Step Cousin: Experiments In Sound [Special Edit.]
By: Bill Roxx
This is probably one of the best Christian thrash bands you have never heard of! Or maybe you have? Step Cousin has never been given the credit or notoriety they deserve. If you are a thrash fan, then this release is for you. The new Step Cousin CD is a must have! Wait did I say new Step Cousin? Well, if you did not know it, you would think it is a brand new disc. In actuality this is a remastered and expanded gem! I would go as far as to say it was a diamond in the rough and after this reissue it shines and those dusty bits of uncovered coal have been polished and removed to leave us this shiny little thrashterpiece!
I’m not going to do your traditional review with this album because I want to do a little more of a compare and contrast. ‘Experiments in Sound’ was actually the debut release from Step Cousin from back in 2000 and having had a CDR of that original CD in my personal collection I would dust it off from time to time and listen to it. But honestly I had not pulled that CDR out in years! But in order to really review this I had to revisit those original tracks! (By the way before you crucify me, the only reason I did not have an original was because I couldn’t find one so this reissue was truly needed for my collection!)
“If you are a thrash fan, then this release is for you. The new Step Cousin CD is a must have!…this is a remastered and expanded gem!”
I decided to put the headphones on and listen to the original all the way through, immediately followed by playing the reissue back to back! This CD almost sounds like it was completely re-recorded, which to my understanding it was not! Guitar tones, bass tracks, drums crushing, one thing is for sure and that is that this may as well be a whole new album! From the opening track through track nine, which concludes the original full length, you’re in for a real treat with this one. Don’t let the opening track fool you cause this is a thrashing disc! I say that because with the flute playing at the beginning you might think your listening to the new Jethro Tull album! Make no mistake this album rocks and kicks in to high gear though from there on out! Key tracks to listen to are ‘To The Grave’, ‘Raised From The Silence’ and ‘Despise’ those will keep your fists pumping and heads banging for sure! Another key to track to note is the cover version of the Vengeance Rising track ‘Can’t Get Out’, a true classic, and they did the song justice!
Now the Bonus tracks on this thing are surely an added bonus as well, some cool demo tracks and unreleased pieces from the bands archive all mastered to match the levels of the other tracks and give a real overall nice level through the whole CD. Often times with reissues and bonus tracks it is very hard to try and keep the same levels and integrity to match the original tracks, that is not the case here the band did a really nice job mixing and mastering these tracks! Kudos to Step Cousin, Metal Pulse and Shattered Chain Records for coming out screaming with this initial release!
If you are new to Step Cousin this is a great place to start, make sure it’s the reissue! Actually you don’t have to check to hard, if you’re finding it for sale somewhere I can guarantee you it aint the original version any way! This version was also released in a limited quantity as well! The initial pressing is only 100 copies and they are all signed and hand numbered, so you better get one quick before these are long gone too and you’re asking me to burn you a CDR!
website// www.shatedchain///stepcousin.com
facebook// www.facebook.com/stepcousin
rvrbnation// www.rvrbnation/stepcousin