Tag Archives: horns

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RAM, Forced Entry  (2005, Black Path Metal)

The skull:
Another band that likes the concept of fusing animal horns onto a human skull, and it’s
usually ram horns that are favored (second favorite: bison horns), so this band is well-
named. The black and red makes an effective impact, complete with glowing red lights
emanating from the eye sockets. Pretty much looks how it sounds.

The music:
Swedish vocalists usually don’t come with much of an accent, not the way Italian or Greek
vocalists do, but this guy has a strange delivery, partly due to a weird accent that twists
every word into near-nonsense. He also ocassionally sounds influenced by the mid-range tones of Agent Steel’s John Cyriis and Sanctuary-era Warrel Dane (“Machine Invaders”), so the dude is clearly on the oddball side. His voice  gives Ram a unique edge, for better or worse. The rest of Ram play pretty cool traditional metal that finely walks the line between elder worship and the hungry spontaneity only rookies possess. You get songs with multiple parts, tempos and sections, and a whole lot of energy; stuff like “Machine Invaders,” “Infuriator,” and “Venom in My Veins” captures the interest well enough. Their lead guitar work is suitably blistering, some great tones and melodic choices that help the Ram cause quite a bit. There’s no one obvious root sound that is Ram’s favorite…I hear flavors of Japanese, Danish, German, British, Italian and U.S. heavy metal here, all on the raw, dark and heavy-handed side. A few moments get stuck in a plod, like the band isn’t quite sure where to go (the title track), but for the most part it’s a fun if totally easy listen. This definitely could have been released in 1985.
— Friar Wagner

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ANNIHILATOR, Double Live Annihilation  (2003, AFM)

The skull:
Animal skulls are generally frowned upon here at Big Dumb Skulls. The Council prefers that submissions depict only human or human-esque skulls. Take the horns away from this one and you’re pretty close to human, so we’ll let it slide. This bison-man skull thingy hovers above a sea (or puddle) of blood, one that is active and bubbling, indicating, mmm, maybe…Hell??? Whatever the case, wherever he hovers, he’s got “Double Live” etched into his forehead, and his eyes glow like fiery coals, presenting to you the word “Annihilation.” Skulls hover a lot, don’t they?

The music:
Isn’t it weird how “King of the Kill” could have been on those ’80s era Piledriver albums? How “Striker” is like Iron Maiden trying to play thrash (not a novel idea anymore, though), and “Murder” opens this album but is still as stinky as that whole Remains disaster? You get it all here, Annihilator fans. It was difficult for me to care about Annihilator past album #2, but if you’re a devotee, Double Live Annihilation will please, especially the career-spanning song selection, which is so career-spanning it hardly has any room for much from their first and best album. The sound is very good, the performances all totally pro. Vocalist Joe Comeau has a weird history: singer in Liege Lord, then became a guitarist in Overkill, formed Ramrod, then sang in Tad Morose for about three seconds, and he winds up as vocalist in Annihilator. (Although with the frequency of lineup changes in Annihilator, we’re all bound to be in Annihilator eventually.) Comeau has a  flavorless delivery, but it’s less annoying than Randy Rampage, so hearing a song like “Alice in Hell” without Rampage is a pleasure, as it’s one of Jeff Waters’ best compositions. The rest is what Annihilator specializes in: lots of great riffs, very few great songs.
— Friar Wagner

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TAKASHI, Kamikaze Killers  (1983, Mongol Horde)

The skull:
Third horny skull in a row for this friar, and those two pointy accoutrements are all that’s unique to this very basic skull face. It’s cast in a mold of solid steel, which might have been Takashi anticipating demand for mass-produced Takashi skull masks to sell at their sold out arenas shows around the globe. Or maybe a tribute to Han Solo’s rather unfortunate fate in that second Star Wars movie. (Or if you want to get all nerdy on me and correct me, “uh, that’s the fifth Star Wars movie.” Fine.)

