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ANCESTRAL CURSE :
HYPNOTIC

I wasn't sure what to expect from this disc. It came to me out of the blue, and I hadn't heard of the band before. For starters, Ancestral Curse (great name) are from Quebec, a Canadian province that just seems to be brimming with Metal talent. The scene there, especially in Montreal, is very strong, it makes my hometown of Toronto, and the province of Ontario look like a joke in comparison. Black, Death, and Thrash-Metal acts just seem to popping up in every nook and cranny of Quebec these days. Anyway, this nicely done demo CD has 6 songs, the first is just an intro, so we really only have 5 to go on. The majestic intro kind of had me guessing as to what type of music I was about to be exposed to. At first I though Black-Metal, then I got worried it might be some sappy Power-Metal, but as track 2 started, what I got blasted with was pure, no holds barred Thrash, and there sure as hell wasn't anything sappy about it. Maybe it's the Quebec connection, but I'm kind of reminded of D.B.C. as I listen to this. It's technical, fast, and they have a kind of Sci-Fi, space theme going on. There is also a glimmer of Kreator (I've noticed this is a lot of recent Thrash releases... just an observation). The songs are quick, have a great sense of groove, and don't overstay their welcome. The 2 standout tracks are "Devilish Dimensions", and "Dark Crusade". The vocals are pretty harsh, but not Death-Metal-ish, which also brings me to my only complaint about this disc, the mix and the production. Those harsh vocals, courtesy of Pier-Luc Paquin, are so forward in the mix, that the guitars (Paquin & Benoit Paille), and the bass (Alexandre Rousseau) just get totally railroaded. The drums, (Patrick Beliveau) while audible, sound flat, and as thin as a paper bag at times. I don't think any of this is due to inferior playing, or a lack of musical skill, just a problem in the production department. With some polishing, this thing would absolutely shred, but as it stands, it comes off as to unbalanced, but still worth your time and effort.
RATING = 7 Thrash-Metal (Released 2001)

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