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The Gutter

The Gutter is my tribute to the some of the more underrated heavy metal albums. These aren't necessarily the best albums of the bands below, but they are all good albums that for one reason or another seem to be often overlooked. If you have one of these albums around, consider dusting it off, giving it a listen, and see what you think.

Candlemass
VI

This is an album that's really nothing like classic Candlemass, particularly the first three albums. In fact, the only real problem with this album is that name of the band is Candlemass. If you're listening for similarities to classic Candlemass, you can find a few, but you'd probably never notice if you weren't looking. What you would expect from a Candlemass album is heavy, melodic doom. What you get on VI is melodic, but more power metal oriented. It's well done for that style of music, and it is both distinctive and unique.

Celtic Frost
Vanity/Nemesis

There probably wasn't an album Celtic Frost could have made in the aftermath of Cold Lake that would have been well received. The one they did make was good, and in a way, it has context in the history Celtic Frost and the progression of that history. The real draw to Celtic Frost was, of course, their experimentation. But it is arguable that the real trademark of Celtic Frost was not the experimentation, but the unexpected, especially when taking the later albums into account. Certainly Into The Pandemonium was unexpected, although at times, it's hard to believe that was true given how influential that album has since become. You would think that they wouldn't be able to follow up with something even more unexpected, but then came Cold Lake. To salvage what was left in the wake of Cold Lake, it would seem they'd have to head back in a more experimental direction. Well, Vanity/Nemesis does have some degree of experimentation (e.g. the song Vanity), but by Celtic Frost standards, it's a very straightforward album. Nonetheless, they pull it off. Armed with solid, but raw riffs, there are a lot of interesting ideas on this album.

Dark Angel
Time Does Not Heal

I remember the promotional label on the CD: "9 songs, 67 minutes, 246 riffs". You just know an album like that is a classic, and Time Does Not Heal certainly is. This is my pick for the best Dark Angel album. It's a culmination of the best aspects of Dark Angel. It is heavier, is tighter, has darker lyrics, and has better production than any of their other albums. Every song is structurally complex, and the vocals of Ron Rinehart were never a better match. It may not be as fast an album overall as Darkness Descends, but the song An Ancient Inherited Shame is in no way lacking in speed.

Death
Symbolic

Death's place in history is secure. They helped lead the way in ushering in primitive, raw, "brutal" death metal with Scream Bloody Gore. They helped lead the way in ushering in technical death metal with Human. (And there aren't many bands who can claim to be that influential in spawning two metal subgenres.) On Symbolic, it seems like the late Chuck Schuldiner went in the direction he always wanted to. His influences were like those of a speed metal band, rather than a death metal band. So seems only natural that he would head in a more traditional metal direction. Although he was never the most extreme vocalist in death metal, his vocal approach on Symbolic seemed intentionally less extreme than previously. Maybe you have to be a speed metal fan (or at least prefer speed metal to death metal) to truly get into this album, as it isn't "pure" death metal. Yet it is a tremendous album by one of metal's greatest innovators. And Gene Hoglan was even better on drums on this album than in Dark Angel.

Exodus
Force Of Habit

One of the great cover songs ever recorded was the version of War's Low Rider that Exodus recorded on Fabulous Disaster. Unfortunately, the two cover songs on Force Of Habit (The Rolling Stones' Bitch and Elvis Costello's Pump It Up) are uninspired. Fortunately, that is the only real downside to this album. What remains is a long album: minus the two covers, there are eleven originals, including the epic Architect Of Pain which is over ten minutes long. Like other speed metal albums released circa 1992, Force Of Habit is not, all speed, all the time. The H-team, guitarists Gary Holt and Rick Hunolt, were great riff writers and great lead guitarists, especially when it came to trade-off leads. Force Of Habit is no exception in either category, even though the tempo is not full throttle. In particular, the solo in Good Day To Die is one of the best on any Exodus album. Zetro had his share of detractors, even amongst Exodus fans, as his vocals were nowhere near as aggressive as those of the late Paul Baloff. However, Zetro's vocals are well-suited to Force Of Habit, more so than any other Exodus album. Besides, it's not like there are no moments of earlier Exodus; Feeding Time At The Zoo, for example, wouldn't have been out of place on earlier Exodus albums.

Hallow's Eve
Death & Insanity

The first Hallow's Eve album, Tales Of Terror is an absolute classic. It is easily in my top five albums of all time. What is so rare about Death & Insanity, the follow up, is that it is an almost equally brilliant album, but in so many different ways. First and foremost, is the riff writing. If you want to know what a riff is and how to write one, this is definitely one of the albums I would give you. Second, it has a unique sound; it's hard to think of any albums that weren't recorded by Manowar with such prominent, up-front bass guitar. Stacy Anderson was at the top of his game as one of the more versatile vocalists in metal. Coupled with the aggressive guitar work, the result is another classic album in a unique and completely different style.

