| Reviews for Venom's Black Metal |
| Simply exists to kick your ass - 100% |
| Written by autothrall
on May 9th, 2009
|
| Throughout the 40-ish years of the genre's existence, there have been metal albums which reek of promise and potential, brilliant musicianship and complex compositional qualities, lyrics of social, political, personal or sacrilegious significance. 'Black Metal' is not one of those albums. It shares none of those qualities. It simply exists to kick your ass and then do lines off that kicked ass while popping shots of whiskey, inhaling the most rancid cigarettes imaginable and sodomizing your old lady. Though the album is more cohesive from a production standpoint than Venom's legendary debut Welcome to Hell, it loses none of the grisly edge and raw meat riffing of its predecessor. Faux Satanic lyrics highlight tales of sexual blasphemy and necromantic ritual while disgustipated guitar riffs grind over the thundering of Abaddon. Cronos doesn't quite sing his lyrics...it's more than he kind of spits and growls them. Keep in mind, this was a period in which the overwhelming majority of early metal bands employed vocalists who sounded as if they were competing for testicular constriction. Some rotten bloke spewing his mid-ranged, almost conversational barks over a discharge of brutal and simple riffing was simply unheard of. It all adds to the charm. "Black Metal" tips off the album with one of the band's most infectious speed metal riffs, gritty and catchy (the kind of riff that would inspire bands like Possessed, Razor, Slayer and Indestroy). It also features one of the band's infamous lyrics 'Lay down your soul to the gods rock `n' roll'. "To Hell and Back" is a mid-paced number notable for Cronos laying down the thick distorted bass, and Mantas's mind numbling, senseless shredding (also a huge influence on many thrash and death metal bands). "Buried Alive" opens with a hilarious sample of a last rite before slowly building some creepy mystique and busting out some gory 'eavy metal. "Raise the Dead" is just foul, Crono's vocals splattered across a kick ass yet traditional NWOBHM riff. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust If God won't have me, then the Devil must!" "Teacher's Pet" is like the X-rated version of Van Halen's "Hot For Teacher", done up Venom class. "Leave Me in Hell" burns with a molten hot metal lick, a doomed ride on the river Styx with Cronos as your ferryman. "Sacrifice" is another scorcher with its grim Satanic ritual lyrics and a killer bridge before the choral breakdown. "Hooded figures, clouded skies fires burn within their eyes pentagram with baphomet midnight strikes goat of menders lifts his head summons up the living dead virgin flesh lies tied and bound hail satanas" "Heaven's on Fire" has a balls out bluesy twist to its speedy fare, pumping bass and fuzzy distortion which amazingly defies age. Two more classics round out this set, the diabolic "Countess Bathory" and haunted house crowd pleaser "Don't Burn the Witch". Both fucking rule, in particular the verse riffing in the latter. I've already mentioned that the album has a timeless vibe to it. Perhaps this is due to the fact it sounds like the band is playing it live from your basement while you sit above sipping tea and hiding behind your cross, all the while fantasizing about orgies in goats blood and sexual climax beneath the full moon. It isn't just the name of this album which inspired an entire sub-genre of the medium; it's the carnal and unswerving attitude of the band to deliver schlock rock in its most sinister scenario amidst some of the most outrageous riffs you were likely to hear in 1982. Venom did not give a fuck, and look where and wot it got them? Infamy. -autothrall http://www.fromthedustreturned.com |
| Every bit as good as Welcome to Hell... - 90% |
| Written by TableofHELL
on April 30th, 2007
|
| This is where Venom got their act together (in my opinion). The production is light years better, the vibe is darker, and they sound more "together" as it were. Abaddon is still the shittiest drummer this side of Lars Ulrich, but he was at the top of his game on this one. Cronos' voice is as good as singing could get back then and his bass was thundering, while Mantas' guitar tone had a very heavy sound. The opening track "Black Metal" was one of the fastest songs Venom had done up until that point. It is perhaps their most popular song, and it is for a reason. It has everything people love about Venom on this one. Other honorable mentions are "Heaven's on Fire" which is my personal favorite on the album due to its jerky rhythm and blasphemous lyrics, and Countess Bathory, for its catchy chorus and very punk riffing. Don't Burn the Witch has some of the best riffs in Mantas' library, and S.A.C.R.I.F.I.C.E. is the beholder of some of the best lyrics penned by man. This sophmore effort proved that Venom werent a one trick pony, or even a novelty act. They broadened their sound, refined it and made it still sound heavy as balls, while still retaining the catchiness that Welcome to Hell possessed. My copy came with 9 bonus tracks, with the Die Hard single, some radio sessions and alternative versions of album tracks. Its worth your money if only for the bonus tracks because Die Hard and Bursting Out rank among Venom's best. |
