Back in 2007, while I was working for a local radio station, I came up with the idea of running a segment for unsigned acts. A good deal of acts submitted material to be aired on the show, and among them was the Thrash Metal act Martyrd. There was potential in this New York City-based Thrash act, but not quite in the sense that one would hope. Martyrd sat upon the pile as one of the countless Metallica clones that littered the inbox, and due to that, many listeners requested the material thinking it was demo material of the obvious band they worship. But, outside of that, is there any real reason to really pay attention to this demo release outside of the four new tracks recorded to accompany the previous four they issued with their Trapped Within demo?
Blue & Black isn't the most inspiring Metallica clone, but the material is at least decent. The main issue here seems to be that it suffers from a rather raw production quality that doesn't really capture the music well enough. The music feels held back a bit, though still somewhat heavy. "Blue and Black" really feels like it has some great potential to be an intense Thrash gem, but it just lacks any real bite despite the fact that the music does have a good deal of energy to it. The vocals also feel lacking a bit, being a bit too clean and not matching what intensity happens to be in the music. This is a little disheartening considering the faster moments of this and many other songs leave you wanting to get up and start moshing along, but without the real bite or kick to it, the whole vibe of the song just doesn't feel too inspiring to do it. "Maniac", however, does show a little more aggression from the band in the a heavier manner, and not necessarily through speed. This works to the song's favor given the recording quality, and when it does pick up for the solo, it feels right, though again doesn't inspire any real urge to get up and Thrash along by headbanging or making a pit wherever you stand.
But, what these four tracks do offer is a nice taste of the variety that Martyrd can bring to the mix. "Blue & Black" does offer an intense ride, though the production doesn't really work in it's favor. "Maniac" offers a more aggressive approach without the speed, and the same goes for "Soldier of Fortune", though this is more of a generic Metallica clone track then anything else and doesn't necessarily offer anything too inspiring, especially with the way the vocals kind of clash against that more aggressive vibe by being a little more depressing in the manner the clean singing performance is handled. "Six" does find that more depressive and somber vocal style a little more useful with it's lighter, slightly haunting atmosphere. As for these new songs, the band does have some dexterity, and seems to know what they are doing, though not really having an original sound. But what about the other half of this demo recording?
The last four tracks of this release actually come off a previous demo entitled Trapped Within. Of course, this means a completely different recording quality, and this one is far more raw in comparison to the first four. These tracks actually sound more like they were recorded in a home studio, or even through some kind of cassette recorder possibly hooked up to the band's soundboard in a rehearsal room. It's not the worst quality, especially since the vocals are often loud enough to be heard, but at the same time they aren't really accentuated nicely and can sometimes feel like they are drifting out with a bit of an amateurish vibe. This isn't to say the vocalist is an amateur, but rather that the production quality makes it seem that way, more then likely just from pulling back a bit from the microphone during the song. The music does seem to keep the same bite to it, though the bass is a little more deeper in the mix, and the rest feels a little more muffled in comparison.
This portion of the demo kicks off with the track "Seeds of Vengeance", which really isn't the most impressive track. The song just lacks any real bite, and it's just not that impressive through generic-sounding Metallica worship riffs and drums that are not all that inspiring either. Of course this doesn't sum up all the material for the following tracks, as "Betrayal" actually comes off a little more impressive and on par with "Maniac", as well as has a pretty strong guitar solo. "Trapped Within" also offers up a darker track that doesn't really seem to try to feel stylish in the vein of more recent Metallica recordings, though still feeling somewhat clean musically. The faster bursts coupled with dual vocals here and there makes for an interesting more modern-sounding clone track that has a little more going on with it then "Seeds of Vengeance" and even "Soldier of Fortune", and leaves it a song that is worth checking out, even if the vocals to the song aren't that great and, near the end, even come off sounding a bit like Weird Al Yankovich thanks more to the dual-vocal element and the production quality giving the vocalist a bit of a lisp similar to what you'd find on Set the World on Fire by Annihilator when it seems to change quality quite dramatically from when the song started.
So, what does all this boil down to? Aside the blatently and painfully obvious Metallica worship, Martyrd do a decent job at paying homage to their source material/inspiration. The songs on here simple are not bad, but at the same time feel restrained through the lower production values the band probably faced due to financial restraints. If you you are a devoted Metallica fan and can't get enough of it and the many bands that have been popping up as clones of this band, or even acts like Trivium who altered their music at one point to specifically sound like them, then it's worth giving a shot just because of the amount of idolworship on here. Martyrd does a good job at paying respect to these legends of the Thrash style, but again it's just nothing too impressive that demands your immediate attention, especially if you aren't a fan of the original band to begin with. This is more a niche recording if anything, and if you don't fall into that specific group, then chances are you'll dismiss it immediately despite some of the talent that does exist on these eight songs.
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