Alive Devastation

Destruction's 1989 offering Live Without Sense remains as perhaps my favorite single live thrash album of all time, proving the Germans could do a great job with the format; and coming off their studio masterpiece in The Antichrist, I had accumulated some rather high hopes for Alive Devastation, despite the fact that it would only initially be coming out only in Japan (US fans can acquire it within the Live Discharge: 20 Years of Total Destruction DVD package and avoid the steep import price). Unlike it's predecessor, this album was recorded as a 3-piece, so I was a bit curious to see how the guitars would sound in the setting, and since the band had recently swapped out Sven Vormann, it would also be interesting to hear how the new guy Mark Reign would perform (he'd played in some obscure death and black metal acts prior to Destruction).

Well, this is no Live Without Sense, but I am satisfied that the band has at least done a decent job of shuffling their older and new material here, and the stage sound doesn't seem to suffer from the lack of an extra guitarist whatsoever, since Schmier's frenzied presence and the material is simply too strong not to succeed. The tracks from both eras seem to flow seamlessly into one another, and there are a number of favorites to be had. "Nailed to the Cross", "Bullets from Hell" and "Thrash Til Death" are naturally included from their most recent studio offering, The Antichrist, and they've also summoned up "Machinery of Lies", "Tears of Blood" and "The Butcher Strikes Back" from the prior effort, All Hell Breaks Loose. The remainder of the set is rounded out by essential classics like "Mad Butcher", "Eternal Ban", "Curse the Gods", "Bestial Invasion", "Invincible Force", "Life Without Sense", and of course "Total Desaster". It's an extremely safe selection, and granted all of the older material was incorporated on the 1989 album, but the riffs still feel fresh and visceral, and the performances of the entire trio are commendable.

What's interesting is that there are some technical difficulties in the set, Sifringer's amp cutting out, and the band chose to just leave them all on the recording. It's a fairly honest maneuver, and seems to do nothing to dissuade the Wacken 2002 crowd, who merely shout and encourage the band patiently from off-stage. Schmier also drops a lot of f-bombs on stage, perhaps too often that it feels cheesy, as if he's got a serious profanity problem (despite the guitar malfunction), but this doesn't have anything to do with the actual songs being hammered out. His voice isn't as peak and surgical sounding as it might have been in the late 80s, but it's still executed very well, and I'm sure there are many who prefer them on the more recent releases. Alive Devastation is not exactly a fan's dream; I would never choose it over Live Without Sense; but it's good for what it is, and certainly worth owning if you can snag it along with Live Discharge. Just don't bother importing the original live-only album unless you're a glutton for punishment (it's probably about $40 US if you can find it.)

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

Was there a better way to let the world know that Destruction are very much alive and kicking ass than to release a live album that combines the old-school with the new-school? Well they did it, and succeeded very well.

The album features 7 old-time favorites (including Curse The Gods!!!) and 6 "new" ass-kicking thrashers from All Hell Breaks Loose and The Antichrist. It's good to hear the old classics shredded up with good production, and the band is at the top of their form, with Schmier doing his insane screams as if somebody lit his copy of Bonded By Blood on fire.

It's not a revolutionary album, not a mindblowing album, and being a Japan-only release I wouldn't recommend forking out a huge amount of cash for it, but I'd say you're definitely getting a treat when you get this with the DVD. It's a great performance by a great band and I'd say it was the perfect time to release another live album, having already gone through line-up changes, sucktacular releases, and then a spectacular comeback - it was time to flex those live skills again, and they pulled it off.

Also, for a good laugh, listen to the end of Invinceable Force - the guitars drop out about two times and they keep having to start Bestial Invasion over again. (Including fuck-ups on a live album doesn't necessarily take away from the album!)

All in all, definitely enjoyable and worthy of many spins in your CD player. But if you don't have the cash I don't believe there's reason enough to sell your leg to get it, as I can understand anyone being totally happy with the studio albums, and a live album like this doesn't even compare with Live Without Sense. But hey, it's Destruction, and in most cases, such as this, it rules. If you do decide to spend the money on it, you shan't be disappointed.