Agressor - Say Your Prayers

Year of Release: 2002
Label: Self-released
Catalog Number: n/a
Format: CD
Total Time: 32:23:00

Well, the name of the band, though misspelled, should tell you quite a bit, as it pretty well describes what is found inside Say Your Prayers - aggressive metal. The album's title, however, is more warning than admonishing - something wicked this way comes, in other words (with all due respect to Mr. Bradbury).

If you are longing for those days as the 1980s were dawning and Iron Maiden and Judas Priest were galloping across stages with their then fresh in-your-face metal sound, then Agressor will take you back (not to suggest IM and JP aren't still, of course, but there was something about those early days that is lost now). Say Yours Prayers is full of youthful energy as vocalist Ron Scauri screams his way through seven (actually eight, as one is "hidden") tracks of chugging, galloping heavy metal. This latter comes from John Rup on guitars and backing vocals, Steve Williams on drums, and Dave Zob on bass and backing vocals. Along with that youthfulness, is also a rawness that comes from a new band starting out who haven't yet truly solidified and found their own voice. That is, this band has its heroes and isn't afraid to wear them on their sleeves. But it feels like is a band tromping through classic moves from those bands, and, at times Metallica, writing new lyrics to rhythms.

Ah, but wait. This isn't a new band at all, though Say Your Prayers is their first full-lenghth album. The core of Scauri, Rup, and Williams have been around and playing together (off an on) since 1985. Say Your Prayers was originally released in 1996. The band have opened for some well-known artists including Fates Warning, Savatage, Overkill, and others. They've also undergone a name change and are now known as Magus Beast, after a song on this very album.

Armed conflict provides the context for most of the tracks here - in the opener "Magus Beast" it is man against, well, beast; "Death Before Dishonor" takes aim at "third-world" countries that display their anti-American feelings and threaten the US (a la Metallica's much better done "Don't Tread On Me"); on "Devil's Advocate" the protagonist volunteers to be a recruiter for the devil... "Assault Attack" is specifically a war song complete with the sound of helicopters and machine gun fire.

Agressor (as I'll call them for consistency) sound okay for what they do. They've got the moves down right; they could be singing made up words, though, and you'd get the point on pure, um, aggression alone. But we've heard it before and heard it better. In fact, if you are in the mood for this kind of heavy metal, you'd do better to check out Iron Maiden's Piece Of Mind or Metallica's Master Of Puppets instead.

Tracklisting:
Magus Beast / Death Before Dishonor / In Vain / Devil's Advocate / Born To Kill / Assault Attack / Nightfall / untitled bonus

Musicians:
Ron Scauri - vocals
John Rup - guitars, backing vocals
Steve Williams - drums
Dave Zob - bass, backing vocals

Discography:
Screams In The Darkness (1989) (demo)
Crucified (1993) (demo)
Say Your Prayers (1996/2002)

Genre: Other

Origin US

Added: September 22nd 2003
Reviewer: Stephanie Sollow
Score:
Artist website: www.magusbeast.com
Hits: 2770
Language: english