Electro Shock Therapy

These electro-shock therapists appeared in the mid/late-80’s when the Russian metal scene literally exploded with young budding artists (Master, Black Obelisk, D.I.V., Shah, Korrozia Metala, etc.) who were looking to put their name on the map before the end of the decade. While the works of the majority of those more or less squarely belonged to the thrash metal genre, our friends here were fascinated with the heritage of Lemmy (R.I.P.) and Co.; in other words, the Russian answer to Motorhead was born in the outskirts of Moscow, a lively full of energy bunch that were obviously not taking themselves and life in general seriously...

that last stance a perfect setup for this jolly unpretentious slab of old school metal that is the album reviewed here. There’s no more fitting way to start this saga than with “Perestroika”, the feelgood hard’n heavy anthem that so finely captures the mood of the times, the reconstruction of the communist system in the big country and Eastern Europe, this one naturally an optimistic sing-alonger before “Joker” puts motors on all heads around, and commences the speed’n roll boogie that permeates this intentionally frivolous recording. Watch out for “Father”, a nice take on Russian folk motifs with a hyper-active crossover flair; and for “Knife”, the only overtly thrashy proposition the guys justifying the cutting title with sharp intense riffs. "Remember Kathy" is the obligatory respite, a lyrical balladic etude that will make everyone fondly remember Kathy as well as other… cuties around; and "Ten Holy Jolly Years" is another, marginally more serious segment from this saga, an officiant epic hymn which pathos is cancelled outright by the rowdy speedster "Red Beast", this one vintage early Exciter.

There can’t be a better vocal accompaniment to this merry-go-round opus than inebriate hoarse semi-clean vocals ala Lemmy, and this is exactly what has been provided behind the mike, the vocalist here a bit lower-tuned and less-prone to singing. It’s one big merry party that has been stirred here in the outskirts of Moscow, with loads of Russian vodka, Russian folk tunes, beautiful girls, practical jokes… an arousing orgy that couldn’t possibly be built on very big musical skills… and this is by no means the case.

In fact, the band never had any pretentions to present themselves as the ultimate virtuoso artists on the circuit as they carried on with their old school Motorhead-ish tactics for the next outing “Proba Pera” before settling for carefree hard rock’n roll tunes on “13”, losing the more enjoyable speedy ornaments to a large extent. The electro-shock therapy goes on in the new millennium as well, but don’t expect any fast-paced lightning bolts… those are mere vestiges from a happy, party-filled past.