Necrophagia: Season of the Dead

This is actually a reissue from 1987, and though it bears the unmistakable Death influence that all brutal albums of such vintage must, it's quite remarkable considering the anonymity history has accorded it. I was at the height of my thrash-buying obsession at the time, and I can't say I've ever even heard of Necrophagia. I even remember inverting my book covers at school (blank side out) and scouring metal magazines for every band name I could find to write on them, regardless of whether I'd actually heard their music or not. Still no recall of Necrophagia.

Turns out to be my loss: these guys are pretty good, rising far above the flat production to reveal themselves as a tight outfit with great proto-death style vocals. The acoustic intro at the beginning of track one must have sounded like the worst cliche imaginable in '87, but in this day and age it's kind of a refreshment. In the course of Season Of The Dead's ten songs the band also prove themselves capable of on-a-dime tempo changes and diverse rhythms, talents which transcend time and almost warrant semi-classic status.

I'm not sure what prompted Red Stream to re-release this particular album, as I've never heard of any of the band members making a comeback in another outfit. My guess would be that the whole retro-thrash scene emerging must have had a lot to do with it. Whatever the case is, if you haven't already abandoned thrash metal due to the current availability of new releases, you're bound to get a kick out of this resurrected obscurity.

Added: January 1st 2004
Reviewer: SoT Archives
Score:
Hits: 3744
Language: english

[ Printer Friendly Page ]
[ Send to a Friend ]