Released by : Suicidal Records
Release Date: September 07, 2010
Genre: Thrash Metal/Skate Thrash/Hardcore Punk
Links: http://www.suicidaltendencies.com/
Line Up:
* Mike Muir – vocals
* Mike Clark – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
* Dean Pleasants – lead guitar
* Steve ‘Thundercat’ Brunner – bass
* Eric Moore – drums
Tracklist:
1. Suicidal Maniac
2. Possessed to Skate
3. The Prisoner
4. I Feel Your Pain… And I Survive
5. Join the ST Army”
6. No Name, No Words
7. Born to Be Cyco
8. Come Alive”
9. Something Inside Me
10. No Mercy Fool
11. We’re F’n Evil
12. Crazy But Proud
13. I’m Your Nightmare
14. Widespread Bloodshed… Love Runs Red
You know Suicidal Tendencies have managed to remain relevant in the Hardcore scene for even till this day and this is despite the fact that they have not released any studio albums since 2000 with the release of Free Your Soul… And Save My Mind which was precursor to their original sound of their self title debut. We all know the impact what these guys had on the scene when they broke through with their self title smash, the aggression thrashier bombardments of energy these guys brought to the table then has no doubt inspired many thrash acts that follow. To me Mike Muir the bands founder and main the driving force behind the crew always stood out simply because the man is a true metal head, if you ever got a chance to see him live then you know what I mean. The trademark mosh pits we’re always something to look forward in their live performances, they raised the crowd’s excitement level completely and we’re a damn good band live with their unique hardcore punk and thrash antics.
To this day the classics ST albums like the self title debut and “Lights Camera Revolution” are constant thrash staples. The hardcore Cyco nation has been wanting for them to release some new material, well sorry to inform you guys these is not it. Now what you have here are re-recordings of old No Mercy songs, re-recorded songs from Suicidal Tendencies’ Join the Army album as well as the track “Come Alive”.
Well I know what some of the die hard fans are going to say already, ‘not another re-recording’ right? Well the truth is that I feel their pain the fans have been waiting for new material from ST for a long time and nothing yet, although Muir has been quoted as saying a new studio album is coming sometime later this year possibly? For now what we have here will have to conform the fans until any new material resurfaces.
The songs production wise sound fine on No Mercy, although is really hard to re-create an album from 1987 the band does a nice job still performing these songs with that quickening trigger axe that made them re-known. Mike Muir’s voice is still pretty good even with age and on classic’s like “Possessed to Skate” and “No Name No Words” he belts out a hardcore menacing act which can live up to the past recordings. The axe duties are handled by Dean Pleasants who of course went on to replace the amazing Rocky George in 1997, and he does a nice job here shredding away on such stand outs cuts like “Born To Be Cyco” and “Come Alive” in which he simply slays. My favorite of the batch here is “Favorite But Proud” which slams the hell of out the fretboard with pure aggression perhaps sounding better then the original cut. Most of the tracks here followed the same style as the original which doesn’t leave much to the imagination so the creative bubble was not necessarily implemented on here. But then again why change any of the original songs too much right?
If you are looking for new material or something groundbreaking from the Suicidal camp then you’ll have to wait for the new record, if it does indeed come out in the near future because on “No Mercy Fool!/The Suicidal Family” all you will find is just a slight better improvement in production wise as oppose to the original and a nice compilation package for the hardcore fans who can’t get enough of ST. I’ll be more excited about this one if the new album comes out as will the thousands of Cyco fans around the planet. One thing is for sure as I can tell, the band still have plenty of fuel in the tank to unleash something worthwhile for the longtime fans, let’s hope we’re on the same page on that one.
Written by Denys
Ratings Denys 7/10
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