Sunday, November 3, 2013

High Intensity Discharge CD

Travelling into the realm of obscure heavy metal can be a real bargain at times.  Several years ago the local pawn shop decided to liquidate their entire audio CD collection.  AT 10 CDS FOR A DOLLAR.  I promptly bought every single hard rock and metal-related disc in the place, which resulted in quite an eclectic stack of stuff running the gamut from a cut-out of Torch's Fireraiser to a Skatenigs CD with water-damaged inserts.  While there, I picked up this little number--the High Intensity Discharge compilation on the Creative Sounds label:


I was already acquainted with Creative Sounds due to their ubiquitous cheapo CD versions of early Black Sabbath and pre-Gillan Deep Purple releases.  I had always assumed they were some weird little UK label who were exploiting licensing loopholes.

Speaking of cheap, no date information is given anywhere, but according to online sources the compilation was released in 1988.  It's a bit hard to tell from the cover scan, but the album title is actually hot foil stamped onto the insert.  They chose to emboss a metallic red logo on an insert that is not only one-sided, but uses an upside-down stock photo as a background.  What an odd way to splurge on a layout that looks terribly generic and cheap otherwise.  Maybe one of the label guys moonlighted at a print shop or something, even though I would have thought pressing Black Sabbath CDs intended for the budget-minded consumer would be enough by itself to keep the lights on.   


Okay, so we've got two Deep Purple tunes (both cover songs from the Mk. I lineup with Rod Evans), two Sabbath tunes, and two Alice Cooper tunes (since these are live and "No Longer Umpire" is mistitled as "Painting a Picture," I assume these are from the 1969 Toronto Rock and Roll Revival fest--recordings of which have been released as Alice Cooper live CDs in a slew of various unauthorized incarnations). 

BUT WHO THE HELL ARE LEGGESY AND TRYAX?

Well, both were Albuquerque, New Mexico bands active in the mid-late '80s.  At first I was confused as to why they would be on such a compilation, but as it turns out, Creative Sounds were also located in New Mexico.  I'm not sure of the exact circumstances, but it seems they were given compilation slots by virtue of being relatively popular local acts at the time.  This also appears to be the only time Creative Sounds ever worked with local bands.  And remember that licensing loopholes comment I made earlier?  The most recent info I could find about Creative Sounds was that they were sued in the early '90s by MCA over music rights issues.

New Mexico has never really been known as a hotbed of heavy metal, '80s or otherwise.  As a state with a pretty healthy history of demo-level bands, I'm not going to mock them, but let's face it--their biggest claims to fame are a Christian thrash band and a 1984 Judas Priest concert.  On to the bands in question though:

Leggesy

Much like the logo on the cover, Leggesy are shiny and metallic (since they are in New Mexico, some of them may very well qualify as red too).  As is obvious from the band name and songtitles, they definitely sway towards the more commercial side of '80s metal.  "Custom Made Lover" is typical of the L.A. metal style--mid-paced stuff with a hard-driving guitar providing most of the heaviness.  Their second tune "Lace by Name" is a bit heavier and comes off better, despite the odd maracas-style percussion throughout most of the song.  Nothing on the level of "Be My Wench," mind you, but for songs about chicks these aren't bad.

Here's a video for "Custom Made Lover" shot on the roof of a Holiday Inn.  Yes, you read that correctly.


Tryax

Tryax also have somewhat of a commercial sheen to their metal, although it manifests itself differently and their two songs are more varied.  "Lost Time" is a ballad that evokes somewhat of a Crimson Glory/Queensrÿche feel (though with a singer nowhere near that caliber).  Then "Bring It On" brings in some real muscle with a mean main riff that wouldn't appear out of place in a NWoBHM stomper (for the Spanish metal enthusiasts in the room, it's quite reminiscent of Obús' "Va a estallar el obús").  However, the bouncy, rocking nature of the song and some of the vocal crooning do detract from its bite. 

Just a final warning--I don't know if they're pressings that came earlier or later, but be aware that some versions of High Intensity Discharge substitute Spooky Tooth and Soft Machine tracks for the Leggesy and Tryax stuff, rendering the compilation completely worthless in my opinion.