Though not quite the shotgun blast of an album that its predecessor,
Feel the Darkness
, was,
Blank Blackout Vacant
is nonetheless an ample testimony to
Poison Idea
's unbridled power and force. Suffused with enough hate, pain, and rage to fuel an entire army,
Jerry A.
's vocals, positively dripping with bile and venom, certainly cement his ideas with passion and force. "Understated" is not a word that is possible to use with this band.
, from their inception in the very early '80s through their terminal point, shone with bitter, violent power. Unlike most
albums from the '80s,
doesn't rely on speed to get its point across. In fact, a song like
"Forever and Always,"
with its loose,
Aerosmith
-like groove and its saxophone, presages the type of
rock & roll
that bands like
Rocket from the Crypt
would make years later. Many other songs reside in the same vein. The cover of
the New York Dolls
'
"Vietnamese Baby"
provides an interesting touch, amping up the original, while retaining its desperate, low-rent feeling. While not quite the bellowing, fire-breathing beast that is
,
is a more varied, eclectic piece of work from this veteran American
hardcore
band. ~ Patrick Kennedy