Blackacidevil

Nine years ago, I had this really dumb idea to buy some albums that are generally regarded as shit by most, but that I happen to really enjoy. Stuff from bands that are usually well loved, but that one record that most people love to hate. I don't mean to be contrarian, but I like what I like, and sometimes when a band surprises me and does something different, I find that I really enjoy it.

Earlier this year, my friend Sarah and I were talking about Danzig and discussing favorite albums (Sarah preferred III while I leaned more towards II), and she suggested that we both take the week to really check out what is considered Danzig's worst album, 5: Blackacidevil.

This was a difficult album for me to open my mind to. It is just so distinctly not Danzig sounding. Like if you'd played that first song for me, without telling me who it was, there is no way that I'd guess. It is so rough and industrial... this is Glenn really trying to be Nine Inch Nails... and immediately my brain shut it down. Nope, I wanted Danzig and this was most decidedly not that. But I'd committed to the project and listened to it off and on over the week, and surprisingly there were songs that started to stand out, and then I came to appreciate just how unique it was... and now I'm giving it a spin when I want something different. I think that I kind of like this album.

In April, Marcus gave me a heads up that Wanna Hear It Records was having a big sale, and that I might want to check out their online store to see if there were any deals that caught my eye. Of course that Danzig 5 album was staring at me, and for $9 how could I refuse. Nine dollars! A true sign that no one else appreciates this record.

Anger Battery

Metallica released a new video recently, and it looks like we are finally getting a follow up to Death Magnetic. Eight years between albums is a fucking joke, but I'm still looking forward to it, and the new video is a nice preview.

The only downside to new Metallica is that all the haters come crawling out of the woodwork. I get it..."Metallica sold out" and "only the first three albums are true". They took your virginity and didn't call you the next day. Yeah yeah, you've got a chip on your shoulder for how badly Metallica have let you down.

I'm not delusional, and I can certainly understand why some people only need the first four...but for this guy, I can hang will all of the Metallica albums. So in the spirit of firing up the haters, I figured it was time to cross a big win off my wantlist/shitlist for this year.

As far as the Most Hated Metallica Album goes, I'm pretty sure that St. Anger takes the crown. The recording is raw. The drums sound like shit. There are no guitar solos. It was supposed to be a return to form, but instead just sounds like the band trying to be more modern. People despise this thing with a passion, but I love these songs...and of course, because people hate it so much, it just made me want to own a copy even more.

When it came time to cross this turd off my wantlist/shitlist, I figured that I'd go with the original UK pressing on Vertigo. I had no real logic behind it, other than the Vertigo name just seems cooler than Elektra. Of course, now that I own an original pressing of St. Anger, but still don't own Ride The Lightning or Master Of Puppets, just shows how misguided and retarded I am.

Young And Unaware

When I was young, and starting to get into Hardcore, I remember hearing the name Warzone thrown around a lot. I figured that they must be a big deal, so when I saw their self-titled CD sitting on the racks at the local music store, I quickly grabbed it, eager to check out this legendary Hardcore band.

In hindsight, that release from 1989 might not have been the best place to start...but I didn't know any better, and as I was crossing over from Metal to Hardcore, I quite enjoyed that record.

Sometime down the road, a friend shared the REV comp, The Way It Is, with me...after hearing As One, it suddenly clicked why Hardcore kids revered this band so much. However, even after getting the first two Warzone records dubbed to a blank cassette tape, and recognizing how superior those are, I still had a soft spot for that self titled turd.

Like Token Entry's Weight Of The World, everyone likes to cast stones and ridicule these oddballs...but me, I love 'em...and since I've been checking records off the World's Shittiest Wantlist this year, I figured it was time to scratch another big time player off the list.

Weight Of The World

Last month, after writing about a couple of Anthrax albums from the John Bush era, I came up with the stupid idea of making a run at some records that I really enjoy, but seem to be universally shit upon by everyone else. When I started thinking about which turd I wanted to step into next, Token Entry's beautiful stinker seemed to be the obvious choice.

