OVERKILL — Horrorscope (review)

Album · 1991 · Thrash Metal

4.5/5 · 2011-07-05
Diogenes

After the departure of lead songwriter and guitarist Bobby Gustafson in 1990, Overkill adopted the following lineup for the next decade: Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth on vocals, D.D. Verni on bass, and whoever they wanted to play guitars for the band on that album. I’m exaggerating of course, although this band has gone through its fair share of shredders…anyway, this philosophy surprisingly worked the best on its first shot, which also happens to be the magnum opus of the band’s large discography. Behold, the magnificent Horrorscope! Pr-cheewwww! (thunder sound effects)

I really don’t have a good anecdote or witty throwaway joke for this one, so I’ll cut straight to the chase. The reason why Horrorscope is such a good album is that most, if not all the songs are highlights. Put this sucker on shuffle and you’re going to get a faceful of thrash, guaranteed. They’re all consistent and follow the same style; no gimmicks, no foolin’ around. Just plain Overkill. The only exception I would consider is the Edgar Winter cover, which, although it’s a well-done cover, doesn’t fit in the middle of the album (although if you have it on shuffle, it shouldn’t matter…see what I did there?). The first four tracks, Coma, Infectious, Blood Money, and Thanx for Nothin’ are all not only Overkill classics, but tracks that should populate every thrash fan’s library, whether they like Overkill or not. They are beyond highlights; they are higher-lights. You might be able to find them if you look up to the sky long enough. They all follow the general Overkill format for success: blistering mid-to upper-tempo riffs, catchy chorus lines with the occasional gang shouting, and Blitz spitting out the vocal venom like only he can. “Payment’s due and I’m collecting you!!” Yeah! And the “LiiiaaarrRRRRROOOOOWWWGGHH” at the end gives me chills. Every. Time. In fact, this album might have set an Overkill record for this sort of thing. There are just so many lines that you can quote when you’re pissed off, it’s unbelievable. “I adapt to nothing, and nothing pleases me! I’m a loaded pistol, just you wait and see!” Of course, thrash usually isn’t about the lyrics (especially nowadays with the ‘retro thrash’ clowns running around), but whenever you can sing along and mosh at the same time, the band should be given necessary props.

Now, there are some slower tracks towards the end of the album, most notably New Machine and Soulitude, but keep in mind that faster does not always equal better, and in this case Soulitude wraps the album up perfectly as a thrash ballad. Don’t be fooled, however…there is no “lack of thrash” here. This stuff kills, no matter what tempo they’re playing at.

Going back to the personnel, Horrorscope saw Blitz continuing to put more rasp into his vocals (which would benefit the band’s change of sound later on), so if they annoyed you on earlier Overkill releases, you might want to give this one a shot. There aren’t really any screeching falsettos on Horrorscope, and that might be a good thing, allowing you to take the music a bit more seriously…although this is thrash, so, no seriousness allowed! Erm. Yes, his vocals are great. Sid Falck makes his last appearance on drums, turning in another solid performance, although there is more straight-up double bass thrash drumming instead of rhythm changes and good stuff like that. The snare sound is a little thin, but it’s tolerable if you turn it up nice and LOUD, and every other part of Falck’s kit sounds fine, considering the time period this was recorded in. The guitar duo, Merritt Gant and Rob Cannavino, do exactly what you’d expect an Overkill guitar duo to do: shred the hell out of those strings. Riff after riff (the ones in Coma and Nice Day…for a Funeral are especially nice), lead after lead, these guys prove to be more than worthy replacing Gustafson, and Horrorscope wouldn’t have come out the way it did had there only been one guitar anyway. And of course, there’s D.D. Verni, loud in the mix as always, tearing it up on bass and shouting those backing vocals that gives the album that special Overkill flavor. Being led by two guitars instead of one, his bass takes a back seat rhythmically, but it’s still frolicking along in all its thumping glory. And, as a bonus, it doesn’t sound like a Windows 95 suffering from bronchitis this time! Yay!

Unfortunately, this was the last complete thrash album that Overkill released until Ironbound 20 years later, as their sound at this point had peaked and the band wisely started exploring a more groove-oriented style throughout the 90s. This just makes Horrorscope all the more impressive and enjoyable; it stands alone like a mountain climber finally reaching his destination after weeks (years, but hey) of hard work. Truly a thrash metal masterpiece. And remember kids, THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK!