VARIOUS ARTISTS
"Metal
For Muthas 1" (Sanctuary; 2000)
Reviewed by R. Scott Bolton
"Metal For Muthas 1" was originally released back in 1980, in the days before everyone on the planet knew who Iron Maiden was. It's a collection of old school metal (and we're talking old school metal) whose purpose at the time was to introduce the world to some up'n'coming metal bands. The CD's purpose today is considerably different: It's a moment in history, containing some surprisingly dated rock'n'roll from (according to the liner notes) "the new wave of heavy metal."
Two tracks from Iron Maiden are most notable here, simply because of how huge the band became later. Of course, the tracks contained herein, "Sanctuary" and "Wrathchild" were both recorded prior to Bruce Dickinson joining the band and feature Paul Di'anno on vocals. Other included songs by SLEDGEHAMMER, PRAYING MANTIS, ETHEL THE FROG, ANGELWITCH, and NUTZ might be considered heavy for the day, but aren't even close to what we call "heavy metal" now days.
The surprises here are "Blues In A" by TOAD THE WET SPROCKET (what the hell is this bluesy piece doing on a metal record?) and "Tomorrow or Yesterday" by SAMSON, a band renowned for their heaviness and represented here by a sappy, piano-laden ballad that only kicks in with electric guitars and what sounds like a power-drill solo more than halfway through the song (before returning to "sappy" mode).
Do you really need "Metal for Muthas" for your collection. Probably not. If you're a fan of the above-listed bands, you've probably got these songs in your collection already. If you're not, then you'll have no interest in this anyway.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the
cover makes you wanna hurl.
Back to RoughEdge.com home page
Copyright © 2003 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 14 Jun 2020 15:11:00 -0400.
