UMUR "Heal" is the 4th full-length studio album by US, Arizona based thrash metal act Sacred Reich. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in February 1996. It´s the successor to "Independent" from 1993 and features the same four-piece lineup who recorded the predecessor. Drummer Dave McClain would leave the band in 1997 to join Machine Head, and although Sacred Reich remained active for a couple of years with a returning Greg Hall on the drums, they went into a hiatus from 2000-2006 and it wasn´t until 2019 that they would release a new studio album again.

"Independent (1993)" was quite the big change in sound from "The American Way (1990)", but there haven´t been a similar drastic change in sound between "Independent (1993)" and "Heal", as the latter pretty much continues the groove/heavy metal sound of the former. The songwriting has taken a dip in quality though, and there aren´t that many memorable tracks featured on the album. The fast-paced album opener "Blue Suit, Brown Shirt" is for example a completely forgettable track. To my ears the title track is one of the few tracks on "Heal" which reaches the quality of the songwriting on "Independent (1993)" (which was also a bit uneven in quality). "Heal" features a fairly well sounding production, which suits the material well.

Sacred Reich are as always a well playing act, and lead vocalist/bassist Phil Rind has a unique voice and vocal style (the Jeff Bridges of heavy metal). That fortunately saves a lot for Sacred Reich, because upon conclusion "Heal" isn´t the most interesting release by the band. They occasionally shine and they definitely have an easily recognisable sound (which is always a plus), but I can´t justify more than a 3 star (60%) rating.

UMUR "Independent" is the 3rd full-length studio album by US, Arizona based thrash metal act Sacred Reich. The album was released through Hollywood Records in February 1993. It´s the successor to "The American Way" from 1990, which was a fairly successful release for the band. The promotional video for the title track received quite a few rotations on the then popular heavy metal tv-show MTVs Headbangers Ball. There´s been one lineup change since the predecessor as drummer Greg Hall has been replaced by Dave McClain.

Stylistically "Independent" is a bit less thrashy and features more traditional and groove oriented metal elements than "The American Way (1990)". It´s obvious the band have had great focus on writing catchy material, and some of the tracks are as a result pretty simple in structure and also only feature very few riffs throughout the track. An example is the opening title track which is an almost painfully simple track featuring very few riff progressions. The trick here is that it works though and in the case of the title track we are therefore treated to quite a powerful and catchy heavy metal track. The simplicity of the songwriting is not always as successful as on the title track though, and some tracks appear formulaic.

Highlights are to my ears the title track, the heavy and mid-paced "Just Like That" and "Crawling" (crushing riffs and rhythms on this one), the beautiful acoustic guitar track "If Only", and the power ballad "I Never Said Goodbye". The latter is an emotional track about the loss of a loved one, and while vocalist/bassist Phil Rind isn´t exactly the best singer in the world (he struggles to hit the notes clean a couple of times), he still manages to get the message across in a convincing manner. Seldom have I heard somthing sung this ugly but with as great impact as Rind´s vocal performance on "I Never Said Goodbye". The rest of the material ranges from good to unremarkable.

"Independent" features a fat and heavy production job, which suits the material perfectly. The musicianship is also on a high level on all posts, and although Rind´s voice and vocal style is probably very much an aquired taste, I can´t help find it incredibly charming. Think the Jeff Bridges of heavy metal, and you´ve got a good idea of how he sounds. Upon conclusion "Independent" is a good quality release, which doesn´t quite reach the excellence of its direct predecessor but still features quite a few standout tracks and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is fully deserved.

Kingcrimsonprog Over the last decade and a half, many of the great Thrash Metal bands have had decent or even good comebacks, some have even had great comebacks. Arizona’s Sacred Reich managed to do something rather special with their 2019 comeback record… over two decades after their most recent studio album, they’ve actually made the best record of their whole career.

Now, up until I heard this record, if you told me they’d make a better overall album than The American Way I’d have laughed in your face (not really, I’m a nice guy, I’d have respectfully disagreed, but that doesn’t make as bold a statement, now does it?). I’m sure there’s lots of people who feel the same about their angrier debut album Ignorance, or their popular EP Surf Nicaragua. Top the classics? Not a snowball’s chance…

However, remove nostalgia, expectation, and scepticism, and just go in with a blank slate and you should, like me, be bowled over by the sheer quality of this album. Utterly perfect production job (other bands please take note, this is how it should be done), massively catchy choruses, superb riffing and grooving, interesting lyrics spat out with conviction, and inventive drumming from Dave McClain (back in the band after a long stint in Machine Head), this album contains all the elements of a masterpiece.

Its only half an hour long, and its all good, so it is hard to choose highlights, but I feel like the best introduction or tester to the album for those curious about whether to buy it or not, is to listen to the three song curve of the more melodic “Salvation,” into the guitar-focused and more traditionally Thrashy “Manifest Reality” into the absurdly catchy “Killing Machine” (boy, does that song hit the spot!).

As long as you aren’t put off by the band’s very political message (internet comments sections the world over seem to be, these days, as if all the other Sacred Reich albums weren’t political as hell!?! Their name alone…anyway, nevermind), there is no question that this album is an unquestionable must-have for fans of the band. They’ve done such a good job of mixing different parts of their whole career, selecting only the best bits, shaving off any fat, and then blending it together with a really satisfying mix and performance that just sounds so vital and relevant.

It is relentlessly old school, yes, but it also doesn’t feel like it is just rehashing old ideas. It does that near impossible task of sounding old and new at the same time. Maybe its just that fire-in-the-eyes revitalised energy spilling out through the speakers, but I can’t explain it. Just listen to “Revolution” to see what I mean.

[PS. If you can, try and get the song “Don’t Do It Donnie” too, its on a split with Iron Regan and is a fun little two minute bouncy crossover song, that is the most perfectly fun little succinct track they’ve released since the title track of Independent. Its kind of like D.O.A’s “Fucked Up Ronnie” for the modern day! I’ve just added it to this album on my phone and iTunes. I can’t listen to one without the other anymore].

Kingcrimsonprog Phoenix Arizona’s Sacred Reich released their third full-length studio album in 1993, entitled Independent. The album followed up the classic The American Way record and musically saw the band incorporate a few new ideas into their overall sound.

The band were never the biggest Thrash band out there, but their solid crossover style is influential to many of the new millennium’s Thrash Bands. The band have a punky hardcore influenced feel on some tracks in a similar fashion to many of the East Coast Thrash bands, with whom they share more musical similarities than with the German, Canadian or Bay Area Thrash artists.

Independent saw the band play with more slow and mid tempo elements than on previous releases, incorporating some groove metal influences as happened with much of the 1990s output by Thrash Metal bands. It is a little underrated as an album, as fans were quick to abandon ship at the first sight of slow guitars but is actually quite a good album when given a fair chance. If you are willing to keep an open mind there is a lot to enjoy on this record.

Highlights on Independent include the beyond catchy Title Track which is an absolute classic and highlight of any concert, as well as ‘Supremacy,’ ‘Free,’ and the almost eight minute long ‘I Never Said Goodbye.’

This was their first full length Drummer Dave McClain, who would of course go on to join Machine Head and puts down a characteristically strong performance on this album, with his unusual and distinctive style of fills and approach to the double kicks.

The production from Dave Jerden (famous for Alice In Chain’s The Dirt and Anthrax’s Sound Of White Noise) is solid with a good mix and general sound. The lyrics too are strong, and of course are socially aware and politically motivated as usual from Sacred Reich. Overall all the individual aspects of the album are good, the only real thing holding it off of a classic album status is the indefinable x factor that makes some albums amazing but can’t be quantified or often, even replicated.

In summary, Independent is a good album and Sacred Reich fans should find a lot to enjoy on it should the be willing to keep an open mind.

Kingcrimsonprog The 1990s were not kind to a lot of Thrash Metal bands. Some broke up. Some went soft or tried new styles. Some went too progressive or too extreme. Some just ran out of good ideas.

There are of course, always exceptions to every trend. Heal by Sacred Reich is one such exception. This album is an underrated gem. Now; They may have moved into a Pantera-influenced Groove Metal style for half the album, which could be off-putting to die hard Thrashers, but half the record is still aggressive speedy Thrash and the songs that aren’t are way better than you’d expect from anything in 1996 anyway.

Part of what makes it work so well is Phil Rind’s vocals are perhaps the best of his career. He really developed over their career. Another thing that makes it work so well are that the songs are just so damn catchy and memorable. Finally; The slower moments really help the band’s trademark political and socially aware lyrical content easier to come across. When its not 1,000mph, you get to take it in a bit more.

As described above, its an album of two halves. Highlights from the faster stuff includes “Break Through” and “Don’t” which are punchy and energetic, and perhaps best of all the furious album closer “The Power Of The Written Word” which is perhaps the band’s most pissed off song since their debut. (Talk about going out with a bang).

Highlights from the slower stuff include the Sabbathy grooving Title Track, the memorable “Blue Suit, Brown Shirt” and the very fun “I Don’t Care.”

Even the Oingo Boingo cover works. The only thing that doesn’t quite do it for me is “Low” which is a bit too Alice In Chains for even my tastes. People who thought that tracks like “A Question” from the previous EP or “Crawling” from the last album weren’t Thrashy enough may want to avoid that one track in particular. (Don’t let it put you off trying the whole record though).

After this album, drummer Dave McClain would go on to join Machine Head for around two decades and Sacred Reich would break up and only play intermittently over the years. (Although things have come full circle now, with the band back full steam ahead with their superb new album, Awakening, and guess who’s behind the kit?).

Although their comeback record is superb, for the last two decades this was a fine ending to the Sacred Reich story. It may not be all fast, all the time, but it is all entertaining, all the time.