| Possibly the best album ever recorded! - 100% |
| Written by Satanwolf
on March 3rd, 2007
|
| Hell yeah! A true NWOBHM classic, this album ups the power a notch from the excellent debut "Welcome to Hell." Raw, evil and Satanic proto-black metal. The album begins with the sound of a chainsaw cutting through a metal door, and that sets the tone for the attitude of the entire album. "Black Metal," the song, is a classic track, and you can hear how Venom pretty much single-handedly kicked in the early 80's thrash metal movement. Metallica, Slayer, Exodus and many more owe a debt to Venom for showing them the way to create hellish music. Every track just kicks you in the balls and won't let up. "To Hell and Back" will actually take you there. "Bloodlust" and "Countess Bathory" are two of the greatest odes to Vampirism ever written. "Teacher's Pet" is hilarious, with the line 'Teacher caught me masturbating underneath the desk." What teenage metalhead didn't have a crush on some teacher back in the day? "Don't Burn the Witch," "Sacrifice," "Buried Alive" and "Heaven's on Fire" all display guitarist Mantas' ability as a riffmaster and one of the greatest guitarists in extreme metal. And the album closes with a segment of "At War With Satan," the twenty-minute epic track that opens rhe band's third album fo the same name. If you don't already own this album then you are a total wussy. "Black Metal" captures the sound of the classic (but not original! Remember vocalist Jesus Christ?) Venom lineup of Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon at the height of their power. A must have for any true metalhead or Satanist. Two horns way the f **k up, this is truly Black F**king Metal! Lay down your souls!!!!! |
| Whoooooaaaaaaahhhh Black Metal!!!!!!!!!!! - 99% |
| Written by malibuman
on July 18th, 2006
|
| It was 1983 and I was thirteen years old. I went into my local record shop and picked up the new Y&T single ‘Mean streak’ (the shaped picture disc no less). I also picked up a shaped Whitesnake single of ‘Guilty of Love’ and then something else caught my eye. I picked up the record and looked at it, hmm… Straight off the bat you have to say - what a fucking cool cover that is! Then I turned it over and what do we find? Cronos kneeling down amidst candles, Abaddon looking scary in the dark and Mantas on his bike in front of more amps than I had ever seen. Fuck… Then there was the titles, Sacrifice, To Hell and Back, Don’t Burn the Witch, Leave Me in Hell… it was all looking a little more disturbing than The Number of the Beast (my first ever album I’m proud to say!). And then there was the poem (my Mum loved that) “We drink the vomit of the Priest Make love with the dying whore ???????????????????????????? and hold the key to death’s door” Bugger, well I can remember ¾ of it anyway… Despite the poetry, Mum advanced the funds to buy and I took the lot home. Whitesnake got one spin I think, well it were a waste of time cos both the songs were on the album anyway (total con!). Then Y&T was cool, ‘Meanstreak’ was and remains a cracking track, but then the Newcastlian Destroyers hit the deck and that was that. (By the way, did you know that Cronos’ Newcastle accent is put on? He’s from London or somewhere, but he affected an accent so he wouldn’t get picked on at school…) The first reaction was probably - what the fuck is up with me stylus! Cos when the needle hit the grooves the first thing you hear is a load of scratchy static noise, but that’s only the first time - after that you can relax knowing that it only lasts a few seconds before the bestial guitar sound of malevolent demoncy from hell kicks in. Really, what the fuck did Mantas do to his guitar to get that sound? It’s like no other guitar sound on earth, much darker and evil than on any other Venom album, it swirls around you like the very pits of hell are opening from beneath your feet and spinning about you. Actually, despite it’s legendary status, I would have to say that the title track is probably the weakest song here. Well no, fuck that, IT IS THE WEAKEST TRACK HERE! But even so, you can’t help but join in with the vocal parts “Lay down your souls to the Gods Rock & Roll, metal ten fold through the deadly black hole, riding hell stallions bareback and free, taking our chances with raw energy” HELL YEAH! And the immortal….. “WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH BLACK METAL!” They don’t fucking make em like that anymore. Not even Venom. Moving onwards ‘To Hell and Back’ is a little more sedate, but no less effective. It, and SACRIFICE, are probably the two tracks that grab the least on first listen, but are the ones that become the favourites when you are sick to death of Coutness Bathory. It’s still a cracking track and Cronos vocals just kick fucking ass. The claustrophobia of ‘Buried Alive’ shows that proper metal bands can do softer stuff without it being completely lame (and without resorting to keyboard parpery). This is a classic track by anyone’s standards and segue’s superbly into the awesome ‘Raise the Dead’. Again what the fuck is going on with that bass