Saint Vitus - Saint Vitus
SST
True Doom Metal
5 songs (36 Mins)
Release year: 1984
Saint Vitus, SST
Reviewed by Dee
Archive review

Some things are necessarily viewed as primitive; were this not so we would have nothing to call sophisticated. Yet it is also important to remember that milestones still stand no matter how far you feel you have progressed past them.

Saint Vitus were one of the first doom metal bands and were still rough, unrefined and directly driven by their influences - not only taking their cue from Black Sabbath but also from Led Zep's heavy blues attack, and glam rock roots are also present.

This is a 1984 release, which is quite a long way back on the doom timeline, but an important year all the same; Crystal Logic was released the year before, Candlemass were still in demo stage and Messiah was singing for Mercy - a VERY underrated band. Trouble and Cirith Ungol also release relevant albums. Yet Saint Vitus is clearly the year's most powerful doom metal statement.

The eponymous opening track is very hard rocking and noticably fast; the guitar tone is bassy and fuzzy, the higher registers almost smothered by intentionally esoteric production. Scott Reager's (yes, the legendary Wino's time is still yet to come) voice is immediately divisive; his throaty, unharmonic and dramatic approach is quite unique (although for a good approximation of this singing style investigate the finnish bands Reverend Bizarre and Minotauri) and characteristic of doom's general uneasy-listening approach. Despite the technical ineptitude of the singing it seems to be impossible to resist yelling "Saint Vitus! Saint Vitus!" in time with the band. This is the fastest song of the five on show, although its title is apt and descriptive of the band's future, as every subsequent Vitus release gets progressively faster and faster.

The next track is a good deal slower, featuring a lot of groove and interesting drumplay; very busy indeed for doom, but something I wish more recent bands would incorporate. Again, Reverend Bizarre can be known to play a modern equivalent to this style. The lyrics here are very anthemic and metal; given lines like "White Magic, Black Magic/Both become my tools/Pressure rising! Perish now/You optimistic fool!" it's easy to interpret their theme as triumph in grimness - knowing that one is mentally wrong or just doomed by fate, and yet being assured that one is living life correctly. This could be a somewhat Christian approach to doom lyrics, but they work well enough.

"Zombie Hunger" features two very lazy and stoned riffs indeed, along with Scott Reagers drunkenly delivering lines like "I'm a zombie/My insides have died"; you can almost imagine the wheels slowly turning in the minds of stoner metal's originators as they absorb this song. The fourth track is timeless doom in that it sounds like a stripped down Iron Maiden song played at half speed. With its epic tinges, intentional guitar solo fake-outs, walking bass and almost ten minute duration, "The Psychopath" is the reviewer's favourite song from this album.

The final track, "Burial at Sea" opens with loud distorted bass and various effects and plods along, adding whole extra verses where you'd expect progression while the singer insists on delivering rather silly lyrics with a not-entirely endearing off-key wail. Basically, they giggle their way through what should be a very sombre dirge. Don't be turned off by my irreverent description of their music; this is classic doom metal, performed well and in exactly the right state of mind. Technicality simply isn't doomy, I'm afraid.

This is a short album at a length of only 36 minutes. Fortunately, the bassist is holding a time machine. You can trust me when I say that time elapses a little more slowly when Saint Vitus take the stage. A relatively unhailed classic, always upstaged by Black Sabbath and Candlemass because of the former's groove and the latter's pomp; Saint Vitus deserve to be right up there on the same pedestal.

Killing Songs :
Zombie Magic, The Psychopath
Dee quoted CLASSIC
Other albums by Saint Vitus that we have reviewed:
Saint Vitus - Lillie: F-65 reviewed by Goat and quoted 60 / 100
Saint Vitus - Born Too Late reviewed by Khelek and quoted CLASSIC
Saint Vitus - C.O.D. reviewed by Phil and quoted 65 / 100
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