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There’s something sweet and disarmingly humble about Waters and his band, and that’s probably why they’ve endured for twenty-something years, and why they have such an intimate connection with their fans. Since it’s inception in Metallica’s rehearsal room circa 1982, thrash metal has always been music made for the people, by the people, a primal screech and roar stripped of any rockstar pretense and emboldened with enough technical virtuosity to ensure that only the strong will survive. Waters and his crew are prime examples. Annihilator showed up a little late in the game, so seemed less like innovators and more like a band adding fuel to the fires already stoked by Anthrax, Watchtower, and Exodus, but Water’s impressive chops and boundless enthusiasm ultimately won the band a world-wide cult following, and even today, they endure. And so, this valentine of a DVD set, which includes every relevant piece of footage involving Annihilator’s first ten years as an up n’ coming speed-metal machine.
The first disc is a chronological trip through the big-hair, acid-wash,
DIY era (late 80’s), to the pro-shot videos and backstage catering era
(mid-90’s). It’s got low-budget concept video clips (Allison Hell
is a highlight), tons of television footage - some from MTV and Much
Music, and some from obscure Canadian chatshows – plus studio sessions,
live performances, a trip to Japan, and in the second half of the disc,
more accomplished clips, like the smoky black and white horrorshow, “King
of the Kill”, wherein Waters stops dressing like a guy menacing
people in the 7-11 parking lot, and adopts a Dave Wyndorf-style evil
mustache and
The second disc has over 90 minutes of interview footage, mostly from a new interview with Jeff Waters, with a few surprise guests at the end. This one’s mostly for the diehards, but if you’ve ever had any questions about Annihilator, they will most definitely be answered in this comprehensive Q&A. The production on some of the actual clips on the first disc are a bit spotty, but that’s to be expected, given their sources. As far as the actual DVD set goes, it’s impeccable, with a stunning animated intro, simple but attractive menus, and thunderous stereo throughout. I can’t say it turned me into a technical thrash metal fan, but it sure did try its damnedest. If you have any interest in Annihilator, Canadian metal, or acid wash jeans, than this ‘un comes highly recommended.
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10
Years in Hell. For me, that’d be the 90’s. For Vancouver
super-shredder Jeff Waters, it was the first decade or so of
existence for long-lived Canuck thrash metal institution Annihilator.
Not that you’ll find any evidence of hell here. There’s no puking, blood,
murder, heroin, or slow suicides in this story. And that might be the most
remarkable thing about it.