Forced Entry - The Shore EP (1995)

Seattle's Forced Entry had initiated some potential with their debut Uncertain Future in 1989, so it was quite a disappointment that the following As Above, So Below did not open new doors for the band, understandable due to its abject stupidity in some sequences. I'm not trying to infer that the first record was some poetic expression of brilliance, but it had this cohesive concoction of meaty, aggressive thrash ridden with quality, unique grooves that could have gotten any pit stirring. Somehow, for some reason, there were a few leftover tracks from the 1990-91 sessions in recording the Relativity sophomore album, and despite the label (and Combat) folding and dumping almost all their metal and hardcore bands, including Forced Entry, this became a good idea down the line to release on some tiny, independent entity.

Essentially, The Shore is a set of four tracks that were not good enough to include on As Above, So Below, which was already not a 'good' album beyond a few moments. I'm struggling as I listen through this to determine whether these tracks would have worked more favorable as a part of the full-length had they replaced "We're Dicks" and "How We Spent Our Summer Vacation", two of the most awkward and retarded slug-offs of any crass thrash brats in history. I'd have to cite that this is indeed only an outside possibility, but only because two of the tracks here are mediocre rather than fucking humiliation of the lowest order. The production is obviously a little more murky, but the bass tones are loud and the material does give the impression of some overcast, dull coastal region with lots of garbage strewn about it.

"Miasma" is a slowly mutating series of chugging rhythms over which the band's deep Hetfield stylisms reign, and I suppose it is somewhat successful at developing a predictable momentum. But really, anyone with a guitar, amp and ability to palm mute could write this in 30 seconds, so its far from impressive, and despite the lead and thick, popping bass below it, its all too easily forgotten. The brief acoustic bliss that inaugurates "Sore" is welcome, but the riffs are simply not all that impressive either. Once again, you get some adequate lead guitar but nothing connecting it at any point on the map. "Soul Train" is like a plebeian thrash piece with even a 'soul' sample inside it, a seething, stupefied mess of no potential, and "Licking My Wound" thinks it can make up for the rest of the EPs failure to launch with some sliding bass coils and funky wailing guitars. Well, it doesn't.

If you want any evidence of why thrash as a reliable form of aggressive release was dead by the 90s, listen to The Shore, which provides an ample education on the neglect of the genre by its own artisans. Instead of progression, thundering riff sequences and lyrics and vocals to die for, this is more of a laid back, phoned in homage to the mere act of plugging in an instrument and using minimal effort to simply fill space. "Miasma" and "Sore" might have sufficed on the full-length in place of the weakest numbers, but neither is good, and the other songs here are about as musically qualified as your last excrement excursion to the local piss parlor. The Shore is just shy of 20 minutes, but that is 20 minutes you could spend mowing the lawn, cutting out coupons from the newspaper or something else equally exciting but more valuable to your life. Fuck this.

Verdict: Epic Fail [1.75/10]

http://www.myspace.com/forcedentry1

Forced Entry - As Above, So Below (1991)

I think the moment I first laid eyes on the horrible color context of the Forced Entry sophomore album As Above, So Below, I was already smitten with disgust. Having found their debut Uncertain Future a punchy, bone crushing debut of dynamic mosh-favorable thrash metal loaded with catchy grooves, and one of the true hopefuls of Washington State alongside Sanctuary, I was actually eager to hear how the power trio would progress. Progress they did, if you look at the album as a strict work of musicianship, but sadly, the band have included a few stupid moves here which, perhaps in some attempt to bridge the gulf between artist and audience, seem more worthy of some campy street thrash band as opposed to the titanic wall of groove sound these gentlemen had patterned on the debut.

As Above, So Below does start off with one of its strong points in the effortless smackdown of "Bone Crackin' Fever", and they were wise to place this first, with its engaging momentum and harmonic spew, sometimes fast and then sometimes slow once the band breaks to the mid paced chorus thrash riff. The production is quite refined from Uncertain Future, and the instruments all just as percussive and polished, and this is one of the few tracks worthy of the predecessor, if you don't mind the goofy lyrics. "Thunderhead" proceeds with some steady inclines and declines of thick, chugged riffing, but the riff patterns sound pretty similar to the first song, and ultimately its just not put together as well, though hardly a pestilence upon the ears. Beyond this, the strange clinical riff that inaugurates "Macrocosm, Microcosm" into a funky, bass driven rhythm reminiscent of Prong heralds that this is not necessarily going to be the same Forced Entry we knew before. Of course, if you enjoy Prong, and can imagine a Beg to Differ era track with this more aggressive vocal style in the vein of Testament or Metallica, then have fucking at it, sirs.

