A large grin crossed my face when Young, a 37 year old Christian Republican family man, that had given up listening to Metal said, “What band are we listening to… Its heavy and modern, but has an Old School feel.
Smirking I replied, “This is the new Master album called ‘Slaves To Society.”
“Yeah,” he replied.  “This music reminds me of 84 when I first heard “Chemical Warfare” cause it’s fucking raw and mean.  Master huh; leave it to Speckmann to still be killing us all after something like 25 years… FUCKING MADMAN!”
Truer words could not have been stated, but before I get to the meat of this critique I am compelled to emphasize that ‘Slaves To Society’ is essential.

Right when “The Final Skull” blasts into gear your ears are riding a sonic rocket of nihilism on CD.  Paul Speckmann’s fingers rumbling across that buzzing distorted monster bass is amazing.  Whether playing fast, technical, or jamming during chromatic interludes, the lower frequencies are a rolling mesmerizing signature balanced perfectly with the other instruments.  It’s like hearing Steve Harris on steroids.  The drumming on ‘Slaves To Society’ is sensational, but what makes this fact is how Zdenek Pradlovsky does NOT simply mash-n-bash blast beats for speed/filler.  Instead, ears are treated to amazingly controlled footwork, unique tight fills, super human rolls, and a precision that is stellar.  He sounds like a 1000 horses stampeding in harmony over a stadium full of politicians… Fuck, if I was learning to play drums, Pradlovsky would be my hero.  Guitar solos rip-n-careen from all directions in squealing carpal tunnel inducing rage.  Riff after violent riff tumbles out of Alex Nejezchleba’s guitar like cars spilling off a crumbling Minneapolis bridge.  And each riff gets stuck in your head cause they’re instantaneously catchy and righteously pulsating.

I don’t usually discuss lyrics in critiques cause they are mostly redundant fodder about rape, gore, and homicide with a bit of Odin thrown in for pseudo creativity.  On ‘Slaves To Society,’ Speckmann again proves topics about pernicious politics and automatons is starkly more relevant and brOOOtal than odes to Satan.  Enhancing this fact are Speckmann’s vocals, which are utterly spiteful in a tone and growl as captivating now, as it was in 1985.  When he bellows through his gravel throat “Society’s already dead” it comes across contemptuously truthful.  Surely ‘Slaves To Society’ is what an anarchist plays while constructing a bomb.

Youth is raw rage with a naivety about life and politics molded into a sense of ageless indestructibility.  Few are able to channel that passion into a meaningful artistic career, for too often integrity is bartered for bong hits and a sofa, an unemployment check, a mortgage, social status, and a trophy wife.  Everyone sells out in a capitalist world, but few keep their integrity, which is why Master is an essential paradigm for what is right about Metal music and life.  ‘Slaves To Society’ is gritty, brilliant, and profound.  This is SpeckMetal!  This is Master, and you will succumb to its sublime irreverence!!!!

By Mike Lidia