at the Metal Church
It took me a while to get this up as the tied decision was made late and I had to re-write the lot. I now think that maybe they should've been ranked higher but we're talking top of the class for anything inside the top 50 and differences are fractional here , so I didn't bother moving it.
#38 (TIE) Metal Church: Hanging In The Balance/Blessing In Disguise
Released 1993/1989I struggled to declare a winner here , so a tie it is.
Like Armored Saint, Metal Church are one of the most underrated metal bands ever. They almost seemed to be stuck in no man’s land between the classic metal of bands like Armored Saint/Vicious Rumors and the Big 4 of thrash and perhaps as a result they failed to cement the fanbase they deserved within either camp. To me though this mix was just perfect – classic metal with thrashy elements, big catchy melodies etc…
I grew up during the Howe era of the band and so , although I do like the Wayne albums too, working my way back to those early albums was a little underwhelming after experiencing the pure power and ferocity of Howe. My first exposure to the band was Blessing In Disguise which contains two of my all time best metal songs – Fake Healer and Badlands. Fake Healer is for me the quintessential Metal Church song – it contains all the classic Metal church elements that I love . A big metal sound , huge riff , a typically well written Vanderhoof lyric containing a cutting/sarcastic social commentary and the powerful, venomous vocal delivery of Howe makes you believe it!! Angry has never sounded so catchy as Metal Church. I rarely take a great deal of notice of lyrics but Metal Church have some classics and this is surely one of them – serious and funny at the same time. For this reason they were often labelled “thinking man’s metal” and I wouldn’t argue with that at all. And just in case you think I’m exaggerating their intelligence - they rejected Lars Ulrich as drummer back in 1981.
Their only weakness from my point of view is a lack of top notch lead guitar work.
So Blessing In Disguise was a big influence , has a great metal production and contains 3 of my all time favourite songs (I’ll add in Anthem To The Estranged). But it does tail off a bit at the end and over time, like many of the few who’ve actually heard it , the final Howe fronted album Hanging In the Balance has become my overall favourite. Although to some it may not quite have the highs of Blessing In Disguise there’s barely a weak track in site and it is a far more diverse and well written album as a whole. And as with many albums in this list – right place, wrong time for the band.
First the elephant in the room ,in more ways than one – whoever designed the cover art for this album needs to be shot (twice to be sure). This was an album released right into the teeth of the grunge storm and it really needed everything going for it and they do that?? They obviously missed the marketing of their old label Elektra – this was released on Joan Jett’s label Blackheart Records and I’m not sure that metal was their forte. Having said that they got it right in the production department with Paul O’Neill (Savatage/TSO) on board and it’s clear that he pushed them out of their comfort zone and into some much more progressive areas. The only negative from me is that the guitar sound lacks the balls of Blessing In Disguise. Kirk Arrington is a strong presence on the drums with his distinct cymbal heavy sound.
The songs are tremendous and really push the boundaries of classic metal. There’s certainly plenty of straight out metal songs (6 or 7 ,all of which are strong, even the bonus track) but then there’s the huge metal ballad Waiting For A Saviour, the thrash of Conductor , the folk metal of End Of The Age (ahead of its time) and the 8 minute long thrashy progressive metal of Little Boy – not a song about The King of Pop but a clever look from the eyes of a “little boy” in Japan at the events around the Hiroshima bomb (which was also known as “Little Boy”).
My favourite tracks on Blessing In Disguise are clear as day but I don’t know where to start with Hanging In The Balance as far as choosing favourites or a few tracks to represent the album , which is always a good sign.
Favourite Tracks:
Blessing In Disguise:
Fake Healer, Badlands,
Anthem To The EstrangedHanging In The Balance :
Gods of Second Chance,
No Friend of Mine,
Waiting For A Saviour,
Conductor,
End of the Age,
Little BoyThat’s a minimum 7 (of 12) tracks to provide a cross section of Hanging In The Balance – all as good as each other in their own way.
Trivia: Hanging In The Balance features Jerry Cantrell on lead guitar on the opening track.
if anyone likes the Metal Church then the other Howe era album The Human Factor is also worth a listen , if only for the title track and In Harms Way , both of which are metal classics.
Honourable Mention: GNR: Appetite for Destruction – very close to making the top 50 but suffered from over exposure in the end.. No links.