Play God

Well look who's back. It's David Wayne with his band Reverend. Or wait, I can't say that it's his band, cause there have been different vocalists in it. But it does not matter. That's not the point of this review is it?

The album is pretty manifoldly. Some songs are very speedy, while others are more on the slower, melodic side. All in all a very good mix, because if an album only has full speed through the whole thing, then it will get boring pretty quick!

As the other guy who reviewed this album said: The best part of this album is Wayne's vocals. They are totally mind blowing. I don't understand how someone can scream like he does in the song "Warp The Mind" or sing so melodic like he does in "Blessings" or "Play God" for that matter. It is amazing that a vocalist has this ability, for there aren't that many of those. He is one of my favourite vocalists at least, and that says a lot. I know what good singing is, and so does David Wayne, or did because now he's dead. R.I.P Wayne.

The guitars aren't bad either. The dudes who play it surely know what they are doing. They are best at riffing. The shredding is OK, but that's about it. It's not exactly like on "The Dark" or any other Metal Church album, but it is enough to give the songs the energy they need. The riffs on "Butcher Of Baghdad" is something you all should check out. That's my favourite track from the album. Everything fits perfectly in the song!

The drumming is pretty good. To say it like this, the guy knows how to play both fast and technical. He's better than Lars Ulrich to say it like that. Not that that's so hard of course. He knows what he's doing at least. And some of that drumming on the faster songs on the album is damn great!

The production is pretty clear actually. Not all albums had this kind of production at that time. I really liked this production actually. Don't know if I would have liked this album so much if it had been produced differently.

The music is a mixture of power and thrash metal. Mostly thrash though. Most of the stuff on the album is good. Songs like “Heaven On Earth” and “Promised Land” didn’t interest me much. They at least show that they have variation in their music, and that is a good thing.

So if you're a fan of old school thrash metal, then I recommend this for all of you thrashers out there. OK, some songs might bore you a little, but just listen to the faster songs. There are some ballads that I like, but that's just me. If you don't like 'em, skip!

Highlights:
Butcher Of Baghdad
Play God
Warp The Mind
Fortunate Son (Great cover of a Creedance classic)
Death Of Me

Jaw Dropping. Incredible. Disappointing. All three of these words sum up Reverend's "Play God" album at once. There is just so much potential here that is ruined by a few mediocre songs. "Play God" features very inspiring guitar work, and masterful vocal delivery that is so consistent with the early heavy metal greats. I think there are some pretty good things going on here, but this sort of creativity just fluctuates throughout the entire length of the album. One song will floor you with its greatness, but the next just leaves a big yawn and a lot to be desired. But wait, here they come with another pretty badass song! Unfortunately that doesn't last long. An annoying way to get the point across but it's pretty much what is going on here.

The guitar work at its best is just absolutely crushing, throwing riff after riff of exciting metal. At its worst its just generic 'classic rock' style power chords, the worst to be had. My personal favorite songs on the album are the more thrashy ones, where there seems to be this very delicate balance between the sharp and biting ferocity of thrash metal and the more refined technique of your early heavy metal. My favorite element of the music, however, are the vocals. David Wayne has a very striking timbre to his voice, and projects his vocals with the sort of power and energy that one should expect from this sort of metal. I can't get enough of it and I wish I had more music with him on it!

Standout tracks are "Butcher of Baghdad"(the best one in my opinion), "Promised Land", "Warp the Mind", "Death of Me" and ooohhh yes, the Credence Clearwater cover of "Fortunate Son" is very cool. All fans of early speed/thrash might want to look into this, especially those who appreciate excellent vocals!