The Mosh Pit 9.25.09: The Forgotten Band Of Heavy Metal

Posted by Dan Haggerty on 09.25.2009

Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin are all considered the beginning of heavy metal. But there was another band that has been forgotten that just as important in 1970. Who was that band? Click the link to find out! Plus we have a look at the reissues from Amon Amarth!

The Forgotten Band Of Heavy Metal

I have pontificated many times on the essential fact that heavy metal was "officially" born in 1970 from Black Sabbath and Deep Purple. Of course, the debate ranges for many bands depending on who you ask, from Led Zeppelin to Blue Cheer, some going forward to Judas Priest as the first band proper while others will go back and site Cream or Hendrix as the real beginning of the revolution. For me, it's all about a few key things like the riff, power, and an intangible that can be basically called "attitude". That is where Black Sabbath and Deep Purple enter the picture, as Sabbath invented the metal riff and more than set the template for much of the metal "attitude", while Deep Purple also went their with their hard rock but more importantly plugged it in. For my money, Blackmore's solo in "Child of Time" is the first great heavy metal solo.

There is a third band as well, and it's one I've lightly toughed on before. They showed up with their own debut in 1970 and briefly rubbed against the 70's metal wall before going in myriad directions and eventually fading away. They are the forgotten band of heavy metal, and yet they were just as influential. They are Uriah Heep.


Humble Origins

I can't resist a smart title. Sorry. That is a play off of the bands first album, Very 'eavy... Very 'umble, which like the band itself comes from the Charles Dickens book David Copperfield. Uriah Heep would jump out of the gates a pretty big force, going toe-to-toe with Deep Purple across the pond. Creative burnout, which in the 70's meant hard partying, constant touring, and cranking out an album once every 9 months (ever notice that release dates were a lot shorter back then), along with losing a bassist in 75 to a heroin overdose and replacing vocalist Byron in 76 the band musically declined. Fun Fact#1: Their bassist dies at the age of 27, joining some pretty popular company in the "27 Club". Fun Fact#2: Byron was replaced by John Lawton who has done some great work with the cult classic Lucifer's Friend.

Uriah Heep did kick back in the 80's with a great NWOBHM album called Abominog that sadly never hit the radar, but it ended up like all their releases then. Outside of the single "Easy Livin' ", the band never broke big in the States and by the end of the 70's they faded away. Today they're a footnote in rock history that would be forgotten if not for us lone sages who keep such wonders alive, telling tales of these bands along with the virtues of artwork being spread over a gatefold sleeve and romanticizing songs being recorded on magnetic tape. But make no mistake, along the way Uriah Heep sold 30 million albums so this band made an impact.

Part of the reason the band is largely forgotten is in part they never broke out here in the States, but also of the three bands that defined metal in 1970 the Heep was the least heavy. The band was just as much about some last remaining psychedelic rock, jazz, a little country, vast melodies, and harmonizing vocals that were basically hard rocks answer to the Beach Boys. Actually, they were referred to as the Beach Boys of heavy metal once. But all of that washed to make a cacophonic rhythm that was loud and bombastic, searing guitar leads and driving organ grinding that was more than what came before.

That harmonizing is one of several key things that immediately identify a Heep song, many people making the mistake of comparing the band to Deep Purple, mostly because of the era and the mutual use of the Hammond organ. But the vocals, the progressive tendencies, and overall song structure easily separated the two. The vocals being the easiest of all to spot at a distance. Just listen to "Easy Livin'" then "Smoke On the Water" to get a clear picture.

And don't let that "less heavy" moniker fool you, pop in "Gypsy" you'll get a song that would make Iommi turn his head and go "whoa!" So this band did have its heavy and certainly shook the plaster at times, thus the need for this very column. It's only that the classic rock hunter needs to be wary that this is metal as defined by the 70's and you're going to get a lot more as well.

More importantly, it led to its logical conclusion and that was progressive music.




The Missing Link

This is something that is not mentioned at all, and when writing this up I quickly did a search of my hard and heavy library to discover it's not mentioned at all. And trust me I have a lot of books on music. Further, I came up snake-eyes on an internet search and nadda on the wiki; although I honestly wasn't expecting much from the wiki, that site being useful but certainly not complete or accurate to anyone who knows their stuff.

The critical thing to know about Uriah Heep in my opinion is that the Heep was just in many ways as influential to metal for the fact that they melded progressive rock to it. Black Sabbath was the heavy, along with the doom, stoner, and a creative crucible that predicted a lot of music to come. Deep Purple was the band that pointed to traditional power metal, arena bands, and the more rock structure that would power the sound. Sure, Purple had a few long numbers, but it was the Heep that would turn around and hit you in the face with 10 minute rock opera opus "The Magician's Birthday".

Progressive rock had come from the 60's and bands like Traffic (another link I find sadly lacking in music circles incidentally), and came on strong in the 70's with Jethro Tull, Yes, and Rush. Rush would come later, but the early bands in 70-71 where rock to hard rock. The Tull is a great band, but they weren't heavy. Uriah Heep was the band that took that sound and welded it to the complex mire of muse that was metal, they took the unconventional sounds f progressive and welded it to heavy. And like much of the 70's they were as much hard rock but there is metal here. "Gypsy" introduces the first album and storms the world, and for one brief moment puts Sabbath and Purple on notice. But the corkers aside, the band was also known for is long epics, from the seven minute "The Spell" through the 16 minute "Salisbury".

Bands like Rush, a critical look at Priest's Sin After Sin, and later Queensryche are your typical nods to prog metal. But a band had to be the bridge and Uriah Heep is that missing link.


Is that Thing Tapped?

