PRONG — Beg to Differ (review)

PRONG — Beg to Differ album cover Album · 1990 · Crossover Thrash Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
UMUR
"Beg to Differ" is the second full-length studio album by US, New York based thrash/groove/crossover metal act Prong. The album was released through Epic Records in March 1990. While the band´s first two releases were issed through small local labels, and were therefore relatively raw and primitive underground releases, "Beg to Differ" is a completely different beast, as Prong was discovered by Epic Records, who provided the band with a recording budget which allowed them to hire producer Mark Dodson (Anthrax, Judas Priest, Suicidal Tendencies)...

...and that is audible as "Beg to Differ" features a professional, detailed, and powerful sounding production job. Sure the guitar sound is maybe a bit on the thin side, and Tommy Victor´s vocals could also have sounded a little better, but other than that this is a well sounding release and a huge step up in sound quality from the raw and unpolished "Force Fed" (1988).

While "Beg to Differ" opens with the full-on thrash metal assault of "For Dear Life", most of the remaining tracks on the 11 track, 40:58 minutes long album (10 originals and one live cover of "Third From the Sun" by Chrome) are more heavy and groove/thrash oriented. It´s arguably one of the earliest examples of groove/thrash and Prong should most certainly be counted among the seminal artists in the genre. Prong are interesting as although they include quite a few hardcore influences in their music (and the odd nod towards post-punk and Killing Joke in particular), this is not standard fare crossover thrash metal (at least not how most people would think crossover thrash metal would sound). They are influenced more by the heavy and bouncy part of the New York hardcore scene, but combine that influence with thrash metal riffs and aggression.

Upon conclusion "Beg to Differ" is a high quality sophomore studio album by Prong. It´s a step up in every department from what came before, and the first time Prong showed a personal songwriting style and performance (the drumming by Ted Parsons deserves to be mentioned as a highlight). A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.
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