overground scene


My 15 all-time favourite drum intros
September 7, 2018, 8:11 am
Filed under: death metal, Heavy metal, people, popular music | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In my early contact with metal as a teenager drums were of tertiary importance compared to guitar and voice. My first love was Iron Maiden, and although over the years I came to appreciate Clive Burr’s and Nicko McBrain’s skills and contribution to Maiden’s sound, my untrained teenage ear could not appreciate the nuances. My second love was Dio, and just like with Maiden what I fell in love with was the voice and the guitar-playing. I obviously enjoyed listening to Appice’s hard hits, McBrain’s speed on songs like “Deja vu“, I remember falling in love with Ulrich’s fills on “For whom the bell tolls“, or Columbus’s double-bass attack on “Black wind, fire and steel“, but I did not start really noticing the drums until I started listening to thrash, and specifically when I listened to Reign in blood by Slayer. After that, and the more my taste would gravitate towards extreme metal the more attention to the drumming I would pay. Who doesn’t like a great drum break in the middle of a song (*a future post is in order*), or an awesome drum intro?! Through memory work (so, simply by trying to remember) I came up with many awesome drum intros that have stayed with me throughout my life as a metal fan, and after subsequent filtering (as a result of which amazing songs by Hypocrisy, Judas Priest, Death, Xentrix, Ozzy and Kreator, among others, were left out) I present 15 of them here in chronological order.

1. Slayer – Epidemic (1986)

Reign in blood blew my mind and continues to blow my mind no matter how many times I’ve listened to it. It’s funny how, as years go by and new trends in metal emerge, many younger people are no longer impressed by this masterpiece (which is something that I once thought impossible). “When was the last time you truly listened to Reign in blood?”, asks Gavin O’Connor. Seriously, Gavin O’Connor? Still, I would imagine for most people, it is a guilty displeasure not liking this absolute masterpiece and they wouldn’t dare admitting it (as opposed to Gavin who owns his opinion, is proud of it, and so I can make fun of him for being a poser who only listens to “Angel of death” and “Raining blood”). “Epidemic” has always been one of my favourite songs off Reign in blood, as it has a different groove to the dominant skank beat throughout the album. The drum intro has a lot to do with how much I like this song. Whenever I think of a drum intro this is honestly the first song that comes to mind. Nowadays, and after three decades of extreme metal drumming, this intro sounds quite “primitive”, but when I first heard it I would just play it over and over again, for several times before I continue with the rest of the song. Nothing compares to Dave Lombardo‘s intense and quite instinctive old school drumming massacre. The simply devastating drum sound captured on tape by Rick Rubin is not bad either.

2. King Diamond – Welcome home (1988)

Mikkey Dee, now famous for being the drummer for Motörhead for almost 25 years, used to be in King Diamond. With him the King released some of his best albums (and my two personal favourite, namely Fatal portrait and Conspiracy), and I actually remember seeing or reading an interview with King Diamond where he said that Mikkey has been sorely missed (I personally think that Snowy Shaw did an awesome job as well). Indeed, the impressive drum performances in King Diamond’s early albums compared to the almost mechanical drumming in this last few albums is like comparing night and day. “Welcome home” is a masterful track off Them, and the intro is one of the most memorable and classy drum parts I can think of. Overall, this song represents the pinnacle of King Diamond’s progressive dimension. Agressor did an accurate cover of this song on their Medieval rites (1999) album, although the drum intro is neither entirely accurate nor has the feel of the original.

3. Holy Terror – No resurrection (1988)

Holy Terror released two albums in the late 1980s, at a time when thrash was still alive and well but slowly losing ground as the first death metal albums, as well as the more extreme thrash bands of Germany, began to surface. The second album by Holy Terror is a minor thrash masterpiece and this song is a testament to that. Their peculiar style of metal that combined traditional heavy metal melodies and singing, with rougher and at times growling vocals, super fast riffs and drums, deserved more recognition in my opinion. Joe Mitchell‘s expertly executed super fast beats perfectly complement the super-fast vocal delivery. The intro to this song is an all-time favourite, and is the perfectly manic start for a perfectly manic song. I have been listening to it since my teenage years and it still does not fail to excite me. They don’t make them like this anymore.

