Power & Pain

構成数 : 1枚
合計収録時間 : 00:00:00
"T" is for "thrash" and "T" is for "Tony," but there's only ever been one thrash metal band featuring three guys named Tony -- vocalist/guitarist Tony Portaro, bassist Tony Bono, and drummer Tony Scaglione -- and that was Whiplash -- only in New Jersey! Along with Anthrax and Overkill, Whiplash were one of the first East Coast bands to pick up the metal-studded gauntlet cast down by the pioneering Bay Area thrash scene, and, after taking their name from the genre-defining Metallica track, they proceeded to one-up the competition with a sound that was arguably more savage and consistently faster than virtually any of their peers. It was certainly more extreme than any other American band of the period, and perhaps closer in blueprint to the concurrently rising German thrash bands like Kreator, Sodom, and Destruction, thanks to Tony P.'s gravel-gargling rasps and his guitar's general distaste for easy-to-digest melodies. This no-holds-barred songwriting approach dominated the group's 1985 debut, Power & Pain, and is perhaps best exemplified by unrelenting moshers like "Stage Dive," "War Monger," and "Spit on Your Grave." This was not a one-dimensional barrage, however, as the early standout "Last Man Alive" shared a few more accessible traits with early Slayer, while the highly irregular "Red Bomb" produced a momentary respite with its deliberate opening. Another late album highlight, "Power Thrashing Death," was every bit as wild and spectacular as its title suggested, serving as a showcase for the entire band's jaw-dropping instrumental dexterity, and especially Tony P.'s distinctive guitar work, which often meshed lead and rhythm, and influenced many a future gunslinger because of it (future Exciter guitarist Brian McPhee among them). Unfortunately, the band's "magical" Tony triple-threat would soon be disrupted when monster drummer Scaglione was tapped to replace a disgruntled Dave Lombardo in Slayer (only to lose the post in short order when Lombardo changed his mind and came back), thus making Power & Pain the only Whiplash album to feature this classic lineup until 1998's brief comeback LP, Thrashback. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia