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VICIOUS RUMORS – S/T and WELCOME TO THE BALL
1990 & 1991 Atlantic Records
Vicious Rumors are a great Heavy Metal band originally from the Bay Area of California. Of course, this means they are kick ass THRASH! I first discovered them after hearing “Don’t Wait For Me,” the first single from their self-titled album, on the radio in 1990. That's right, the radio! The song was played on a Friday night during a now-extinct show called “Strictly Metal.” This show was the best thing ever played on the radio and I found out about new bands and upcoming releases through it’s weekly 2 hour broadcast. I couldn’t believe how cool and heavy the song was and bought the CD, which was unheard of for me in those days, because I was still buying cassettes mainly. I was hooked and really liked the album, which really is a Power Metal masterpiece that stands to this day! Truly brilliant riff-heavy Thrash Metal combined with superb production. Don’t let the band name fool you, this isn’t some sissy glam band. Vicious Rumors are a powerful, melodic, headbanging machine featuring one of the greatest vocalists in the history of Heavy Metal, Mr. Carl Albert. The band was led by guitarist Geoff Thorpe, who was joined by bassist Dave Starr, drummer Larry Howe and guitarist Mark McGee. This was the classic lineup of Vicious Rumors.

VICIOUS RUMORS is a great Power Metal album that was released in 1990 on Atlantic Records. This was the band’s third album, it’s second with Carl Albert singing. He first appeared on the awesome DIGITAL DICTATOR in 1987. The band got on a major label and turned up the power! Their 1990 self-titled album was produced by Michael Rosen, who has produced several great bands in his career, most notably Testament. With his expertise and guidance, VR made a great album. It punches you in the chest right at the beginning with “Don’t Wait For Me,” a great song and perfect lead off (The band also made a killer video for this song). From there the album goes from one great cut to another: “World Church” with it’s huge chorus, “On The Edge” pulses with speed, the power grooves of “Ship Of Fools,” “Can You Hear It” with it’s upbeat tempo, the mid-temp groove of “Down To The Temple,” followed by the grinding “Hellraiser,” the instrumental “Electric Twilight,” the rollicking “Thrill Of The Hunt” and finishing strongly with “Axe And Smash.”

The same lineup recorded the amazing WELCOME TO THE BALL the next year in 1991, again produced by Michael Rosen. In my opinion, this album is even better than the self-titled release. It’s a little heavier and faster. Again, true brilliance from Carl Albert and the rest of the band. Riffs galore! Double bass drumming! The album opens with the scathing “Abandoned,” which is a great ‘fuck you’ song. Then the great speed attack of “You Only Live Twice.” The next two songs, “Savior From Anger” and “Children” are two of my favorite VR songs and two of the strongest tracks the band ever recorded. Here’s something to ponder: “Savior From Anger” is about Saddam Hussein and the problems in the Middle East. It’s hard to believe that this song is as relevant today as it was in 1991. “Children” is simply a brilliant track. I think it is the strongest song the band ever recorded. The song is actually mid-tempo, but is so powerful lyrically and musically that it just makes a huge mark. There are 11 songs on the album, and no filler songs. VR even did a ballad on this album called “When Love Comes Down,” that shows how great they were. It was a good song that wasn't cheesy or mushy. One other thing I liked about VR was their logo, which included a ball with razor-sharp blades chopping through everything in it's path.

Needless to say, if you can find any Vicious Rumors CDs, you should buy them. This band was great. Sadly, the world lost the talent of Carl Albert in 1995. His last recording with VR was WORD OF MOUTH. Of course, the band never really recovered from this loss and Geoff Thorpe has tried through the years to keep VR going with other musicians. In my opinion, none of their efforts have really come close to the brilliance of VICIOUS RUMORS and WELCOME TO THE BALL.

DISCOGRAPHY:

SOLDIERS OF THE NIGHT (‘86) Shrapnel
DIGITAL DICTATOR (‘87) Shrapnel
VICIOUS RUMORS (‘90) Atlantic
WELCOME TO THE BALL (‘91) Atlantic
PLUG IN AND HANG ON- Live In Tokyo (‘92) Atlantic
WORD OF MOUTH (‘94) SPV
THE VOICE (EP) (‘94)
A TRIBUTE TO CARL ALBERT- Live (‘95) Headless Butcher
SOMETHING BURNING (‘96) Massacre
CYBERCHRIST (‘98) Massacre
SADISTIC SYMPHONY (‘01) Perris Records
by Dr. Metal
Vicious Rumors still lives!!!
Click here to visit ON THE EDGE, The Official Vicious Rumors website!