VENOM

Arguably one of the most important bands in extreme music and extreme metal history, VENOM needs little introduction. After the ensemble's already infamous performance released as "The 7th Date of Hell - Live at Hammersmith Odeon 1984", the pioneering beast that is VENOM returned to the venue in 1985 to damage eardrums and once again document the madness. Also titled "Hell at Hammersmith" as a VHS release that year, Dissonance and Cherry Red are rekindling the performance's hellish flames as a CD/DVD deluxe digipak titled "Venom: Live From The Hammersmith Odeon Theatre".

The footage and blasphemous hymns that comprise the effort depict the unit's classic, early lineup: Frontman Conrad "Cronos" Lant, drummer Anthony "Abaddon" Bray and guitarist Jeffrey "Mantas" Dunn. Considering the way VENOM fires on all cylinders at this show, most people wouldn't have predicted that Mantas would split soon thereafter. Coming to life originally in Newcastle, England, VENOM would go on to coin the sub-genre "black metal" with the namesake of its grisly, second album and its title track. Without them, metal that is black, death and thrash — and extreme styles like grindcore, crust punk and beyond — would not be the same. NAPALM DEATH's longstanding bassist Shane Embury, in fact, expounds upon the trio's impact in his interview which is included in the liner notes, candidly revealing his fanboy status.

VENOM was hot on the heels of their fourth album, "Possessed", at the time, reflected at the onset with the raucous set opener "Too Loud (For The Crowd)" ; later with the groovy, hard rocker "Nightmare" and the utterly wicked "Satanachist". Naturally, fan favorites from the power trio's first three releases also flesh out the performance. The haunting nature of "In Nomine Satanas" is augmented with a beefy punch. And the cult classic "Witching Hour" makes sense as an appropriate closing track.

VENOM's Satanic visual aesthetic and thematic base are almost trivial and inoffensive by contemporary standards. At worst, some aspects may be deemed comical nowadays to some. But given proper context, it's clear that VENOM was something special, new and wild for kids and fans yearning for extremity in the early eighties.

Shane Embury's reflection underscores this point, and, of course, VENOM's profound impact upon a burgeoning Californian thrash metal band named SLAYER can't be denied. On one hand, "Venom: Live From The Hammersmith Odeon Theatre" is noticeably less unhinged than their previous appearance; however, it captures the band in a more confident and powerful position as performers.