Sudden Death: Suddenly Album Review!

Music Review:

This mentioned as a Holy Grail for collectors of early rock and metal. One of many talented bands who arrived in the early ’70s but vanished without a trace. Sudden Death only released one LP decades after its recording. Legend goes that the band were unsuccessful in signing to Epic. The demo was put together in Columbia Studios, Sunset Boulevard, way back in 1972, and it remained forgotten until the 1990s when Rockadelic popped it out. The cover is taken from a late ’70s Mexican film, thus the band and its occupants are shrouded in mystery, aside from names like Charlie Brown (drums), Joey Dunlop (guitars) John Binkley (bass) and Greg Magie (the vocals).

Seriously, some of this is heavy — I mean heavy and ahead of its era. Doom-laden and causing nausea from the vibrations. They had listened a lot to early Led Zeppelin and added their own twist. I thrive off late ’60s and early ’70s stuff. The more obscure and fucked in the head, the better for me. Like Comus (see review here), I buzzed off my tits discovering this one!

If Sudden Death’s faces are unknown, a synopsis of what happened beginning to end was supplied by bassist, John Binkley. (Follow this link here.)

Meanwhile, on to the music. It’s the kind of album which leads you innocently into a sweet flowery field by taking your hand for the first few songs, then it throws you to the ground and has its wicked way with your poor innocent ears! With mellow strums and even mellower backing, Come Away With Me occupies a realm known only to the fans of prog rock and stoners. Lazy drums, and the voice is whispering. “Together we can live for all time….” The quality of recording is of a band chilling out together and jamming out something for something to do. Relaxed. It’s Lonely Here begins with a voice getting ready for this one. So behind the scenes, and the rhythm tempo is alike to track one. So for any smoker out there, you’re still safe to float.

Road Back Home ups the grind a bit. As Greg lets loose a few “Ows” and “Uuhhs” maybe sneak peaking so you know that the path onwards is getting rougher around the edge. His voice reminds me a little of Arthur Brown on here if Mr. Brown happened to merge his head Cenobite style with Robert Plant. “Oh! Darkness closing in all around…!”

“Alright, now we’re all set. Go ahead.” another behind the scenes sound bite to start us off. Akin to those tranquil seconds before you sit on a whoopee cushion, The Zoo has a sense of clear water for a few moments, then the guitars kick in and rips your skull clear out of your head. Oh, we’re deep in the muddy rivers now, no more clean waves. “When I was a young man, I absorbed the pain around me! I didn’t realise, that it was all a game that they play! ” With The Zoo, such true power and sense of desperation develops. Greg is at a new level here. The filthy dirty riffs don’t stop afterwards as My Time is Over, if anything, gets faster and faster and the screams more chaotic.

What a change of pace, Leather Woman is. Funky rocking and unexpected. To my ears the weakest. Country Livin‘ has the belting music, but lyrically too predictable. Finally the album concludes with Crazy Lady. The last thing you will ever hear of this band is so Led Zeppelin it’s uncanny. In fact, I felt some Cream amongst this one. It’s a throw your head around mad dancing number and makes you smile.

There must have been hundreds of bands who pitched out a few sounds only to fall into the chasm of forgotten noises. We’re lucky that Sudden Death was rescued and is available here about. This LP is worth the hunt for the first five songs because the rest have a sense of Side B drudgery.

Incidentally, the album has no overdubs and was recorded in six hours. Whoa!

Album Info:

Band: Sudden Death
Album: Suddenly
Members: Greg Magie (vocals) Charlie Brown (drums) Joey Dunlop (guitars) John Binkley (bass)
Year: 1972
Recorded: Columbia Studios
Country: USA
Cover Art: Still Photo from Que Viva Mexico (1979)
Runtime: 37min 22sec

Label: Rockadelic