From Paris came metal...
While most of the famous metal-companies in the 80´s came from USA (Metal Blade, Shrapnel or Combat) or from the UK (Music For Nations, Neat Records or Heavy Metal Records) there was one company from France: BLACK DRAGON RECORDS.
Their first release (I think because of the number BD 001!) was SAVAGE GRACE with their LP "Master Of Disguise". Although it had a very bad sound (garage??) it can be taken as a speed/power metal classic even today. Songs like "Bound to be free" are strong, fast and powerful and let you forget the bad quality of the sound. Its cover was very controversial here in Germany and they put it on the "index". It showed a police officer chaining a naked girl at his motorbike. This LP was also released as a CD later but is not available anymore. BLACK DRAGON has a few vinyl copies on stock!!
The next and last record of SAVAGE GRACE came also through BD here in Europe "After the fall from grace". Guitar player Chris logue replaced the singer and had some...ähhh...problems with it. They had a festival gig on the Metal Hammer Festival on the Loreley (Metallica, Venom etc.) in this line-up and it is told that it was a catastrophe (I mean the vocals!). I don´t know if the band continued after this but I saw a picture-E.P. of them later with the song "Burn" from DEEP PURPLE. But as I told: I just saw this record once somewhere....and it was not a BLACK DRAGON record.
I don´t have to write much about MANILLA ROAD here, because they have their own page here (in the "Bands" section). BLACK DRAGON released all their records from CRYSTAL LOGIC (blue vinyl!!) to "Circus Maximus". Some are available on CD!
EXXPLORER was another band getting good reviews and getting a cult-underground status (I don´t like the band that much). Their "Symphonies of Steel" record was succesful and they tried a comeback in the 90´s (Massacre Records). Even today this record is often mentioned in the press (forgotten jewels or things like that...).
The first official release "Epicus Doomicus Metallicus" from the doom band CANDLEMASS was a...yes...BLACK DRAGON-release. This is a real killer album even you don´t like "slow" stuff. It is by far the best sounding BD-record/CD. The well-known CANDLEMASS singer Messiah Marcolin came to the next record (not on BD) and so you can hear a kind of guest vocalist (Bassplayer Leif has sung on the demos before). This one IS a milestone in metal and of course in doom metal!
HEIR APPARENT were handled as the "new QUEENSRYCHE" in these days and they really had the qualification. "Grateful Inheritance" was a good and powerful melodic heavy album with a "Giger-like" coverartwork. This first one was on BLACK DRAGON. The follow up was not as good and not on BD. This album is also mentioned today when people talk about the "early days"...
LIEGE LORD released their first record "Freedom´s Rise" via BLACK DRAGON in Europe. They played power metal with theatralic vocals and fantasy-lyrics. The next two records were released by METAL BLADE and sound different and not that raw. It really was a great band.
These were the highlights of this french company or let me say the "best known" bands. But anyone rememberes these:
MAYHEM (NOT THE BLACK METAL BAND!!) was a power metal band from the US, a mixture between MOTORHEAD and METALLICA. Their album "Burned Alive" was raw and heavy and was/is fun to hear! They had one of the best bandlogo´s I´ve ever seen. You can turn around and you still can read MAYHEM.
MACE was a experimental Hardcore band with a few metal influences. Their second record "The evil in good" was released by BLACK DRAGON and you just can hate it or love it. Well, the band had obviously some problems in "playing tight together". The vocals are always faster than the music and the drummer is nearly "out of time" the whole album but ...hey - IT`S REAL AND AUTHENTIC!! It´s fun to hear and the songs are good. You just have to forget these electronic drum sound....
DC LACROIX and SACRED CHILD were two typical US-party metal bands with female vocals. If you like stuff like this...you´ll like these bands as well.
A great song-writer and guitar player was/is DAVID T. CHASTAIN. He released some great records on BD with his projects CHASTAIN and CJSS. He also did a live recording together with MICHAEL HARRIS (has also solo recordings on BD).
DRUID...oh my god...what a bad band. "Vampire Cult" is a very bad record from a bad band but it has some good moments...
STEEL VENGEANCE was also a band you really don´t need to know. Simple Heavy Metal for simple people (?).
Some stuff which wasn´t that heavy was released on the sub-label HIGH DRAGON. The best release was the live album of the glam-rock band THE CHERRY BOMBZ! An other hardrock band was APRIL 16th from the UK.
(...)
And today? The company does not release any new stuff but you can still order some items directly! Here is the adress:
BLACK DRAGON RECORDS
31, rue de Constantinople
75008 PARIS/FRANCE
FAX.: (1) 42 94 16 57
(Please write a hello to AGNES from NEUDI if you write them! Thank you!)
