Description
Black vinyl with special gatefold cover, printed innersleeve and poster. Limited 250 copies
Formed in 1983 in El Sobrante, California Possessed are noted for their fast playing style and Jeff Becerra’s guttural vocals. Possessed have been cited as a great influence on the death metal genre. The band’s influence on the genre is so great that they are sometimes called the ‘godfathers’ of the death metal and are often considered the first death metal group, with the name of the genre coming from their first demo entitled ‘Death Metal’. And Possessed were never ones to think twice about flirting with supernatural evil forces. They scheduled their second album, ‘Beyond The Gates’, to be released on Halloween, 1986! Maybe they should have been a little more wary, as the recording that should have built upon the solid foundation laid down by the previous year’s genre-forming debut Seven Churches (still regarded as one of death metal’s inaugural cornerstones), wound up coming as a disappointment to most critic and fans alike. The reason could have been many and its probably a combination of many like poor funding, rushed recording conditions, questions over musical direction, and simple lack of preparedness. Their third album ‘The Eyes Of Horror’ was produced by Joe Satriani. The overall sound quality was somewhat improved here from ‘Beyond The Gates’ and so was the material (special kudos to ‘My Belief’, the title track, and the suspiciously guitar-hero-intro’ed ‘Storm In My Mind’). Looking back these two albums still have a lot to offer but at the time of its released it felt like a step backwards from the triumph that was Possessed’s first album, the seminal Seven Churches. The band felt it and when LaLonde subsequently split to join prog-funk-weirdos Primus, the remaining members of Possessed quietly went their separate ways.
Track list:
1. Intro
2. Heretic
3. Tribulation
4. March To Die
5. Phantasm
6. No Will To Live
7. Beyond The Gates
8. The Beasts Of The Apocalypse
9. Seance
10. Restless Dead
11. Dog Fight