MASTER re-issue 'The Spirit Of The West' on vinyl
05-11-2025
Metal pioneers MASTER, one of death metal’s founding bands, have announced the release of Spirit of the West on vinyl, which will be out on 23rd January via Hammerheart Records.
Pre-orders are now available AT THIS LOCATION.
The Spirit of the West blends death metal, thrash metal, punky moments, and even a country song into one diverse offering. Rather than dissecting every track, here are a few highlights to give you a sense of the album’s range. The album kicks off with the thrashy ‘You’ll Be Blamed’, which recalls the earlier Collection of Souls album with strong Abomination tendencies. Similarly, ‘Sign Up’ delivers old-school thrash metal complete with those signature harsh Speckmann vocals. ‘The Serpents Tongue’ is a straightforward, uptempo death metal tune, as is ‘Whatever, Wherever, Forever’. Meanwhile, ‘The Perfect Family’ comes closest to the d-beat Master sound fans came to love on their first two albums. A pleasant surprise arrives with ‘Pistols, Whips and Coyotes’, which channels Macabre‘s riffing style, albeit with slightly simpler drumming. Had Dennis the Menace played on this track, it could easily pass for a Macabre song. The album’s punky attitude shines brightest on ‘Rights of Life’ and ‘Envy’ both of which evoke 1987–1991 era Sodom. The most notable track is the punk-driven ‘Another Day in Phoenix’, which features clean vocals and stands as one of the album’s undeniable highlights. Finally, the closing cover of Johnny Cash‘s ‘Ring of Fire’ trumpets and all, caps off the record in unexpected fashion.
Track-list:
1. You’ll Be Blamed
2. The Serpents Tongue
3. Rights Of Life
4. Envy
5. Sign Up
6. Another Day in Phoenix
7. Whatever, Wherever, Forever
8. The Gold Mine
9. The Perfect Family
10. Pistols, Whiskey and Coyotes (The Spirit of the West)
11. Long Knives
12. Ring of Fire
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