Paragon - Heed The Prophecy 1989

Paragon hailed form Ohio and play pretty straight forward power metal. The first song has a nice pace to it , but overall I found this tape to be a bit mundane, it just lacks that spark or energy that would push the songs over the top. If they had just let loose a little bit and came with some more aggression I think this tape would have been much more enjoyable for me, but what do I know, listen for yourself...Dave G. 

Heed The Prophecy 
My Final Warning 
Under Seige
Witch Hunt 

Violent Wisdom - Demo 1991

Another new find. Violent Wisdom initially existed from 1990 - 1992.  Musically they play a heavy thrash style bordering on Death Metal...Dave G.

Desolation Solitude
World of Hate
The Price on Insanity
Time to Die

Darkness - Shadow of Insanity demo tape 1992

Here's a tape that I picked up at the flea market this past weekend. I found a listing for Darkness on Encyclopedia Metallum but it incorrectly notes that they are from New York and it contains pretty much no information about the band. The band actually hailed from New Jersey.

This demo is very well produced. The bass is thick and heavy and the riffs are solid. I think they may have a bit of  a Metallica or early Meshuggah thing going on.  Anyway, not bad for a fairly obscure band whose tape I found at a flea market 25 years after it was released...Dave G. 

Last Breath
Unholy Sin
Killer 

Smut - Middletown NY 1985

Smut were a ripping thrash band from upstate Middletown NY who formed out of the ashes of Black Witch who hailed from Chester NY. Smut recorded a full length Lp in 1985 that apparently never got properly  mastered, but honestly who gives a shit because the 5 songs that the band have made available for our listening pleasure contain the perfect mixture of filthy nasty thrash metal  that you just can't find on most of the generic overly produced metal acts of today.

I guess what I am trying to say is go to the bands ReverbNation page, give their songs a listen and spread the word about one of NY's best keep metal secrets from the mid 1980's...Dave G.  

Smut

Steele - demo tape 1984

I started to snoop around the net to get some info about Steele and I have noticed that there seems to be some confusion about their 1983 demo and 1984 demo. I have found a few pages with the 1983 demo image listed as the 1984 demo but could not find a single image of the actual 1984 demo online so I figured I would post the demo cover to help archive this fine demo tape.

Musically, Steele play power metal not thrash metal, and they were damn good at it...Dave G.

Steele

Phantasm - Demo 87

I just pulled this demo out of the old demo box for the first time in 25 years, and  I'll be damned if I didn't enjoy listening to this sucker.

As most of you already know Gene Hoglan (Dark Angel etc) played drums and  Katon W. De Pena of Hirax fame sang for Phantasm, and I have to say that Katon  delivers all the vocal acrobatics you would expect and then some. The riffs are sharp, drums are pounding...hell they even throw in  a cover of SSD's Glue....Fun tape to listen to again after all these years...Dave G.

PS: When I got the tape it came without a cover, but the band gave me a bio and a separate lyric sheet.   

 Phantasm

Gargoyle - Violence Is Golden - demo tape 1986

Gargoyle hailed from Elizabeth NJ and released this killer thrash demo in 1986. There is some serious Slayer worship going on on this tape. I also here similarities to fellow NJ thrashers Fantom Warrior mixed in as well.

I do not see any full scans of the demo tape cover on the net so figured I would add a full scan...Dave G. 

Gargoyle

Torture - Enter The Chamber - demo tape 1986

Interesting demo that I can't find much of anything about online except that the band hailed from El Paso TX.

Musically I would compare Torture to Venom, however the riffing on this tape reminds me of the Black Metal band Horna which is odd considering this demo pre-dates Horna by 7 years The music on this demo is by no means Black Metal, but nice thick mid tempo power metal with vocals that sound like growling from a deep dark cave.

If anyone has any information about this band please leave the details in the comment section...Dave G.

enter the chamber
into the darkness
power metal
the vision

Executioner - Metal Up Your Ass 1985

Pre-Obituary from Florida circa 1985. A friend of mine manged to scored two copies of the 7" from one of the band members and he was kind enough to pass one of those copies on to me. There are a few bootlegs of this single floating around but originals are hard to come by, I'm happy to have this one in my collection, it's a great early power / death metal record from a place that would become a hotbed for such things...Dave G.

