EXCITER: (1985) Long Live the Loud

Ah, this record brings back some of the most vivid memories of my 37 years on this planet. Where to begin? Summer, 1985. My dad had cancer and was in the hospital in St. Louis. I was a hundred-and-fifty miles south in our little hometown of Poplar Bluff. I would drive once every week to St. Louis to visit. I bought this on my very first trip to see him.
This was highly, highly anticipated by me and my cohorts that summer. Metallica's, "Ride the Lightning" was almost a year old and Slayer's, "Hell Awaits" had just been released, as had the debut by Exodus. What on earth would LP number three from Ottawa's finest bring? Word was that they were wimping out... After hearing a track on Music For Nations, "Metal Zone" comp, I was pretty sure that wasn't the case.Although not the groudbreaking landmark that my friends and I had hoped for, "Long Live the Loud" is quite pleasing. Maybe I was a bit let down...I had built this thing up to immortal proportions in my little head. Essentially, the same style as the first two. A bunch of proto-power-thrash with loads of double-bass drumming and banshee wails from Dan Beehler, atonal screeeeeeeching, ala Greg Ginn, from Jon Ricci, as well as bulldozer bass backlash from Alan Johnson. Side Two is a bit more proggy, (Heh, heh, heh, heh, heh...) with "Wake Up Screaming" moving through several tempos and stolen Sabbath ideas. "Born To Die" and "Victims of Sacrifice" plod and pound along at mid-tempo, barely escaping devolution into "boring," but manage to keep their heads above putrid water. All the rest thrash and flail along like Motorhead and Saxon trapped in a British Mk. II tank being pushed by an out-of-control steam locomotive that Lemmy can't get a handle on.
Guy Bidimead, who had recently manned the wheels of steel for the "new" songs on Motorhead's, "No Remorse" comp, lends his production skills here. The result is noisy and thinner than one would like, but still barely containing the thrashing rage these guys were capable of stiring up. In the end, Exciter never falls prey to their lack of skill, songwriting ability, botched production or horrifically cliche lyrics, simply because the performance is so over-the-top and contains SO MUCH energy. Laugh all you want, but you'll sift through 1,000 bands or more before you find another with the rawr, manic energy these guys had in their glory days!.... David Chris Dalton

Tracks:
1. Fall Out
2. Long Live the Loud
3. I Am the Beast
4. Victims of Scarifice
5. Beyons the Gates of Doom
6. Sudden Impact
7. Born to Die
8. Wake Up Screaming
** Review from reissue
** Covers: (Yes)
** Bitrate: (192kbps)
** pw: heavymetalbreed.blogspot.com

** Metal Link :-))) http://lix.in/1e20b1
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