CoC : Skitzo - Hellavator Musick : Review

Skitzo - _Hellavator Musick_
(Mourningstar Records, 2002)
by: Quentin Kalis (7.5 out of 10)

Skitzo are not averse to the use of shock tactics -- vocalist Lance Ozanix regularly throws up while performing on stage, and has appeared on the Jerry Springer Show to demonstrate his dubious talent of vomiting at will. It is not as if Skitzo need to use such lowbrow stunts as a distraction from pedestrian music; this album is far better then what I expected, while the bonus live track on this album suggests Skitzo are a formidable live band. Clearly such antics haven't exactly adversely affected their music career -- their first release was in the mid-eighties and they're still going strong today. Two decades of performing and writing have honed their talents and the result is an album composed of devastating riffs and catchy melodies, resulting in a not terribly unique but nonetheless very enjoyable listen. One can also hear the influence of metal greats on _HM_ -- there are numerous elements of bands such as Judas Priest, Metallica, Slayer and even a bit of Black Sabbath throughout the CD. However, no influence is allowed to dominate to such an extent that Skitzo can be regarded as a copycat of any particular band. On the negative side, the lyrics do tend towards the clichéd -- sometimes laughably so -- and there are a couple of unnecessary filler songs, but these are outweighed by other, much stronger songs.

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(article published 31/3/2003)