Soothsayer, To Be A Real Terrorist

This re-mastered reissue of Soothsayer’s 1986 demo To Be A Real Terrorist is without a doubt one of those records that you have just got to have in your library. Not only is it a key release to the Canadian thrash scene, but it’s full throttle, punk-fueled, aggressive sound rivals the intensity of many of today’s acts. There is a fury in this band’s delivery that is simply undeniable. Driving drums straight from hell, soul shredding solos and crushing riffs build the base for which the quickly shouted/screamed vocals are delivered.

As an added bonus, the former members of the band that re-mastered the five song demo have also included 7 tracks from a live performance from 1987. The live tracks have also been recently re-mastered and truly show just how violently aggressive the band’s onstage performances were. Being just a wee tyke myself in ’87, I surely missed out on some great shit. I’ve already played this disc too many times just for the live performances alone.

Death Radiation
“Death Radiation” starts quickly with pummeling drums and thrashing riffs. The vocals shred hard, delivered as unintelligible screams and a quickly shouted punk style. Soothsayer never let up on the gas as they drive this track through your skull. There is a killer solo at the 2:10 mark that lasts a good bit.

Troops of Hate
The next track hits even hard than the previous with crushing riffs and quicker than hell drumming. Again, the vocals shift quickly from shouts to screams and back again, never letting you get used to one style. It’s a good thing these songs are relatively short — I’m not sure my head banging can keep up with the band’s pace. This is old school thrash at its best.

Kill Oppression
After “Troops of Hate” ends in a chaotic flurry, Soothsayer destroy your speakers with this behemoth of a track. Thick, crunchy bass and a drumming assault will leave you wanting more, drooling like Pavlov’s dog.

Build the Terrorism
Big riffs and a hellish scream greet us on “Build the Terrorism.” More intense, evil thrash blasts from the left and right, surrounding you in more blasts than you can handle. I love the shredding solos on this one. They are just so damned evil.

Deadly Fear
The shortest track of the re-mastered demo, “Deadly Fear” is also its most varied. It starts off slowly with some thick bass and light drumming before erupting with burst of violent thrash and punk aesthetics (mainly in the vocals). It’s probably also the most fun of the non-live tracks on this disc.

The final seven tracks are from a live show in Montreal, Canada back in 1987. They need to be heard to fully appreciate this band. I would not being doing it justice by trying to review it.

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With this disc, not only are you getting some classic, old school thrash, but you’re also getting a nice bit of history. The re-mastered five song demo rivals much of today’s throwback thrash with its intensity and aggression. And listening to the live stuff makes me jealous with rage that I was born too late to enjoy this stuff when it had actually happened. Needless to say, if you like thrash you need this album. It’s as simple as that.

Favorite Tracks:
All of them.

Additional Notes:
n/a