No, this is not Rage Against The Machine! This Rage hails from Germany, existing since early 80s, when Andy LaRocha was still in high school. It's led by a great bassist / singer / songwriter / the only permanent band member, Peter "Peavy" Wagner. The band released several albums in the 80s (originally under the name "Avenger"), but it wasn't until critically-praised "Trapped!" (1991), that they started getting major international attention. "Missing Link" (1993) and "Black In Mind" (1995) also made everybody drool, although "End Of All Days" (1996) was not as well received. Rage's experimentation with the orchestral sound, "Lingua Mortis" (1997), also got nice reviews, but then Peavy started to sacrifice metal in favor of orchestration, leaving many listeners somewhat irritated. "XIII" (1998) and "Ghosts" (1999) were met with slightly less excitement. In their mid-90s prime, Rage was cool, fast, rocking, and mighty. The band has undergone numerous line-up changes, going from trio to quartet to trio again. In 2001, with the completely new line-up of Peavy, guitarist Victor Smolsky (people interested in Russian culture may remember him as being in a late 70s/early 80s folk-pop band, Pesnyary), and drummer Mike Terrana (who played with Yngwie Malmsteen and Metalium), the band released their 15th album, "Welcome To The Other Side," signifying their return to more aggressive music. "Unity" (2002) and "Soundchaser" (2003) continued further down the same road, both receiving high accolades. Being a crazy workaholic, Smolski also participated in numerous other projects, appearing on albums by Mind Odyssey, Silent Force, and Kipelov. LATEST NEWS: "Speak Of The Dead" (2006) came out earlier this year.
REFLECTIONS OF A SHADOW (1990)
RATING: ***1/2
BEST SONGS: "That's Human Bondage," "True Face In Everyone," "Saddle The Wind"
This album is basically good, but not exactly sparkling. Peavy is almost there, but not quite there. Still, it's quite an enjoyable listen. "That's Human Bondage" and "Can't Get Out" are churning mid-tempo songs, with Peavy's trademark vicious yells in the chorus. "Flowers That Fade In My Heart" is a typical early Rage fast number. "Faith" is quite unusual, with a very strange and cool twist in the middle and happy upbeat ending. "Dust In The Wind" is interesting at times. The best song is "Saddle The Wind": a simple, no-nonsense, happy speed metal anthem, the kind that made Gamma Ray famous later on. Aside from that track, the album suffers from the absence of highlights. The rest of the tunes are simply not as memorable, although they still are a good listen: nothing that upsets you when you're actually playing it. Good drumming from Chris Efthimiadis, quality solos from Manni Schmidt, decent sound (not as heavy as on future releases, but definitely on par with the best of contemporary metal). If you can track it down, give it a listen, it's good.
TRAPPED! (1992)
RATING: ****
BEST SONGS: "Solitary Man," "Enough Is Enough," "Take Me To The Water"
Even though I could never quite get into the opening track (weird, semi-acoustic "Shame On You"), this album's first half is very, very catchy. "Solitary Man" is the most perfect piece of speed metal song I've heard in the 90s, equalled only by the best works from their countrymen, Running Wild. Epic "Enough Is Enough," many people's favorite, not only states the problems with the modern world, but also offers a possible solution (take 10% of the money from the military and "develop the minds of our nation," whatever Peevy means by that). "Medicine" is another ass-kicking fast song, and so is "Power And Greed." "Take Me To The Water" is another 7 minute political epic, and it's also splendid (and how does he manage to speak so fast?). Other nice songs are: hilarious "Body Talks" (the message reads: "care for me like you care for your car"), "Not Forever," and a cover of Accept's "Fast As A Shark." Rage's shark is twice as fast as the one of Accept, and can outswim it any day of the year. Rage is notorious for doing very good covers, and the reason I got into them was after checking out "Jawbreaker" on Judas Priest Tribute Album. Other songs are not as strong, but that's just on a comparative basis: "Behind The Wall Of Sleep," "Baby, I'm Your Nightmare" (Motorhead could have done this one), and "Difference." A good album that will make you both rock and laugh.
