The Classic Metal Album Reviews:
Title: The Key
Artist: Nocturnus
Label: Earache
Release Date: 1990

Rating: 5 Skulls
  • Discuss on the Metal Judgment Web Board
  • Submit/Read Reader Reviews of this Album

    • Reviewed by Kefka X:
    The early 90's...what a time. Remember all the bands that Earache spawned forth? Carcass, Napalm Death, Morbid Angel...all legendary acts that have left a tremendous impact on the history of metal. Among these bands is one of the lesser-known (but still fantastic) Nocturnus, who in 1990 released The Key, an epic space-age death metal masterpiece.

    What's so wild about Nocturnus is that, even to this day, the musicianship and quality of this album is both uncanny and as powerful as the best of them. These guys can tremolo-pick and perplex the hell out of the likes of Nile and Cryptopsy. The band borrows styles from bands such as Morbid Angel and Possessed and builds on them with a good (without being extensive) use of keyboards and effects. The result is a tour-de-force of technicality, brutality, originality and a futuristic concept that works well with the band's sound.

    The most notable quality of this album is the guitarwork of both Mike Davis and Sean McNennery, which is mindblowingly fast. The scales are a mile-a-minute and are as intricate and tight as humanly possible. As opposed to the guitarwork being the sole focus of the album, the rest of the band complement this insane style of tremolo picking to the point that it all blends together well. Mike Browning's work behind the kit is nowhere close to being just adequate, and goes at a speed that still follows the guitars with grace. The keyboards never come across as sounding cheesy for a moment and give the finishing touches to the album's theme. This makes for a well-crafted and well-rounded recording.

    From start to finish this album is unbelievably good EXCEPT for one thing. I was originally going to knock a skull off for how silly the band looks in the liner notes (like five Geoff Tate clones packed into one photo shoot). Then I looked back in time to all those other metal bands that we worship...and how silly they look. Ah hell, even if this wasn't the case I wouldn't knock a skull off. Cheers!

    Fans of bands such as Cynic and Possessed will definitely eat this up quick. Nocturnus is one of the greatest death metal pioneers that no one has ever heard of, and that's a shame. The Key is one of the wildest death metal albums to come out during the early 90's death metal explosion. Get schooled, kiddies.
    5 out of 5

    [- Metal Judgment Home -]    [- Email Metal Judgment -]
    ©1999 Metal Judgment. All rights reserved.