CoC : Divine Decay - Songs of the Damned : Review

Divine Decay - _Songs of the Damned_
(Osmose, 2001)
by: Paul Schwarz (6 out of 10)

Please, please Osmose, stop being such idiots! _Songs of the Damned_ would only be called "the Metallica _Kill 'em All_ and _Ride the Lightening_ of the new century" by a complete fool; I don't think anyone could make such a statement and not doubt the words before they even left their mouth. Chronic hyperbole aside, _SotD_ is actually a reasonably good record which should find quite a few fans between the retro-thrash and power metal fraternities of today. Solid riffing and catchy refrains make for a worthwhile trip down a reasonably modernised memory lane, though _SotD_ is marred by somewhat stale arrangements, and overly predictable, stiff-sounding performances and a similarly flawed yet still powerful production. There's definitely a lot of Metallica lurking on here in terms of influence and sound, but Divine Decay don't compare in terms of their relevance to their time, and they certainly have neither Metallica's enigmatic virtue of being songwriters of the highest order, nor the ability the Bay Area quartet had -- in their Eighties heyday -- to churn out such crushing-yet-hugely-digestible heavy sounds.

[Kirsty Buchanan: "This is an unspeakably bland album. I listened through for something outstanding, whether of merit or demerit: no joy. I could not find a single point in the entire album which is worthy of extended mention. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike the album, it's just that I don't like it either. I merely find it as bland as dry brown toast. Pleasant enough, but not remarkable."]

(article published 12/8/2001)