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LEGION |
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 Cleveland,
Ohio, boasted a pretty healthy metal scene in the 80’s, most of it
centered around a local record label, Auburn, home of afro-metal
freakers Black Death, hard rockers Breaker, and proto-power
metal puffballs Shok Paris. There was even a scene-celebrating
compilation released on Clubside Records in 1983, cleverly titled “Cleveland
Metal”, which featured all of the above, plus even more obscure
Clevebangers like Jagged Edge, Sacred Few, and Sorcerer.
None of ‘em really broke wide open nationally, but they all remain
cult-acts to this day. In face, Auburn is planning a re-release of Black
Death’s insane album sometime this year. That will be a truly awesome day.
Legion were not on Auburn. They were not on “Cleveland Metal”, either. If the pictures on the back of “Legion of Deth” are any indication, they were probably too young to reach the end of the fretboard in 1983. I’m just guessing, but none of ‘em look like they were going to see 18 any time soon on the cover of their EP. And that explains a lot, because, really, how cool were you at 16 or 17? If your high school band released a record, how hard would it rock? I bet it would rock exactly as hard as
this one does. “Legion of Deth” consists of four woeful, shaky,
pseudo-Christian power metal songs full of acoustic interludes, crunching
street-metal riffs, florid Euro-metal guitar wank, and superfluous drum
rolls, but not one hook or chorus you can sink your teeth into. If you
have ever hung out in your friends' garage when they were ‘jamming’ with
their
half-assed, Priest worshipping phony t-shirt band, then you have heard
Legion. In the 1980’s, bands like Legion were, in fact, legion. |
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The God thing is a weird twist, though. I don’t even know that they really were a Christian band, but they did have lyrics like, “Soon I will be dead/ I know what lies ahead/ and I know that I have sinned/But won’t you please let me in?”, and their thanks list starts off with “to J.C. the Main Man” so, you know, do the math. By 1986, that shtick was really working for Trouble and Stryper, so why not? But for the most part, Jesus hates heavy metal, and he did not help Legion on their rock n’ roll mission. Their story ended with a thud shortly after, and this curious artifact is all the remains. Perhaps if they spent more time writing songs and less time praying in fuckin’ church, they’d still be around. |
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Here’s Legion’s suicide (?) song, Goodbye. Goodbye, Legion. __________________________________________________________________________________________ Life after Legion:
Guitarist Jeff Nagel is in The Mike Farley Band. They’re from Akron, and they play “modern rock/pop”. I dunno what happened to their drummer, King Douglass, but wherever he is, I hope he still wears that bitchin’ purple satin suit whenever he gets real drunk. I know I would. Chuck Sumrada, who produced this record (Produced is the wrong term, tho. What do you call it when somebody throws the tapes into mud and then runs them over in his Chevy?) has some local-legend party band in Cleveland, humbly called Sumrada. They’ve got a hot chick singer. By the way, Mr. Sumrada wrote an 80’s “hit” called “Funky Poodle” for a band called Wild Horses. I know, I haven’t head of it either, but a fact’s a fact. _________________________________________________________________________________________ -Sleazegrinder |
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Legion vocalist
Dave Belanger is the
self-proclaimed “All-time guru of Cleveland-based hard rock”, and was last
spotted in –imagine that- Cleveland-based hard rock cover band, 1988.
Here's a recent