Venom
Temples Of Ice

THE REVIEW

After Cronos's departure in 1987, the British band Venom continued throughout the years to churn out works hoping not to be forgotten; everything they had inspired had become much bigger than them. Albums like "Temples Of Ice" went almost unnoticed at the time of their release and are almost unknown today. This is not so much due to the musicians' technique, or the recording, or the mixing, all vastly superior to the '80 - '83 Venom (the real Venom), but to the fact that their style strayed too far from what they once were, from what made them a quintessential classic.

"Temples Of Ice" was released in 1991 under Under One Flag Records, with Mantas and Al Barnes on guitars, Tony "The Demolition Risk" Dolan on vocals and bass, Abaddon on drums. The presence of the two historic members does not curb the incredible stylistic and thematic departure from their origins. From this point of view, this is a continuation of the path started with "Prime Evil" in 1989, but with a lack of inspiration that cannot raise the album beyond the threshold of pleasant and uncommitted.

The thrash sound blends with pseudo-power arpeggios and atmospheres, often fantasy-inspired lyrics, and little remains of the satanism (as fictitious as theatrical) and grit of the past. Dolan's voice doesn't come close to matching Cronos's, whose absence is felt. Good words should be said for the two guitarists, who bring a strength to the album in the solo sections and the dynamic, tight rhythms. Parodic tracks aren't missing, the energy isn't lacking, but the listening experience flows sterile and insipid throughout its 40-minute length.

The opener is "Tribes", energetic, sustained, and enriched by Dolan's lively bass lines, which at times stand out over the guitars. A good track, with a good melodic solo more Heavy than Thrash. "Even In Heaven" stumbles indecisively between monochromatic arpeggios and guitar strikes that fail to convince; one of the album's (many) fillers. "Trinity MCMXLV" is another hybrid track, which again mixes arpeggios, a midtempo with epic/power tones, culminating in speed verses shouted haphazardly. Mantas's solo saves the song from the deepest mediocrity, at least in part. Next is "In Memory Of (Paul Miller 1964 - 1990)", endowed with a bit more verve than the two previous boring ones, thanks to the subject matter and the more classic structure.

What follows is a dose of worthless fillers: "Faerie Tale", which again presents the banal and overused mixture of arpeggio/guitar gallops, "Playtime", whose start mimics Elvis Presley's "Jailhouse Rock" with grotesque results, "Acid". A bit of energy is provided by the less diluted speed/trash of "Arachnid", but we're still immersed in mediocrity and déjà vu. Entertaining, however, is the cover of Deep Purple's "Speed King", performed with a certain enthusiastic dynamism; obviously, it also lacks any value. The title track "Temples Of Ice" closes by presenting the nauseating formula of mixing melody with violence, letting the former even become predominant. It sounds like an Epic band in its infancy that at times remembers it's supposed to do thrash or something like that. Dismal.

Even though this album doesn't merit too much praise, I recommend it to the deranged, like myself, fans of flops from famous bands, and to those who want to delight their ears with a Mantas in great shape, albeit terribly out of place.