Various Artists
Argh!!! R.E.X. Sampler
Reviewed by Doug Van Pelt
This 11-song sampler has some great tunes to offer. Haven's remix of "The Calling" sounds very powerful. Minier's "Do Not Be Deceived" remix is extreme and crunchier than the first. The Lead's "The Empty Sepulchre" is brutally intense, sounding like Vengeance Rising's "White Throne." Sacrament's "Slave to Sin" appears here, with heavy reverberated riffs kicking off this skull crusher. Living Sacrifice offers a never-heard-before bonus track, "Progressive Change," which rips (as usual, for these hot young thrashers). Believer's "Vile Hypocrisy" starts off with some silly studio talk between Kurt Bachman and R.E.X.'s Doug Mann and then the band goes for it. Overall, this seems like a worthwhile acquisition. It's a good mixture of real heavy Metal and Alternative.