A rather unpredictable re-recording is thrown our way courtesy of Mr. Jeff Waters, who chose to dive back in 2007 and his ‘Metal’ record. I’m usually against re-recordings, but at least in this case Annihilator didn’t mess with some of the ‘sacred cows’ of their past, making this easier to accept. Back in the day, ‘Metal’ stood out for its many high-level guests: Willie Adler (Lamb of God), Corey Beaulieu (Trivium), Jeff Loomis, Alexi Laiho – to whom the record is dedicated, as well as to Eddie Van Halen, a ‘Romeo Delight’ cover is also featured – and many more.
The core band is comprised by Dave Lombardo (happy to hear about his return to Testament) and Stu Block, who, after seeing his former boss… march into the Capitol and getting arrested from the FBI, will allegedly be the new Annihilator frontman. Excellent choice.
About the tracks on the album, that I hadn’t heard in years, I liked ‘Haunted’ for its beautiful melodic middle part, and some riffs here and there, but no complete songs, which is unfortunately been the case for much of the more recent Annihilator material. Lastly, since you’re going to the trouble of re-recording, at least have a massive production, instead of the plastic sound found on here. A shame for Lombardo who’s barely heard…