THE MISSING LINK (1993)
RATING: ****
BEST SONGS: "Nevermore," "Refuge," title track
Not as fast as but "beefier" and more solid than Trapped! Maybe they should have done another fast Accept cover. Twelve excellent tunes. "Firestorm," "Nevermore," "Refuge" (pronounced "re-FEWCH"), "The Pit And The Pendulum," "Who Dares," and especially the godly title track are all outstanding and rock like hell, in both fast and mid tempos, mostly due to the extremely powerful riffing and solid rhythm section. It is simply unbelievable how Peevy, Efthimiadis, and Schmidt just kept cranking out one great metal tune after another in the time when the music industry in the US proclaimed metal dead and buried. They just kept kicking ass year after year, before Peevy started straying away on a tangent, and it took the arrival of Smolski and Terrana to revive their metal identity. Excellent production and sound, which, again, is amazing, considering Schmidt is dragging all of the music by himself. Peevy doesn't sound as strained as he did on the previous effort. An excellent release, a must have for all serious fans.
BLACK IN MIND (1995)
RATING: *****
BEST SONGS: title track, "Sent By The Devil," "Shadow Out Of Time"
Three years after hearing it for first time: still what a great album! What I love about Rage is that their albums all have 12-14 songs. In the modern commercial world, where 6 songs is enough to make an album and sell it for $16, Rage absolutely gives you your money worth. And some 14 tracks these are! Album opening title track is my favorite Rage song: it kicks ass and hasn't left my car in over two months after I got it. If you don't scream out: "BLACK IN MIND!" all four times in each chorus, you must be mute. Other tracks don't let you down either: "Crawling Chaos," "Alive But Dead" (cool and reasonably disturbing video, with bugs crawling in and out of Peavy's mouth), "Iced-Cold Hand Of Destiny," "Forever" (not "Not Forever" from Trapped! although both are pretty damn cool), "Until I Die," "Price Of War," and "Start!" are all great rockers, fast and mid-tempo. "Sent By The Devil," "Shadow Out Of Time" (especially this one; a great fun to scream out the chorus!) and "Spider's Web" are exceptional, among the best and the catchiest songs of the 90s. I have a European import version, which gives me two bonus tracks: excellent "Tie The Rope" and mediocre "Forgive But Don't Forget" (not much besides the cool title). "All This Time" is an orchestra-filled love song, which also kicks butt (a pre-cursor to future stylistic changes in Rage's music). "In A Nameless Time" is a long-ass epic, with some parts being very good, some not. Excellent production and sound and fabulous musicianship from the team (one of the few times Rage had two guitarists: Sven Fischer and Spiros Ephthimiades, with the later's brother, Chris Ephthimiades, being the drummer) make it one of the best albums I've heard from 1995.
XIII (1999)
RATING: **1/2
BEST SONGS: "From Cradle To The Grave," "Sign Of Heaven"
A lot of orchestra, but little metal. Czech orchestra Lingua Mortis, that collaborated with Rage on occasions before, is now working for Peavy what seems to be full time, and only occasional guitars and drums remind us that there's still a band behind all those violins. There's also just one semi-fast song on the album, "Sign Of Heaven," and that's not good news for fans of "Solitary Man," "Black In Mind," and "Start!" Everything else is kinda mild, although the dark atmosphere of previous Rage releases is preserved. Simply, the album is dark, but not heavy at all. As far as orchestral arrangements, they are well done, but I still think Rage is no match for Savatage. All that makes XIII a good album for a winter evening, not far from Christmas (for those of you to whom Christmas means anything). Everything is else is kinda average. Melodies are nice, but, for some reason, they are all fairly forgettable. Lyrics have never been Peavy's strong side: they are thought-provoking, but poorly written. "Heartblood" has an interesting chorus, where Peavy goes almost to death growls. "Immortal Sin" is a poor name for such a lame song, because it's nowhere near the power of the analogous tune from Fight. Cover of "Paint It Black" by Rolling Stones is just lame: I like the energy of the original, which is completely missing in this low-tempo version, although some creativity is definitely shown. Oh well, if you are tired of all those German/Swedish bands that all sound the same, this is an album for you.