I can fully understand why people may hate this Token Entry album. If I'd been following the band through their From Beneath The Streets and Jaybird albums, The Weight Of The World would have probably bummed me the fuck out. But I was really just starting to discover hardcore around 1990, and therefore, The Weight Of The World was my introduction to the band...so maybe I was a bit more forgiving than most.

Dudes in Token Entry must have been losing their shit over both Soulforce Revolution from 7 Seconds and Mother's Milk from Red Hot Chili Peppers...mix in a dash of DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince with songs like Beautiful People, and while it sounds like the perfect recipe for a shit sandwich...for me, it works here. Honestly, I'd love to hear the band's insight on writing and recording this oddball. It would be cool to hear where their heads were at.

So I get it...you are a Hardcore purist, and you hate this album. Me however, maybe it was a time and place thing, but I get a kick out of listening to it. I'm happy to add it to the collection, even if it makes me feel like a complete tool for owning this LP, and not having a single copy of the superior Jaybird.

Two In The Bush

I get excited over the dumbest shit.

I get a bit of a charge over listening to stuff that I know the majority of the people love to hate. It's not that I'm doing it out of some kind of misguided rebellion, I genuinely like albums like St. Anger, the self titled Warzone LP, Token Entry's The Weight Of The World, Tony Martin-era Black Sabbath, and Blaze Bayley-era Iron Maiden. But still, hearing people bitch about any one of these albums gives me a devious little twist, and I'll rush to give it a spin and vocalize my appreciation. Hey, don't look down on me like you don't know what I'm talking about, as you try to explain that "no, Staring Into The Sun is actually a really good Uniform Choice album". We all make bad choices, and I'll proudly stand by mine.

So while people get themselves all wound up tight, going along with the crowd and hating all the right albums, I'm sitting here and thinking about making a serious run at collecting them on vinyl for 2016. And here you were thinking that this blog couldn't get any more lame. Surprise! I can sink even lower.

When it comes to Anthrax, most Metal purists tend to only fall in line with the Belladonna years. At some point, the verdict seems to have come down that we are to not speak of those albums that had John Bush at the mic...and while I'll contend that Spreading The Disease and Among The Living are the high point in Anthrax's career, I'm not going to back away from Bush's 10+ year run through the 90's.

Hey, I'll admit, for the longest time, I was in the camp of Belladonna or nothing. How could I not be? I grew up through the 80's...I bought Among The Living, State Of Euphoria and Persistence Of Time all on release day...and there was a time that I would have defended their position in the Big 4. But just because I didn't bother with the Bush-era Anthrax at the time, doesn't mean that I don't appreciate it now.

Fueled by my obsession with Armored Saint last year, I tentatively reached for an old burned CD of Stomp 442 that I had sitting on my shelf. I'd heard it as the butt of jokes for years, and couldn't remember the last time that I'd even bothered to give it a spin. In my Armored Saint mood, I figured that I'd give it a shot, and if I didn't dig it, I could dump that old CDR and make some room on the shelf.

I didn't just like it...it fucking consumed me. I couldn't get enough of this album, and it became a permanent fixture in my daily playlists for December.

I needed to own this on vinyl, but since the world had written off vinyl when Stomp 442 was released back in '95, that meant that only Germany bothered to press the album on wax. Because of this, it meant that it was going to be priced like Martin Shkreli selling AIDS medication. It was not going to come cheap. That's cool though...I found a seller in the Discogs Marketplace that was willing to unload his copy at a reasonable price, and I was a happy man.

Of course the catch in making Stomp 442 a good deal, was that I had to add the John Bush debut with Anthrax to my order to help sweeten the sale for the seller. What, am I going to complain about having to buy two Anthrax albums? Ummm...no.

While Sound Of White Noise wasn't pressed on vinyl in the States back in '93, there were a few countries that kept the vinyl tradition alive at the time. Sure, it saw a recent vinyl repress in '09, but get that shit outta here. It could possibly sound better on the double vinyl repress, but I'm going with the original single LP German pressing. Love the look of that alternate cover art!