12 Years In The Tomb

I love the Scott Reagers era of Saint Vitus. I was lucky to catch the band live in Boston a few years ago when the band reunited with Reagers after 20 years...and man, the band could still fucking deliver live. I figured that they would play a few shows, and maybe do a small tour, and that would be the end of it. When I heard that Vitus were doing a new album with Reagers, I was over the fucking moon.

Reagers sounds as good as he did when Saint Vitus released their self-titled album and Hallow's Victim back in '84 and '85. His voice ranges from doomy to absolutely maniacal, and fits the songs perfectly while Dave Chandler and crew keep cranking out some amazing doom.

I was pretty excited for this new album, and most of these songs deliver the punch that I want from Vitus. There are a couple of times when things slip for me, and would have preferred to have some of the padding trimmed off, but overall, this record is fantastic.

Crystal clear colored vinyl is looking sharp, and I was able to grab a copy locally, so that was cool with me.

Armageddon's Vitus Victim

A couple of years ago, I caught Saint Vitus live for the first time. Have you ever had one of those experiences where you liked a band, but after watching them perform live, that you find yourself with a much deeper appreciation for what they can deliver? That was me with Saint Vitus. I always preferred the Scott Reagers line up for Vitus, but after watching the man front Vitus live...holy shit...I was in awe. Reagers was a man possessed, and you could tell he was loving it.

Since seeing the band live, I've had the thought of "I need more Saint Vitus vinyl in my collection", and seeing a copy of Hallow's Victim at the Armageddon Shop, I instantly added it to my growing pile of records to buy.

This album is an absolute beast, the the back to back attack of War Is Our Destiny and White Stallions...goddamn...for a "stoner/doom" band, those two tracks make me want to fucking move.

I'm pretty sure that this is a reissue, but I'm just glad to finally have a copy in the collection.

V is for Vitus

Buying my ticket to see The Skull and Saint Vitus this Fall pushed me to start looking online for pieces of vinyl that I'm missing in the collection. Sometimes you need to chase that immediate need that is right in front of you, and there is nothing like a touring band to call me to action.

Even though Saint Vitus is touring with their original singer, Scott Reagers...which also happens to be my favorite for the band...when I saw the Wino fronted album, V, I couldn't resist due to the $11 price tag.

Normally I would have held out for an original vinyl pressing, but since Tony Reed of Mos Generator did the remastering for this release...and I'm a huge fan of whatever Tony is involved in...I was interested in checking out this pressing.

I'd never heard V prior to this, but like most Saint Vitus releases, this one is as thick and doomy as hell. How many bands can title a song Ice Monkey, and still have it come off super cool?

Saint Vitus Dance

In issue #13 of Iron Fist magazine, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of 1984, they compiled a list of their Top 20 albums from that year. Who doesn't love a good "Best Of" list, and the opportunity to scrutinize it? What? Scorpions 'Love At First Sting' made their list, but Dio 'The Last In Line' didn't?!?! Heresy!

While I was reviewing the list, there were only two albums that I wasn't familiar with. I'd never heard the number one pick, Bathory, and in my ignorance, I wasn't even aware that the first Saint Vitus was a self titled release from 1984...I'd always assumed that Hallow's Victim was their first.

When it comes to Saint Vitus, I prefer the Scott Reagers albums, over the Wino releases, so when I learned about this debut, I quickly downloaded a copy.

After I'd listened to that album everyday for about two weeks, I figured that I should probably buy a copy. With that black album cover, I expected it to be a complete nightmare to try and find a copy. I needed this shit to be in great condition, and I expected to have to wade through all kinds of ringwear and banged up covers to find one that was good enough for my high standards.

Soon after starting my search, however, I found a still sealed copy on eBay. I have no idea what pressing this is. It has the embossed logo, and is in great shape, so I was sold.

I love that metallic silver embossed logo on the front cover. So damn cool.

Man, what a great and heavy album. I'll take issue with Iron Fist rating the superior Trouble LP below the Saint Vitus debut, but really both records are absolute beasts.

Saint Vitus 'Die Healing'

A few years ago, when I first start to heavily get into doom metal, there was a guy at the local Newbury Comics that would scoff at me for not being very familiar with some of the classics...mainly Saint Vitus. I'd downloaded their early albums, Hallow's Victim and Born Too Late, but they never grabbed me out of the gate, so I didn't spend much time with them.