sound? Did the floor just break in two to reveal a stream of black hellslime or what? Listen to those fucking bass slides, that’s pure fucking evil right there! Side One (oh yes, this was born on vinyl so fuck the cd and the bonus tracks) closes with the riotous ‘Teacher’s Pet’. You can dismiss it as childish, out of place and whatever else - and sure the intro is crap, but how can you not laugh when Cronos plays the class joker? “Teacher caught me masturbating underneath the desk….” “Play hide and seek with teachers mouth, her lips are warm and wet…” “One thing I know for sure, I won’t forget today, oh wow!” Yes it’s throwaway, but fuck it, it’s fun! And much better than ‘Muscle’ on 1987’s ‘Calm Before the Storm’. (but then so is ‘School Daze’ on Prime Evil). Side two opens with another classic track ‘Leave Me In Hell’. A fucking killer this one and a staple of compilation tapes in my car. The aforementioned S.A.C.R.I.F.I.C.E. rears it’s head next and frankly it’s cool as fuck, if not one of the stand out tracks. I guess common consensus would cite ‘Heaven’s on Fire’ as the weakest track, but I like it. It’s only real problem is that it’s in some challenging company here. The production sounds a little different here, as if it was recorded afterwards or something, the guitar sounds a touch brighter - but it’s not a problem really. This is kinda like ‘Epidemic’ or something, you know….nothing wrong with it and heard in isolation really cool, but it ain’t ‘Raining Blood’ or even ‘Altar of Sacrifice’. Rounding out the album we have the legendary ‘Countess Bathory’, probably the coolest metal song ever without a guitar solo and catchy as fucking bird flu….hell, no much catchier than that! Lastly we have the masterpiece of the whole album, the fucking ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner’, the ‘Kashmir’, the ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’, the ‘Raining Blood’, the ‘Still of the Night’ (hahahahaha, only kidding!)…. ‘Don’t Burn the Witch’ is the shit. End of story. The best Venom song ever (maybe) and with the coolest opening riff off all time. Fuck Angus, fuck Tony, fuck Jeff and Kerry….this riff is GODLY. And it only gets better as it goes on. Fuck me this is an awesome tune. Cronos’ vocals are perfect here, as they are throughout, throaty but without the levels of pointlessness and stupidity that would come later in the Death Metal world. This album is just phenomenal and you really have to remind yourself that this came out in 1982. And that’s the crux of it, while listening to the album for the first time it must be hard (in 2006) to understand what all the fuss was about, but you have to think back, to realise that in 1982 there was Accept, Anvil, Motorhead, Maiden, Saxon….. there was no Metallica, Bathory, Slayer, they all came later. And that’s why this album had the colossal impact that it did, because it was utterly otherworldly. And speaking of otherworldly, the tail end of the closing track is pretty damn unusual itself. The atmospheric part where Cronos speaks about the creature on the ridge, segueing perfectly into the teaser for the At War With Satan album. You know, it really pisses me off that Venom never get any credit for their writing, they surely weren’t the best musicians in the world (a fact that they were eager to agree to) but they sure were creative and that is born out by the scope of their material between 81-85. How many different styles of song have In Flames ever done - 3, 4? Well contrast that with Venom….who else has made music as varied as Warhead, Nightmare, Buried Alive, Die Hard, Manitou, 7 Gates of Hell? No, these guys have been unfairly treated over the years if you ask me. I just wish modern music was this exciting and this varied - I mean why is it that (even Venom) nowadays bands seem to limit the number of styles on an album to about 3 despite the available time of a CD being almost double the old vinyl format? Wouldn’t you have thought that if anything bands would have jumped at the chance to stretch out and try different ideas with so much time to play with….? But then that is now and this was then, before the curse of categorization. You know what really killed creativity? Downtuning. Soon as that happened the whole thing turned to shit, because everyone became afraid of using any note higher than the third fret in case they were decreed as wimpy! Anyway, that’s another story…. So did Venom invent Black Metal with this album (or any album)? Well frankly no. There’s fuck all on here that sounds anything like Marduk or whatever, in fact there’s nothing on here that’s even really all that fast (by today’s standards) but you have to say what this album has in spades is dark atmosphere and a low end presence that reeks of malevolence. And what happened was that Quorthon (by his own admission - eventually) stole everything that Venom did and just took it further, in the process creating Black Metal as we know it. So, no Venom didn’t invent Black Metal, but they sure as hell had a big say in the way it sounded. So it’s a legend - that can’t be denied, and to my ears it still stands up to repeated (how many times for me? I would guess it must be over 1000 now…) listenings. So my mark represents what I feel is just because, throughout the last 24 years (yes really) this album has for me remained at the top of the tree. The ultimate, never to be dethroned, statement of all that is right about Metal in general and simply the coolest fucking album of all time. Yes, Reign in Blood, Mindcrime and Pleasure to Kill had their moments, but at the end of the day it always comes back to this fucker. It‘s Godly beyond Godliness and I don’t give a fuck what anyone else thinks this bastard is the ULTIMATE album for me. |
