Creed

Item: Creed
Author: Doug Van Pelt

(1986)

Reviewed by Doug Van Pelt

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Label RSM RecordsHeaven's Metal #15March 1988

hard rock heavy metal melodic metal speed metal

This band from Germany delivers a straight-ahead, "crunch, cruncha-crunch" sound. They weave some typical, but nevertheless catchy, rhythms and hooks into their barrage of metal. The guitarists, Dittmar Huge and Udo Libutzki, go to work on every song. They're not super flashy or phenomenal, but they attack their strings with a frenzy. Larry Miller had described their music as being similar to The Scorpions, so I grabbed up a copy as soon as I could. I was disappointed in my expectation of a Christian Scorpions, but still impressed. They have a ballad, called "Longing for You," which is the song that has an obvious Scorpions feel and is probably the reason for the comparison. As soon as I got past the "Okay, this isn't a new Christian Scorpions" attitude, I loved it. The production doesn't touch the level of the Scorpions, but is pretty clean for a debut EP. I would give this EP a thumbs-up recommendation to any metalhead. Creed's got the power sound that headbangers love. It's got that same crunch effect you get when you put a spoonful of Frosted Flakes in your mouth and chomp. The lead off track, "Turning Darkness Into Light," has just a killer opening riff that'll get the stiffest neck a movin'. The crunch is there and so is the hook. Given some airplay, this song would be much requested, I'm sure. The vocalist, Jessy Baron, has a unique voice and uses it very effectively, incorporating many of the standards for metal screamers. Creed does a good job of evangelizing by means of relating the difference between good and evil and the change that Jesus brings to human life. Klaus Binder, the drummer, does an outstanding job in making his presence known. I'd say the drum mix is superior to most of the Christian metal pressed in the U.S. It's pretty much up to par with the world's standards. The follow-up material from this band ought to be dynamite. To contact Creed, write to: Creed c/o Andres Grun, Trubaver Weg 3, 7820 Guppingen, West Germany.