...SIŁA I PIĘKNO MUZYKI TKWIĄ W JEJ RÓŻNORODNOŚCI...


[Ponieważ wiem, iż bywają problemy z pobraniem moich wstawek bardzo proszę osoby, którym się to udało o udostępnianie innym użytkownikom]



..::OPIS::..

'The Reborn' to jeden z najbardziej niezależnych i najlepszych albumów heavy/power metalowych, jakie kiedykolwiek przekroczyły granice naszych zachodnich sąsiadów i wciąż uważam go za absolutny hit tego gatunku!

FA


The German metal scene was a really happy-go-lucky place in the late-80’s/early-90’s; myriads of bands were rushing to secure for themselves a place under the metal sun, be it with just one isolated effort. Many of them never managed to leave their motherland, maybe not even their hometown, but they did take part in a movement which at some stage was probably bigger than the one in The States even. Risk were one of the lucky ones who managed to carve a longer career, and although they never became a premier league outfit, quite a few are those who fondly remember these lads who once upon a time were spreading “the daily horror news” on a more or less regular basis.

The band’s history starts way back in time, actually, the early 1970’s to be precise, and they can officially be considered the second heavy metal outfit on German ground after Scorpions. Now that’s something to be proud of! However, unlike The Scorps who quickly found the way to more aggressive musical dimensions, our risk takers, who were operating under the name Faithful Breath at that time, spent too much time roaming around the radio-friendly hard rock arena, and it took them wholesome ten years before they decided to step on the pedal harder. The result from this decision were two decent classic heavy metal albums (“Gold’n Glory” (1984) & “Skol” (1985)). Another however, the tastes in the mid-80’s were changing towards heavier, more brutal horizons and the guys didn’t think twice before embracing the speed/thrash metal idea, first by changing their name to Risk, and second with their excellent debut, “The Daily Horror News” (1988), under this new moniker. The style initially was more speed metal-based, but by the time the band reached their third opus “Dirty Surfaces” (1990), the transition into an accomplished thrash metal outfit was pretty much complete.

The guys had managed to establish a fairly individual face backed up by very memorable song-writing (“Russian Nights” from their sophomore effort remains one of the perennial metal hymns on the scene) and the excellent dramatic clean vocals of Heinz Mikus. The man had made some adjustments to his performance behind the mike from the Faithful Breath days to suit the more aggressive music, but his attached melodic vocal lines could always be recognized unerringly. Back to “Dirty Surfaces”: so the emphasis on speed from the early Risk days has given way to more serious, more thought-out music characterized by several imposing stompers. Those who liked this tendency into the band’s delivery were heading towards their dream album…

the introductory “Arise” goes straight into last year’s Sepultura’s magnum opus… kidding of course!, is a great melodic lead-driven piece which energetic aura is like a precursor to another speed/thrash metal storm. Yes, but no; starts “Last Warning” with those infectious morose Oriental hooks, and the listener has to adjust his/her senses to this surprisingly ambitious progressive composition which marches for over 9-min not forgetting about the staple memorable chorus. 9-min are more than enough for one to reconsider his/her music conceptions, and those who have opened their hearts (and ears) for the established steam-roller hegemony, will have the time of their lives on the following “Be No More”, a creepy minimalistic shredder without any fast-paced temptations. More surprises later with ”Lullaby” which deserves its title being a great heavy ballad.

All illusions are inevitably cast aside after this compelling sleeper, but the only way is up from now on, and the guys serve “Turn back to Ecstasy”, a much more dynamic number with intriguing semi-technical guitar work, a brilliant main motif introduced from the get-go, and another nice catchy chorus. Further we go up the speed scale with the nighty... sorry, mighty “Night Will Fall”, a dark razor-sharp mid-pacer which may even make some more vigorous fans headbang for a bit. Our favourite speed is implacably killed on the doomy depresser “Phantasmagoria”, and for the band to stop the wave of suicides which would inadvertently follow after such a piece, they have to provide a more dynamic track which in this case is the brilliant “Armageddon (Fight Back))”, an almost fast-paced thrasher with very good leads and more flexible riffage bordering on the technical. This is the last life-saver, though, since after it comes the closer “No One Will Remember”, the song which indeed one will hardly remember several years down the line, this over 7-min saga being another ballad/semi-ballad, a bit faster than the "Lullaby", but not doing much to elevate the album to the true masterpiece pedestal despite the superb, albeit overlong lead section.

That last song could be viewed as the weakest track here since there were a few numbers already in the slow camp, and this one can’t be seen as a really valuable addition to an effort which was already full to the brim with doom and gloom. The darker overtones were already introduced on the previous offering, but here they totally dominate the landscape making this new saga an entirely different “beast”; it’s really hard to think of another work from the European thrash metal scene which captures the pessimistic, brooding side of the genre as well and so thoroughly without completely crossing over the boundaries of the band’s staple style (Assorted Heap’s “Mindwaves” maybe? Or Sacrosanct’s “Recesses for the Depraved”?). On the other hand, if you think of it, the guys have always been in a league of their own, neither following the vicious outbreaks of the Holy Three from their homeland, nor becoming fascinated with the more ambitious, intricate arrangements of the Bay Area brotherhood from the other side of the Atlantic. 1992 was a year for experimentation (Kreator, Exodus, Overkill, Testament, etc.) for the metal world, a time to try and expand beyond the true and tested formulas… Risk indeed took a risk worth taking, giving thrash metal a sombre shade that would have suited the genre way better than the groovy/angry transformation which befell it later in the decade, and threatened to completely erase it from the face of the music map.

Well, this transformation finally caught up with the band as well on their next instalment “Turpitude” released less than a year later. The hopes were, having in mind the short gap between the two albums, that this effort would be really close in spirit to its predecessor. Although it contained the same dark depressing mood, it was widely based on the new post-thrashy trends making the few splashes of classic metallisms seem like ridiculous, erroneous afterthoughts. Yes, the aggro-movement finally took Risk, too, another fortress which defiantly stood its ground, albeit for not much longer than the other fallen heroes.

The band still play indifferent to the thrash metal rebirth witnessed through the new millennium. They haven’t been doing much, as a matter of fact, during this dormant period randomly appearing for brief recording sessions of other acts (Centaur, Crows, etc.). I guess they are musing over a serious dilemma right now: to reform Faithful Breath, or to bring Risk back to life… to us, the thrash metal fraternity, the latter option would always seem like the less risky, and the far more preferrable proposition.

Bayern



..::TRACK-LIST::..

1. Arise 00:46
2. Last Warning 09:16
3. Be No More 04:30
4. Lullaby 04:02
5. Awakening 01:15
6. Turn Back to Ecstasy 04:49
7. Eclipse 00:52
8. The Night Will Fall 05:37
9. Phantasmagoria 04:18
10. Armageddon (Fight Back) 04:08
11. No One Will Remember 07:12

Bonus Tracks:
12. Be No More [The Reborn demo]
13. Last Warning [The Reborn demo]



..::OBSADA::..

Heimi Mikus - Vocals
Jürgen Düsterloh (R.I.P. 2014) - Percussion, Drums
Peter Dell - Bass
Christian Sumser - Guitars, Sitar
Romme 'Romme' Keymer - Guitars, Sitar



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw5pHcQqRAY



SEED 15:00-22:00.
POLECAM!!!