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│ METAL CLASSICS ARCHIVE │
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│ P R E S E N T S │
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│ + Heathen - Victims Of Deception + │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Information ║ │
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│║ ║ │
│║ Rls Date..2020-05-06 Encoder......LAME 3.100 ║ │
│║ Genre.....Thrash Metal Graber.......EAC ║ │
│║ Year......1991 Khz/Bitrate..44.1 / VBR kbps ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ripper....Anthem Songs........10 ║ │
│║ Source....CD Covers.......Yes ║ │
│║ Url.. ║ │
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│║ Release Notes ║ │
│╠═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════╗ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Artist : Heathen ║ │
│║ Album : Victims Of Deception ║ │
│║ Label : Roadrunner Records ║ │
│║ Cat.No : APCY-8046 ║ │
│╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Description : ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ It is no secret that by the time ôVictims of Deceptionö was ║ │
│║ released in the year 1991, the writing was on the wall for ║ │
│║ Bay Area thrash and the thrash genre in general: aside from ║ │
│║ a couple of late classics, one of which was ôVictims of ║ │
│║ Deceptionö, the genre had seen its heyday in the mid to ║ │
│║ late 1980s and was now mired in a fast decline. But then ║ │
│║ along came a bunch of relative newcomers û after all, the ║ │
│║ band had previously put out only one full-length under the ║ │
│║ Heathen moniker û that pulled off the remarkable feat of ║ │
│║ writing an album that rivals and in many ways surpasses ║ │
│║ much of the genreÆs best work from the eighties. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ It remains an interesting question to this day why Heathen, ║ │
│║ who as musicians were superior and as songwriters at least ║ │
│║ equal to a band like Metallica, were never able to make it ║ │
│║ big or garner any widespread success. The answer seems to ║ │
│║ come down to two overriding factors, one I have already ║ │
│║ touched upon: ôVictims of Deceptionö came out a couple of ║ │
│║ years too late for Heathen to take a ride on the proverbial ║ │
│║ thrash bandwagon, which had mostly run out of steam by the ║ │
│║ time the 1990s dawned. The other factor is that the music ║ │
│║ on ôVictims of Deceptionö is more complex and technical ║ │
│║ than Metallica ever were, even considering that ôAnd ║ │
│║ Justice for Allö wasnÆt exactly tailored to mainstream ║ │
│║ success either. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ That in turn brings us to the actual music on ôVictims of ║ │
│║ Deceptionö, which is characterized by a departure from the ║ │
│║ speed metal leanings of the bandÆs debut, ôBreaking the ║ │
│║ Silenceö, and the advent of a thrashier, heavier sound. In ║ │
│║ fact, ôVictims of Deceptionö is vintage Bay Area thrash, ║ │
│║ but with added complexity and a multitude of tempo and riff ║ │
│║ changes to spice things up and make this a textbook example ║ │
│║ for technical thrash done right. As soon as the ominous ║ │
│║ sampled introduction to ôHypnotizedö ends and the massive ║ │
│║ opening riff kicks in, whatever expectations the listener ║ │
│║ may have had increase considerably and the album never lets ║ │
│║ up until the final chords of ôTimeless Cell of Prophecyö ║ │
│║ roll around. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ If this otherwise brilliant effort has one minor flaw, it ║ │
│║ is that the best three songs all come at the beginning and ║ │
│║ the remaining tracks, with the exception of the more mellow ║ │
│║ ôPrisoners of Fateö and the hard-rocking ôKill the Kingö, ║ │
│║ arenÆt quite as memorable, taking a more progressive and ║ │
│║ technical approach instead. While this is not a bad thing ║ │
│║ at all, the album still could have benefited from a ║ │
│║ different track order, as intricate songs like ôFear of the ║ │
│║ Unknownö, ôMorbid Curiosityö, ôMercy Is No Virtueö and the ║ │
│║ closing ôTimeless Cell of Prophecyö, excellent though they ║ │
│║ may be, are all stacked on the second half of this more ║ │
│║ than one-hour long album and therefore can get a little ║ │
│║ overbearing at times. Perhaps putting the instantly ║ │
│║ accessible cover of RainbowÆs ôKill the Kingö in place of ║ │
│║ the somewhat pointless instrumental ôGuitarmonyö would have ║ │
│║ been a smart move in that regard. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Ultimately, however, ôVictims of Deceptionö is an album of ║ │
│║ astounding quality and consistency, recorded by musicians ║ │
│║ of remarkable technical prowess. ItÆs safe to say that a ║ │
│║ band like Metallica û as the most successful band to emerge ║ │
│║ from the Bay Area scene, they are the perfect measuring ║ │
│║ stick û doesnÆt hold a candle to Heathen in that category, ║ │
│║ as the drums, guitars and even the vocals are sometimes ║ │
│║ light-years ahead of what the likes of Ulrich, Hammett and ║ │
│║ Hetfield have ever been capable of. That in turn allows the ║ │
│║ band to infuse more melody and progressive elements into ║ │
│║ the music whilst retaining plenty of speed and ║ │
│║ aggressiveness. Particularly the riffing on tracks like ║ │
│║ ôFear of the Unknownö and ôHypnotizedö is positively ║ │
│║ spectacular. Moreover, the stellar production brings out ║ │
│║ the best in the bandÆs performance, giving the guitars a ║ │
│║ massive sound without stifling the other instruments and ║ │
│║ various little details in the bandÆs awe-inspiring ║ │
│║ delivery. ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ In closing, ôVictims of Deceptionö is the perfect album to ║ │
│║ demonstrate that the more iconic and commercially ║ │
│║ successful bands from the Bay Area scene werenÆt ║ │
│║ necessarily the be-all and end-all in musical quality and ║ │
│║ that some of the more under-the-radar acts were actually ║ │
│║ just as good or perhaps sometimes even a little better. ║ │
│║ With an effort like this under their belt, Heathen were ║ │
│║ definitely deserving of more widespread acclaim and ║ │
│║ sustained success than they ended up with, but as we all ║ │
│║ know, life simply isnÆt always fair à ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ Choicest cuts: ôHypnotizedö, ôOpiate of the Massesö, ║ │
│║ ôHeathenÆs Songö, ôFear of the Unknownö ║ │
│║ ║ │
│║ ║ │
│╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝ │
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│╔═════════════════════╗ │
│║ Release Tracklist ║ │
│╚═════════════════════╩══════════════════════════════════════════ │
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│ 1. Hypnotized 8:35 │
│ 2. Opiate Of The Masses 7:51 │
│ 3. Heathen's Song 9:26 │
│ 4. Kill The King 3:34 │
│ 5. Fear Of The Unknown 7:08 │
│ 6. Prisoners Of Fate 6:21 │
│ 7. Morbid Curiosity 6:27 │
│ 8. Guitarmony 3:31 │
│ 9. Mercy Is No Virtue 6:28 │
│ 10. Timeless Cell Of Prophecy 5:20 │
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│ Total Length : 01:04:41 │
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│ ║ Greetings To: ║ │
│ ╚═════════════════════╝ │
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│ Too all people who contributes to make this │
│ archive of good music in a exceptional conditions │
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