Act III
| Act III | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Death Angel | ||||
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Publication |
1990 |
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admission |
September - October 1989 |
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| Label (s) | Geffen Records | |||
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Format (s) |
CD, LP |
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Title (number) |
10 |
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running time |
44:54 |
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| occupation |
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Studio (s) |
Dodge City Sound, California |
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Act III (English: third act ) is the third studio album by the US thrash metal band Death Angel . It was released in the spring of 1990 as the first and only one on the major label Geffen Records and was the last before the band's temporary breakup in 1991. It is considered a classic of the Thrash genre.
Music genre
When Act III was recorded, several Thrash Metal bands were already experimenting with stylistic elements from other genres. Act III, for example, contains funk influences, but also progressive parts. Because of this, Death Angel was criticized by other bands from the scene, sometimes sharply. In Veil of Deception and A Room With a View , in addition Seemingly Endless Time one of the two singles, is acoustic ballads. The band stated at the time that their goal was “to find our own style that cannot be pigeonholed, but can simply be categorized as“ rock ”.” You want to achieve an “unmistakable sound”, regardless of whether it was "a ballad or a thrasher".
Emergence
Before the album was recorded in 1989, there was some turbulence in the band's environment: a new management team had to be found and deaths in the family had to be dealt with. The band signed with Geffen Records and thus had previously unimagined budget available for the album . Drummer Andy Galeon later said he was dissatisfied with the promotion of the label. With Max Norman ( Ozzy Osbourne , Megadeth ) a well-known producer has been hired. Most of the music and lyrics were written by guitarist Rob Cavestany. A pre-production was made for the first time. According to the band, the recordings in autumn 1989 took place in a relaxed atmosphere.
“Back then we were a bunch of music-crazy kids who didn't know what to do with their energy. Max easily managed to capture this energy and direct it in the right direction. He played an enormous part in the success of Act III . "
The album, although not noteworthy on the chart at the time, became the best-selling Death Angel album to date after its release in spring 1990. Videos were shot for both singles, which gained some presence at Headbangers Ball . The second single A Room With a View was sent in November 1990 under the abbreviation DA to both college metal and major radio stations. Guitarist Cavestany said at the time that he found the name “extreme” now, and that the band wanted to prevent one from being reduced to a certain sound. In addition, the abbreviation DA is used in the band environment anyway. The former Enigma label released Fall from Grace , a live album from a concert in Amsterdam in 1990 that was not authorized by the band.
In late 1990, the band's tour bus crashed on a tour in the American Southwest near Las Vegas and overturned. Drummer Andy Galeon was seriously injured. As a result, a number of musicians from the Bay Area thrash scene gathered for a benefit concert, including a. Members of Metallica , Heathen or Chris Poland ( Megadeth ). In 1991 the band broke up, after which they continued without singer Mark Osegueda as The Organization - a song title of Act III .
reception
Act III was received very positively and even then was called a "masterpiece". At Allmusic , Eduardo Rivadavia wrote that Death Angel had "grown up" with this record. He praised the “superior” songwriting and the well thought-out lyrics, despite the “mediocre” vocals of Mark Osegueda. It awarded four and a half stars out of five. In Rock Hard Holger Stratmann put out songs like Seemingly Endless Time and Stop , he especially liked the “vocal arrangements”. He awarded 9.5 out of 10 points. In 2007, the magazine also included the record in its list of the 500 best albums according to the editorial team and placed it in 50th place. Peter Kubaschk wrote on Powermetal.de : "Rapid riffs, precise power drumming, varied songwriting and the extremely distinctive vocals by Mark Osegueda made the work one of the best releases in Bay Area Thrash."
Track list
- Seemingly Endless Time (Cavestany) - 3:50
- Stop (Cavestany, Osegueda) - 5:10
- Veil of Deception (Cavestany) - 2:34
- The Organization (Cavestany, Galeon, Osegueda) - 4:17
- Discontinued (Cavestany, Galeon, Pepa, Pepa) - 5:52
- A Room With a View (Cavestany) - 4:42
- Stagnant (Cavestany, Galeon) - 5:35
- EX-TC (Cavestany, Osegueda) - 3:05
- Disturbing the Peace (Cavestany) - 3:53
- Falling Asleep (Cavestany) - 5:56
Artwork
The design of the album, which shows a red theater curtain, comes from Adrian Stubican, who implemented an idea of the band that had partly played in theater-like venues during the previous tours.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Patrick Schmidt: Classic Albums: Death Angel “Act III” (1990) , in: Rock Hard, No. 258, November 2008, pp. 140–141.
- ↑ a b c d e Chris Leibundgut: Finally grown up! , in: Rock Hard, No. 47, February 1991, p. 27.
- ↑ www.allmusic.com: Act III review by Eduardo Rivadavia
- ↑ www.rockhard.de: Review Act III by Holger Stratmann
- ↑ Rock Hard: Best of Rock & Metal , Heel-Verlag, Königswinter 2007, ISBN 3-89880-517-4
- ↑ www.powermetal.de: Review Act III by Peter Kubaschk