Maximum Metal Rating Legend

Trouble - Psalm 9 - 2006 (reissue) - Escapi Music Group

Track Listing:Tracklist 1. The Tempter 2. Assassin 3. Victim Of The Insane 4. Revelation (Life or Death) 5. Bastards Will Pay 6. Fall Of Lucifer 7. Endtime 8. Psalm 9 9. Tales Of Brave Ulysses Bonus DVD – Public Access cable show 1982 - Approx 18:58 minutes - exclusive interview pt. 1 - Assassin - plus exclusive interview pt. 2 - Psalm 9 - plus exclusive interview pt. 3 - Victim Of The Insane

The Escapi Music Group has made one smart move here, reissuing the classic works of Trouble, a Chicago area band responsible for some of the most, er… troubling music of the 1980's, which in turn had a major influence on the slew of stoner and doom acts that have surfaced since. Psalm 9, sometimes confusingly known as one of two "self-titled" Trouble albums, is of course the one that started the whole harrowing mess, with songs like "Bastards Will Pay" and the title track showing for the first time just how downright scary, and dare I say it, evil-sounding Biblically-inspired music could be.

The crux of this most terrifying of testimonies was, of course, frontman Eric Wagner, who defined the unbelievably dark vibe of these early Trouble albums with his frightening lyrical take on the Bible and his utterly hellish, almost inhuman vocal cries.

This nifty package from Escapi presents the album in "digitally remastered" form, with a bonus DVD, new liner notes by Canadian metal journalist Martin Popoff, lyrics and photos, all encased in a nifty slipcase (Note: The band's second album, The Skull, has received similar treatment- see separate review for the lowdown on that particular reissue). Of course, Trouble's bread and butter were slow, low-tuned, sludgy, generally ugly and often fairly long songs that owe much to Black Sabbath circa Master of Reality, the odd exception coming in the form of the speedy and relatively slick ‘80's-style cruiser "Assassin" and their trip-happy cover of Cream's "Tales of Brave Ulysses," which hints at the more "stoner"-oriented direction the band would later steer towards.

No bonus tracks on the album, as you get with many reissues these days, but what is on offer here is indeed a treat for Trouble fiends. The most noteworthy perk of this reissue is definitely the bonus DVD, containing a nifty public access television spot the band did circa 1982. In it you get fairly slamming and well-recorded performances of classic material from the first two albums, plus a decidedly non-metal looking television hostess interviewing the non-too-talkative or articulate band members about their unique and crazy creative vision, which of course is much better articulated by the music itself. Still, it's bound to bring a smile to the faces of fans and collectors, so if you fall into either of those categories, you won't want to miss it.



Rating: 4



--Vinaya