The mid 80’s were incontestably full of brilliant Metal acts which for different reasons never reached the level of acts such as Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer and the likes, let alone making the leap into the consciousness of the Metal buying mainstream. A name particularly comes to mind simply because those guys had all the elements to reach those heights, Sacrifice! This Canadian act started back in late 1983 when two kids (guitarists Rob Urbinati and Joe Rico) made the clear choice to play Speed Metal. Their influences at that point included the likes of Metal giants such as Kiss, Rush, Black Sabbath, Motörhead etc but also newer acts such as Anvil, Exciter, Metallica and Accept. Shortly after they recruited drummer Andrew Banks as they were still learning how to play. Eventually they got in touch with Joe’s old school friend, Scott Watts to play bass and he introduced them to drummer, Craig Boyle who replaced Banks but while being a good drummer, Boyle didn’t really have the skills to play fast. Right from the start, it became clear that finding the right drummer would be a difficult task for the band. The outfit was also joined by local singer, John Baldy. On January 12th 1984, Sacrifice finally played their first gig at Larry’s Hideaway in Toronto, Ontario opening for Herrenvolk, a small Glam act which had in their ranks singer, Sebastian Bach! It didn’t take long for the band to understand the importance of the ever growing underground, and a demo/rehearsal featuring "The Four Horsemen", "Turn In Your Grave" and "Warriors Of Death" (live) got spread around, introducing this newer thrashing act to local hungry Speed/ Thrash Metal fans. By early 1985, another rehearsal/demo featuring the likes of "The Four Horsemen", "Violence And Force", "Creeping Death" and "Turn In Your Grave" found its way in the tape trading circle, helping to create a bit of buzz in the underground. After this they told Craig and John that Sacrifice would be going in a heavier direction with Rob taking over on vocals as they weren’t satisfied with John, but in the process Craig left as well. Drummer, Ernie Fletch was recruited for the job but not so surprisingly after having performed one show on March 23rd 1985, he got fired being a real weak musician. Then they started putting some ads on a musicians wanted thing on a local radio station describing what direction they wanted to go and their influences. Almost no one who responded had any idea what they were all about. Just when they almost felt like giving up, the band got a phone call from a guy named Gus Pynn. From the first minute he practiced with the band, he became evident that he was finally the right man for the job, sharing the same influences as the other members and wanting to go in the same musical direction. Incidentally, Brian Taylor, an employee at the Record Peddler store in Toronto, offered a deal whom they immediately agreed with. As a result, the legendary eight song demo, “The Exorcism”, was cut at the Accusonic studio on June 16th 1985. With this demo, the buzz developed even more. Opening for the Bay Area Thrashers, Exodus during August 1985 gave them the opportunity to establish themselves as Canada’s next Metal hopefuls and label interest started to rise. Having been warned by Razor about the money machine better known as Attic Records, the band chose to sign with Fringe/Diabolic Force Records joining Slaughter on their roster. By the Autumn of 1985, the band were entering the Future Sound studio with Diabolic Force’s head, Brian Taylor, as producer to record their first album, “Torment In Fire”. While the band agrees to say nowadays that its an effort hard to listen to for them, still many bands got influenced by this particular record and “Torment In Fire” gets often mentioned as their favorite Sacrifice album by underground fanatics, reasons could be that the musicianship and production were so unpolished. The sheer power, intensity, savage rawness were all here and that’s what Thrash Metal is all about.

APOCALYPSE INSIDE (1993) METAL BLADE/MUSIC FOR NATIONS

I have always been a fan of raw and brutal thrash metal. But somehow during the late 90's I lost track of most of what that scene had to offer. Thus this band had totally escaped me back when they were active. Nowadays most of their albums are out of print, and very hard to get. I finally scored this one on a Norwegian internet auction site. And I must say that I'm pretty pleased with my purchase! This is one fine thrash metal release indeed! 'Apocalypse Inside' features dynamic thrash metal that combines tight riffing and fast playing with more pummeling mid-paced stuff. Nothing overtly technical, but very well played. And don't forget the high shrill vocals. I'd but them musically somewhere in between Slayer, Coroner and Exodus. They also fit nicely alongside other Canadian acts, such as Exciter and Slaughter. Yes, this is yet another thrash metal gem that most people overlooked, even though they toured for this album together with Believer and Bolt Thrower. And that is truly a shame.

Killer tracks: Apocalypse Inside, Salvation, Ruins Of The Old, The Lost

Joe Rico guest appearances:

Believer - 'Gabriel'