| A joke - 60% |
| Written by noinnocentvictim
on June 16th, 2006
|
| This CD is truly amazing as far as how influential it was. However, musically speaking, it's a "satanic" version of Judas Priest with more of an emphasis on bass and less of an emphasis on squealing vocals. It's an enjoyable listen every now and then, but truly there's nothing really fascinating to find here. The only true way to convey this CD's normality is by describing how it sounds. Almost every song consists of a variation of essentially the same simplistic guitar riff. A two-string chord (I'm not sure the exact term for this, as I don't actually play the guitar) followed by a repeating single note for a few notes, then another chord, and the chord progression gradually evolves between single notes picked tremolo. The vocals, as stated before, are typical 80s vocals, except not QUITE as annoying as the usual - it doesn't sound like opera auditions. The drums are simple, showing an occasional glimpse of talent within the fills. Still, there's nothing too creative here, and the lyrics are quite comical. We all know that initially the Satanism in black metal was more of a joke, and most of you should know this album is not black metal. Yet, it seems like they're trying their hardest to achieve this image early on. This CD is more or less listenable, and there's nothing overtly offensive within the sound itself, but it's not really worthwhile. You should leave your familiarity with this CD to its historical significance. |
| Iconic "unpolished" greatness - 93% |
| Written by cronosmantas
on February 28th, 2006
|
| 1982....now that was a great year for metal. We got Iron Maiden's Number of the Beast, Judas Priest’s Screaming for Vengeance, Accept's Restless & Wild...and Venom's Black Metal. Black Metal may not be as "polished" as those other releases but it is every bit as influential....perhaps even more. Black Metal, considered by many to be Venom's best release, is also the bands most known album no doubt because a new metal subgenre was formed from its name. This however is far from what we now consider "black metal" with more modern bands like Emperor and Mayhem. Venom here actually has a more thrash sound. Their lyrics, image, and stage names still fit the name "black metal" perfectly. Because of this I usually refer to them as a black/thrash band. Venom also seems to take themselves less seriously with a firm tongue placed in their cheek (as shown here on Black Metal). This is why I like the band so much as they can be badass but yet also have a sense of humor (check out the song Teacher’s Pet for an example of this). Also what makes Venom different from today's black metal bands is that they are so damn catchy. Mantas's riffs here on Black Metal are to the point and the lyrics are just catchy. What...a black metal album being catchy?!?! Groups like Emperor and Mayhem are great at creating a dark brooding atmosphere but lack the simple nature to create kick ass riffs and yes, catchy lyrics and courses. Almost the entire album here is catchy. You'll catch yourself singing along with Cronos on many occasions. This catchiness is shown right off the bat with the title track opener. You'll find yourself chanting "Lay down your soul to the god’s rock 'n' roll....BLACK METAL!!” Other catchy heavier tunes are Sacrifice, Countless Bathory, and Raise the Dead. Some more moody songs include the fantastic Buried Alive and Don't Burn the Witch. The album ends on a perfect note with the At War with Satan Preview which gives you a taste on what to expect on Venom's third album. That album sadly wasn't as good but the preview is great. Another thing that is noticeable is that this album has "better" production than their debut...but it is still VERY rough. This "unpolished" production will throw some people off but it eventually grows on you. Black Metal along with their debut are must haves in any metal collection....even if you don't like Venom! If you find yourself liking these rough beginnings of the band and are curious what they sound like with better production, then I highly recommend 1989's Prime Evil and 2000's Resurrection. |
| venom is awsome - 92% |
| Written by metalaclaw
on January 19th, 2006
|