4. Malevolent Creation – Coronation of our domain (1992)

Alex Marquez gave his best performance on Malevolent Creation’s Retribution. His contribution on this album cannot be overestimated, and never before or after did Malevolent have such a beautiful drum sound and playing, and orchestrations. This drum intro is probably the best out of all the intros in this list. This is the definition of finesse in drumming. I struggled on whether I should include this song here. Malevolent Creation has been the home to some racist scum throughout its history, so they are not welcome in this blog. At the same time, I thought it would be unfair to erase Marquez’s contribution because he happened to be in a band which later on in its career (when Marquez was not part of it anymore) became openly racist.

5. Dismember – Fleshless (1993)

This is an extremely simple fast single stroke drum roll (I think so) spread across two toms, opening one of the best songs in one of the best albums in the history of music (yes, not only death metal). One of the reasons I love it so much is because to me this intro is like saying “get ready for some non-stop relentless beating”, and indeed this is exactly what follows throughout the album. Remember, this is not a playlist with the “best” drum intros, but rather my favourite drum intros, and this is definitely one. I simply adore the drum sound on this album, and Fred Estby‘s playing is really exciting. Indecent and obscene is probably my all-time favourite death metal album, and Fred’s playing is one of the reasons.

6. Gorefest – Peace of paper (1993)

It’s no big surprise that all of the songs on this list come from albums characterised by great drum performances. In both False (1992) and Erase (1993) Ed Warby gives lessons in extreme metal drumming. His sound is clear, he hits hard, and his blastbeats are a force of nature. “Peace of paper” is an astonishing song off an amazing album, and it is also the song where Warby goes crazy with his snare-kick gymnastics. The drum intro is not anything special, but I love it. I think that his performance in these two albums opened up doors for him, as I recall seeing his name in many projects over the years. Gorefest did a very impressive comeback in the mid 2000s and then unfortunately folded again, and in those two comeback albums Warby also did an amazing job.

7. Slayer – Killing fields (1994)

Divine intervention is a galore of outstanding drum work by Paul Bostaph. Quite honestly, when I bought this album I could not believe how someone can play like this, and to this day I consider Divine intervention a masterpiece with state-of-the-art drumming. This album is chock-full of drum highlights, and apart from this song, “Sex, murder, art” and “Serenity in murder” are personal favourites. There is no doubt that Paul knew that filling Lombardo’s shoes would be hard, mostly in terms of acceptance by the hardcore fans rather than actual performance, and did his absolute best to prove himself with this album. In my opinion, the intro of “Killing fields” is one of the heaviest and attention-grabbing moments in metal history.

8. Benediction – The grotesque (1994)

Benediction is not a band known for its virtuoso musicianship. It is known, however, for its absolutely awesome and unique-sounding death metal.  “The grotesque” is one of Benediction’s best songs and it comes from the Grotesque/Ashen epitaph EP. This EP marked the departure of Ian Treacy, Benediction’s original drummer, whose improvement from Subconscious terror (1990) to Transcend the Rubicon (1993) was nothing short of stellar, and the short-lived collaboration with Paul Brookes (who has been very ridiculously photoshoped into the photo of the band on this release). I personally prefer Treacy, who has also provided some really cool drum parts, but nevertheless, Brookes offers a very memorable drum intro to this beast of a song.

9. Unleashed – In the name of god (1995)

“In the name of god” starts with a very simple double stroke roll, yet constitutes an extremely effective drum intro which has always stayed with me. The fact that it opens one of the catchiest songs in death metal history, composed by Fredrik, obviously adds to the importance of this drum intro, but there is no doubt that Anders Schultz‘s contribution to Unleashed’s sound is significant (also check out the awesomely placed double bass à la Slayer at the end of the song). Victory is, in my opinion, the last great album by Unleashed, and it is not a coincidence that it is also the last album with Fredrik Lindgren. He is one of the composers that is missed in the death metal genre.

