Review Revue: Sacrilege - Behind The Realms of Madness

Welcome to Review Revue, where every Thursday I dig through the KEXP stacks to share DJ reviews and comments written on the covers of LPs (and occasionally CDs) in the ’80s and ’90s, when the station was called KCMU, the DJs were volunteers, and people shared their opinions on little white labels instead of the internet.

There is so much to love about this week's installment of Review Revue. First there is the band itself, the absolutely blistering proto-crust-punk outfit known as Sacrilege. I am just now listening to this album for the first time (as beautifully remastered and reissued by Relapse Records a few years ago), and having much the same response as the KCMU DJs did 30-odd years ago (particularly that last one). Then there's the fact that I have managed to continue – and double down on – the creepy October theme I began, somewhat trepidatiously, last week. I mean holy crap, check out this album cover! And the music itself is pretty terrifying too, even if you can't quite make out the fear-inducing lyrics about global nuclear annihilation, political corruption, and income inequality (the more things change . . .).

But perhaps my favorite thing about the KCMU DJs' 1985 reviews is what you won't find: not one single DJ classified the band as "female-fronted" or called it "chick metal" or anything else to the effect. They picked their jaws up off the floor, wrote up suitably gobsmacked mini-reviews describing its merits, and left it at that.

Sacrilege is still technically active (or semi-dormant, anyway), and may or may not have another album up their sleeve. Let's keep hoping; I think the world needs to hear more from them right about now.