up their own cartoon arses due to pulling too many silly faces. Circle Of Soul never resorted to the comedy side of things, but instead carved out an almost sultry style of soulful rock that combined the acoustics of '80s hair metal and the more sublime slink of Lenny Kravitz, Living Colour and to a lesser degree the Red Hot Chili Peppers. This was a relatively obscure record never fitting into any trend - not because its content defied musical categorisation - but simply because there was no real interest in this stuff anymore and so it slipped by the wayside. There's a subtle appeal to this record which comes to fruition in the half hinted freshness of a track like 'War' or the breezy hair metal crescendo of 'One Kiss'. Couple that with a Living Colour strut, of say 'Stone In My Shoe', and one finds themself endeared to COS while it lasted.

7/10

Vain - Enough Rope (2011)

Davy Vain was one of the coolest rock stars never to play stadiums. Vain's debut album 'No Respect' never got the praise it deserved and so what seems like aeon's later, Davy returns with another glam rock punch to the mid section. 'Enough Rope' doesn't need to nod to the late '80s and early '90s because that's where it originated from, a throbbing glam rock dynamic boosted by Jamie Scott's searing guitar work, coupled with Vain's sensual, sexual and sleazy vocal sneer. Effortless rock 'n' roll that proves how this stuff can still exist without being laboured or nostalgic. It's all about the attitude and Vain have it by the bucket load, carving out glittery grooves that lube up the tightest of holes for heavy metal insertion. Motley Crue, Hanoi Rocks, The Cult, it's all here, that pure swaggering feel that some bands are just born with - from the lipstick oomph of 'Cindy' and the sweltering 'Hot Stage Lights', evoking images of strip clubs but also a more intelligent structure. Vain were more than just image, but let's hope that this time they keep the fire burning and carve a career out of those razor sharp anthems. Ratt weren't half as good and yet Vain for some reason always remained in the shadow of weaker acts....but this is their time. Hopefully.

8/10

Reckless Love - Animal Attraction (2011)

Since the dawning of Steel Panther - a band which I never thought I'd appreciate but do in droves - there seems to be a few acts trying their hand at a cheesy style pomp rock. Some of the bands are doing it for a joke - all well and good but many aren't as musically adequate as SP - and are falling flat on their faces - whilst some of the bands are doing it straight, Reckless Love could be perceived as one of those acts. The trouble is, such a lightweight journey leaves me begging for Steel Panther's...er...steely growl, because Reckless Love have leapt on the Def Leppard bandwagon and are refusing to get off. 'Animal...' is their second opus and it reeks of Leppard, circa 'Hysteria' etc. It borrows so heavily, and also likes to steal one or two Van Halen grooves too, that it becomes a puffy mess of powdery pomp. Vocally it's just the Lepp's Joe Elliot swooning over a collection of fragile mid tempo plodders, from the synth driven 'Hot', the dreamy 'Fantasy' and 'Dirty Dreams' which sounds as though it's stolen various '80s rock ideas. Steel Panther may be crude but they still know how to rock, and if I wanted music like this then I'd simply go and put a Def Leppard record one. Why oh why do bands mimic so heavily ? I guess this sort of stuff doesn't deserve to be on this blog - and alongside so many formulaic and yet allegedly current 'thrash' bands, I'm finding all this 'paying homage to the '80s' metal rather vomit inducing.

4/10