CoC : Blackmail - A Female Impersonator : Review

Blackmail - _A Female Impersonator_
(Ransom Records, 1996)
by: Adrian Bromley (2 out of 10)

With a really cheesy aura to their EP, _A Female Impersonator_, Sweden's three-piece Blackmail are a real gem of a find. Cloaked in Dream Theater-meets-Iron Maiden-meets-Savatage feel to it (not to mention some Black Sabbath and Kiss influence), the 4-song offering by the trio is just horrible. The songs ("Female Impersonator", "Demons Hide", "I Become", and "World of Misery") have a kind of 80s metal sound at times, too. I mean, the music is okay, some pretty standard vocals, guitar parts, and melodies are here, but the lyrics? Ouch! Example: "... so put on your high heels and I'll see you later/ Oooh... female impersonator..." or "... when I'm dead I'll be glad if I see you in Hell..." Gimme a break. Lots of critics like the band and their debut CD-EP _Schizophrenic_, and I don't know why. This new record needs to be put away before it gives someone a coronary.

(article published 11/10/1996)