| To start off that Venom it's self is an amazing and inspirational band, helping the creation of Thrash, Black, and Death metal with their speed, lyrical themes, and gruff vocals and were one of the first bands who gave metal the often misuderstood and sterotype(good or bad sterotype) of satanism, which is often copied gimick(not at the time) along with bands like Cloven Hoof and Grim Reaper along with a host of others(at the time mostly hailing from England in the "New" Wave Of British Heavy Metal) This album may I add is the "support beam" which holds the "house" of Black Metal up. Track one: Black Metal the songs title track a fairly fast song with a heavy feeling and evil touch which is about the feeling of being on stage and whats happening while they are playing, when ever I think of the most memorable lyric in the song," Black Metal...Black Metal...Black Metal...Black Metal...Lay down your soul to the god's rock and roll". This is one of my more favorite songs on the album I easily see the influence this made on Thrash Metal. Track two: To Hell and Back This is a slower song that is mainly them going to hell and describing the sights they saw and the events that took place there. To me it gives impresion of slow lumbering evil but it still gives much ability to headbang. Track three: Buried Alive this song starts with preacher talking while someone is being buried and also you can here the shoveling of dirt into the grave the lyrics start off with a mere whisper to normal loudness which leads to a very slow song this track is about a person being buried in a grave alive and rising as the undead this song very easily leads to the next song to the point it seems like this and the next song are the same. Track four: Raise the Dead after the song that melded with this one is a moderately fast paced song that to me seems to be the second part of the last song, it basicly is about after he rises from his grave he forgets god and acts as a necromancer for satan and raises the dead to become the army of hell (probobly the other bodies in the graveyard) this is my third or fourth song on the album Track five: Teacher's Pet the song starts with the guitar playing a bit of atiskit ataskit and the teachers saying hello to the class this song is about a student dreaming about a horny teacher a having sex with her. The song is fairly fast but in the middle it goes into a very bluesy solo than what seems the band and every one else in the studio whistleing and saying get you tits out for the lads before they continue to the original speed. Track six: Leave Me in Hell this a moderatly paced song this is about the birth of the antichrist the son of satan but he wants to rather stay in hell than go to earth at the middle it slows down but at the words goes to original speed. Track seven: Sacrifice this is a moderatly fast song this song is about sacrificing a virgin in the name of Satan not much more to say about this track you can see where these songs are lyricly going, the solo is fairly good though. Track eight: Heaven's on Fire This the second or first fastest song it starts off with the guitar and Cronos grunting this song is about you thinking your going to heaven but satan and his armies taking over heaven and lighting it aflame along with enslaving god and chaining him up like a dog. It also has a very memorable chorus going" heaven's on fire and there ain't nothing you can do heaven's on fire when you die you'll go there too. Also it has my most favorite solo on the album this is my most favorite song on here. Track nine: Countess Bathory this a moderately paced song it is about in Countess Bathory who tempted virigins into her home than killed them and bathed in their blood to keep her youth or beauty. Track ten: Don't Burn the Witch this is about witches brewing something that involves Christ's left hand and for it they will be burned at the stake for it but the ways of hell arn't wrong this a moderatly paced song. Track eleven: At War With Satan (preview) this song is as it says it is, and thats about the evil to come up in the next album but I don't have the next album so I can't tell if they kept their promise. |
| Totally fucking wicked. - 90% |
| Written by Static
on November 23rd, 2005
|
| Venom - Black Metal. Hugely influential, supremely controversial (in two ways - people question whether they were as influential as mentioned, OR whether they were actually a totally shit joke band), and fucking noisy and satanic to the extreme. People often complain about Venom's sloppy playing, but I feel that Black Metal has excellent musicianship. Yes, excellent. It really feels like Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon improved their craft since the less-good Welcome To Hell (sorry, I don't think it's near as good as this one, though I like it). The riffs are more intense, faster, thrashier and generally much better played on Black Metal. Mantas seems to be capable of keeping time much better on this one, whereas on Welcome To Hell he was noticeably all over the show. Abaddon, well, he's just there doing his thing. And then there are the songs, all classic and incredible minus one or two. Black Metal...the title track. Oh. My. Fucking. God. This is a thrash explosion! That main riff will make your neck snap and your eyeballs pop out. To this day it remains one of my favourite riffs of all time, it's just...