By: Richard Maw
Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 11/08/2017
Label: Nuclear
Blast
This record, is a triumph. Venom Inc.
have produced a record more than worthy of the Venom name and it contains some
of the best and most “Venom” moments since the early 80's. I cannot praise or
recommend this record enough to fans of Venom or just metal in general. The
songs, performances and production all deliver.
“Avé” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1. Avé Satanas (8:33)
2. Forged In Hell (4:59)
3. Metal We Bleed (5:17)
4. Dein Fleisch (7:11)
5. Blood Stained (5:22)
6. Time To Die (4:05)
7. The Evil Dead (4:18)
8. Preacher Man (6:37)
9. War (4:30)
10. I Kneel To No God (6:19)
11. Black N Roll (4:45)
The Review:
For
those who are unaware, there are essentially now two versions of Venom: Cronos
leads “Venom”
with side men while “Venom Inc.”
features two thirds of the original line up, plus Cronos' replacement Tony
Dolan who was in the band from 1989-1992 (a period which included the
rather excellent “Prime Evil" album).
With
origins out of the way, we can conclude: 1. Two versions of Venom (which is what we effectively have) gives the fans
choice 2. You can like and listen to one or both bands and have more or less
music.
I
myself enjoy Cronos' Venom and have enjoyed all their albums of recent years. I
am also am avid supporter of Venom Inc. When I first
heard about the band, I really hoped that they would record as well as tour. My
wish has come true and we now have “Avé” out on Nuclear Blast.
Does it live up to expectations?! In my view: YES!
Venom were once the most extreme band in
music, so without them the thrash, death, black (obviously) sub genres would
not exist. They are thus one of the most important bands in metal and have
always sounded like a more evil, sped up Sabbath or a more metal
Motorhead- or a combination of those two if you prefer. Venom Inc. have delivered a perfect blend here of sped up Sabbath murk, with more overtly satanic references, spliced
with a hard rocking and living Motorhead vibe and the
raw evil of early Slayer or Celtic Frost.
The
album starts off slow and evil with “Avé Sathanus” and then really starts rocking out with “Forged in Hell”. The production is punchy, slick and raw
(paradox?). Each band member delivers a very energetic performance with Mantas and Abaddon light years away from their earlier recording work in terms
of technicality. Dolan delivers a
spiteful vocal performance which is perfect for the record. Compared to a band
like Nile, this is classic rock- but in the
context of what Venom were and still represent, this is
heavy stuff. The guitars and drums sound suitably massive and the likes of “Forged in Hell” will get necks snapping
everywhere.
There
are, of course, stand outs which will feature in the band's live set for sure
and these often hark back to the band's heyday- as on “Metal We Bleed“ (absolutely glorious Motorhead
worship) and closing tour de force “Black
N Roll” (a tongue in cheek nod to all the sub genres the band effectively
created). Surprisingly, though, the album also has depth and variety with Mantas and Dolan not scared to bring in some of the sounds and atmospheres
they explored with “M:Pire of Evil”.
Notably, “Dein Fleisch” has a kind
of industrial vibe and a running time of over seven minutes (then again, Venom were never afraid of a long track- see side one of “At War With Satan” for proof!). Later
on, “Preacher Man” marks out another
experimental type of track, which is a great song- finely crafted- and with a
dark vibe but without the extremity. It's also one of the best things on the
record.
Yes,
there are sledgehammers elsewhere- “Blood
Stained” and “Time To Die” at
mid pace and flat out, respectively and raw and pure evil such as “The Evil Dead”. To be fair, the
intensity of tracks such as “War”
would not be out of place on any extreme band's record- all these songs are
vicious and adrenaline inducing to the max. Even slower tracks such as “I Kneel To No God” are crushingly
weighty.
This
record, then, is a triumph. Venom Inc. have
produced a record more than worthy of the Venom name and it
contains some of the best and most “Venom” moments since the early 80's. I cannot praise
or recommend this record enough to fans of Venom or just metal in
general. The songs, performances and production all deliver. Venom Inc. are here and they continue a legacy of one of
the most important metal bands of all time. Not only that; they also do it
incredibly well.
“Avé” is available everywhere now
