Style: Progressive Thrash Metal, Technical Thrash Metal (clear vocals)
Recommended for fans of: Voivod, Crimson Glory, Coroner
Country: United States-TX
Release date: February 2, 1985
Ask any prog metal fanatic and you will get a few different answers about the first band of our beloved genre. Queensrÿche debuted in 1984, but The warning is not really progressive; King Crimson And Hurry certainly had the progressive factor, but only really explored metal beyond the odd riff; The inner ghost from Fate warning is the obvious next choice, especially since the band remains remarkably influential and active; Iron Maiden, Rainbowand myself Metallica had released progressive tracks in the mid-80s, although they were clearly not the progressive metal we know as a standalone thing; but depending on a not well-documented discrepancy in the release date to The inner ghost by just a few months, my champion is Watchtowerwho take the form of Thrash Metal light years ahead of their colleagues to something that is recognizable Progressive Metal. In February from 1985these wizards, through their skill alone, changed the metal paradigm and gave birth to the genre that brings us all together (and also tears us apart).
Rapid tempo changes, driving bass, unique (at the time) technical riffs and of course the howling mezzo-soprano typical for prog; together with a thrash body we have the core of Energetic dismantlingheaviness with a playing complexity lost since the heyday of progressive rock. This was a whole new dimension of metal: riffs like these were so far ahead of any other band. Billy White and Doug Keyser on guitar and bass pranced and shredded and hopped around on their instruments like men possessed by the dance plague of 1518, tirelessly racing through feverish, spider-like riffs in multiple time signatures with seemingly endless range across the fretboard. Hell, even from a speed perspective, hardly any other thrash up to that point could match the tempo of tracks like “Social Fears,” the almighty, riff-spectacular title track, and “Meltdown”; grind was still in its infancy of the demo phase, and speed metal was a thing of the past compared to the efforts of Watchtower. The riffs and acrobatics on every track, but especially in sections like the beginning of “Asylum” and the hyper version of the classic heavy metal gallop on “Argonne Forest,” are as memorable as they are influential. Even when comparing their music to artists who emerged a decade and a half later, like Spiral Architect who helped take the helm for purely technical prog metal, Watchtower claim – these guys from Austin, Texas were visionaries.
One must mention Jason McMaster’s iconic voice with its dramatic wailing. While his style has only improved in the following decades (see: Howling plane tree), his furious singing takes Watchtower‘s energy ranged from simply next level to downright fanatical: just listen to that scream at the end of “Cimmerian Shadows”. And finally, Rick Colaluca’s work on the kit is admirable, also quite unique for the time – you certainly didn’t hear Lars jumping around on the kit like that. It just had to be the fastest and most precise drumming performance ever at that point. The level of complexity while maintaining thrash grooves… Colaluca is underrated for his importance in the development of progressive metal. All in all, Watchtower were a well-oiled machine when they debuted and had no contemporaries. In the next few years, prog metal was at its peak, but these guys broke the barrier.
I can only imagine what it would have been like to walk into a record store in Austin in early 1985, Energetic dismantling on cassette and hear “Violent Change” from the speakers, clearly thrash metal, but so new: faster, more technical and with a level of intelligent density never seen in the fifteen year history of metal. It would have been life changing and truly overwhelming – I would probably have had to pick up parts of my brain from across the street. Almost forty years of prog metal releases later and Energetic dismantling more than just standing out or remaining notable through its early release: This is Despite it great progressive thrash (though the production itself is rough for this point), and the prog community should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to get lost in time: this should be rectified.
Recommended titles: Tyrants in Distress, Energetic Disassembly, Social Fears, Meltdown
You might also like: Toxik, Blotted Science, Deathrow, Spiral Architect, Howling Sycamore, Dissimulator
Related Links: Spotify | Official Website | Facebook | Instagram | Metal Archives Page
Label: Zombo Records
Watchtower Was:
– Jason McMaster (vocals)
– Billy White (guitar)
– Doug Keyser (bass)
– Rick Colaluca (drums)
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