Richard HolmesSindrome – Resurrection – The Complete Collection (Century Media)
Genre: Thrash/Death Metal
It’s a crying shame that Sindrome never made it big, as their thrash/death attack was pretty potent… as this compilation shows.
Boasting the Chicago act’s two demos – 1987’s Into The Halls Of Extermination and 1991’s Vault Of Inner Conscience (both remastered for 21st century ears) – plus some unreleased material too, Resurrection… is a worthwhile package for thrash and death metal fans, especially those of a certain vintage.
Granted, Troy Dixler’s distinctive, acerbic vocals are very high in the mix, and at times, they can be jarring (Brought to the End springs to mind), however the sheer ferocity of songs like Rapture in Blood and Aortic Explosion more than makes up for it.
The skeletal hand of early death metal makes its presence felt on both demos, and it’s no surprise to hear that Sindrome supported Death on that band’s Scream Bloody Gore tour. And there’s some mind-bending axework on show too, with Mike Vega and Rob Welsh on devastating form on the Vault… material.
The downside? The collection boasts a live recording from 1988, where the sound is so muffled, the quality so poor that one play through is quite enough… unless you’re an obsessive documenter of the Chicago thrash scene. Come on, there must be some of you out there…
RUSHONROCK RATED: 7/10 Back To Life