Metal Up Your Ass
Syco-Pathic Mind 

Macabre - Be Forewarned / Lazy Lady 1972

Macabre (Pre-Pentagram) single from 1972. Initial 500 pressed have the band name spelled incorrectly as Macbre . This is the second edition of 500 from 1972 with the name corrected on the label. I was shocked to find this sitting in a buddy's 7" box at a record show a few weeks back. We did a quick trade and now it's mine. Very please to have this one in my collection for sure. HURRICANE  is the only Pentagram single that is missing from my collection at this point, I'll find one, one of these days, maybe ... Dave G.

Be Forewarned 
Lazy Lady

Jonas Grumby - Cry of The Ripper / Short Engagements 7" 1985 - Private metal

Here's a kick ass power metal 7" straight outta Ohio circa 1985. This one is really solid, both tracks are really good, which is a bit of a rarity when it comes to private metal 7"s. If you see this one I'd highly recommend grabbing it, any true metal head will not be disappointed...Dave G.

Cry Of The Ripper
Short Engagements

Shell Shock 7" Louisiana 1981

Shell Shock formed in 1979 and released this ripping 7" in 1981. I definitely hear a west coast sound, especially Black Flag in Shell Shock's sound, but I still dig it. Overall this is a nice slice of punk rock history that you should be able to find for 60 bucks or less which is a bargain in this day and age of $1,000 + punk rock singles...Dave G.

Your Way
My Brain Is Jelly 
Execution Time  

Knightmare - 7" 1989

Knightmare / MA / 1989 - This 7" is far superior to the demo I posted a couple days ago.  In some respects  Knightmare reminds me a bit of one of my favorite old school metal bands Medieval, both play mostly mid tempo songs that combine rock and metal with an underlying punk rock feel IMO. Anyway, this 7" and their Lp "Mindless Mayhem" are definitely worth grabbing if you should come across them...Dave G.

1) Darkness
2) Begin Again

Striker - 7" 1982

Striker / NJ / 1982 - The a-side "Striker" is the clear winner for me on this 7". My copy of this 7" is actually a test pressing, the band wrote test press on the labels which they then hand glued over the plain white test press labels. There is also a Red cover variation as well. I do not know which came first, black or red cover...Dave G.

1) Striker
2) Finish You Off

Prisoner 7" 1986

Prisoner / NJ / 1986 - Solid hard rockin' metal single, I like the A-side better than the B, they get a bit to commercial for my liking on side 2.  P.J Farley of Trixter fame joined Prisoner after this single had already been recorded and released. I don't know if they released any music with PJ...Dave G.

1) Fire In Your Heart
2) Rock You Through The Night 

Crossroads 7" 1986

A NJ band I believe, according to discogs this single was never sold commercially, just at shows and given away to friends.

Lost
Hostage 

Knightmare - Begin Again Demo Tape

Here's a some what rare tape from the Massachusetts band Knightmare. Release date seems to be unknown but I'd assume pre 1989 as Begin Again was on the 89 7" that they self released.  Interesting piece of history but not as good as either the 7" or their 1987 Mindless Mayhem Lp.

1) Begin Again
2) The Wasteland (WBRS Brandeis University)
3) Fear of Death   

Sintillion 1992 Demo Tape

Sintillion (Eastchester, NY) was a local heavy metal band who I remember playing shows in and around Rockland and Westchester County NY back in the early 90's. On this well produced and solid demo tape from 1992 I hear a definite Metallica And Justice For All era influence and the vocals are certainly similar to Mr. Hetfield's, in my opinion.

Overall this is a solid three song demo that is worth your time and attention...Dave G.

01) No Better Than Yesterday 
02) Feeling of Deceit
03) Separation of One

Mutilator 1989 Demo Tape

Here's another demo tape I picked up this past week that has no internet presence. No listing on Encyclopedia Metallum at all and I couldn't find any information at all in the Heavy Metal Rarities forum.

