Customer Reviews

Am I Evil?: Anthology

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A well assembled 2-CD,28 track retrospect of Diamond Head's work. Another band from the 'New Wave Of British Heavy Metal' era that never received their just due. Not including compilations,how many 'actual' albums does Diamond Head have out?I had a tough time trying to figure it out. With heavy-hitting cuts like "Lightning To The Nations", "It's Electric", the rocking "Shoot Out The Lights", "Borrowed Time" and "I Can't Help Myself" along with the three live tunes tagged on, 'Am I Evil...' is a must-have for fans of fellow N.W.O.B.H.M. artists Samson, Motorhead, Angel Witch, Saxon and Iron Maiden. Upside is all except one of those bands are STILL in existence.

Led Zepplin meets Metallica in this difinitive collection of Diamond Head. Although not nearly as recognized as some of their NWOBHM counterparts, Diamond Head was pivotal in the early 80's thrash metal movement. This anthology is a must have for those interested in the beggings of thrash and rock in general. Highlights include: Shoot out the Lights, To heaven from Hell, Play it Loud, I ain't got and Dead Reckoning. Soaring vox, crisp rhythm guitars and catchy melodies from Harris and Tatler. No doubt one of the best collections of work from a band that I own. Only reason it rates a 4 star is that there are some gaps in production and some songs on disc 2 arent top notch but all and all a great disc. Pick it up with Sweet Savage's "Killing Time" - Reeceman

After waiting for this cd to be shipped, I finally got it and this is an excellent compiolation of Diamond Head songs, and not to mention the only thing of Diamond Head I own. Being a long time fan of Metallica, I heard their covers of Diamond Head and I had to hear the origionals, and some of us also know this band has been Lars Ulrich's inspiration to start Metallica. This has to be one of the best heavy metal bands I have ever heard, and now I am going to try and get all their origional albums to have the complete Diamond Head category.

Back during my sophomore year of college, I began to explore the weird and wonderful world of heavy metal. One of those early purchases was a copy of Metallica's "Kill 'Em All" on tape, which contained a mindblowing song called "Am I Evil?". As it turns out, this song was a cover of a Diamond Head song. Much later, I would find out just how important an influence Diamond Head had on Metallica's formative years, being one of the primary halves of their basic approach (the other half being Motorhead's headlong, aggressive punk-metal piledriving). This year, I finally decided to add Diamond Head to my collection. With their discography being so convoluted, this collection was the best choice for someone who wanted a comprehensive overview of Diamond Head's most important work.

On first listen, Diamond Head come off as almost amateurish at times, like a very ambitious high school band. Tinny production values and a thin guitar tone don't help that impression at all. However, within a few listens of this collection, you'll start to notice details that the sonic imperfection and occasionally goofy lyrics (such as those in "Sucking My Love") belie. Metallica's start/stop percussion style, where the drums are as much sonic punctuation emphasizing parts of the song, can be clearly traced to songs such as "Lightning to the Nations" and "Helpless". It should also be noted that Diamond Head were as much a hard rock band as they were a metal band, something that comes as not much a surprise, given the relative amount of variety among the bands of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. "Call Me" manages to evoke Def Leppard, the more accessible side of mid-80s Savatage, and Aerosmith, with some killer pop sensibilities in the mix. Other songs, such as "Borrowed Time", "Ishmael", and "To The Devil His Due" display more exotic and nuanced sounds, sounding less inspired by UFO and Judas Priest, and more like a strange blend of Led Zeppelin and jangle rock at times.

Unfortunately, halfway through the second disc, things run out of steam as songs are featured from after the band's initial early 80s run, when they reformed after breaking up, trying to recapture some of that old magic. However, the inertia and creative energy of the classic era isn't really present in these newer songs. Still, this is a pretty good compilation overall, and, if you want a piece of metal history, should be in your collection. I still prefer Metallica's version of "Am I Evil", but let's face it- without the original version, there wouldn't be a Metallica as we know them.