10. Dying Fetus – Justifiable homicide (2000)

1999 was the year my friends and I found out about the then new wave of North American brutal death metal. A fiend of mine got hold of three awesome cassette-tapes; one with Deeds of flesh‘s Trading pieces (1996) and Inbreeding the anthropophagi (1998), one with Nile‘s Among the catacombs… (1998), and one with Dehumanized‘s Prophecies foretold (1998) and Dying Fetus‘s Purification through violence (1996). When Destroy the opposition came out we didn’t listen to anything else for a month. This is probably the least interesting song on the album, but what a great and memorable intro! Kevin Talley is a great drummer hailing from the American brutal death metal underground who has rightfully been recognised as one. His drumming on albums like Killing on adrenaline and Destroy the opposition are unbelievable. Unfortunately, in my opinion, the separation of Jason and Kevin from Gallagher resulted in inferior subsequent output from both Dying Fetus and Misery Index. Anyway, this whole album is a drummer’s pleasure.

11. The Crown – I won’t follow (2000)

The Crown has always been a hit and miss band in my opinion. I never liked any of their albums in their entirety, just individual songs, and if I had to pick a favourite album I would choose Hell is here (1999). This song comes from Deathrace king, an album from which I worship two songs and the rest of them I listen to once every ten years or so. “I won’t follow” is one of the songs I worship, and the other is the inimitable “Back from the grave”. Janne Saarenpää‘s style is very intense and out-of-control and often reminds me of Chris Witchhunter from Sodom (I’m thinking of “Baptism of fire”). This is the definition of in-your-face extreme metal drumming of the type that inspires kids to pick up drumsticks and learn to play.

12. Deeds of Flesh – Master of murder (2001)

Mike Hamilton‘s stint with Deeds of Flesh started with an album (i.e. Mark of the legion) which, for me, marked the creative downfall of the band. However, just like the drummers that preceded him, Hamilton’s drumming is amazing, and this song is a case in point. A beautiful, yet cold and lifeless, phrase composed of super fast double strokes and double bass, introduces an awesome riff. The way Hamilton switches from the hi-hat to the ride cymbal during the blastbeats, and the effect this has on the riff is also great. Later on in their career Deeds of Flesh tried to reinvent themselves and switched to super-technical death metal and, in my opinion, lost their distinctiveness that is still present in this song.

13. Pig Destroyer – Snuff film at eleven (2001)

Just like Dying Fetus’s Destroy the opposition, Pig Destroyer’s Prowler in the yard was a game changer in the world of extreme metal. Brian Harvey provides super fast blastbeats, grooves, and insane drum fills.  This song is one of the most death-oriented songs on the album, and has such an awesome drum intro, representative of the musical and lyrical insanity that reigns throughout the album. What contributes to the awesomeness of this intro is that it does not lead to a fast beat but a tensely controlled slow beat. Harvey’s performance on the next album (i.e. Terrifyer) is also stellar. Having a drummer like this at one’s disposal is an amazing privilege, because it gives one absolute freedom to write anything they want, no matter how fast and complex.

14. Lock Up – Feeding on the opiate (2002)

Nick Barker is one of those drummers who make extremely fast drumming seem easy. I fell in love with his drumming when Cradle of Filth‘s Dusk and her embrace came out, and I loved him even more in Lock Up, although his repertoire in the latter is much more limited. His performance with Cradle of Filth rightfully opened doors for him as over the years he has played with many prominent bands. This is actually one of the best album intros ever, and I cannot believe that I forgot to mention it in the respective post I wrote a few years ago. Overall, Hate breeds suffering is my favourite Lock Up album too. Bill Hicks’s inspiring statement, “Play from your fucking hearts!”, sampled at the beginning of the song is also genius.

