Riding the wave of various reunions and resurrections, the old guard VENOM have reminded us of their existence. By naming their album "Metal Black," the Englishmen apparently wanted to draw an invisible associative link to their epoch-making "Black Metal." Even the cover art is nearly identical.
Of the famous trio, only Cronos remains; the rest have sunk into oblivion, along with practically everything connected to this band.
The 14 tracks of not always adequate, rather tedious musicianship presented on "Metal Black" become thoroughly exhausting by the middle of the disc. Only the first 3 tracks somehow salvage the situation; the rest merge with them in a complete ecstasy of monotony and boredom.
With a brisk cracking of joints, Cronos and company launched themselves on another combat sortie. With the words "Only the old-timers go to battle" and the cry "Contact!", they fired up their old machines, battered in countless battles, and before properly gaining altitude, crashed behind the nearest patch of forest. That's roughly how you could describe this affair.
Against the backdrop of the modern scene, VENOM's efforts look somewhat comical. There is no promised return, no former hellish madness and sulfuric stench — just boredom and the smell of mothballs. Everything is off, and we too, if you think about it, aren't what we used to be.