*at a loss for words* Cronos doesn't sound as unhinged as on Welcome To Hell but he's still Cronos, raw, snotty and angry like a maniacal killer with the sniffles. After the stupendous title track it's onto To Hell And Back, which seems like a less intense Welcome To Hell. It's pretty good regardless. But Buried Alive is where it all comes together with me. UltraBoris thought it was a low-point but I find it to be the greatest of anything Venom ever did. That mourning voice reciting the funeral rites...the sound of dirt being shoveled into a grave...Cronos breathing and whispering to soft guitar...soon he gets louder and ROOAARR! AS THEY LOWER ME DOWN, INTO THAT HOLE IN THE GROUND! The lyrics read like a complete nightmare, in an absolutely brilliant way. It's infectious, bone-chilling stuff. SUMMON THE DEAD, BAPHOMET'S CALL, BLOOD ON MY HANDS, OOOOARRRGHHH!!! ...wait for it...LETTT ME OUT OF HEERREE! What follows is a truly epic solo that proves Cronos knew what to do with an axe. Cronos excels with his vocals on this one. Raise The Dead comes around to kick you in the nuts after that less energetic (though compelling) preceeding track. It's just Venom being Venom on this track...nice catchy chorus. Acid Queen kicks it up another notch, with a driving force and Cronos screaming in your ear. Then, somehow, Bloodlust bursts in and intensifies the power even MORE. Great stuff. Now, Teacher's Pet...this is a funny(erk) one about masturbating under a desk and getting caught by your teacher. Unfortunately it is too stupid to be taken seriously and suffers for it, helping a little to perpetuate the view that Venom were just clowns. This track is dumb. Pass. Leave Me In Hell picks up the ball after that drop, but is somewhat average Venom. Just a good burst of energy but not remarkable. Could go on but the rest is just more of the same...which I see as a good thing, cos I love Venom's sound. Countess Bathory is notable as an above average cut. It is easy to see why Venom were so influential with this album and they had clearly improved as song-writers and musicians. At least I feel that way. They weren't clowns, they were cool, grim pioneers with a small penchant for tounge-in-cheek that has been exaggerated by some. |
| One of the Best - 100% |
| Written by MonolithofDeath
on August 8th, 2004
|
| I would like to start off by saying this is one of the best metal albums of all time. If you don't own it, go buy it now. Black Metal-This is a killer song. It's thrashy and fast, but still catchy. I always find myself screaming out "Lay down you're soul to the gods rock 'n' roll" everytime I hear the song. Cronos has such a deep and powerful voice, it goes perfectly with the lyrics and their style. The main riff in this song is awesome. To Hell and Back-A catchy little number. The title tells all for the lyrics. More memorable riffing and a great solo to go with. Buried Alive-This is one of my favorite songs on the album. It starts off with a preacher saying some words that are said at a funeral and then you hear dirt being shovelled (filling in the grave). You hear all this as if you were in the coffin. It's a rather melodic or slower song but still well worthy of headbanging. This is actually one of the few songs I look for the bass lines when I listen to, it's simple but sounds awesome. The solo in also very blues-esque. Raise the Dead-The first time I listened to this I thought my cd was messed up because Buried Alive doesn't seem like it ends and then gets really fast which was actually this song. This isn't one of my favorite songs but it's still great. The lyrics and singing in this song are good but the guitar and drumming are nothing memorable. Teachers Pet-The speed and overall feel of this song is very thrashy. The lyrics are hillarious. The whole song is basically about a kid doing various sexual things with his teacher. More great riffing and the drummings is sloppy but just ties everything in so well you can't help but love it. Leave Me in Hell-The vocals in this song are superb, Cronos shows a lot of emotion in this song. Another memorable riff and some nice bass lines. The bass just kind of rolls in and out. Sacrifice-This song has the best lyrics on the album. The guitar work in all these songs is so simple but sounds so good, this is a perfect example. The bass, as usual, has a nice rolling quality to it which I really like. Heaven's on Fire-Least favorite of the album. It's a very thrash song with memorable riffs, good lyrics/vocals, the sloppy but still awesome and fast drumming, and the rolling bass I love so much but for some reason it just feels off. Countess Bathory-This has all the makings of a classic song. Great lyrical subject, catchy riffs, and the drumming..there isn't much to it but it's absolutely perfect. Cronos vocals when he sings the chorus "Countess Bathory" sound so angry and raw you can't help but love it. Don't Burn the Witch-A great song with all the elements I've stated that makes Venom an instrumentally great band. The chorus is perfect for headbanging and singing along to. The guitar has a very edgy, in your face kind of snap to it. Bass and Drums are good but nothing out of the ordinary for this album. At War With Satan (Preview)-Although only a preview, this is an epic preview of what was to be the full song. The begining is just a spoken part and then you catch just a bit of instrumental parts. Very dark and evil lyrics. My cd came with the extras, singles and such. From what I've been told none of them have been changed from the original songs. Bursting Out is my favorite of these because of it's insane thrashing potential. As stated earlier this is a great metal album that no one should be without. |
