The Metal Files

Spring 1988. I was a senior in high school and one of only 2 metalheads in that school. It was a small private Catholic school in Portsmouth, VA. I really hated that school and 90% of the people in it. My 9th and 10th grade years were pretty fucking brutal. New kid in a school in which most of them had known each other since kindergarten. I had nothing in common with them. I was an outcast. It was probably partially self-imposed.

To cope with all the bullshit that comes with being an awkward teenager, I immersed myself in music even more than I normally did from just being a huge music fan at a young age. Music was my life. Music is my life.

Back to 1988. I remember reading in one of the metal mags about a band coming out called Sanctuary and that their debut was being produced by Dave Mustaine. I was a big Megadeth fan at the time so this sparked my interest even more. I went to the Music Man on Friday night which was a pretty regular routine for me and my friends. We’d get our allowances and go blow it on music.

We put it in and sat silently while riding in my ’66 Nova 4-door. We were blown away. This voice. This high shrill that was cutting through everything. Warrell Dane. Who? Exactly.

We all got super excited when we found out that they were coming in concert as the opener for Megadeth and Warlock. We were right up front for the whole show. Dane hit every note perfectly. All 3 bands were great that night. Of course the majority of the crowd was there to see Megadeth, but I was mostly there for Sanctuary and Warlock. I got blown away.

This is one album that I wish would get remastered. It sounds like Peace Sells (Megadeth), which is to say that it’s very muddy, the drums sounds like shit and I think there may be a bass guitar in there somewhere. Their follow-up disc sounded much better. So please…someone re-release this with a remix/remaster!

Die For My Sins is definitely my favorite song. The whole album is badass except for their version of White Rabbit. I detested the original and this version. After getting to know Warrell Dane several years later, it made sense why he loved the song so much. I still think it sucks.

Poor production and one silly cover song aside, this album gets a 9/10. With it coming out in 1988 in the height of the pretty boy LA metal scene, it stands heads and tails above most other albums from that year.