Stormtroopers of Death (S.O.D.) was a side gig started by
Scott Ian of Anthrax and include fellow bandmate, Charlie Benante on drums and
bassist, Dan Liker from Nuclear Assault. The band was an outlet of sorts for
Ian’s hardcore/crossover affinity to which they included a heavy dose of fun
and humorous anecdotes. They released their debut album “Speak English or Die”
in 1985 and then went on a very long hiatus until 1999, when band would put out
their sophomore effort, “Bigger Than the Devil”.
The sound on “Bigger than the Devil” is a straight forward
brand of crossover thrash, while being sure to keep true to the hardcore side
of the genre. The riffs are rather forgettable as they do little to hook the
listener and even when you do recognize them, they are very catchy. There are
minimal rhythms and harmonies to be had, along with a noticeable lack of
shredding solos. To say the guitars were a disappointment would be an understatement.
Aside from his legendary work with Anthrax, I would have expected more from
Ian, as many other crossover acts such as Pro-Pain have numerous solos and
catchy riffs that made their music so much more memorable.
The drumming on the other hand, is pretty solid. I will say
that the beats create a nice rhythm for the majority of the songs, that carry
what little force this album contains and helps keep some relevancy. Billy
Milano’s vocals are a nice fit for the genre in general and are also a bright
spot on the album. They are fast and fierce, everything you’d expect from the hardcore/crossover
sound. I especially enjoyed the song “We All Bleed Red” as it featured, Roger
Miret of Agnostic Front. As for the song writing, well the lyrics are foolish
and stupid, just the way SOD intended. Even though the music does not live up
to expectations, the underlying humor comes through clear enough like on “Celtic
Frosted Flakes” or “King at the King / Evil”
Overall, “Bigger than the Devil” does not hold up to “Speak
English or Die”. The music is is pretty bare bones, simplistic in nature and
rather lacking, which makes for a dull final product. It by no means is bad,
but I think this could have been so much more with a little more time invested
in the song writing and instrumentation. As it is, you certainly get a chuckle
out this album for all the right reasons and fans of crossover will find enough
to enjoy during their listen. At the end of the day, this is humor metal in
vain of a GWAR, Haunted Garage or Green Jello. Fans of either might find more
in the songs than I, but other than that, I would stick with their debut.
Highlights: “We All Bleed Red” “Kill the Assholes”
“Shenanigans”
Rating: 2.5
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