Destruction - Eternal Devastation (REMIXED WITHOUT SENSE 2022)

Description:

Compare to original mix: This is the third part of a series of remixes that I colloquially call REMIXED WITHOUT SENSE as the topic covers Destructions discography from Sentence of Death to Cracked brain. Schmier and the rest of destruction have said numerous times over the years how shoddy the production work for their 80s work were, souring an overwise masterful display of thrashing affair. Without a doubt, Destruction was the best of the early German Teutonic thrash scene compared to their brethren Sodom and Kreator, starting off as early proto black metal pioneers and rising to become the most technical and relentless riff makers before Schmier's departure from the band by the 90s. When the vocalist reunited with the band by the 2000s, the technical shred fest wasn't there anymore, and the band went on to play it safe for the rest of their discography. This band really holds a special place in my heart for discovering extreme music in general, I wouldn't have stuck around for long if it wasn't for them. Eternal Devastation was the first major innovation in destruction's Technical thrash metal style. The songs were much more angrier, lengthier, and diversified. This time around, Mike's guitar playing is quite astounding. His solos and riffs somehow manage to portray and depict the story of a mind going through a very trying time. The riffs greatly engage the listeners by giving them the impression that something is about to take their lives or is approaching them from behind. The songs "Confound Games" and "Live Without Sense" are the best instances of this. Schmier steps up his vocal and bass game, sounding like he belongs in the intensive care unit of a mental hospital and is simply completely nuts. Again, the poor production prevented this album from being considered an all-time great. I suspect that while making this album, the Germans here were dozing off and unintentionally significantly increased the gain on the guitars, drowning out the percussion and bass. Even though the guitars were innovative and had a black metal-like tone (buzzsaws), after just the first song, they became unpleasant. I felt as like my eardrums were going to be severed if I continued to listen to it. The album's guitars were my top priority when I remixed it; to balance it out while keeping it more raw, I  increased the bass frequencies and drastically decreased the ear-piercing treble. This made me realise that I needed to make this record sound extremely direct and raw. To fit the overall slower speed the drummer plays in for the majority of this record, I mixed the drums such that they would have a very booming snare. To mimic the high gain they used in the start to "Curse the Gods," I then amplified the bass guitars. Since the vocals were my favourite component of the album, I deliberately placed them at the forefront of the mix. In comparison, this album generally sounds more like Kreator's Pleasure to Kill or Sodom's Tapping the Vein. There will be more to come of this series in the future so stay tuned!!! Track list: 01. Curse the Gods 0:00 02. Confound Games 5:49 03. Life Without Sense 10:09 04. United by Hatred 16:20 05. Eternal Ban 21:13 06. Upcoming Devastation 24:45 07. Confused Mind 28:42