format: 12" EP
year: 1986
country: Finland
label: JP Music
#: PLAX 001
info: Insert w/ lyrics
style: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, New Wa
Side A:
Side B:
The second to last chapter* in the first part of the Sarcofagus saga wasn't really a proper Sarco-release at all, but it did include the 2 main members Kimmo Kuusniemi and Juha Kiminki, and at least 33,3%
of its content does share some spiritual ties to the Sarcofagus legacy.
The title track is not this part though. Music- and riffwise, "Automania" is basic hard boogie rock stock, but it's completely drenched and camouflaged by Tanja Karttunen batshit crazy vocals. Now, I want to make it perfectly clear that I absolutely adore the fiercely original "Core Values" album from 2007 and she's doing an killer job on it, however in 1986 she was on a heavy Nina Hagen/Lora Logic-trip and the warbling new wave-queen vocal style over those classic rock riffs tastes like strawberry jam on a T-bone steak. I can enjoy both but not mixed together, and while "Automania" is all fun & games, on the power/semi-ballad "Bounds Made Of Lace" this combo becomes pretty much unlistenable.
This leaves us with "Homemade Hero", which in shape and structure could be considered a typical Sarcofagus Heavy Metal composition, but productionwise it's an entirely different entity. If "Envoy Of Death" was their "Sin After Sin", "Moottorilinnut" their "Defenders Of The Faith", this one track was their "Turbo". If you're like me and consider yourself a die-hard Sarco-fan and think "Turbo" is underrated (hm... How often do those characteristics really go hand in hand?), you should definitely try to add this 12" to your collection since it's usually not that awfully pricey - or just love to add warped, weird & crazy 80's borderline tunes to your mix tapes. Otherwise, Stay - Away.
* = dunno if we'll ever deal
with the Double Vision-oddity here, but it did have a Sarcofagus-medley on it.