AtomicCrimsonRush After three killer speed and thrash metal abums there was perhaps only one path for Deliverance to follow, and that was to tone everything down and slow the pace and use a cleaner vocal style. The result is a very mixed album with some great moments and a heap of very dull metal. It was the most disappointing album of the early 90s for me as i was so looking forward to more brilliant shredding and fast tempo mayhem; instead this was just plodding along with only a few bright sparks to save it. the title track is definitely a highlight but the vocals are low and nothing like what Deliverance fans were used to.

By the time we get to 'Words to the. . . .' all hope is abandoned as it is such a poppy silly thing that sounds atrocious.

'From Once Was' is cringeworthy with terrible vocals, too low and out of tune, but the metal is doomy and laced with distorted guitar.

'Horrendous Disk' is one that may sum up the album. The disappinting 'Ramming Speed' is a very slow dull track that has no speed at all ironically, and not enough power to knock the fluff off a peanut.

'Entombed' is definitely a heavier track and it ends with the best track on the album which is actually a reworked classic from the thrash days, 'Weapons of our Warfare'.

It was a new direction for the band and they never returned to the speed metal sound and of course it eventually killed their success as they were so good at the fast metal.

AtomicCrimsonRush What A Joke is an awesome thrash album with high speed frenetic riffing and some inspired lyrics. The album is full of lunacy and humour and yet gets its point across in a highly original way, while maintaining breakneck speed and amazing lead breaks. When I first heard this I was blown away by the dexterity of the band who can move from lightspeed thrash to crawling metal to humorous anecdotes, that became infamous among Christian circles who shared the enthusiasm of the music.

The band members at this stage were Jimmy P. Brown II on lead vox and Guitars, George Ochoa on Guitars, Mike Grato on Bass Guitar and Kevin Lee on Drums. So the band had changed yet again but the music was still brutal and fast. The theme of the album centres on the way that Christians were suggesting that Christians and metal cannot mix and they are all evil. The band stood against this ridiculous suggestion with this album saying What A Joke and they even injected cynicism in songs such as It's The Beat "They say it's satanic, hahahaha, It's The Beat, show me a chapter and a verse, you never can". I used to love this because it clearly refutes the complaints of those who slagged off the band for its 'voodoo drum' beat. The band also try to attempt to show they can be peaceful and play Silent Night, it does not last for long as on the word 'Peace', Brown shouts the word and a driving metal riff crunches along, till it gets very fast; a great version of the Christmas carol though!

I can recommend a listen to this entire album as an example of speed metal at its finest. Check out Prophet Of Idiocy, the intricate metal riffing of Pseudo Intellectual and What A Joke; awesome distorted metal guitar and hyper lead breaks in 7 minutes. There is even a Black Sabbath cover After Forever which is a great version.

The album is notable for the weirdness of fun little gems such as Cheeseburger Maker Du, an 8 second blast. A girl questions; 'That's the end?'. It is always fun to listen to the recipe read out while metal blastbeats crunch along with Chipped Beef. Happy Star is a 5 second piece of nonsense, and J.P.D. and Pray are very short weird little treasures that always amused me. Purgatory Sandwich With Mustard is very funny and needs to be heard to get the joke. The album ends with a rehash of an old song called Attack.

Overall this is the best Deliverance album and was released right on time when people were complaining about the new wave of Christian metal. It was the last time the band would release a speed metal album before they turned to a much more mellow approach on subsequent albums.

AtomicCrimsonRush The next Deliverance album was a much more polished production in terms of the mixing and the thrash sounded heavier. The high speed metal blasts are still here at this stage of the band's existence but there was more variation rather than one high speed track after another. Many consider this to be the band's best although i would say the followup is marginally better.

Definitive highlights include This Present Darkness, that is a very fast frenetic track with amazing lead soloing and well executed vocals from Jimmy P. Brown II, who also crunches on Rhythm and lead Guitar.

Weapons of Our Warfare is the most famous song from the band accompanied by a great film clip, and played at all their live concerts. George Ochoa is incredible on Lead Guitar, and there are some intricate drumming time sigs from Chris Hyde and the bass playing of Brian Khairullah is mesmirising. They did not really get any better than this track; it is powerful and full of variation in structure.

The band settle into a slower pace on Psalms 23, and the high falsetto of Brown II is heard on the raucous Slay the Wicked. There is a high powered tempo on Greetings of Death, and finally the album ends with a great moderate riff on If We Faint Not.

Overall this is a terrific thrash album with some memorable moments. Well worth seeking out for those who love their metal fast and brutal.

AtomicCrimsonRush Deliverance were a high speed thrash metal Christian band that soon became my favourite during the 90s due to the frenetic tempo and thrashy guitars.

The debut was full of killer riffing and amazing lead guitar work. It was very fast and brutal and the vocals were easy to understand, based on The Bible scriptures and Christian lifestyle. They may have been accused of being preachy but they could play metal with the best of them.

The tracks are all well executed and played at warpspeed. There is so much to recommend here; the slam bang impact of opening track Victory, No Time (one of the best songs from the band where the riff gets faster and faster until its break neck speed, the drumming is incredible), Deliverence (high vocal falsetto is amazing, like King Diamond), No Love (a softer approach that builds gradually to power metal), Blood Of The Covenant (very fast frenetic lead guitar and drums), Jehovah Jireh (reviving an old church song into speed metal), and Awake, 6 minutes of pure thrash, as good as it gets.

This is an amazing debut and is well produced and mixed. Fast, riffing, and with powerful vocals, the band were on their way.