CD

“Thrashin Blues” finally available again, Thrash Metal with a dirty blues edge!

Violent Playground is one of the many Thrash Metal bands that ended up forgotten without ever having serious opportunities; the fact is that they deserved much more than their peers. In 1988, they were able to create an unparalleled blend of Thrash Metal, Hardrock and Blues that did not open the doors to fame for them at all.

These five guys lived their musical experience exclusively within the underground scene for a relatively short time (about three years), without any chance to emerge in the slightest (at least to achieve the popularity of groups like Tankard, Razor, and so on). For this series of reasons, the group is one of the most ignored within its environment. And their “Thrashin Blues” has become a collector’s item. The only link Violent Playground has with the world outside the underground is the album cover: created by the famous Ed Repka, the same who drew for Megadeth, Death, Toxik, Vio-lence, and others.

It’s no coincidence that they deserved more than many other bands of the time: their only album is a true masterpiece. Frankly, we do not find a single excessive derivation, a single plagiarized note; you can hardly even hear the influences from the usual genre epigones, but the sound is typically thrash, accompanied by contamination ranging from Blues to Classic Rock. The production isn’t too raw for a record like this, made of captivating riffs and solos that haven’t been heard since the days of “Kill ‘Em All”. The originality of the product is evident from the very first spectacular seconds of the title track.

Unable to repeat themselves and strained by the harsh failure of the album, the Playground disbanded shortly after, and with them, that kind of explosive mix of “blues fusion” came to an end.

HULDER is a dark black metal project from the United States, driven by the creative partnership of Hulder and Necreon, whose three albums to date have steadily drawn the project toward more expansive and collaborative territory. ‘Verbolgen’, released jointly by Season of Mist and 20 Buck Spin, marks a decisive turn: the first HULDER record on which Necreon steps fully into his role as co-leader rather than session contributor. Rooted in ancient nature worship, ancestral rite, and the shadows of pre-Christian tradition, ‘Verbolgen’ moves through nine tracks that trade in both the severity and the strange, wintry beauty that have always defined HULDER 's sound. The writing has grown more layered here, drawing on a wider palette of instrumentation: hurdy gurdy and additional keys from Keld bring an almost processional weight to certain passages, while Ianuaria's session flute drifts through the album like smoke across still water. Two drummers divide the record between them, Vapula and Vrolok each bringing their own character to their respective tracks, and the sum of it is a rhythm section that feels alive to the album's shifts in mood and tempo. The mix, handled by Ahti Kortelainen at Tico Tico Studio in Finland, gives the record an earthy, resonant quality that suits its themes of blood, soil, and the settling of old debts. Even the visual identity signals a new chapter: the cover art, painted by Morrigan, is her first work created for a metal band in nearly three decades, with an updated logo crafted by Jannicke Wiese Hansen. Three of the album's songs are sung in Flemish, lending ‘Verbolgen’ a peculiar, incantatory dimension that sets it apart from anything in HULDER's back catalogue. For fans of BATHORY, DISSECTION, MOONSORROW

What one could describe as resolutely nihilistic Black Metal, fueled by the layered experiences of its contributors, is based on the cold pronouncement of an undeniable truth: all is vanity; all that exists is doomed to fade into naught.

Amazing album of German black metal with hysterical voices. Lots of tracks on this album that grew out to become classics for the band.

Issued in a standard jewel case with clear tray and an 16-page booklet, housed in a slipcase.

"Respirium" is an instrumental track.