#midnight vice

Various Artists: Speed Metal Hell (1985)

I have a long and rather comical persoal history with 1985’s Speed Metal Hell collection ...

When it first showed up at São Paulo’s best heavy metal record store, Woodstock Discos, in 1985, I got it at a discount with the purchase of other LPs; on my next visits, they literally begged me to take additional copies free of charge; and after unloading them sometime in the CD-buying ‘90s, I wound up paying at least $20 to satisfy my nostalgic craving with the copy you see here.

Ain’t that a vinyl collecting in a nutshell?

Assembled by the much-maligned New Renaissance label (which probably never paid a royalty in their existence), this LP now offers a fascinating glimpse into the mid ‘80s thrash metal underground -- even though, or perhaps because, none of these bands ever made it to the big time.

Indeed, at least half of them were never heard from again, including N.W.O.B.H.M. inspired speedsters like Italy’s Shining Blade (“Winged Snake”), San Jose, CA’s Halloween-ready Stiletto (“Through the Night”), and Canadian pretty boys Midnight Vice (“Vice Squad”) -- and justifiably so!

That being said, while they possessed zero commercial potential, other bands bound for obscurity like Babylon, NY’s Attila (“Lucifer’s Hammer”), Lindhurst, NY’s Battle Bratt (“Henchman”), and Needham, MA’s Executioner (“Victims of Evil”) had violence and energy to burn!

A few others managed to eke out a career of sorts beyond this LP, beginning with a pair of Venom and Motörhead-fueled power trios in Virginia Beach, VA’s military nerds At War (“Eat Lead”) and Portage, MI’s Medieval, whose “World War IV” obsessed me for years to come.

Another was Savage Grace: a competent power metal outfit from L.A. that was deemed worthy of contributing, not one, but two tracks (the excellent “Master of Disguise” and “Fear My Way”), but made the mistake of choosing the same name as the Detroit-based progressive rockers from the early ‘70s.

But only two of these groups left a serious mark upon the ‘80s thrash scene, and they Danish maniacs Artillery, whose inimitable growler, Flemming Rönsdorf, let it all hang out on “Hey Woman,” and New Jersey’s Whiplash, whose ‘Triple Tony’ line-up teased the following year’s seminal Power and Pain LP with “Thrash till Death.”

In sum: while I’d never recommend owning three or four copies of Speed Metal Hell, one is probably worth investing in if you are metal-thrashing-mad for all things fast, furious, and ‘80s.

Enforcer - Midnight Vice Official Video

Tampa, Florida-based Midnight Vice have revealed new details about their self-titled debut EP, finally and for the first time ever physically available on CD and Vinyl via the band’s new label partner ROAR! “Midnight Vice” will be out in Europe on March 28th and in North America on April 4th; the pre-sale has just started at: https://midnightvice.rpm.link/midnighteppr Midnight Vice, founded in…

From adopting their band name directly from an Enforcer song to an unexpected moment of a member sitting on Lemmy’s lap, Midnight Vice is a group with a wealth of captivating stories. With the recent release of their self-titled EP in 2023, the band’s poised for an exciting journey that has only just begun! TheNwothm: Thanks for agreeing to do this interview! Can you tell our readers who you…

Legendary band Haunt have added another awesome show to their list of dates this year and this time they will be hitting Conduit in Winter Park in Florida on September 7th this year! Joining them will be the demons that be Hellfire and the hard hitting Midnight Vice as well as further support. Keep an eye on the following links for more information about tickets and opening…

Band: Midnight Vice Location: Tampa, Florida. Lineup: Vocals- Tyler Gray Guitar- Sam Bean Drums- Dennis O’Sullivan Bass- Lakota Stafford Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MidnightVice941 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/midnightvic… Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/521Am7… Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/nl/album/bapt… Song/Video: “Baptised In Fire” Recorded and mixed by…