15. Dark Funeral – The eternal eclipse (2016)

The final entry in this list comes from a recent album, namely Dark Funeral’s very impressive Where shadows forever reign. Dark Funeral has a history of great drummers, including the brilliant Matte Modin (who offered devastating drumming for Defleshed back in the day). In this album the drums are provided by Nils Fjellström, another master of inhuman speed in drumming (check out videos of him performing live with the band on YouTube, you won’t be disappointed). “The eternal eclipse” is my favourite song off this album, and the drum intro is perfect.

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The death metal subculture in the mid-90s Greece
October 26, 2010, 4:22 pm
Filed under: brutal memoirs, death metal, Greece, people, social theory | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

In the mid-nineties in Greece internet had not yet proliferated everyday life. There were only a few homes with access to internet and, in any case, the internet was still a baby. Tape trading was still the dominant mechanism for the sharing of music. However, me and my close friends did not really want to be a part of the (death) metal sub-culture. We considered most metalheads stupid and that they were listening to the wrong kind of music. We had built our own counter-culture in which we found th devil-horns sign silly, we did not like some of the more established metal bands, especially the ones that were more established in Greece, and we refused to take part in some of the metal rituals, such as hanging out in metal clubs. Partially that was happening because we prefered to spend our limited allowances on records than coffee or beer. So our small musical network back then was comprised of 4-5 kids from school. Part of this network were the older brother of one of my friends, the older cousin of another friend and 2 kids from another town (Volos) that were friends with one from our group.

This was a particularly small network, even if you account for the fact that the two kids from Volos had more connections that were indirectly connected with us. However, that allowed us to experiment with buying records that were more obscure and more importantly, it allowed us to really appreciate and cherish the few albums that were going around.

Of course, the social construction of what constitutes Death Metal did not take place exclusively within the confines of our small group. One early guide to death metal came from the greek metal hammer magazine. In 1996 the greek metal hammer published a list of what the editors considered the 15 best death metal albums of all time. That list guided me and my friends on our first explorations of the death metal scene. Although we were already listening to some death metal like Benediction, Dismember, Unleashed, At the gates, Sarcofago and Death our knowledge beyond these bands was very limited. That list was therefore particularly helpful, since it shaped to a large extent our ideas about what death metal is and how it should sound like.

The albums on that list included: Altars of Madness (Morbid Angel), Transcend the Rubicon (Benediction), Indecent and Obscene (Dismember), Clandestine (Entombed), Heartwork (Carcass), Maleus Maleficarum (Pestilence), Last one on Earth (Asphyx), For Victory (Bolt Thrower), From Beyond (Massacre), Cause of Death (Obituary), Harmony Corruption (Napalm Death), Across the Open Sea (Unleashed), The Ten Commandments (Malevolent Creation), Leprosy (Death), Deicide (Deicide).  I have this strange feeling that either Onward to Golgotha, Dawn of Possession or the Bleeding were also  included but I cannot be sure since I have unfortunatelly lost this issue. Anyway, this list reflected the subjective tastes of the magazine’s editors, I am guessing Taggalos and Efkarpidis were among them. Although later on I came to hate Metal Hammer and all attempts on evaluating music according to personal criteria that assume are universal, I cannot deny the fact that this list was a beginners’ guide and introduction to a very time-and-place-specific death metal sub-culture.

I remember buying some of these albums on cassette because they were cheap and we did not fully trust metal hammer. Back then Happening, one of Athens’ largest record stores, was still around but the undisputed metal record stores were the two Rock City stores, particularly the underground one on Akadimias street. The symbolic elements that made this store so loved, like the fact that it was in a basement, the dark walls, suffocating atmosphere and the metalic black cd -racks were all lost after the store moved further down the street and was refurbished to look fancy and new. From the underground store, I bought some of the cassettes I saw on that list, such as Maleus Malleficarum and Last one on earth for 950 drachmas (around 2 quid). The cassette series was an invitation to further experimentation with bands like Gorefest, Paradox, Tiamat, Gorguts and others.

