Human Sacrifice by Vengeance Rising

posted in: January 2011, Music Review | 0

Vengeance Rising… what can I say? This first release was the definitive Christian thrash record of its time. Originally released in 1988, everything about this record caused a stir. People complained about lead singer Roger Martinez’s voice, they complained about the album art, song titles, record title etc. etc. etc. Even with all the finger pointing, name calling and griping, Human Sacrifice put the metal world on notice. There were huge riffs, throbbing bass lines, guttural vocals and pummeling drums. There wasn’t anything else like this in Christian metal, and Vengeance (before they added Rising to their name) blew the doors off and could easily hold pace with any of their contemporaries in the thrash world like Megadeth, Slayer and early Metallica. It was a breath of fresh air for metal, and it was a genre defining release that other bands would always be compared to.

The cool thing about the re-release is the addition of several bonus tracks and an interview with former original vocalist Roger Martinez. The re-mastering really helps the clarity to come through as well, and it lends itself to really making this album crisp, concise and heavy, heavy, heavy! This new re-release also comes with new artwork and a new booklet/insert to boot. Thanks to Intense Millennium for making this available. If you haven’t ever listened to Vengeance Rising this is the best way to get started. Even if you own the first release (I still have the cassette), grab this one because the re-mastering gives new life to this album. HM Magazine also ranked this debut as the #1 metal release ever. Christian thrash…come listen and see where it all began.

[2010 Intense Millennium Records | Purchase: intensemillennium.com]

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