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Hooded, death-reeking and disbanded underground Speed/Thrash Metal warriors from Columbia, Tennessee collectively known as HexenHammer were probably an obscure band for many of us even when they were active. They certainly were for me until the wonderful world of the Internet helped me learn some basic facts about them.

This 11-track, digitally remastered compilation contains the band's 9-track 1990 demo with two bonus tracks from 1992 that were originally recorded using a 4-track recorder. HexenHammer's horror/gore/witchcraft-themed mishmash of Speed, Thrash and Heavy Metal conjures up demons of the underground tape trading times. They sound raw (like Venom and the UK's Warfare), stripped down and even a little amateurish and perhaps that's where the magnetism lies. Some may find a connection between HexenHammer and early Mercyful Fate or even Alice Cooper while others may link their music to bands like Hellhammer, The Mentors, Death SS, Gwar and the demo days of Slayer and Metallica. HexenHammer's DIY underground Metal has many different ingredients and it's impossible to narrow what they sound like to just a couple of bands. If a low-fi production doesn't disturb you too much you may actually like them enough to buy this very aptly titled disc.

I personally would not sell my soul to go back and remedy missing this Tennessee-based underground act in the day but I nonetheless found their stuff "inspiring" and "different".