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Fear Of God were a metal band from California, USA that existed between 1989-1996. They were formed from the ashes of the thrash band Detente. The band went through numerous line-up changes with the only link between their two officially released albums being female vocalist Dawn Crosby. Dawn passed away from complications due to alcohol abuse in December 1996. |
Fear of God - Within the
Veil (Warner)
1991
1. "All that Remains"
(3:52)
2. "Betrayed" (6:15)
3. "Emily" (4:25)
4. "Red to Grey" (6:08)
5. "Diseased" (4:08)
6. "Wasted Time" (6:48)
7. "Love's Death" (4:18)
8. "White Doorv5:00)
9. "Drift" (5:53)
"Within the Veil" is a unique album. While it could be labeled as heavy metal, or even thrash metal, it really doesn't sound like anyone else that I can think of. The music is deep, heavy and textured, with plenty of dynamics, a ton of raw emotion that I can only describe as haunting, mental anguish. Much of this is to do with the vocals of Dawn Crosby. She uses her voice in a similar style to King Diamond, sometimes singing, sometimes screaming, sometimes talking, sometimes moaning in order to give an eerie feel to the music. The vocals are often layered, adding to that eerie feel. Musically, the band is tight, cranking out some dynamic tunes. Many of the songs will have multiple moods within the one tune. "Red to Grey" for instance has some killer thrash riffing one moment and then breaks down into some slow, haunting doom. From the spoken intro of the first song "All That Remains" to the end of the final cut, "Drift", "Within the Veil" is dynamic heavy metal album.
Since this CD was released on Warner Bros., you'd think it would be pretty easy to find. However, this is not the case, although copies show up on Ebay fairly regularly. There were several copies available on Amazon.com, with a price range of between $25 to $40. I picked up my copy through LaLa.com.
Fear of God - Toxic Voodoo (Pavement) 1994
1. "Beyond the Veil" (3:27)
2. "Cloud Chamber" (4:56)
3. "Swine Song" (3:38)
4. "Burnt" (3:35)
5. "Feed Time" (4:13)
6. "Mercy" (3:25)
7. "Santismo" (5:34)
8. "Will of Evil" (4:57)
9. "Worms" (6:17)
I am always on the lookout for more thrash metal. I had read about this band long ago but hadn't run across any of their CDs until now. Despite all the metal sites labeling the band as thrash, I am not sure I would label this particular CD as thrash. There are a few songs that come close, like "Swine Song" and "Will of Evil". "Toxik Voodoo" is a mixture of speed metal, traditional heavy metal and even a touch of doom. While the band is certainly upbeat and aggressive, there are times when they are also very haunting. Part of this is due to the vocals of Dawn Crosby. Most of the time she is screaming or singing very aggressively, but at others she uses this echoey, clean style that reminds me slightly to King Diamond. At other times she is almost moaning, giving the music a very moody feel.