Customer Reviews

Eine Kleine Nachtmusic

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

 

 

A remarkably clean live recording of two Venom performances, circa 85/86. All of the bands best songs are included in the sets, many of which are faster and even more raw sounding than their studio incarnations on those great old indie records. Venom simply blew away all other metal acts of the time, but unfortunately most radio stations in America wouldn't touch them with a ten foot pole. The music of Cronos, Abbadon and Mantas is to this day much heavier than all of the preachy, wimpy, vomit-inducing post-grunge and "alternative" crap of the 90s. This metal fan salutes the mighty Newcastle trio!!!

Venom owned the world at one point. They were a terrible band, but wrote such amazing songs that one could forgive their utter lack of skill. This record shows the band in the ugly live and these tracks contain more hooks than a fishing outlet. (Try "countess bathory" or the slam of "bloodlust" to get your feral juices flowing!)

The sound is [aweful], but evenly spaced so that the record is not unlistenable. In fact, it gives it that "good bootleg" qaulity that many of us enjoy.

This remaster is a classic record, so please buy it if you know what's good for you.

For those who haven't noticed already, I really dig Venom's music. No, they are not the greatest of musicians but their ability to compose great metal is truly something special. As crazy as it sounds, this is one of the best live performances I have ever heard. The sound quality is raw, but what else would you expect from Venom; Production from Bob Rock? All of the pieces of music are performed well. The guitar solo on disc 1 is wicked and makes you wonder if Mantas was on acid when he performed it. The best songs on this double disc set include "The seven gates of Hell", "Nightmare", "Die hard", "In nomine Satanas", "Black metal", "Fly trap", "Warhead", and "Buried alive". The versions on this album, in my opinion are performed better than the studio versions found on their first four albums. Attention Venom fans: Buy this if you want to hear them at their heaviest and rawest.

I originally purchased this in 1986 (on cassette) and was totally blown away by it. I mean, up until then I was into Sabbath, Maiden, etc. but had never heard anything this RAW or EVIL (at least to a 13yr old!) It does include most of the classics (the songs Black Metal and Witching Hour on here totally rip). When I heard this I could never look at Ozzy or Maiden the same because where musically they were much more profecient, in the end they (especially Ozzy) stayed within the bounds set by the Judeo / Xtian framewok. As where Ozzy would sing about running from Satan, Venom would sing about sitting at "Lord Satan's Left Hand"...

But, as time would have it, Venom turned out to be phoney as well. But I can at least appreciate the fact that they did use Satanic imagery and didn't apologize for it.

As to this particualar album, if you're looking for a place to begin with Venom, I would agree with others that you should start with Black Metal (or Welcome to Hell). It seems to me that in the process of putting this album on to cd something was lost, as the mastering here doesn't have the punch that the cassette did (it's usually the other way around). In fact, I would probably give this 4 stars if it weren't for the mastering.

If, despite this flaw, you do want to hear even rawer metal than what Venom are traditionally known for, then I would suggest this. And if you do get this...PLAY IT LOUD!

Anyway, Hail Venom! Stay Evil!

For those who don't know, this live CD was originally released back in 1986 as limited (2,500 copies) double-LP. The first part of CD contains the famous 1985 Hammersmith Odeon concert ( which was later released on video). The second part was recorded in 1986 at The Ritz, in New York (another famous show).

Well, this album definately proves that Venom was nowhere fit to play in a proper live situation. Chronos loses his breath, Mantas doesn't play his own licks properly and Abaddon makes a real bloody mess on the drums. Don't get me wrong; I like this band. The problem is: if they could barely handle themselves (their playing) in the studio, how could they handle themselves live? Some may argue that their rawness was what set them apart from the pack; but, ultimately, that very rawness was the reason of Venom's early demise. By the time Venom released this album, Slayer & Metallica were already around, doing music which was light years ahead of their "mentor".

For those new to the "blackened" world of Venom, I suggest starting off with "Black Metal" and "At War with Satan"; albums that, in my humble opinion, remain their best output to date.