Rage – “From the Cradle to the Stage (2Oth Anniversary)”
Along with Kreator, Helloween, Running Wild, Vendetta, Scanner and a bunch of other bands, Rage was part of the group of German bands on Noise International Records in the 80s. Celtic Frost and Coroner were the big exceptions, of course. Well, Rage soldiered on to bigger success in Europe, even though people in North America probably thought they broke up or something. This double-disc live album has a very genuine, live sound to it, right down to the hole in the songs when the guitar solo is going on. A three piece, Rage’s live renditions of songs do sound different than the studio versions. Tell you what though, this is raw, sweaty, thrashy metal, falling somewhere between heavy and thrash. This band has written a billion songs, albums and mini-albums, so choosing what songs to play is probably very difficult. On here, they play some oldies, like “Prayers of Steel”, “Suicide”, as well as “Invisible Horizons” and “Don’t Fear the Winter”. Of course, there are songs from “Soundchaser” and “Unity” and the other albums. OK, the music: Peavy’s singing is very raw. After hearing this, you’ll hear exactly why Rage is not power metal at all. He doesn’t have a too melodic voice, instead it’s singing, but “masculine”, if you will. The guitars and drums are very well played, but with some improvising and spontaneity. I still think it’d be good to have a second guitar in the live setting. Also, I can do without the drum and guitar solos. I’d rather hear two more songs. Anyway, this is a pretty honest and solid album. I really wish it were a four-cd album because this band has so many great songs. Yes, “Suicide” still sounds great, as does “Down” and…well, the whole thing, really.