Pray for the Sinner

“…you can smell it in the air, their torches start their burning…”

Natural disaster bands have never done well. Hard rockers Hurricane's stint on a major label barely breezed to acclaim. No Tsunamis flood any coast. Blizzards, unless it's a gaming company, are as expected as Earthquakes in outer space. Brutal destruction has been caused by one Cyclone, yet it’s hardly remembered even by the neighborhoods it careened through. Alas, Missouri’s Avalanche wouldn’t know this bad omen in ’85, otherwise they may have called themselves something else, maybe something more akin to their sound, yet Tornado, even with their mid-western US origin and its love for twisters, would’ve been too volatile a name, I'm afraid.

Monikers notwithstanding, Pray for the Sinner is a modestly decent, climate-controlled eight-tracker uphill with a traditional source code that slopes pretty often into commercial/hard rock valleys. In fact, I’d say it’s a pretty even split of grassland. Yep, sounds like a 7 or 8 on the ‘ol metal ‘iffy’ meter to those merely reading about a record. Well, now that I really look at the album cover…yeah, I can see it in there, lurking, but it’s hiding even better within these fairly hefty song titles. Famous last words: how bad could it be?

With its initial moments, fairly eager opener “They Won’t Take Me” emits a classy, virtuoso Maiden vibe that, despite appearing again later in the track, is the other (albeit much smaller) misnomer you will eventually come to realize as remaining play time dwindles. The actual songwriting bulk, especially the heavier stock, you’ll find covers bases more like Spartan Warrior, Hammer, and draftier Avenger (UK), which there’s technically nothing wrong with, being moderately catchy, fairy enthused, and played with some confidence. With that being said, lowlighting the least first is “Tortured Defender” which rolls the most hard rock here that’s even nuanced with Crue-ish “Girls, Girls, Girls” crap, meanwhile the title track leads side two like a fairly straight screen pass thrown by some hefty girl, and less limp-wristed “Devil’s Door” and on-the-fence “Battle Axe” aren’t much fatter. This is the part of the grasslands where crops grow to feed the town’s moral majority.

Aggressors “They Won’t Take Me”, adamant “This Love I Feel” (which should’ve traded names with any of the lowlights), metal-sturdy “Child of Damnation”, anthem-poised “We Will Fight”, and even finale “Rock Hard and Heavy” are across the way with farmers cursing up a storm because they’ve stumbled onto iron ore country. Sucks to be them, but they’ll never understand this is what we, the immoral minority, want from the dough we’ve spent on this. Protecting these land rights is vigilant “Sorceror”, a quick and churlish scarecrow that, with its abnormally rough n’ grated register, doesn’t mince words with warnings.

According to bassist/vocalist Nikki Van Welden, the lighter pastures require more colloquial communication with the farmhands; averagely rough and mature, in tune yet untrained, and quite within the proverbial box. However, he dirties up for the tougher mineral drillers with tendencies of a hoarser, coarser, and grubbier taskmaster who dallies with ragged, not-so-near falsetto screams for kicks. He’s also the only surviving victim of the avalanche and would slither over to Vyper to unknown avail. The rest of the trio, guitarist Barry Nicholson and young Howard Stern look-alike drummer Michael Cloe, play sufficiently for the cause.

Well, it’s obvious the group’s lone seed hasn’t sprouted beyond even the shortest fence of recognition, but neither have a million other bands. Not so sadly, that’s where Avalanche is buried, however some of their more metallic branches still stick outta the snow for the occasional reviewer to trip on and wonder what’s underneath.

Fun fact 86id(7): “Child of Damnation” and “Sorceror” are switched on the actual playlist despite the album jacket’s order.