ACID REIGN — Obnoxious (review)

ACID REIGN — Obnoxious album cover Album · 1990 · Thrash Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Vim Fuego
Thrash metal died in the early 1990s. Many of the leading bands changed direction, and lost their power, while others seemed to run out of ideas and inspiration. Acid Reign killed off their own career, taking the second of those two paths.

'Obnoxious' is very badly done. For a start, pink is NOT a good colour the cover of a heavy metal album. The packaging looks cheap and rushed, with very little thought put into it. The musical content is seriously flawed, only the band's problem seems to be too much thought, rather than not enough. There are some damn good ideas here, but they are poorly executed.

As a lyricist, H never took the easy path. A majority of the lyrics he wrote here were introspective, examining what makes an individual unique rather than following the crowd. Also included is the moving "Thoughtful Sleep". It is entries from the diary of a young man in the days leading to his suicide.

But herein lies the problem. The lyrics are too involved and complex to have any real effect. There is nothing for the listener to sink their teeth into, because you are kept busy trying to figure out what the lyrics mean. H's vocal delivery doesn't sit well with the music. He tends to attempt soaring vocal melodies from time to time, which is fine if you can manage them. Unfortunately, he can't, and often wavers about off key and searching for the correct notes.

Musically, more could have been expected from Acid Reign. The ideas are good, like discordant chords playing off each other, funky interludes, and the odd bit of good old high speed thrashing, but like the vocals they just don't work. Discordance can sound excellent when done properly. It seems like the band did not have enough time to hit the right (or wrong) chords, and seemed to be satisfied with a "rough enough is good enough" job. The funky jam on "Codes Of Conformity" is mildly entertaining, but feels like unnecessary filler at the end of an already lengthy song. Playing fast and heavy was what thrash was all about. Acid Reign forgot how. Sure, it's still heavy and speedy, but it's a train wreck. The drumming is all over the place, especially the cymbals and high hat, which are dreadfully out of time. The riffing is just speed for speed's sake, not at all memorable or catchy.

If you want to check out a genre dying and a band committing musical suicide, then give this a listen, along with Re–Animator's 'Laughing', Onslaught’s ‘In Search Of Sanity’ and Testament's 'Souls Of Black'. If you want a good Acid Reign album, try 'The Fear' or 'The Worst Of Acid Reign'.
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