WELCOME TO THE OTHER SIDE (2001)
RATING: ***1/2
BEST SONGS: "Paint The Devil On The Wall," "One More Time," "Straight To Hell"
Well, it's definitely an improvement. At least we get some metal here. The problem is with the sound. Whoever did the engineering, should be fired, and self-production played a bad joke on these veterans. Basically, we only get the hints of the thick, juicy sound of mid-90s Rage. Yes, it's heavier, faster, more aggressive, and energetic then XIII, but it's still a long way from the battering ram of Black In Mind. Victor Smolski introduces quite a few novelty ideas into Rage's music and sound (if it weren't for Peavy's easily recognizable voice, I'd have a hard time attributing this album to Rage). He also handles all the music perfectly, and it doesn't even sound like he did overdubs (granted, the arrangements are not that great, so maybe he should have). His short instrumental "Lunatic" deserves a special mention: it is cool as hell. The songs themselves are still pretty good, for the most part, especially opening "Paint The Devil On The Wall" and "Straight To Hell" - classic Rage! Other good tunes are "One More Time," "I'm Crucified" (a funny chorus), "No Lies," "Point Of No Return" (great vocal melody, I wish the sound were better), and "Riders On The Moonlight." "After The End" might very well be the best ballad Rage ever did (excellent acoustic solo from Smolski). One thing you always get with Rage is a CD filled to capacity: this album has 14 songs and a couple of instrumentals. So, like I said, a definite improvement, but still some ground to cover before Peavy & Co. regain their legendary momentum.
UNITY (2002)
BEST SONGS: "All I Want," "Down," "Dies Irae"
Holy macrel, this just keeps getting better! This is the best Rage we've heard since BiM, and, while it's not the instant classic like "BiM," it's easily as good as Trapped! and even better! The sound is finally HEAVY AGAIN! Oh, hell yeah, that's what we wanted for all these years from you, Peavy! Keep kicking it hard, man, keep kicking it! Apparently, as Wagner cut his hair, he remembered what metal is supposed to sound like! This is an angry yet exuberant, raging yet reassuring, killing yet euphoric metal album that we've all been waiting for! It starts on an extremely high note with "All I Want" (a typical Rage power anthem), continues on high with "Insanity," gets evil with "Down" ("see your ass go down - DOWN!!!"), rocks some more with "Set This World On Fire" and with yet another anthem "Dies Irae." Victor Smolski demonstrates his guitar wizardry, but he somehow manages not to get annoying (something that all-world axemen like Timo Tolkki and Michael Romeo just can't avoid once in a while), mostly by keeping the versatility level high. Wagner's voice never really changes, he is on the beefier side of his spectrum here. I must also mention ass-kicking drumming from Mike Terrana (how did he get so young since the picture on Welcome To The Other Side?). The songwriting wears down a little towards the end of the album ("Seven Deadly Sins" is cool, but instantly forgettable after it's over), but the first half makes up for it in the full. Another plus is the EXCELLENT booklet, with all high-tech stuff inside. This is one great traditional metal album, not to be missed.
SOUNDCHASER (2003)
BEST SONGS: Too many to list, but "Defenders Of The Ancient Life," "Human Metal," and "Wake The Nightmares" stand out.
