A metal foursome that was greatly influenced by
Judas Priest
but sort of sounded like a slowed-down
Testament
,
Reverend
showed some potential on this self-titled debut EP. The band was never huge by any means, though it did enjoy a small following and created a slight buzz in headbanger circles. Melodic yet intense songs like
"Wretched Excess,"
"Dimensional Confusion," "Ritual" and "Power of Persuasion" (which seems to attack the sleazy opportunism of some television evangelists) are too slow to be called thrash metal, but their heaviness and intensity earned
some respect among thrash audiences. It's hard to miss lead singer
David Wayne's
artistic debt to
Priest's
Rob Halford
, although he's no clone, and has a roughness to his voice that also suggests the late
AC/DC
singer
Bon Scott
. Enjoyable but not extraordinary, this EP indicated that
was a band to keep an eye on. ~ Alex Henderson