| And so unfolds the art that would be black metal.. - 89% |
| Written by Shadow0fDeath
on August 8th, 2004
|
| In a time back in the early 80's, the band known as Venom were well known for their live performances and extreme image in everyway. Labeling their creation as black metal, Venom literally was known for playing without any form of musicianship and shouting blasphemous lyrics. Covering their albums with pentagrams, goats, etc. Their shocking image also brought to them a wide variety of people in their fan base. Venom definately carry the NWOBHM sound. The guitar work easily can be remind the listener of motorhead. With the constant chugging riffs and grunting vocals. Occasionally the vocals go into a whisper like on the song "Buried Alive". The drumming on this album is pretty generic which really takes away from the album. The album doesn't have as dark and atmospheric feel as later black metal albums such as Bathory's Selftitled, "The Return", "Under the sign of the black mark" or Hellhammers "Satanic Rites" or "Apocalyptic Raids". It's more like a bunch of teenagers having a great time and writing blasphemous lyrics. Overall that feel for this album is much like most other heavy metal classics with a darker form of lyrics. Any black metaller needs to hear this album. An album which at the time was probably thought just another metal album has now become a timeless classic |
| An unrestrained celebration of iniquity - 95% |
| Written by Abominatrix
on October 24th, 2003
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| A complete and undeniable classic. This album is so full of spirit, so ripe with explosive energy it's almost indescribable. I'm not going to get into any sort of debate as to whether this is really "black metal" or not. It certainly sounds more like Motorhead, NWOBHM or proto-thrash and such than anything related to modern black metal...but its influence can still be felt in the furthest removed forms of black metal. Certainly there would have been no Bathory without Venom, and no Hellhammer either most likely, and bands like Sigh (and countless others) obviously owe Venom a huge debt. Anyway, that whole debate is old..what about the music? Well...every track here is a definite masterpiece of abrasive, uncontrollable madness, like a formula one racecar plunging through a crowded city, plowing through people, buildings and all slower vehicles that dare get in its path, with an alcoholic maniac at the wheel, grinnning and laughing with glee all the while. On the way of course, our driver will have to stop to pick up some big breasted girls, some of whom he will fornicate with total abandon, some of whom he will take out into the cemetery and slaughter in the name of Satan, still laughing and guzzling all the way. This is the kind of album one can play over and over and never grow bored with, never stop headbanging to with gusto or maniacally air guitaring along with. The worst song on here is the well known title track, which starts off the album and is still by no means an unworthy song. There are definite highlights to be found here, but those are really up to individual interpretation, since it is difficult not to be sucked in by the whole thing. For me, the ballad like "Buried Alive", with its particularly morbid sounding vocals and one of Mantas's best solos ever, leading straight into the fast and evil attack that is "Raise the dead", are two such highlight moments...along with the awesome 'Heaven's On Fire", with a riff just about any thrash band that could dare call itself more advanced would have been envious to have written..."Don't Burn the Witch", possibly the most "modern" sounding song here, with a riff that was so blatantly stolen by Quorthon for Bathory's "Born For Burning"....damn, if I go on much longer I'll be listing the whole album. "Acid queen", which can be found on many of the rereleased versions of this album, is great fun, and "Teacher's pet" is a hillariously raunchy song about some highschool kid's wet dream, complete with slow bluesy section and catcalls and wolf whistles from the band and most likely everyone else in the studio as well. The production here is pretty loose and not of the highest professional quality, I suppose, but it sounds amazing...much better than the sometimes laughable (though still great) "Welcome To Hell"...and there are no technical glitches as seems to be the ocasional case with "At War With Satan". Cronos's vocals are totally understandable too, which is cool, since it makes it easy to sing along to these songs. I definitely think he has one of the coolest and most distinctive raspy vocal styles in metal. Venom receive a lot of crap from people who bitch about their lack of musicianship. This is something I don't entirely understand, since it's clear that a lot of newer bands play a hell of a lot worse than Venom did. Sure, they may not be stellar musicians, but Mantas's riffs and solos still manage to be completely unforgettable, and though