Celtic Pandemonium

I was excited when Jeff sent me the latest list of records that he'd picked up from Tim's collection. I knew that Tim had a number of metal records in there, and I was looking forward to seeing what I would be able to pick up. I was expecting to pick up some classic thrash albums, but what surprised me was rediscovering and really enjoying a record that I was sure that I didn't like.

I really like the early Celtic Frost records, and while I owned the cassette of their 1987 album, Into The Pandemonium, as a kid, at some point over the years I decided that I really didn't like it. It was all too weird and experimental for my brain that just wanted straight forward crushing metal and I haven't listened to it in well over 20 years. When I saw that the record was available from Tim's collection, I figured that I'd give it a quick spin on Spotify... you know, just to make sure that I didn't like it and I could let Jeff know that I wan't interested in it.

Well shocking, because I fucking loved all of the Into The Pandemonium oddness. From the strange cover song choice of Mexican Radio to start the album, to the symphonic sounds and french poetry of Tristesses de la Lune, the strange electronic pounding drum of One In Their Pride, or the dirge march of Rex Irae... it is all so odd for a "metal" record, and yet listening to it now I see it as absolute genius. It feels like it shouldn't work, and I can understand why I felt like I didn't like it at one point, but right now I can't get enough of this album.