Metal Church – This Present Wasteland (Release Year – 2008)
Surprise! Metal Church has a new album out, it’s scary to think that a legendary band like Metal Church would release a new album and there be no press on it. I have all eight of the other Metal Church albums and found out about “This Present Wasteland” looking through the new release section of a very non-metal website. As soon as I found out when it was being released I went straight to my favorite record store, known to many as Amazon and ordered it.
Metal Church has always been a strange band for the fact that they are hard to classify. Are they thrash or power, I think the answer is a little of both, especially with Ronny Munroe as the vocalist, if you haven’t heard him sing think of him as a cross between Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden) and Biff Byford (Saxon). This is Munroe’s third album with the band and I still can’t get used to his voice, maybe I am just a die hard David Wayne (R.I.P.) fan.
The musicianship on “Wasteland” is excellent Kurdt Vanderhoof shreds as he always has and guitarist Rick Van Zandt, bassist Steve Unger, and drummer Jeff Plate round out the ’08 version and are all very tight. Jeff Plate is a monster behind the drum kit. Without a doubt the songs are there, but once again it goes back to the vocals and the fact that I just can’t get into Munroe’s vocal style.
“Breathe Again” starts everything off and probably is the best track on the album but it reminds me more of Iron Maiden than Metal Church. “Crawling To Extinction” is where Jeff Plate gets to shine but in all actuality he shines throughout the whole CD. “Deeds of a Dead Soul” kind of reminds of Metallica in the way it is almost nine minutes long but also the solo is very reminiscent of Kirk Hammett.
If you haven’t heard Metal Church before or only the three albums Ronny Munroe has sang on “This Present Wasteland” may appeal to you but if you are a fan of David Wayne or Mike Howe it may leave you wishing for a little more.
Rating:
Out 0f 10
Track Listing:
- In The Company Of Sorrow
- Perfect Crime
- Deeds Of A Dead Soul
- Meet Your Maker
- Monster
- Crawling to Extinction
- War Never Won
- Mass Hysteria
- Breathe Again
- Congregation
Metal Church is:
Ronny Munroe – Vocals
Kurdt Vanderhoof – Guitars
Rick Van Zandt – Guitars
Steve Unger – Bass
Jeff Plate – Drums
Hard Rock Hideout 
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