Church Of Misery - Master Of Brutality

An absolute classic. I was surprised to remember that this record is so "young", only originally being released in 2001. Apparently it has been out of print since a 2006 reissue, a wrong that Lee Dorrian's Rise Above Records has now corrected, with bonus tracks to boot. It's important to note that this record label, and all of the bands on it, can do no wrong.

For those unfamiliar, Church Of Misery are a Japanese band who sit and worship heavily at the altar of 70's era rock and metal. There's a reason this record comes with a cover resembling Sabbath's "Master Of Reality", and it's not just the similar title. Church Of Misery sounds like classic Sabbath, St. Vitus, Cathedral, early Candlemass, Trouble, all the classics blended together, but with their own distinct feel. Said distinct feel also extends to their almost obsessive devotion to talking about brutal murderers such as John Wayne Gacy and Ed Kemper. Not exactly my thing, but the music more than makes up for it.

This re-release does not seem to be tweaked all that much sound-wise, but does come with 3 bonus tracks (which cover an entire second disc's worth in the vinyl edition): "Boston Strangler", "Candy Man", and a live rendition of a song called "Lucifer Rising". I'd love to get my hands on an LP copy of this and see how it sounds on my stereo.

Each song still holds the same brutal power they've always had. Yoshiaki Negishi still sounds like a demented Wino/Lemmy hybrid. The guitars and bass are still drenched in fuzzed out overdrive. The songs still meander along, twisting and turning every so often like "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" played at half speed. The Blue Oyster Cult cover still rules. And most importantly, the bonus songs are just as good as the rest of them. Buy this immediately if you don't already own it.

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