The music:
Alas, Takashi didn’t quite have the goods to make it to the world’s biggest metal venues, but their music sure aspired to look and sound like big boys like Ratt and Motley Crue — with a bit of a harder edged sound. Not quite Omen or even Armored Saint, but they certainly wouldn’t have been out of place on the first Metal Massacre comp. Maybe a bit like Odin’s earliest stuff? Yeah, that works. All those California band references, even though Takashi hailed from New York City. Sure doesn’t sound like it. Adding to that, and typical of the era (unfortunately), the vocalist sounds like Vince Neil. This four-song EP was the band’s only release, and I don’t regret never picking it up in record stores first time around. Other than the $ I could probably flip it for these days.
— Friar Wagner

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RIPPER, Into Oblivion  (2010, Blackwater)

The skull:
This could technically be disqualified as unworthy of BDS’s strict standards under the “no skulls” rule. This skull is carrying a kind of necklace of two smaller skulls, but they were ruled inconsequential in a controversial Council 5-4 ruling. Also note that since this skull has no neckbones, it can hardly be called a necklace. Just a couple skulls clinging to some sinew or spew handing off the main skull’s chin. The big skull itself is one horny bastard. Leering with evil intent isn’t enough to show his malicious intentions, so he has not one but two sets of horns, a smaller set and a ram-like helix, and with some junk dripping off everything, this bad boy is ready to rip. Great cover, we wholly approve!

The music:
This Portland band bring to mind the dirtier work of Chris Black, like a more melodic and traditional metal-slanted Superchrist with the fun energy of High Spirits. Raw and blazing with Motorhead-like speed, it’s the melodic component that really sells this. Like early Iron Maiden with a shot of punky attitude, the riffs and melody lines strangled out by the guitarist are played with a ton of enthusiasm, and while they’re melodies we’ve heard somewhere before, they do their job, giving Ripper a hard-to-dislike sort of appeal. I like the recording, very raw but not deficient in any area…it works perfectly for what they’re doing. The vocals also bring Chris Black to mind — nothing virtuosic, but sung from the gut and heart…and Lemmy-like, of course. Once you get to the middle of the album you realize Ripper is a one trick pony, but it’s a good trick, and it lasts no longer than it should (28 cozy minutes).
— Friar Wagner

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CANDLEMASS, Epicus Doomicus Metallicus  (1986, Black Dragon)

The skull:
One of the most iconic skull images in metal, the Candlemass skull needs no introduction, but what about it is so memorable? The horns and the spears. The horns are a diabolic touch; the drumstick-like spikes spearing the skull and forming a crucifix pattern are clearly awesome. Plus, the grainy black-and-white is perfect in its minimalism, and even has a bleakness about it. The gothic/Olde English logo font and Combat-style font for the album title…just everything. A perfect album cover, and one of the finest skull covers you will ever see.

The music:
Finally we have a skull cover that not only rules but has equally excellent music to match. This album is a mere six songs but totally complete in every way. Its atmosphere is morose and epic, the very best definition of “doom metal” possible. Interestingly, the session guys provide the most musically impressive performances: the leads of Klas Bergwall are soaring things that make the most of both aggression and melody, very much minor key and apparently taking influence from classic music, especially reminiscent of various religious hymns. His passages sound like they’re coming from the minds and hands of a church organist and not a mere rock guitarist. Bergwell is clearly a skilled player who never recorded on another metal album again (damn shame). Same story with vocalist Johan Längquist, who is not only magnificent in his pleading, desperate, booming delivery, and not only the best singer the band ever had, but actually turns in one of the most memorable performances on any metal album. Another damn shame that he would never sing on another Candlemass album. The whole thing has a creepy, medieval, ancient vibe. Leif Edling’s riffs and note sequences are amongst the most memorable in the genre — check the main riff of “Black Stone Wielder.” Awesome. What Edling lacks as a bassist he more than makes up for as a songwriter. Candlemass is only a live entity these days, no more studio recordings (so they say), and it’s just as well, because as good as successive albums might have been, they’ve never topped this one in terms of epic doom metal purity.
— Friar Wagner