MESSERSCHMITT 2 (1997)

1997, 72/A5, xeroxed, Polish, hand-numbered, interviews: DAMNABLE, DEVILYN, MORTIFY, LUX OCCULTA, HELL-BORN, HYPNOTIC SCENERY, NECROSCOPE zine, DARK’S ANGEL promotion, DAMNATION, WITHOUT GRIEF, PRO:JECT CYBERDEMON, MORTIS DEI, TRAUMA, LEGION, SACRIVERSUM, HATE, BEHEMOTH, CURSED zine, DEMISE, FUCKIN’ BITCH zine.

Messerschmitt. Hm… really good name, isn’t it? And despite of being a Pole, the German name sounds a bit better than Elk (PZL.37 Łoś). Anyway I’m not gonna write about War World II flying machines now as I read once again the second attack of Zgierz based piece of underground paper. As for general look and layout – there is nothing special and there is nothing to be ashamed for as well. You know, mighty typewriters ruled the scene at that time. At first glance it is pretty swashbuckling being something like a mortar with various ingredients: Norwegian (cruel Mother North), communistic (Armia Radziecka z nami od dziecka) and has fabulous/devilish touch with a face Koziołek Matołek as a lord of hell. And as the first is turned over, jokes are gone in the twinkling of an eye: Messerschmitt opens the fire with his MG 17. It means that Damnable is on the stage. Yes, simply very good and long intie which focuses on fresh “Inperdition” release mainly. What’s more, some of the remainder are brought in a similar way: Necroscope zine, Trauma (again interesting chat with the leader Mister, yet it’s a bit bitter in general), Demise and closing really fuckin’ good Fuckin’ Bitch and Mr. Szkieletor. Also, worthy of mentioning is the live interview containing the unholy trinity Sacriversum, Hate and Behemoth. Well, I can’t give you a poor one, however some symptoms of fatigue are visible in Lux Occulta, due to still booming popularity just then. In turn Damnation and Hell-Born answers kept in a laconic way at times and Cursed talk (when Pocurvienie band is concerned) is pretty strange and incongruous. Well, I don’t know how the issue 1 was look like, yet this piece is definitely of a metal high-tensile construction. Szymon provides good, well-thought-out questions with (sick) humour and notes oft-times. And even today the whole looks really respectable, not showing any signs of rust.

Reviews, maybe not a huge impressive amount (38 with music and 15 with press), yet they’re written in a good see-through longer style, some of them with a help of two other guys. Furthermore, several bios / articles on various bands, a two-page gore comic book entitled “Perverted Excrements of Rudolf Valentino”, inquiry “My Meetings with Jesus”, and two articles “Mother North Calls” (Satyricon’s mystery uncovered) and “Never Trust an Alien” (just to be on the lookout!). The whole is completed by two live reports, especially interesting is the first gig ever of Behemoth and Hate in the city of Łódź with many good quality pictures. And summing the scrap-iron up: this is only beginning! I mean, if #2 is a machine gun, the next issue is a fucking hydrogen bomb becoming one of the best zines spewed into the underground. Soon I will reexamine it.  

8/10

-Tlacaxipehualiztli

(written in May, 2016)

      

       

SILENT TEARS 4/5 (1997)

July 1997, 88/A5, xeroxed, Polish, hand-numbered, interviews: PARRICIDE, NOMAD, PSYCHOTRON, CRIMSON MIDWINTER, MESSERSCHMITT zine, INCARNATED, NIGHT GALLERY / CORRUPTION, PASCAL, ARKONA, FROST, ASCARIS, NECROSCOPE zine, DEMISE, ISLAND, TRAUMA, SACRUM, DAMN NATION, DEVILYN, BLASPHEMOUS DEGENERATION. 

This double issue of Bytom based Silent Tears was my first meeting with Mr. Kreator zine-making. Quite positive I must say, yet I have no clue why it has been marked as a double shot. Anyway, the whole is provided with standard contemporary norms, executed with a help of typewriter. Layout seems to overcome the age-long battle with chaos, it is pretty clear with good quality of Bytomian xerox machine. Kreator put on Polish bands mostly, and only two bands come from abroad (Crimson Midwinter and Damn Nation, both dissected in a good style by Adam / Necroscope zine). The editor-in-chief is an experienced freak and it’s easy perceptible through the pages. Nevertheless the bands set isn’t nothing extraordinary (I mean, well known names from other Polish zines), the interviews flow smoothly, sometimes with needful sense of humour and some insertions here and there. Kreator managed to gain no lame answers where the most shining stuff is Trauma, shortly after releasing their debut “Comedy Is Over”, Mister speaks in a really demonstrative and brainy way, even if topic grabs the eighties among other things. Good stuff, indeed. Then, even as I said earlier, this pair is rather on the end, comparing mysterious, reticent Arkona (the only black in the menu…) and Pascal, flavoured by absurd humour. Great that Kreator gives a chance to his severe competition (?) and provides exciting chats with Szymon (Messerschmitt zine) and Adam from Necroscope zine.

The number of musical reviews doesn’t lay me low: 24 pieces only, contrary to zines section bringing 20 considerations. But I like the way Kreator tries to describe what the thing is all about. It’s rather deep, hearty. In this moment I have to mention about small articles on another crews: Auri Sacra, Cryptic Tales, Hell-Born, Nightly Gale, Aion, Offense, Gandalf, Lux Occulta, Beheaded, Mythological Cold Towers, Scarve, Serenade, Moonstruck, Drunemeton, which are rather more complex reviews with additional remarks. What else? Four live escapades, one report from Białystok, three short non-musical pieces and “Garbage of the Underground” part 2. It makes the zine complete stuff.

To sum this review up: Silent Tears is a decent piece of underground press, even nowadays I had a good time while reading it, however the final mark is a bit lowered by many serious spelling errors making my tired eyes open fucking wide. I know it wasn’t possible to have a spell-checker in the typewriter, but the orthography basics are minimum to make a zine, right? 

7/10

-Tlacaxipehualiztli

(written in May, 2016)