July 18, 2013

METALCHRIST "Nihil Sine Deo" (1994)


The Romanian metal scene is about as bland as a pound of sand. Just sand. But if you dig through it like a fucking maniac you're damn sure you're gonna find some hidden gems. The heavy metal kind. And NO, I do not like to take Iris, Holograf and early Compact as heavy metal, just like I do not like to think of Bon Jovi as heavy metal. They are just some hard rock aimed at the feminine public. I'm not saying they suck, but it's not what I'm looking for.

You see, in the 90s there was a TV show called "Intâlnirea de la Miezul Nopţii'' ("The Midnight Meeting") who invited metal acts to play on their stage. Some of the recordings of those bands leaked on youtube a couple of years ago and, when I saw the Metalchrist one, I remained speechless. For mid-90s Romania it was amazing to see fast and heavy riffs, powerful drumming, screeched-metallic vocals and double guitar solos, while all of the bandmates looked like some filthy 80s thrash outfit (pictured above).

The whole album resonates of very cool guitar harmonies, even to my utter amazement sone Mercyful Fate-like ones and very good vocals, though a little silent at times and even if they drift a little into 90s power metal, they really do the job surprisingly well. I can trully say this album is THE hidden gem for the entire Romanian metal scene.

Final Ratting: 8.5/10.

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