Divine Blasphemies (Iron Pegasus~2002)
I know some people consider this to be a down time for metal, but I donīt get it. Iīm sitting here listening to an awesome release by the veteran German band Desaster and I realize that itīs not even close to being among my 10 favorite releases of 2002. That tells me it was a pretty damn strong year for metal, at least to my ears. Desasterīs official web site (www.total-desaster.de) describes the bandīs music as "Traditional Black Metal". I would be more likely to label it as old-school blackened thrash, but no matter what you call it, "Divine Blasphemies" is a head-banging good time. I can do without the intro and outro tracks, but the remaining eight tracks are a good batch of songs that are well-executed and provide an enjoyable listening experience. This group has been around for more than a decade, but this is the first Desaster release in my collection. I get a kick out of the band memberīs descriptions -- Infernal: six silver strings of hellish cross-fire; Odin: roaring 4-string battle-axe; Tormentor: sodomized drum-chaos and double cannon-fire; and new member Sataniac: spells of vengeance and battle-cry. I canīt compare the new vocalist with the bandīs old singer, but I think his vocals are quite effective in combination with the bandīs guitar-driven thrashy musical assault. In a time with so many worthwhile releases on the market, I wouldnīt necessarily recommend putting this at the top of any metal shopping list, but it is worth checking out for anybody looking for a new slab of aggressive metal in a traditional vein.