Abadon's drumming is sloppy, he still somehow manages to hold everything together. Some people simply need to shut up and give credit where it's due...Venom know how to rock, and nothing more is really required. Although the music itself is superbly energetic and thus can be taken seriously and honestly loved, there is an obvious tongue in cheek and humorous nature to Venom's approach, something in many ways integral to a lot of rock n roll, which metal generally has abandoned in favour of melodramatic antics, in lyrics, presentation and music itself even. Venom are different in the sense that one can tell they don't really take all this satan shit too seriously; they're just out to have a good time, drink loads of beer and fuck loads of women, while creating some killer hard rock (I use the term in the general sense, since this is definitely metal) music in the process. a friend of mine once described Cronos as the perfect "british redneck", and here especially, as well, no doubt, as in his solo works which I haven't yet had the pleasure of hearing, this is really evident. One has to read the lyrics to "teacher's pet", or "Acid Queen" with a chuckle and go along for the ride, perhaps gaining as much enjoyment out of listening to this as the band clearly has in performing it. This is a landmark album, without a doubt. Even if it is rather remote from today's "black metal scene", one need only listen to the first two Bathory albums to see just how large of an impact it has made. Anyway, forget the influence on the black metal subgenre. None of that matters. What is relevant is that this album is so killer, it will never be far from your stereo, the songs never far from your head and the lyrics always waiting to be shouted out, with careless and unfetterred glee. Hail Satan! |
| Fuck yeah! Hell's black rocking metal strikes back - 89% |
| Written by Estigia666
on August 3rd, 2003
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| As if "Welcome to Hell" wasn't enough satanic blasphemy, Venom unleashed this marvelous effort a year after and, man, it is heavy and brutal in the way early 80s classic metal was. While the animal-like annihilative mayhem of their first album couldn't be reproduced entirely here, it is still quite a good piece of work. Tracks like "Black metal" (I don't think I need to remind you how much of a classic this is), "Countess Bathory" (covered repeateadly by everyone from Unleashed to Pentagram), "Don't Burn the Witch", "Leave me in Hell" are as familiar to Venom-heads as the back of their hands. Many other grade-A songs: "To Hell and Back", with its "rockish" appeal and catchy vocal lines. "Buried Alive/Raise the Dead", starting as a clean guitar tune (and quite good, I may say) and then going straight to the throat in the particular fun Venom way. "Sacrifice" is one of my favorite Venom tracks, with that cool S. A. C. R. I. F. I. C. E. chorus backed up by those slimey riffs (for Venom. Remember that back in their days they were equally as fast as perverse sounding). "Heaven's on Fire", not to be confused with the glammy KISS song from the mid-eighties, is as fast and vicious as the rest, again, in that particular Venom way. And I wanted to leave the best for last. "Teacher's Pet", not as consistent as the 100% speedy songs on this release, contains one of the greatest Venom riffs/moments EVER, beginning right after the bluesy/fucking-around part, repeating itself a couple of times and then again at the end. You should be able to tell which one it is. Even Slayer used that riff and altered it a bit during their "Show no Mercy" days (guess in which song. Win a prize). Oh, and the final track.....the best Venom song ever. Too bad it was only a teaser. ;) |
| Lay down your souls to the gods rock and roll!!!! - 77% |
| Written by UltraBoris
on December 30th, 2002
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| This album is so fucking raw and so unpolished that they managed to not wipe away ANY of the original fury that makes this band so damn enjoyable in the first place. Technical proficiency? I think not. Just decently memorable songwriting for the most part, and a raw performance that usually comes through only on a band's live albums. When this album gets going, it is fast-as-fuck over-the-top speed metal that would make a corpse headbang. Highlights... the title track of course, and also "Raise the Dead", "Blood Lust", and "Leave Me in Hell". All of those are speed-metal classics: Motorhead turned evil. And who can forget "Die Hard"!! What a way to close the album! Complaints - well, it's not all THAT consistent... some of the songs are kinda boring, like "Buried Alive", and some of them sound just a bit similar to each other. For the most part, it is the faster songs that are interesting, and it is a good thing that the album is dominated by them. Also, some of the choruses are just a bit lame, i.e. "To Hell! And Back!" but the idea of putting the fast riffs under the verses and solidly keeping them there makes a whole fuckload of sense. For 1982, this is really fucking brutal stuff - no holding back, this album is 100% heavy 100% of the time (it is quite surprising how few bands manage to accomplish that!). |