Assassin
Interstellar Experience

"Errata-Corrige", as it used to be written in old books, and that must have been what the Assassins thought upon releasing their second album, after the raw Speed-Thrash debut "The Upcoming Terror".

There's a reshuffle in the band: out goes guitarist Scholli and in comes future Sodom member Michael Hoffman, while drummer Psyco Danger is replaced by Frank Nellen. In 1988, the short album "Interstellar Experience" is ready, showing a noticeable improvement in songwriting, with a drummer still lightning-fast but more technical, and guitar solutions that are more vivid both in solos and rhythm. However, the shortcomings of the vocals persist and even the production by guru Harris Johns is inconsistent, even within the same song: in some tracks, the rhythm section is relegated to the background in favor of the vocals and guitars, while in others the drums are brought forward and the guitars are stifled.

"Abstract War" (recently covered by Invocator) is the fast opening firecracker, with Bay Area choruses, demonstrating the band's willingness to Americanize to escape the cliché of the German group with the deferential sound of German corporation-bands. The musical magma is more compressed, sharper, and the drummer opts for more varied solutions, without sacrificing impact. "AGD" continues with the hybrid Yankee-German lesson, being the most catchy song of the eight contained in this collection, with a splendid "Jeepers Creepers" style cover art in a space twist. The other songs are diverse, with "Resolution 588" always at a fast pace, concerning a U.N. resolution on the Iran-Iraq war that continues the war & pain theme of the previous album.

On the opposite end is "Junk Food", featuring ironic themes (redolent of Anthrax) whereas "A Message To Survive" offers convoluted and chaotic Thrash, admittedly irritating, with Rick Rozz-style guitar distortions mixed with absurd drum speeds (admittedly not new): a rambunctious jumble that seems placed there for fans of the previous album, even though in the middle there's a bolero-like break that combines with the taste of astral "rendez-vous".

The Assassins show they've progressed compositionally and graphically, if you will, but they lack that "physique du role" noticed in more acclaimed bands like Kreator, who deliver an excellent product the same year with "Terrible Certainty", whose charm withstands the passage of time.

After this "Interstellar Experience", the Assassins will record a demo before disbanding without regrets.