Opinionate

Maybe like me you read Daniel Eckeroth's engaging Swedish Death Metal book. Maybe like me you were a little distracted by the seemingly two literary voices at work; the academic one that thoroughly chronicles a particular subculture and movement with an unfeeling distance, and the one of a tight bro just giving you the straight dope as he remembers it over a pint of Akkurat. Regardless of these shortcomings, the book is an excellent resource that will have most music nerds fiending to hear any and all of the numerous overlooked recordings of Swedish Death. One that stood out for me was this sweet little 1990 sampler 7 inch from Opinionate Records. The EP starts of with some decent thrash from Appendix (not to be confused with the Finnish punk band with the same name.) Next up is the classic Swedish Death crush of Nirvana 2002. This is clearly the standout track here, mainly because it is really the only one that exemplifies the style that the country would become known for. Authorize are next, their track "Darkest Age" is plenty Death Metal but lacks the mystery and atmosphere of what I have come to expect from old Swedish Death Metal. The sampler closes with a blistering, breakneck thrash offering from Fallen Angel. The Opinonate Sampler EP does a fine job of briefly documenting that strange nebulous time between Thrash and Death. That what these regional comps from a bygone time are about.

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