Here's one of those vinyls I feared I would NEVER find, and for good reasons, since this is one of the rarest and most sought-after Jpn-metal EPs. There's a good reason for that too: On this debut offering they totally DESTROY! No doubt was this one of the hardest and fastest Japanese metal releases of it's time, 1 or 2 years before thrash metal broke for real in the land of the rising sun (yeah I know SABBAT and WHITE HELL whipped them silly, but these guys could actually play!). After the great, bombastic intro the fantastic "In Despair" hacks away at your skull like a rabid ninja-woodpecker possessed by Beelzebub! It's furious "Fast as a shark"-style double-bass drum seminal Power Metal Mania! incorporating all the elements of speed, catchiness and attitude that I found their full-length follow up "Whisper Of The Evil" to be lacking. The brilliant chorus kinda reminds me of Candlemass' "a sorcerer's pledge" - at Speed Metal-pace! - and there's even a mosh-part in there. Takashi's vocals do tend to reach heights I'm not always too comfortable with, but at least he stays in tune (and it's nowhere near appalling SOLAR EAGLE-standards), so that doesn't quite count as a complaint, seeing as how popular this style of singing is to some. "Midnight Dream" is more of a mid-paced affair, not as instantly catchy, but with a really nice groove to it and the chorus grows with every listening. It's a bit like the material on the LP I guess, only slightly better.
No serious collector or (rich!) metal-fan should pass up any unlikely opportunity to get their hands on this gem. If this review isn't proof enough, just have a look at the band picture and ask yourself: "Would I really want to miss a party with these guys?" Of course not. In the event that you should actually get to add a copy of this oddly shaped 8"-bastard to your collection, another troublesome question might emerge: "Now where the hell do I put it?!"

Listen to this record here. (provided by the Vibrations Of Doom webzine)