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Join the Dead [EP] (Roxx) 2012 Join the Dead [Deluxe Edition] (Roxx) 2012 |
1. Mask Of Fear (5:55)
2. Out Of Breath (3:30)
3. Self Inflicted Pain (6:02)
4. Idol Faith (6:07)
BONUS TRACKS [Deluxe Edition]
5. Killing Disorder (Decadence) (2:39)
6. Disgraced (Decadence) (3:44)
7. Blinded (Testimony) (5:35)
8. Strings Of The World (Testimony) (6:27)
9. In The Dark (Testimony) (5:54)
10. Sea Of Glass [instrumental] (Michael Phillips) (5:28)
11. Existent (Synagog) (3:51)
12. Steps Of Mankind (Synagog) (5:26)
13. Idol Faith (Synagog) (5:54)
14. Hollow [demo] (Fasedown) (3:52)
15. In U [live] (Deliverance) ( 6:17)
Join the Dead are a heavy metal band out of California consisting of Michael Phillips (Deliverance/Fasedown), Paul White (Decadence) and Tim Kronyak (Deliverance). The band's self-titled EP is initially only available as a promotional CD. However, the EP will soon be released to the public with thirteen bonus tracks of demos and live tracks from the individual band members past.
The four tracks included here are prime, crunchy, American heavy metal usually crossing over into thrash metal terrain! "Mask Of Fear" is a mid-paced number with a bit of groove and a ton of attitude. "Out of Breath" takes the tempo up a notch and is a shorter, more straight-forward thrash song. Vocalist Paul White spews out the lyrics with a punk fury. Though it's a bit trite to say, both these two songs have some similarities to Deliverance's speed metal days. "Self Inflicted Pain" starts off with some melodic clean guitars, builds to a crunchy mid-paced riff and then suddenly bursts into a full-throttle thrasher. The last track, "Idol Faith" is another mid-tempo number with some nice guitar work from Phillips. This particular song reminds me of Sacred Reich with it's anger charged attitude, though the lyrics are more in line with bands like Vengeance Rising and The Crucified.
The four song EP from Join the Dead is a nice introduction to another band in the New Wave of Thrash Metal. Here's hoping that this EP is just a taste of what's to come. With only four songs, it ends far too quickly.
The Deluxe Edition contains eleven bonus tracks and is a nice historical piece for those into Deliverance and Fasedown. The Decadence tracks are pure old-school thrash metal with a bit of a crossover vibe thanks in part to the punk vocal delivery. Testimony is Micheal Phillips pre-Deliverance band. The three demo tracks are raw, crunchy thrash metal with shouted vocals. The song "In the Dark" eventually ended up on a Deliverance album ("Stay of Execution") with different lyrics under the name "Lord of the Dreams". All the tracks after this demo are songs recorded by Phillips after his first tenure in the Big D. The Fasedown demo track sticks out a bit as it is such a departure from the more straight forward thrash metal of the rest of the CD. Fasedown were downtuned metalcore. The final track is a live version of the Deliverance ballad "In U" recorded at the Up From the Ashes III festival in California, 2009. The 8 page booklet contains a lengthy biography on Micheal Phillips.