The bands first album is a stormer that is for sure. What it did as part of the 70's birth of metal, however, was ironically heavier and less progy. It wasn't until the bands second album Salisbury with the epic bong-infused title track that the band really went progressive. It also marks a more psychedelic album that has more country and 60's rock, making it a more split albums in fan reaction. More of a rocker, a sideways trip through a question you never thought of, and certainly not as heavy. Personally, I think the album is just fine and enjoy it for what it is, a great 70's progressive ROCK album that likely came after smoking one to many blunts.

The album also shows one of the Heeps musical directions that show up in varying degrees through the 70's, and that is the psych. This band is just as likely to take you on a mystic trip as it might blow you out of the water with guitar chaos. Some of the bands best moments is when they meld the tow together for songs like "The Wizards Birthday". That bad boy, the title track to the album, is a mystical journey that slides into a rocker jam session of epic proportions.

This is a theme the band would return to, and in many ways would be the template for the later meandering albums of the 70's. Those albums would not get the mix right, and as a result the mighty Heep would fall apart. But before that…


The Classic Run

A number of albums get attention from this band, but the third album is the one that is overlooked since it came before the famous Demons and Wizards and it's big hit. Before that however we got Look At Yourself which is a continuation of the debut and quite the corker. It's honestly one of the best albums from the early 70's you never heard of, and pound for pound puts the muscle in rock and the rock in metal. There is some acid rock in there, but you also get massive pounders like "Tears of My Eyes" or the heavy as hell epic 8+ minutes of "Shadows of Grief". I would also be remiss if I didn't mention the power metal "Love Machine" years ahead of its time. This is just a great album and I should dedicate some more time to it down the road.

From here you got the aforementioned Demons and Wizards with the massive hit "Easy Livin'". This is when the band broke wide open here in the States, four albums in and two better albums already under their belts. But this one is no slouch either as it still packs a punch and good time, with rockers like the party rock of "All My Life", basically a combo of "Livin" and "Love Machine" and epic journeys like "The Wizard" which rumbles as much as it thinks. Good times right there.

The Magician's Birthday continues the good time, the band showing a little wear and tear but still putting out some damn fine music. I've already spoke on the virutes of the title track, but other songs still bring their ‘A' game like too. Thid album is a bit more spaced out, a minor return to acid rock, some heavy plodders like "Sunrise" also tearing up the environment. This is a Floyd like trip through a Blue Oyster Cult journey shredded with guitars, organs, and a map to someplace best forgotten. Strangely, it's an alchemy that works wonders and makes this trip a fun one even if less metallic.







The Decline

From here the band continued to rock out, despite the issues I discussed with the membership, but slowly the writing was on the wall. But I'm not sure what you would expect, but eventual burnout. We're five albums into the catalog in a matter of thee years! Sweet Freedom and Return to Fantasy are fine albums if a little lost adrift, but solid fun none the less. But by Innocent Victim the band was lost. Hardcore fans like these albums, and really they're fine rock albums, but honestly they don't hold up to the bands earlier output.


Resurrection

The 80's saw the band come back, and even if the progressive Heep of the 70's was replaced by a sterling NWOBHM outfit the albums are solid stuff. This stuff gets slagged, but that's by non-punters who loved the rock side of the band. If you like early 80's metal, albums like Abominog is great stuff and easily worth checking out.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the album Wake The Sleeper that came out last year. This album is a great album, an excellent combination of 70's rock, classic metal, all without any psych or noodling around, and modern production. Just check this out:








Damn, I love that.


Encore

Hopefully I've inspired a few of you to give this forgotten band a second chance and check out some of their albums. There really is something for everyone if you know where to look. At worst, for those in the know hopefully this has been a fond trip down memory lane and at least inspires you to pull a Heep album off the shelf. I'm going to grab Wake the Sleeper and have a good time.

WHAT'S NEW IN THE PIT

Amon Amarth has been reissuing their early catalog this year, and with the new digipaks you also get a recording of that album being performed live! These have been great, as not only are the albums touched up for better quality without ruining the original recording, but the live albums generally rock. Three have been issued so far with on more coming before Christmas, so for you fans of Viking coated death metal here is your big chance to catch up on this amazing bands catalog!
	Once Sent From The Golden Hall The Viking Waraxe has a few rough edges, so to speak. This is quality death metal, and you got to love the honest rawness of the thing, but this certainly is the most primitive offering from a band still finding their signature style. But hey, in a catalog this deep a primitive album that is less longboats and more bloodshed is welcome to be perfectly honest. This album might not be one of the best, but it's still damn good and I find myself going to it over other albums in the catalog when I'm ready for some straight up carnage from a bunch of young guns with their working boots on. Pit Score: 8.5
	The Avenger Amazing how one album changes things, as the primitive Barbarians step into history with horned helmets and a bloody long sword in hand. This album is the first place to go for death metal purists as it is the most ferocious melee from the guys that maintains the deep links while eyeing the Midgard Serpent. Yea, I know my Norse mythology… Sue me. Amon Amarth has arrived, but they're still on their journey to international stardom. This is a tough album that shows the band coming into themselves but still raw and hungry to carve a place in your skull. Pit Score: 8.5
	The Crusher OK, this one smokes; no bones about it. It packs just enough melody to predict the bands later more melodic output, but that is just the sound of the engine revving under the hood because up front you get a massive axe cut full of death metal mayhem. While the last album will likely be the pinnacle for death metal aficionados, this is an evolution that hits the sweet spot in perfect harmony of the bands origins and what will become the huge opus of Fate Of Norns in two more albums. From the bludgeoning opener "Bastards of a Lying Breed" to the crippling "Animation of Hammerfest" this is just a great album. This combines the right amount of headbang to fun ration to make it a serious good time. Pit Score: 9

That's it for this week. Go grab a classic from the shelf and crank the mother to ten. You know what to do when the neighbors complain!