Vengeance

Item: Human Sacrifice
Author: J. Le Bavouill'hard

Human Sacrifice

(1988)

Reviewed by J. Le Bavouill'hard

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Label Intense RecordsAdonai Metal Rock #3July 1989

death metal heavy metal speed metal thrash metal

Translated from the original French

Imagine five explosive bipeds, weaned on speed, who, touched by Divine Grace, had tipped over, manes all out, into the radiant universe of White Metal...! But no need to let the imagination slog on any longer, since these eardrum descalers do very much exist and are currently imposing themselves as the number one of the Christian speed metal scene. These heavenly speedo-cephalics have among them, what is more, two pastors (the bawler and the skin-basher), which explains why the band's words are so often considered to be the closest to the texts of the Bible. All the lyrics, and notably "Human Sacrifice", "From The Dead", "Fill This Place With Blood", "Beheaded", "Fatal Delay", thus contain whole fragments lifted from the Scriptures, relating for example to Christ's sacrifice to save mankind, to His resurrection or to the Apocalypse.

VENGEANCE's hair-raising speedsters are not there to mince their words in any case (the singer's vocal turbine would never hold that rhythm!!). Indeed, they are not content to restate who Jesus is or to report His words, but they willingly buttonhole the listener, throwing it right in his face: "Are you listening, not just hearing, to what I say?" or provocations of the kind: "So if you claim to be a christian, show it with your life, and do not advocate rebellion, filth and lies". Old Speedy Martinez (or perhaps Roger...?!) does not hesitate either to be consumed (!) with joy in explaining the reasons for his ferocity against Satan. In "I Love Hating Evil", the seasoned screamer who seems to be testifying (he bawls "I've seen it all before") hammers it home noisily: "Evil pulls and tugs at you and says if you have more then you'll be satisfied: a lie to the core. It'll rip you off, then it'll make you pay, and man it's hurt so any". Besides, the sound illustration of those who will squeal in the infernal cauldron, for want of having seized their chance of redemption, is also well within his range (his vocal range, at that stage!). What is more, on the demo that preceded the release of this first LP and gathered 5 of the tracks that also appear on the platter, the divine bawler practically blew his glottis out over it. It seems that on the album his voice has become more modulable (of the steelworks-at-rush-hour variety!!) and can turn deep when the mop-headed devil dwells on crucial passages. His speed-freak mates, for their part, only step in on two tracks ("Beheaded" and "Human Sacrifice") where they offer the power of a chorus of warriors in battle. These divinely inspired speedicians are for their part responsible for the fat, bellowing sound so characteristic of VENGEANCE. These guys like well-worked compositions, structured, along chords or effects that are always a little neighbouring, but leaving free rein to their imagination of the moment. The blokes thus excel mainly in two very specific kinds of intro: either the kick-off to the track is given by a hammering of percussion and cymbals (signed Mancaruso, to be nicknamed "nerve of steel"!!) which sends your pulse racing, or else it is the 2 guitar-slingers (Farkas and Thieme on the magic fingers!!) and the bassist (Martin), who surge at full throttle over your auditory frequency. Note however a peculiarity in the intro of "I Love Hating Evil" where the guitar sound verges on folk before attacking the vibrations full on, to finish in a speedifying eruption. Otherwise, no need for a telescopic conk to sniff VENGEANCE out at two metres: the band stands out through very coordinated bass and guitar work, a relatively low sound generally predominating, except when one of the longhairs attacks a solo dripping with strident scales to order. The transitions are perfect, the metal angels flying from a slowdown to a purée of decibels so close together that the listener's lugholes quiver with delight. Add to the picture that these guys are of course vibrato prodigies: the whole thing calls to mind a controlled skid on the musical scale!! See the level? Besides, the coordination is so total that all these most brilliant noisemakers cut the throttle at the same time at the end of each track, which gives an impression of crispness, of the cleaver, a concept fitting perfectly with "Beheaded", where the screamer prefers to be decapitated rather than accept the mark of the Beast. But, you will say, by what or by whom are such auditory machine-gunners influenced? First of all, their speed is very pure inasmuch as thrash makes only a few appearances, remarkable ones nonetheless, in most of the tracks. Otherwise, Martin, who wrote "He's God", seems more influenced than his mates by garage punk. Finally, you can note some influences vibrating towards blues/speed in the intro of "Fill This Place With Blood", as in that of "Burn" where the bass lands you a battering ram through the shop window right from the off. VENGEANCE's delirious speedsters also have one of their little specialities in store for you (to be savoured without moderation): it is a speed concentrate so strong that the tracks concerned ("Receive Him" and "Salvation") last only a few seconds: 3 seconds for the first and 13 for the second. To be discovered without delay. As for the non-Christian speed bands VENGEANCE would come closest to, you can look towards Slayer in particular. The VENGEANCE lot are for their part the Satan's Flayers (!), and in any case guys who have enough guts and enough faith in their Saviour to mosh eternally!! Their sleeve shows the hand of the Crucified One, gleaming with blood... A veritable visa for Paradise, and it has not finished making more than one of them blink!!