NASTY SAVAGE: Turn up the Mayhem – Turn up the Night!

By Metallian (Matt R.)

Hailing from South Florida, Nasty Savage are one of the most influential bands to the upcoming Death Scene that would blossom in the late 80’s and early 90’s. Influencing the likes of Deicide, Obituary, and Death they were a dominant group that gained a huge following all over the globe even getting to headline the infamous 1988 Metal Battle show in Poland which also featured the likes of Exumer and Atomkraft in front of a crowd of over 9,000 people! For most people, including myself, the first introduction to the group was their debut self-titled album, and it’s monumental debut in my opinion.
Signing with Metal Blade Records a mere year after releasing classic demos such Wage of Mayhem, Nasty Savage captured a quality of production and technical skill that could be compared to the likes of Iron Maiden throughout the classic record. The duo guitars of Ben Meyer and David Austin showed that Thrash Metal could be technically jam-packed and still sound vicious to the listener that pick up this monstrous record. The vocal delivery of Nasty Ronnie could be seen as one of the more unique aspects of the bands as he sounds insane reaching highs similar to that of King Diamond. For first time listeners to the band, like Mercyful or Manilla Road, it’s an acquired taste to get use the vocals but once you do you can truly appreciate what this band recorded.