"How do they cram all that Graham?" Peavy, Victor, and Mike show no signs of slowing down, instead they're clearly picking up the pace. In the last three years the unit has gelled together so well, that they're clearly feeding off each other. Rage is now concentrating on the songwriting more on anything else, and Soundchaser gives us 11 more excellent songs (counting the bonus track and not counting the intro). Smolski is clearly one of the best in the world at what he does this point, and the same thing can be said about Terrana. Both play in an extremely flashy way, without sounding egotistical. But the main focus is on the songs. Virutally every tune is energetic and rocking, without ballads, but plenty of balls instead. "War Of Worlds" reflects on the present state of affairs in the world, and it sounds very concerned yet tactful. "Great Old Ones," title track, "Defenders Of The Ancient Life," and "Human Metal" have excellent choruses. A strange moment comes when you spot the song "Secrets in a Weird World" and recall that was the title of the 1989 Rage album. Another excellent moment is the chorus to "Wake The Nightmares," which features Helloween's Andy Deris. The only reason that this album does not get a full blown ***** rating is the distinctive lack of groove. I realize that Victor is much too skillful to play power chords, but he shifts around and about so much, that I, personally, just can't follow him. He is not, strictly speaking, a prog guitarist, but I think the band would benefit from more simple riff structures thrown in there for a change. But, when all said and done, this is a fantastic album, and you can't help but admire the consistency, with which they churn out one great release after another.
SPEAK OF THE DEAD (2006)
RATING: ***
BEST SONGS: “Innocent,” “No Regrets”
I guess Rage is bound to release a weak album after two or three stellar ones. I’m not even speaking about all of those odd orchestral instrumentals in the first half of the album, but the number of weak songs is just overwhelming! In all honesty, I’d rather listen to the pseudo-classical interludes (with album’s best songs interspersed between them), then to the songs in the second half, all of which sound like Unity or Soundchaser throwaways. The songwriting is unfocused, the melodies are trivial, the energy is substandard. The only truly intense song is “Innocent.” “Full Moon” is weak as is, but to hear it repeated twice more in different languages is truly tormenting, and “No Fear” is both plain and stupid. There are some angry moments (“Kill Your Gods,” title track), but the anger is not backed up by either good riffs or catchy vocal melodies… besides, after more than twenty years in business, does Peavy still have anything to be angry about? His anger isn’t going to match those of, let’s say, Lamb Of God or Avenged Sevenfold. Melodic power, catchy riffs and melodies is where his (and Victor’s and Mike’s) strengths lay, but there are very few truly grabbing moments on this album. I guess the bar was raised too high with the two predecessors, but it’s hard not to expect great things from this trio of talents every time they release a cd. This Dead album is indeed dead on arrival.
CARVED IN STONE (2008)
RATING: ***1/2
BEST SONGS: “Gentle Murders,” “Long Hard Road,” “Lord of the Flies”
A slight improvement over the predecessor. This time there is plenty of rockers, like “Drop Dead,” “One Step Ahead,” and “Lost in the Void,” but they are just too simplistic. I sense that Peavy and Victor are just going through the motions. At its finest moments the music simply rehashes old successes (“Gentle Murders,” for example, sounds identical to anything off of “Unity”), at its worst – it is boring. “Long Hard Road” is clearly the best track: a nice uptempo chugger with splendid vocal hooks. Rage’s records can also be counted upon to have an orchestral piece at the end: this one has “Lord of the Flies” (a bit trivial, but still good). All parties involved (including the new skin-pounder Andre Hilgers) are competent musicians, but the overall songwriting is somewhat insipid. I don’t like the sound either: it’s too stripped and dry, and Peavy’s voice on many occasions is forced to stand on its own. More harmonies, fellas! Nevertheless, it does rock; can’t take that away. The lyrics are still retarded, more so because I understand what is Peavy trying to say, but he just says it so awkwardly that I can’t help but laugh (“You’re living your life without you”). At this point I don’t even know what to do with Rage. With almost 20 releases under Peavy’s belt (so he loosened it up for the photos), all more or less in the same vein, you can’t really expect anything new. Time and time again he has demonstrated that he can only play two things: bare-boned power thrash or pseudo-orchestral mid-tempo big band. I don’t think he is going to surprise us with anything anymore. But if you want more of the same, keep buying Rage. Btw, one orchestral piece per disc seems to be the right proportion.
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