A quick glance at this blog will reveal my love for Gehenna. For my money, there is no heavier, hyper-aggressive band in the world. This cassette tape was the start and features some of the band's best material. I absolutely love the look of the tape; it is housed in a thin manila envelope with a morbid cover and Gehenna written in the corner. It's not flashy nor busy but simple and to the point. Inside, there are a handful of booklets, including one that features the lyrics while others are ads for long gone distros and bands - Fall Silent. The imagery is stark and the simple fact that its black and white simply adds to the grim style. Continuing with the aesthetics, the demo's look reminds me more of a d-beat/crust band rather than hardcore, which is refreshing.
As soon as the first track, "83%", begins, a whirlwind of hatred and violence washes over the listener. The feedback crescendos into crushing guitars and savage drumming. Mike Cheese's demonic growls and apocalyptic lyrics sets the band apart from the usual formula. For example, the first words uttered on this recording are: "Human debris covers the Earth." It truly is negative hardcore. "83%" chugs along, complete with breakdown moments and snarling vocals. This is probably one of my favorite songs but as much as I enjoy it on the demo, the song is so much more intense with the most current line-up (Having members of Reno metal outfit Violent Ruler only adds to the speed and thrash). This is showcased during the live set on Erratic Radio this past summer.
Immediately after the first track, "Woodmaker" continues what "83%" started. As harsh as Mike Cheese's vocals get, they still are almost clean giving the music a much more powerful edge - the reason I say that is that the vocals could very easily be cookie-cutter grindcore nonsense and the lyrics would be lost in cheesy growls. One cannot help but sing along to the chorus of "We Must Obey".
The final track is "The Bottom Line", an abstract number revolving around pain and revenge. One of the biggest things that attracted me to Gehenna's music was the level of sophistication and thought that went into the lyrics. Portraits are clearly painted for the listener in the span of two to three minutes, portraits that are both vivid and often violent. To close things out is one of the more interesting lyrics: "Straight Edge, I Win Again". It's interesting to see how the band matured since the demo. It doesn't take too much to see how much more psychedelic/trippy/drugged out Gehenna became in their latest full length and especially the Blind To Faith split.
This version of the demo - cassette tape in the envelope - is long out of print and very hard to find. Luckily I scored one on eBay (Just the tape at first but then one with the envelope and insert) for a great price. For those that want to hear the numbers without tracking down the tape, they were gathered for the excellent "The War Of The Sons Of Light And The Suns Of Darkness" semi-discography CD and later on the LP. Like the tape, the original CD, which was released by CrimethInc, is out of print; A389 released the LP a couple of years back and still has copies of both the first and second press. The three tracks might some of my favorite but I prefer the various versions on live records (83% on the aforementioned Erratic Radio session and on the Catharsis split) a bit more.
It's a great starting point if you're new to Gehenna. You're given a ten minute assault on humanity, an assault that is merciless and stark. All hail the Seven Crowns.
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