Annihilation Absolute

Cities first formed in 1980 in New York. Between 1983-85, they put out a few demos, while in the meantime their original drummer, A. J. Pero, played on Twisted Sister's first four albums before then rejoining Cities for their debut album, Annihilation Absolute. Despite not appearing on any Metal Massacre compilation, they were able to release the album with Metal Blade Records in late 1986.

Although the production is quite thin which does detract from the heaviness, this is made up for by the strong musicianship. Some of the guitar work from Steve Mironovich approaches shred territory; in particular there's an extended solo shredding section at the end of 'Shades of Black' which calls to mind virtuosos like Yngwie Malmsteen. Vocalist Ron Angell gives a convincing performance and his voice is unique, but perhaps could have been more interesting and varied, as he tends to stay within a small vocal range and focuses more on timbre over pitch. A. J. Pero meanwhile is highly consistent and creative on the drums without showing off, elevating the rest of the band in the process.

The nine tracks are all straightforward yet effective, and their focus on memorability without fancy tricks works to their advantage. There's a decent amount of variety ranging from the 6-minute ballad 'Cruel Sea' to uptempo slices of power metal like 'Fight For Your Life', and more traditional heavy numbers like 'Stop the Race'. Unfortunately, a downside is that the band lacks a real sense of musical identity on this album, what with a dry name like Cities and the presence of Dave Mustaine and Steve Harris lookalikes on the album cover. Also, their style is in a grey area between heavy metal and US power metal, where they don't really excel at either genre.

To summarise, Annihilation Absolute is a surprisingly competent effort, although definitely not breaking any new ground for its time. Outside of a couple of reunions later on, Cities effectively folded just a year after this album; you could say they were absolutely annihilated. Their lack of success may have been due to many factors, but remaining outside of the wider trends going on in the metal underground at that time was a likely one.

"Tip of the Metal Blade" is a review series delving into some of the most obscure bands on Metal Blade Records' roster during the 1980s.

This NYC band really deserved better than to be submerged on a tiny label with a confusing and seemingly simultaneous issue as both an EP and LP with this title. How come? Well it’s simple, they were incredibly good. Much like Jag Panzer, Liege Lord, and Laaz Rockit, Cities delivered traditional metal songs with an energy level and sound bordering on thrash, and what’s more they wrote seriously ass kicking songs!

Singer Ron Angell could have been big news in a more commercially oriented band with his clear, pleasing throat, whilst guitarist Steve Mironovich possessed a sound equally adept at tough rhythms and fiery, economical soloing.

I’m working from a really old and beat up EP version of this record, so forgive me if I don’t mention a notable track on the longer version. For my part, “In The Still Of The Night” (with it’s Maiden-like gallop) and “Burn Forever” are the finest cuts on hand, although “Fight For Your Life” and “Innocent Victim” certainly have their charms as well.

A nice and tight production job, squishes all elements into a bristling and compressed picture, and with material this good delivered this well, it baffles me why Cities never flourished. Okay, their band name was kinda dumb, but still…