![]() Frantic, dueling guitars courtesy of mainman Lips and co-guitarist Sebastian Marino (later of Overkill), the unrelenting sonic assault of drum god Robb Reiner and original bassist Ian Dickson and some of Lips best vocal performances are all hallmarks of this excellent recording. “Worth the Weight”, Anvil’s 1992 album, finds the band firing on all cylinders in a massive display of metal musicianship. America in the 90s, but after the climactic and immensely fun Pound for Pound this record felt rather lifeless, dry and uninspired. There are some positives to the album, like the sheer ability wrought through the guitars, and the fact that they didn't become an all-out, Pantera worshiping tough guy groove metal band like so many other speed, power and thrash metal acts from N. Anvil had spared us such atrocities in the past, but clearly Worth the Weight was not the place to start in on this tripe. ![]() ![]() There are these points at which Lips emits these puerile screams on tunes like "Infanticide" and "Embalmer" where I felt myself cringing, and yet by far the low point of their career to its day was the balladry of the opening sequence to "Love Me When I'm Dead": "Sadness", in which the vocals meander all over the spectrum, the only ligament to bind them the awkward means by which they panhandle the depressing lyrics. The drier, spiffier guitar tone fits the new paradigm of the writing, but it feels nowhere near as heavy as its predecessor, and even though the note sequences can seem intricate and explosive, they're rarely if ever memorable.Įven worse, the vocals are rather limp throughout. Unfortunately, none of the songs really have an impact. The war drums and harmonics which lead into "Pow Wow", the shrill vocals used in the chorus of "Sins of the Flesh", the straight muted thrashing rhythms (and sexual double entendre) of "Bushpig" and the groove and drive of "Infanticide" all seem like a fresh canvas for the Canadians to paint upon, though stylistically they don't deviate a lot from the formulas on prior albums. From a proficiency perspective, Kudlow and Marino really shine here, and there's no shortage of innovation to their playing, at least compared to prior Anvil records, but this factor is betrayed by the dearth of quality sing-a-long songs. So what we have here is what must be the most technically inclined and frenetic of all the Anvil recordings, with the implementation of tremolo riffing (as in "Embalmer") and a copious load of frantic lead sequences which feel incredibly structured compared to the previous record Pound for Pound. That Worth the Weight was the band's most thrash oriented album is no coincidence, as the band had brought aboard Sebastian Marino to replace Dave Allison, a man many might know better for his later move to the East Coast staples Overkill. Full-length releases were scarce, at least in the former half of the decade, and what we were given was hardly anything to write home about. Part of this was due to the decreasing popularity of the style they played, and a larger part was their misfortune at being tossed around between labels, shifting management and band members. That's where I did a hardness test and it came out at about 50RC.Īlso there are some holes that appear to be imperfections in the top working surface.The Anvil of the 90s turned out to be considerably less appealing than that of the 80s, not for any lack of trying but for a lack of those same, memorable results that numbered their formative output among the best heavy metal exports of Canada. There is a little black spot on the top working surface near the front edge. I have taped off the measurements in inches hoping someone might be able to tell me approximately how much it weighs, heavy yes I know but I haven't been able to lift it and step onto the bathroom scale. ![]() It has a coat of black paint on it and I haven't wanted to remove that, wanting to keep it original. I would have expected to see a cast in logo on the side or something similar but both sides are just rough cast iron, assumed cast. I haven't been able to find any makers name on it. I own a fairly good sized anvil that has more nostalgic value to me than monetary but I don't know anything about it and hope that perhaps some of the anvil experts can help. I was surprised when I read the recently submitted thread " What Steel to Use for Casting an Anvil" that there was so much knowledge and passion regarding anvils amongst the PM group. ![]()
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