Almost 15 years and hundreds of albums have passed since and I still think that this is a pretty damn good list. It contains important representatives from different schools (Swedish death metal, american death metal, british death metal and European death metal). This list also reflects the values of death metal fans in greece at that period. Among the albums there is only one that would fall under the technical death metal categroy, Heartwork by Carcass. Altars of Madness is also technical for sure, but what sticks out is the brutallity. Most other albums on that list are extremely crude, dark and brutal. Furthermore, one can find albums that would never make it in a similar list today! I doubt it that today’s death metal fans would appreciate any albums by bands like Asphyx, Bolt Thrower or, especially, Benediction.  Now I’ll get back to listening to Last one on Earth and be amazed by the heaviness and phenomenal lyrics of Martin Van Drunen.

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Internet and Demystification
September 1, 2008, 5:31 pm
Filed under: death metal, internet and music, people, punk | Tags: , , , , , , ,

Even though I usually want to know how things work and what goes on around me, I sometimes find myself being comfortable with, ‘ignorance is bliss’. Technological progress provides a window to the world and access to unlimited information. This can be both good and bad. Here I discuss one of the cases where it is bad for me. Internet provides access to the personal lives of musicians which results in their demystification.

What musicians think and how they go about their everyday lives, can either be reflected or not in their artistic output. In the former case, for example, one or several members of the american band ‘Malevolent Creation’ were racists so they wrote extremely offensive lyrics in one of the songs in their ‘Eternal’ album. I won’t say which song nor the lyrics because I am ashamed. So they were rascists and they expressed it openly and I was not bothered with them again. Other bands that I might like may be rascists as well, but they do not express it overtly, so I don’t have a problem with them. Their personal life is not of my concern as long as I like their songs.

The problem with the internet is that it opened Pandoras box. Things that I could imagine but I didn’t have evidence, like the fact that many of the bands I loved and personalities I admirred were in reality rascists, started to take form. Internet manifests elements of personalities through the friends bands have in their myspace page, through the bands’ correspodence in their websites, through access to several webzines, many of which are gossip zines.

It turns out that many artists, especially in the death metal genre which was the most suspicious in the first place, are rascists, belligerent, homophobes, at best completely unintereting persons. Why should that bother me? As long as they write music or/and lyrics I like, what is the problem? The problem is that artists are role-models. We love their music and lyrics and, because that is all we (used to) know about them, we think that their personalities are 100% reflected in their artistic output. Further, we tend to turn a blind eye when we diagnose a flaw in someone we admire a lot. We like to beautify our heroes. Cannibal corpse, for example, write horrible lyrics but they obviously do it for fun. Moreover, there are times when these admitedly offensive lyrics are written in a really clever and inspired way. Without extra information on the personalities of the artists, the admirer tends to glorify them.

In the past, movies would demystify artists or a whole scene. For example, movies like Suburbia demystify the old punk scene to the rest of the world (i.e. beyond California) and of course to the youth of today. If anyone ever thought that punks were thinking people with genuine discontent about the system or, in general, societal concerns, they would definitely reconsider after seeing this movie. The same goes for documentaries like The decline of western civilisation and punk heroes like Darby Crash. Movies and documentaries like these, take away the magic of scenes like the punk scene. For me, who have not experienced the birth and death of punk since I was not even born at that time, punk is important because of what it was supposed to stand for! For me, witnessing a decaying image of drunks, drug addicts, completely hopeless people dwelling in filth is not helping.

What is important is that the lyrics of bands like the Germs may have a positive effect on humanity. Their lifestyle will not. Their lifestyle, gruesomely depicted in these movies, can only negatively affect the world. It will affect the minds of people who are already into drugs, and will remind us that the punk scene was not what some of us dreamers thought it was.

Today the media through which artists are demystified are numerous. I do not claim that fans of Deicide, for example, will be offended by the fact that their drummer is obsessed with weapons, or that they are in it for the money. As far as the former is concerned, their patriotism and weapon obsession might even attract more attention, especially of their fellow americans. My assumption that death metal fans are thinking individuals is obviously mistaken. However, I think that all these new avenues to information about the artists we love, will actually drain various music scenes of their non-lobotomised individuals and turn them into pure stereotypical scenes. That of course is not bad for the music industry.

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