Crystal Clear

Life hasn’t always been fair to Greek Heavy Metal bands, who despite showcasing plenty of quality never really reached a wider audience (beyond the local scene). Such was the case with the Athenian Heavy/Power Metal act CRYSTAL CLEAR – a band with obvious potential and a great debut album which was pretty much ignored, or in some cases even scorned, by the metal press. Well, it’s time to give them the recognition they deserve!

CRYSTAL CLEAR was formed in the early-1990s, playing a blend Heavy- and Power Metal influenced by both domestic forefathers (SPITFIRE, among others) as well as all-time greats like WARLORD, IRON MAIDEN and MERCYFUL FATE/KING DIAMOND. Their first release – a self-titled demo tape – came out in 1995 and featured eye-striking, slightly unsettling artwork that fit quite well with the music held within. The lineup at the time of recording included Nikos Outsikas (vocals – BLACK VOYAGE, BLOODLUST, OUTCAST), Antonis Liapis (guitars), Panagiotis Ignatiadis (guitars), Chris Anestis (bass) and Akis Nitsos (drums). “Crystal Clear” (1995) received positive response from the Greek underground press, but CRYSTAL CLEAR soon faced the standard fate of upcoming Greek metal bands: obligatory army service.

Fortunately, after being put on ice for a couple of years CRYSTAL CLEAR was resurrected in 1997 by guitarists and founding members Antonis Liapis and Panagiotis Ignatiadis along with former bassist Chris Anestis. The remaining positions was injected with fresh blood in the form of front man Panagiotis Sakelliou (vocals – BLIND JUSTICE) and drummer Terry Moros (drums, INNERWISH). In 2003 CRYSTAL CLEAR released their debut full-length album, called “Payback Time”. Well, whether it’s an actual album or an EP is debatable, as about 40% of the CD’s playing time consists of the previously released self-titled demo tape (something that most music journalists seem to have missed out on back in the day). Either way, and despite obvious contrasts in production and performance, the six newly composed songs blend nicely with the old material and doesn’t really cause any complications as far as the listening experience goes. What’s striking though is the flowering of the band’s abilities as composers in epic songs like “The Healer” or “Possessed”, where the band takes their Heavy/Power metal in a decidedly dark direction in the vein of early KING DIAMOND or underground power-prog acts like ZION’S ABYSS.

For some reason, “Payback Time” appears to have gone over the head of most music journalists at the time and many of the negative reviews focused on mostly irrelevant shortcomings. Perhaps as a result of this, CRYSTAL CLEAR has remained in obscurity for nearly twenty years. So, the next time you consider spending a fortune on some old (often mediocre) “forgotten gem” of the past, do yourself a favor and find a copy of “Payback Time” instead. It will probably not cost you more than a couple of euros…

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