The Blamed Drop "What If" a 4 Song Covers Ep of The Crucified
The long running classic hardcore/punk/thrash band - The Blamed, just dropped some of the most amazing sounding covers of The Crucified these ears have ever heard. The band have without a doubt paid proper tribute to one of the greatest thrash-metal-punk bands to have emerged from the Christian music underground in the past 40 years a truly pioneering band that has spawned countless side projects and inspired younger generations to pick up their instruments and proudly proclaim the gospel in the decades that have followed. That band is of course The Crucified and another classic band The Blamed which actually features the drummer from The Crucified, Jim Chaffin, who continues to play with The Blamed to this very day and has picked up double duty in playing the classic beats but with a new take. These 4 songs are just the perfect presentation of a covers release done right. They take these older songs, add new flavors done only in the vibe The Blamed knows how to do while keeping the sound somewhat the same if that makes sense. The guts of these originals is there but the guitars and bass have that sound only The Blamed know how to do. It's like Frail, Again, and The Church is Hurting People meets The Pillars of Humanity (album) and Self Titled (The Crucified). The buddy experience gone wild! I love this ep and even the guitar solos are fast and furious and well placed. I love a good guitar solo and they sound incredible here. Let's talk about the vocals for a second. I haven't heard a more "Frail" esque sound in years but they've brought it back on this ep. "The Church is Hurting People" had slightly classic vocals but here is where it shines and they've come into their own while sharing that classic take. It makes sense really because you can tell how much The Crucified influenced the sound of The Blamed and as a result only The Blamed could have paid such careful attention to detail while going off on these 4 songs and paying such beautiful tribute. Now I'm a The Crucified fan, I'm a Stavesacre fan but we wouldn't have the latter without the former. The Crucified and Mark, Greg, Jeff, and Jim in particular deserve a hefty award for the years of influence on our music scene at large and for drawing together believers and unbelievers alike. I imagine an Olympic hand shaking between countries while making the analogy with the sacred and secular combining together in holy matrimony (if only it were that simple). When I was in high school, I was at the tail end of the band's final run as a band when I discovered Pillars and Self Titled. I loved them a lot and their music spoke to me in ways that other bands in the metal realm couldn't. I even decorated my school binder with Crucified logo and graphics and had a custom tshirt made at a print shop with the self titled album cover on front to profess my undying devotion to the Lord and the music of The Crucifed (weren't the 90's great?). What the "Christian" scene and sub culture doesn't do right (among other things) is pay tribute to the classics that have come before and paved the way for future generations. We have the rock n roll hall of fame for all mainstream popular rock, rap, etc artists to receive their credit but in Christian circles especially the Nashville machine, many are forgotten once their light fades and the bulbs burn out. It's a travesty and one that needs to be rectified. Thankfully a band like The Blamed have done an enormous amount of justice in giving credit where credit is due and embracing a classic band and really all of us as well. Thank you to The Blamed and thank you most of all to The Crucified for over 40 years of influencing countless generations of young people (and us old fogies as well) including myself. Hifives and hugs all around. Thank you Thumper Punk Records as well and David in particular for throwing your weight behind this project, you did an amazing job! You can find The Blamed "What If" Ep (make more please!) on all digital networks and streaming sites including at the Thumper Punk Records bandcamp: https://thumperpunkrecords.bandcamp.com/album/what-if