"Never a Know But the No" is a soothing ballad that develops into some limited thrashing, much like a "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", "The Ballad" or "Cemetery Gates", though not even a fraction as memorable, and despite the positive opening thrash below a dipping bluesy, wild lead, "We're Dicks" is fucking retarded. Was having a track called "We're Dicks" supposed to endear you to the 'beer drinking moron metal crowd'? The song is stupid, the lyrics even worse, and its the sort of drivel I'd expect only of a Billy Milano project. After this steaming disappointment, "Apathy" is a welcome relief, a barrage of stormy thrash which seems like a refined spin on the debut's formula for lurching grooves and oppressive atmosphere. The lyric patterns aren't great, but at least it's not 'We're a Bunch of Fucking Dicks'. "The Unextinguishable" is likewise pretty good, but "As of Yesterday", despite the see-saw like carving rhythms suffers from rather trite bluesy, emotional vocals and a weak structure. "When One Becomes Two" is yet another track that should have been placed somewhere near the front, since its got some great guitars and reminds me in total a little of the Boston band Wargasm, who put out a decent debut.

Lastly, because "We're Dicks" was not already as dialed in dumb as they come, we get the goofy, exciting "How We Spent Our Summer Vacation". Now, this track does benefit from a few half decent, grooving rhythms, but the digging thrash of the verse is destroyed by the absolutely fucking stupid lyrics, which might have appealed only to some over-testicular 13 year old trying to impress his skateboarding friends. I mean, read this shit:

Jack Daniels goes down fine
a lot smoother than any wine
hey baby with the big 'ol tits
come impale yourself upon my dick

I mean, this is not Tankard we're talking about, or Atrophy's loving but stupid beer roster in the now, not so legendary "Beer Bong", but an act of confusion and idiocy in the wake of the more serious lyrical elements found on this album. Had it been funny, well perhaps I might overlook its crudeness, but its not, and neither is the song all that great. Its as if by their sophomore album, Forced Entry had already given up on thrash metal, perhaps another telling sign of how the genre would crash and burn about within a year or two here in the States (the negative ripples then coasting off to Europe, South America, and so forth). 'Get fucked up! Get fucked up!' Thanks for preaching us the course of our adolescence, my friends.

As Above, So Below is an inconsistent bitch at best, often in heat for mating season but just as often flaccid and nukeworthy from the collective metal memory. Had this been reduced to just an EP, with "Bone Crackin' Fever", "Apathy", "The Unextinguishable", and "When One Becomes Two", it would have made for a reasonable follow-up to Uncertain Future that delivered on that promise while the band gestated some new and better ideas for their own uncertain future. As it stands, the cover art is not all that is ugly about this music, and though the band would somehow manage to rattle off an independent, shortform release some years later, this was the true death of their once bright ambitions.

Verdict: Indifference [5.5/10]

http://www.myspace.com/forcedentry1

Forced Entry - Uncertain Future (1989)

There was a time when Forced Entry was one of the biggest hopefuls in the US thrash/speed metal undercurrent explosion of the late 80s. Their penchant for blunt, percussive rhythms combined with progressive lead work, adventurous titles and lyrics, and crunchy production combined for a pair of highly regarded albums. Of the two, I have always preferred the debut Uncertain Future.

Eight tracks here, each memorable and inventive. "Bludgeon" opens with a chop fest, like a very brief thrash alternative to "YYZ". This transforms into a bluesy acoustic sequence with an amazing guitar solo. We are only getting started, folks. The verse lumbers forth with Tony Benjamins brute voice over a groovy thrash beating. "Kaleidoscope of Pain" is the perfect soundtrack for crunching up cars in the junkyard, and has a nice breakdown. "A Look Through Glass" once again begins with a mechanical thrash riff and then an acoustic/thrash build up akin to what you'd hear on the early Testament albums. "Anaconda" begins with an environment of tribal drumming and deep, plodding bass, and evolves into perhaps the most fitting thrash tribute to a snake ever written. "Octoclops" grooves with abandon, and once again has a great memorable lead break near its intro. "Unrest They Find" might be the catchiest song on the album, starting with a nice acoustic passage and then an unforgettable slower paced riff, before it busts out into THAT RIFF. You know, the best riff on the album type, the defining guitar part. The song sounds like Prong, Testament and Megadeth jamming off. "Morgulon" is a decent, faster song, and the album's closer "Foreign Policy" is a solid hammering.

The mix of the album really captures the gut wrenching, fist to the face guitar riffs this band was aiming for, and the acoustic/solo passages are very clear. In fact, Uncertain Future sounds pretty good today, despite its age, if you can get past the fact the guitars aren't all layered sounding like what you'd hear today.

Their 2nd album had a similar style but much stranger, with more progressive elements and unfortunately some rather stupid songs. Not the case here. Unfortunately, the band fizzled out during the great thrash metal purge of the early to mid 90s, unable to secure a new record deal after their work with Combat/Relativity. The future is uncertain as to whether they'll follow so many other bands having midlife crises and re-unite for a new album, tour or festivals, fuck knows they must have been given many offers.

Verdict: Win [8/10] (fifty breaths, one hundred)

www.myspace.com/forcedentry1