V/A
Norway
Rocks
Line-up:
ANESTHESIA, MANITOU, SHELLSHOCK,
GET LOST, THUNDERDOME
Side A:
- Jihad (victim of faith) - ANESTHESIA
- Stay A While (with me) - MANITOU
- Hard Times - SHELLSHOCK
- Stop Telling Me Lies - GET LOST
- Lucifiers[sic] Eye - THUNDERDOME
Side B:
- Prelude To Ruin - ANESTHESIA
- Flyin' Away - MANITOU
- You Got To Make It Right - SHELLSHOCK
- We Only Came Here To Rock - GET LOST
- Sudden Death - THUNDERDOME
((CLICK PICS FOR HI-RES SCANS))
I
had the weirdest dream yesterday. I dreamt that all the bands featured
on this compilation were announcing a reunion gig at this nightclub in
my old home town. I started calling lots of people about this very important
metallic event, raving about how fuckin' ace all the bands were and how
you could read about them on my website. Then I realized I hadn't finished
the review yet, stressed out and then things got blurry, (probably morphing
into the usual sex, drugs & purple hippos themes..). What's my point
with this little piece of "sharing"? It's that "Norway
Rocks" leaves a bloody profound impression! This is hands down the
best independent Metal compilation I've ever heard. And it's from Norway!
Heck, that's like finding an 80's Black Metal release from Bangladesh
and so it falls into that category of albums-that-should-not-be. With
less than a handful of interesting Metal acts from this country you'd
never expect to suddenly run into 5 of them, and certainly not all compiled
on one album.
The most instant band featured are ANESTHESIA. Their early-HELLOWEEN-worshipping
Power/Speed is on such a high level I cannot imagine anyone regularly
visiting this site to put them down. There's some Xtra aggression and
bile á la early FLOTSAM & JETSAM in there too, so if the term
'German Power Metal' makes you cringe, don't let the Norwegian edition
pass you by 'coz both "Jihad (victim of faith)" and "Prelude
To Ruin" are absolute classics, even if the former at times
sound curiously similar to a certain old HELLOWEEN-piece (guess which
one). 2nd 10/10-act would be THUNDERDOME. They sound even more
West-European than ANESTHESIA, boosted by a healthy dose of GOTHAM CITY-class,
proud Metal choruses that will make your head bang the rest of your body
into a pulp.
2 outstanding, obscure and forgotten Metal acts deserving a full-length
release many times more than any of their countrymen is where the story
usually ends as far as compilations go. At best. 3 remaining bands usually
means 1 pussyarsed aor-combo, 1 tired Testament-clone and 1 filthy sleaze-act
with wet dreams of blowing Axl Rose in a murky Hollywood alley. Obviously
this is not the way it's done in Norway. MANITOU, SHELLSHOCK
and even the kiddies of GET LOST are all rock-solid Heavy Metal
and could easily qualify as the Best Band of the Album on plenty of other
half-assed comps. Special credits goes to SHELLSHOCK's energy-packed "Hard
Times" and MANITOU's galloping, melancholic Power Metal scorcher
"Flyin' Away".
If we were dealing with 5 private 7"s here you'd already know about
them by now since they would be on everything & everyone's want lists,
but because of people's general skepticism towards compilations this album
has not yet reached the level of the impossibly rare nor a ridiculously
high price (I've seen it go for peanuts on Norwegian auction sites). Better
save the procrastination for tomorrow and search out a copy today or you'll
weep later and the rest of us will point our fingers and laugh. "Ha
ha! Silly crybaby procrastinating metalhead!"
Then you will piss your pants and we'll all feel awkward about it.