The Bravewords site has a thing called Knuckle Tracks, where they feature new songs from bands, and since I know so little about the Saint Vitus catalog, when they posted the song One Mind on their radio, I assumed the band had a new album coming out. I figured that I'd check it out, and was surprisingly knocked on my ass with how good it was. After some research, I discovered that the song was from their 1995 album, Die Healing. I love discovering buried treasures like this!

The entire album is heavy doom brilliance. It seems like everyone associates Saint Vitus with singer Wino, but this reunion LP with their original singer, Scott Reagers, is by far may favorite. "Beware...here comes the sloth"!

There wasn't a whole lot of vinyl being pressed when this album was originally released in 1995. In fact, Die Healing didn't finally get the vinyl treatment until 2010. This copy is from the 2013 reissue. Limited to 300 on this bright, transparent yellow vinyl.

Record Store Day 2013 - Part 1: The New Shit

I know that everyone likes to take a piss all over Record Store Day. I can understand the hate. With record stores slowly vanishing from existence, the day was created to celebrate those that were still around, as well as increasing the visibility of vinyl as a valid format as more kids were going digital. Like all things that start off with the purest intention, there will always be someone out there looking to exploit it and make some money. Over the past five years, we've seen more and more usless Record Store Day exclusive re-issues (do we really need another Jimi Hendrix 7 inch?) and some of the prices are retarded ($14 for a 7 inch?)...and do I need to mention the douchebag flippers that only want the most rare releases so they can cash in on eBay? Still, I'm not going to let these things get me down. I still look forward to this day, even if it is an excuse to head out for a day of record shopping.

This year, my shopping list of RSD releases was pretty small. There were only a few that I cared about, and of those, I wouldn't have been too upset if I didn't get my hands on one. Still, Jeff and I were standing in line at 8:45 in the morning, waiting for the doors to open.

The first piece of vinyl that I grabbed was the picture disc for Dio. People seem to love the Magica album, and claim it as their favorite from Dio's later years. While I do like it, I always prefer Killing The Dragon or Master Of The Moon over this one.

I generally don't care about picture discs, but I still have a love affair with all things Dio, so I quickly grabbed the only copy in the store. In years past, these Dio/Rainbow picture discs sell for around $26, so I was surprised to see this one only at $17.

Another picture disc that I was hoping to find was the Testament 7 inch.

Nothing new and exciting here. Just covers of Iron Maiden and Scorpions that were included on thier Dark Roots Of Earth album from last year. Still it is a nice collectable.

Next up is the recent batch of repressings from Revelation Records. This year's list was kind of a let down, but I do love The Nerve Agents, so at least there was one to look forward to.

I wasn't really interested in the other two REV releases, the first Sense Field LP and the Slipknot 7 inch. I'd never really bothered with either one of these, and chose to continue to ignore the Sense Field LP. Slipknot on the other hand, I figured that I'd give them a shot.

I remember reading some comparisons to early Corrosion Of Conformity, and this Slipknot EP definitely has some of that Animosity sound to it. I'm glad to finally have given this one a chance.

Victory has also gotten into the Record Store Day game, and unlike REV, Victory is sticking to those classics that will sell. No Baby Gopal or Hi-Fi and the Roadburners shit...nope, we get the classic Snapcase EP, Steps. I do love some early Snapcase.

One of Victory's biggest bands has to be Earth Crisis. I can only hang with the band though the Destroy The Machines album, so I'm glad the label chose to stick with the early years and repress the Firestorm EP.

Once I had all my RSD purchases, I headed over to the regular vinyl section. I'd downloaded the new Saint Vitus album last year, but it really didn't do much for me. I'd given it a few spins, and as much as I wanted to like it, it just wasn't happening. A month or so ago, I was out for a 10 mile run, and one of the new songs popped up in my running mix. I couldn't tell who it was, but I was loving the heavy doom sound, and singers voice pushed to song to another level. When I got home, I scanned back over the songs that had played and was surprised to find that it was Saint Vitus. It finally clicked, and I was glad to find a copy on Record Store Day.