Spending my Saturday mornings crate digging around flea markets is one of my most relaxing activities. In the times of vinyl stock-market where prices are mandated by Discogs, I believe that flea markets are some of the few last places where someone can still find long sought albums hidden between Frampton Comes Alive! and Nana Mouschouri ring-wear records. I had the pleasure to find during one of my recent "excavations" the 1982 debut by Athenian Group Psycho, an album which has been a "love or hate" case in the Greek indie scene (even though in the recent years it has started gaining a cult status).
Principally classified as electronic, it is the operatic singing of Dora Antoniadis that provides to it its certain character and appeal (for those like me who adore this record). The cover version of Psycho Killer had the (alleged) approval of David Byrne when he listened to it during a tour stop in Athens...
Where, in my opinion, the real value of the song writing comes to the surface though is in songs like I'm Having You Now. Unfortunately the legacy of this record was never surpassed (and there is a rather sad story about Psycho members subsequent steps after this release which I am not interested in transferring here...). Montage Fatal will be there to remind us a group who would probably have had bigger chances to succeed had they not been born in Greece during the 80's...
Speaking about long sought albums, the CD version of Lost In Oneself by Calhoun Conquer is one of my holy grails. The only copy available within reasonable price is currently being sold from Belarus and this makes me sceptical given the reputation of former Soviet countries when it comes to producing bootlegs. As mentioned several times in the past in this blog, I have no issue with bootlegs as long as the original press is rare or ridiculously expensive and I already own a Russian copy of Lost In Oneself (which I have apparently bought for 5 euros) so until I bump into a (verified) original copy I will settle with this without paying an arm and a leg. Coming back to the music, originating from a country like Switzerland - with a small music production but always exquisite and elegant - Calhoun Conquer offered some of the most intelligent techno thrash. Unfortunately their sole full-length release was not enough to place them in the progressive metal "pantheon" next to their compatriots Coroner.
The inflow of promos in my mailbox is keeping steady (if not increasing). Trying to keep up between daily work and family activities I am still able to follow the underground production and present below the 10 best promos that I have received this year. For better presentation reasons I have decided to divide them into groups. Et Voilà...
File Under : For those who miss Morbid Angel
The musical path that the Florida legends have chosen to follow in their last releases may have been disappointing but there is always hope for the fans coming from underground bands who are able to carry the torch.
Drawn and Quartered - Congregation Pestilence
Deformatory - Inversion of he Unseen Horizon
Killing Addiction - Mind of a New God
File Under : Technical Death metal
Noctambulist - The Barren Form
Cathexis - Untethered Abyss
File Under : Crustcore
Dödsrit - Mortal Coil
Nyksi - Nyksi
File Under : Modern metal
Karma Violens - Mount of the Congregation
Mother of All - Age of the Solipsist (featuring Steve Di Giorgio)
File Under : Thrash
Infex - Burning in Exile
*The Blog post title is taken from the same-named song contained in the album Montage Fatal by Psycho....
#Psycho #TalkingHeads #DavidByrne #CalhounConquer #Coroner #MorbidAngel #DrawnAndQuartered #Deformatory #KillingAddiction #Noctambulist #Cathexis #Dödsrit #Nyksi #KarmaViolens #MotherOfAll #SteveDiGiorgio #Infex