format: 12"
year: 1987
country: Canada
label: Subversive
#: [tba]
info: Limited edition of 450 copies, comes with insert
style: Thrash Metal
Tracks
Mortalas
Rise Above
Alien Jesus
No Limits
Thulsa Doom
When you've placed this EP on your turntable you better don't play with the idea to sit down and listen coz as soon as you walked to the couch you immediately can return to turn the record again! The A-side plays exactly 2 minutes and 39 seconds and the B-side about 6 minutes. All tracks would almost fit on one side of a 7"EP! Compared to it's huge price nowadays you won't get much music in return although I don't think any Thrasher will get any problems with their raw Speed/Death Metal at all that compared to it's intensity they remind me to the Florida Thrasher Hellwitch (not the music!), seen by the highest possible technical standard of their creations as well as the low grade of acquaintance they had back then. I knew their demos for several years and both made me immediately being a fan of Witches Hammer, especially the ripping "Thulsa Doom", that without any doubts is one of Canada's most lethal Thrash classix with it's almost venomish charme. And due to this I was absolutely dissappointed when I finally put my hands on a sealed copy of this 12" long before the Nuclear War Now push started. The seller prohably didn't seem to know how rare this baby was at all coz he kinda wanted to apologize for the "high price" of 26 $ while including a free Vancouver bands private pressing to compensate the high price and all I could do was asking myself if he's kidding or not? The secret band hymn "Thulsa Doom" again was featured but oh goat, what happened with it? Shortened to ca 2 min and shredded down like the original version played on 45 rpm??? Are they nuts? Where's the solo? Where's the Venom touch? Where's the old spirit? A real desecration! Don't get me wrong, the record slays, it's extremely technical highspeed Death/Thrash Metal with ruuude vocals, not making them sounding progressive or so. Witches Hammer belong to the few Thrash bands who were able to combine technical finesse with sheer brutality like f.e. Dissection (ex-Outbreak band - Can) or the already mentioned Hellwich. But if you know the demos you'll automatically be somewhat dissappointed for what happened with this promising band. A bit less speed sometimes is maybe smarter. Anyways, the original edition was 450 copies but due to a fire in the house of the label boss most of the copies burned and as far as I heard there are maybe around 150-200 copies "circulating" only but you won't see any copy of them at all. Especially not since Nuclear War Now Productions kinda re-released this 12" on the "Stretching into infinty" LP and now even all the Retro-Thrash kids show interest in them. There are hundreds/thousands of Thrash fans now wanting this ultra short record...you don't need to be a math genius at all to comprehend what this means. And the last still circulating records get fewer and fewer due to the raw thrashing musicial entertainment and noone who ever made his copy clear will give it away again, coz if doing so he really prooves that he's a Pupskopf and no real Thrasher! Jaja...the truth always hurts...