Mercyful Fate
Time

As is the case with most reunited metal bands, Mercyful Fate hasn't quite been able to recapture the magic of the original lineup. (I, for one, miss the drumming of Kim Ruzz, who I consider to be one of the most interesting and underrated drummers in metal.) Nonetheless, the reunited Mercyful Fate is still a good band, even if they aren't as influential. Often, I find a band's first album to be my favorite, as they are generally at their most inspired then. When a band reunites, it seems as though takes them one album to get back into it again, and then the second reunion album tends to be very good. That is the case with Time, which was a tremendous improvement over the In The Shadows, which itself was a fine album. Mercyful Fate have always had top notch musicianship, and, especially in their early days, could have been considered progressive, even though they generally aren't. The songs, structures, and solos really came together on Time, and even though the chemistry isn't quite what it was originally, musicianship is still their strength.

My Dying Bride
The Angel And The Dark River

Although My Dying Bride was one of the leading bands of the doomdeath subgenre in their early days, I am a bigger fan of The Angel And The Dark River, which I consider to be their best album. It seems to me that they really found their sound on this album. It's more guitar oriented than it's predecessor, Turn Loose The Swans, or it's follow-up, Like Gods Of The Sun, which to me, makes it more "metal". Yes, the death metal style growling vocals are gone, but growling vocals aren't the best fit for every metal band. I like growling vocals just fine, but I will support a band who drops the growling vocals in favor of a vocal style more suited to their music, as is the case, I feel, with The Angel And The Dark River. In many ways it's an album that's reminiscent of the best aspects of classic Candlemass, with a slow, heavy, melodic doom sound and long songs. It's a great album to play in the car when driving at night, especially the beginning of Two Winters Only, which always gets me; even though there's a contrast, it doesn't lose a bit of doominess.

Overkill
I Hear Black

Overkill had ventured into the slower realm of doom metal before this album on songs like Skullkrusher, but that style was in full effect on I Hear Black. The album was recorded in an unusual way: the idea was to capture the sound of an Overkill rehearsal, and to do this they set up a couple of mikes as though it were a live recording; also, they didn't go back and fix much after recording. Because of that, and the fact that all of the previous Overkill albums were in the all-out aggressive speed metal style, it's not so surprising that this wasn't a well received album. But there is interesting music in the doom metal genre, and this was a one time venture for Overkill rather than an indication of the direction they would head. As an experiment, I Hear Black is one that worked.

Overkill
From The Underground And Below

A real standout of post-Horrorscope Overkill is their 1997 offering, From The Underground And Below. No, it isn't the equal of the first five Overkill albums, but Overkill hasn't changed drastically. In the '80's, metal was more riff-oriented, and in the '90's, with the rise of death metal, metal was more rhythm-oriented, even for the speed metal bands, like Overkill, who survived. So it's a little different, but Overkill has been able to pull it off, and From The Underground And Below contains some of their best material in songs like Long Time Dyin', Genocya, and F.U.C.T.. Ballad is a dirty word in metal (as it should be), but it wouldn't be if they were all like The Years Of Decay. Promises isn't, but it's the only downside of From The Underground And Below. There is, however, a terrific classical guitar bit at the end of I'm Alright. Blitz's voice isn't what it once was, but he's adapted well over the years. D.D. is still a very underrated bassist, and Joe and Sebastian have terrific chemsitry, although I would have preferred more guitar solos. Tim has really come into his own, getting better and better with each Overkill album. With From The Underground And Below, Overkill made an album that really shows how a speed metal band can continue to survive and crank out powerful metal.

Paradise Lost
Draconian Times

It is arguable that Shades Of God has the most melancholy sound of any of the Paradise Lost albums, but Draconian Times gets my vote as their gloomiest album. Even though it's not as brilliant an album as Gothic, it seems to capture a gray, ominous mood better than their other albums. I've always thought that Paradise Lost created dissonant harmonies with their instruments as well as anyone in metal. Draconian Times is no exception. It is a bit more accessible than their previous albums, which is often seen as a detriment by the metal community, but it does have several standout songs like Enchantment, Hallowed Land, and even Once Solemn, a more energetic song for this album. Their sound has changed from their early doomdeath days, but Draconian Times is still an album as bleak as the title suggests.

Prong
Force Fed

I once read an article on the 'net where Tommy Victor of Prong was picked for most underrated guitarist. It's a superb choice. This early Prong album is a terrific example of just that. At this point, Prong wasn't quite playing the hybrid of metal and hardcore that would come to define their sound, but while they were on the way, they made a terrific album that was fast, raw, and aggressive.

Savatage
Handful Of Rain

One of the great tragedies in metal was the death of Criss Oliva, a fast, fluid, and melodic guitarist with a unique and distinctive style. As talented as Alex Skolnick is, he stepped in a no-win situation when he joined Savatage as Criss' replacement. Many of the leads on Handful Of Rain have that Criss Oliva flavor to them, and although it is apparent that Alex is not Criss, he does an excellent job in attempting to emulate him. However, Alex really shines as a lead guitarist on songs like Stare Into The Sun and Watching You Fall, where the leads are different from the earlier Savatage leads. Although Jon Oliva does not sing on the album (unfortunately, since he is by far the more distinctive Savatage singer), his hand in the songwriting is obvious, which helps maintain a sense of continuity. Not only was Savatage able to carry on after the loss of such a key member, but they made a good album in the process.

brucifer@juno.com