Some reissues make all the sense in the world....like this one. I've been a fan of Japan's murderous doom machine CHURCH OF MISERY for years now, but even I wasn't aware that the band had these early EPs and splits available from the late 1990s. I'd kind of thought the split IRON MONKEY thing and "Master of Brutality" was it until this year. Silly me. Well, needless to say I was pretty delighted to get the opportunity to spin this baby and hear some of the earliest and rawest rumblings from these sick bastards.

To make a long story short, this impressive 2CD set doesn't disappoint. It's interesting the way that CHURCH OF MISERY seems to hone in on replicating that eerie, low-fi, blues-based doom sound of the first couple of SABBATH albums. The S/T and "Masters of Reality" seem to be the focus of most of the band's stylistic nods. Other bands like STARCHILD and even SHEAVY seem focused on the later, more dynamic SABS albums like "Vol 4" and "Sabotage", but not these guys. The licks of guitarist Tomohiro Nishimura are fantastic Iommi-studies that shine forth with warm, even jazzy sounding melodies, juxtaposed against this blackened wall of distorted guitar and the old bass wah. Of particular note are "Road to Ruin" and "Son of a Gun", both of which call to mind some of my favorite moments from the Birmingham boys like "Wall of Sleep" and "Sleeping Village".

While the newscasts and serial killer samples add to the creepiness of the tunes, one can't help but wonder why such a powerful band would stick to such an overdone concept. How many hardcore / black / death metal bands have explored the serial killer shtick to the Nth degree? Remember LIZZY BORDEN? Those guys did this kind of stuff 20 years ago (they were one of those 80s Metal Massacre albums....was it #4?). The point is, that stuff doesn't seem to fit this band to me...they rock so hard that they could make an ad for Viagra sound creepy and punishing.

The samples are annoying, too. At first you aren't interested in them, but then after 10 seconds you decide to tune in. The band comes in....and you find yourself straining to hear the details of the newscast. They're just loud enough to drown out the rest of the sample that goes on for one to two minutes. The overall effect is such that you find yourself wondering why they bothered at all. If you're gonna include samples, let's hear 'em! Well, these guys are obviously huge watchers of CNN, and I guess that's worth something.

Enough of my rambling...what you need to remember is that "Early Works Compilation" is comprised of two discs of white-hot bluesy doom metal with song titles like, "Where Evil Dwells" and "Chains of Death". How can you look yourself in the mirror each morning, knowing you don't have a copy?

- Marchman

OFFICIAL SITE: myspace.com/churchofserialkiller

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