Review Summary: True classic thrash by Pete Steele. Yoou have been chosen...as the main course...CONGRATULATIIIIIIOOOOOONNNNNSSSSahhh
Carnivore has never really caught on as much as they should have. Led by the future gothic metal god and giant 6'8 Pete Steele, Carnivore came out before thrash was huge and was recorded in the time where thrash only had like 4 albums. This is one of the earliest pieces of true thrash, and despite having a major metal icon at the mic, nobody really pays attention to it. Any thrash metal fan should love Carnivore and any Type O Negative one should hate Carnivore but the point is that everybody should know Carnivore! Back in 1985 those crazy guys, guided by the violent Pete Steele released their great debut. They were so obsessed by nuclear warfare and disasters, by male power and technology at the point of considering themselves as warriors from a devastated future.
We must say that anyway, the ironical component was essential in their lyrics, that were exaggerated. Few metalheads understood this thing butmany began to take them seriously. You can love or hate this group but you can’t stay indifferent listening to their music. Their live shows are really a mess with blood bins thrown on the public, pieces of meat, bones and so on. I am pretty sure they are meant to be stupidly funny and they are if you read them out loud.
Their abilities in mixing a lot of genres (speed, thrash, doom, epic, punk and hardcore) is a trademark known everywhere and all these things are present in perfect doses in this great debut. Predator already shows us the group’s most aggressive part while the title track is full of female vagitus and speed restarts. The song itself is just awesome, like the Angel Of Death of the album. It begins with a cool ambient gunfight and then a fast as balls E string 000 riff blazes away. The track slows down at the bridge for one of the coolest and chuggiest riffs ever made.
Pete Steeles vocals are amazing on this. Anyone who knows Type O Negative would know that this 6'8 giant *** has a Darth Vader voice thats lower then a blazed bear, but he usually sings there. So...imagine if Tom Araya of Slayer got beaten by Obi Wan and was turned into Darth Vader, and then wanted to start a thrash metal band. His deepened voice is so unique, especially in thrash, though its ironic because most to all of these songs here aren't about satan or hell or whatever, when someone with deep satanic vocals could really bring a hellish atmosphere into the whole thing. Still, his vocals are so unique and awesome.
But only with the third track Male Supremacy we can really reach the top in songwriting and irony. The start has an hard rock flavour while going on the intensity grows and the refrain is made to be shouted to death. The acoustic break after a series of raw up tempo is ***ing great: totally out of the blue, terrific with the baritone vocals by Pete, describing a sex affair…with Armageddon the doom parts are well balanced with speed ones and the great, profound, raw vocals. God Is Dead features non sense refrain with semi samba breaks! With the following, awesome Thermonuclear Warrior and the punkish – thrashy World Wars III & IV we reach the top again. This is total madness with great screamed vocals, orgiastic riffage and apocalyptic atmosphere…and check out the lyrics! ***ing awesome!!!
