Artist: Psycho
Title: Pain Addict Pigs
Type: Album
Label: Moribund Records

Horror films and metal make cosy bedfellows. I mean, if your music is all about sounding brutal then what better subject matter than a woman getting her face brutally smashed in with a hammer? Might as well go all the way, you know, it kind of loses it’s impact when singing about peace, love and flowers. The problem is that the themes can often seem more interesting than the music itself. Some bands pull it off fantastically well, having the right kind of atmosphere to make the intended message come across, while others do not. While some are the aural equivalent to watching say a Cronenberg movie, others are more like listening to a bloke in the pub telling you the plot after a few pints.

And this is the category in which Psycho falls. You get the general gist of the story, but the atmosphere isn’t there. Something is lost in translation, and what it really comes down to is that Psycho are a rather average band playing a very unmemorable blend of thrash/death with black metal touches. It’s not particularly painful to listen to, but it’s just not very interesting. With a solid, heavy thrashing riff, ‘All Are Dead’ attempts to kill all in its path; there’s a deathly edge to this in places that makes it rather formidable. ‘Revenge Of The Raging Whore’ grunts it’s way in, before we are introduced to a rather angular guitar riff that is sharp and jagged and sounds like the whore getting her revenge cutting up a client with a chainsaw. As things slow down in the middle there’s a certain vibe of darkness that emerges, before the classic solos rip things right apart. ‘Lords Of Slaughter’ is a real bludgeoning assault and there’s a definite aggressive tone to this one.

Vocals are certainly full of aggression; I’m reminded most of the likes of Mille Petrozza it’s a very raw style of vocal and there’s a hint of raspiness to them, while in places it sinks down into more of a deathly growl emphasizing the brutal parts quite well. ‘Mater Lachrymarum…’ suddenly goes a bit King Diamond sounding as though vocalist Penny Torture has been stabbed somewhere quite unpleasant. Still, I just find the chorus rather cheesy and ill-fitting, which leads me to say that I do find this album a little bit on the messy side; it’s as though someone cleared away the viscera, but forgot to mop up the blood. So to sum up, this is far from the worst thing I’ve ever heard. If all you are after is something to bang your head to then perhaps Psycho will satisfy that need; there are some perfectly good riffs to be found here but I personally demand a little more from my music than this. Average.

http://www.myspace.com/psycho.official