Anyway, Mutilator hailed from Ossining, NY which is in the northern suburbs of New York city not far from where I grew up myself. Mutilator is yet another band that would have been local to me that I either never heard of or simply do not remember. This demo is a good one , the production is sold, the songs are interesting and just brutal enough and the singer sounds like a twisted motherfucker....good stuff...Dave G.

01) Isolation
02) Vicious Baptism
03) Concealed Lies 
04) Insanity

Kruciform - 1987 Demo Tape

Kruciform hailed from the Bronx , NY.   I grew up about 30 minutes from them and was fairly aware of the local metal bands making the rounds in 87, but I never heard of Krucifrom until I found this demo a few days ago. A quick internet search turned up scant information, except for an  Encyclopedia Metallum entry  that doesn't even contain an image or track list for this demo tape.

Anyway, the music on this tape is really quite good and deserving of preservation, so I figured I would rip the demo and revive the old blog , even if it's just for the purpose of documenting Kruciform's music, but who knows, maybe I'll post a few more local metal rarities as I get them ripped over the next few days.... Dave G.

Kruciform demo 1987

01. Black Angel
02. Tunnel of Love
03. Resistance
04. Horror Holocaust

S.O.D. - Speak English or Die Test Press

Sorry Eddie Trunk, I got the SOD Speak English or Die test pressing that was supposed to be sent to you in 1985 :)

Found this at a record show today. Couldn't find another image of an SOD test press on line so i figured I would throw it up on the page...Dave G.

Poor Lily - Dirt On Everyone 2016

Poor Lily first caught my attention a few years back with their Lp Vuxola which was a whirling dervish of what sounded to me like the Minutemen and Dead Kennedy's getting together for a heavy jam session. On "Dirt On Everyone" , Poor Lily keep that same intensity going but to my ears they sound even heavier and meaner, and I like it.

This album is a barn burner right from the get go. The opening track We Are opens calmly before exploding into the frantic fray of the next track up Nsaman. From this point on the album moves along  quickly with an occasional let up here and their to allow the listener to catch their breath.

Poor Lily really put together a strong Lp from beginning to end and they deserve to be heard, so head over to their webpage and hear this great album for yourself. Actually, better yet, drop some $ on a digital download or the vinyl, you will not be disappointed...Dave G.

Poor Lily

Bandcamp 

Facebook 

Nemesis - Pain (The Equalizer)

Here's a pretty damn good private press power metal 7" from Union NJ circa 1988. This one is pretty tough to find, only 200 pressed, but I got lucky and stumbled upon one recently at the local record shop. I've heard Nemesis described as thrash metal but they sound more power metal to my ears. 

The A-Side of this 7" Pain (The Equalizer)  is a rock solid powerful tune while the B-side Nemesis is not quite as promising, more of a mid tempo bouncy track that sounds like it was meant to appeal to the commercial side of things.  Regardless, this is an excellent record and well worth grabbing if you come across a copy....Dave G. (back from the dead)?  

Pain (The Equalizer)

Nemesis

Ludichrist demo 1985

My first post in a year and a half hahaha. I honestly  just felt like sharing this demo somewhere other than in a Facebook group. I couldn't find any real images of this tape on the internet so I figured I would post them up here on the old blog page.

Musically this is a killer tape. I'm certain the songs were included on the recent Ludichrist compilation  on FOAD Records so the music should be easy enough to find but images of the actual tape seem to be much harder to come by, until now...later Dave G.

Sacrificial Blood - Souls For Sale 2013

Sacrificial Blood  are a NJ based Thrash/Death metal band who have been releasing records and playing shows in and around NJ for the past 10 plus years, and in my opinion they are a true representation of underground metal, and I mean that as a high compliment.

If you are a fan of old school thrash/Death metal or even newer bands like Toxic Holocaust then you really need to listen to this cd and support Sacrificial Blood. Musically, SB pummels the senses with excellent riffs, tight drumming and brutal guttural vocals that should make any metal head foam at the mouth.

Sacrificial Blood are the real deal. A true underground metal band who are deserving of your attention, so trust me and give them a listen...you will not be disappointed...Dave G.

Bandcamp listen and purchase a CD.
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