A death metal concept album! I know, you’re excited, but cool your jets for a second. For starters, you’ll need the lyric sleeve to make any sense out of Alex Krull’s guttural vocals. Then there are the stop-and-start, pummeling sounds of guitars and drums that will leave you both breathless and senseless. As you untangle it all, you’ll glimpse the story of a young girl who gets turned onto a world of drugs, turns tricks to feed her habit, and turns out to be just another casualty on Last Temptation. Dark stuff, to be sure, but you were expecting maybe polka music from this German death metal band? Atrocity clearly has the chops to pull this sort of thing off. Mathias Roderer is a beast on lead guitar and Michael Schwarz plays the drums so hard and fast that his armpits are at literal risk of catching fire. Death metal still being a new development at the dawn of the 90s, it wasn’t clear which bands would succeed in the long run, but I would have put my money on Atrocity, Type O Negative and Gorguts. (Eh, I got two out of three right.) Roderer is the lead architect of all this mayhem, dividing the songs into sections of variable speed, from freakishingly fast to sabbath slow. In between, there are flashes of lead guitar that are nearly orgasmic in intensity. Hallucinations and Defeated Intellect may be the best examples of this, although the band’s sound stays consistent throughout. Death metal is obviously a matter of personal taste. We all need a little release sometimes, and if Wham! is your jam, I won’t judge you. If, however, you’re inclined to poke your head through the portal and see what’s on the other side, a hallucination of horrors awaits.
A1. Deep in Your Subconscious (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer) (5:23)
A2. Life Is a Strong and Silent River (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer/Oliver Klasen) (3:34)
A3. Fatal Step (Alex Krull/Mathis Roderer) (2:52)
A4. Hallucinations (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer) (4:23)
B1. Defeated Intellect (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer/Michael Schwarz/Oliver Klasen/Richard Scharf) (5:24)
B2. Abyss of Addiction (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer) (3:38)
B3. Hold Out (to the End) (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer/Oliver Klasen) (5:12)
B4. Last Temptation (Alex Krull/Mathias Roderer) (5:16)
CD bonus tracks
9. Blue Blood
10. When the Fire Burns Over the Sea
11. Humans Lost Humanity
Oliver Klasen (bass), Alex Krull (vocals), Mathias Roderer (guitar), Richard Scharf (guitar), Michael Schwarz (drums). Produced by Scott Burns and Atrocity; engineered by Scott Burns and Tom Morris; mixed by Scott Burns and Atrocity; executive producer: Markus Staiger.
Cover illustration by H.R. Giger. Cover concept and Atrocity logo by Alex Krull. Photos by Otto, Elke and Wolle.
Released on elpee, picture elpee, cassette and compact disc on October 15, 1990 in Germany and the UK (Nuclear Blast, NB 038/CD) and the US and Canada (Roadrunner, RCC/RCD 9322).