Corruption
Hellectrify Yourself

March 2005
Released: 2004, Metal Mind Productions
Rating: 4.5/5
Reviewer: Waspman

Well here’s a band that I’ve never heard of. Corruption is a Polish stoner metal band that has existed for over a decade now, and this DVD will probably be a lot of people’s first contact with them. They’ve done a ton of CDs, E.P.s and such, had a few lineup changes (including one vocalist switch) and are probably as good as any of their counterparts from North America on England. End of the history lesson. You want to learn more? Buy the DVD and check out the biography section.

The main portion of this DVD is, unsurprisingly, a full concert by the band at Metal Mind’s venue of choice – the Krezmionki TV studio in Krakow. One major difference though is that the crowd is large and very vocal throughout the show – even more so than on the Hate DVD. It’s cool to see that Corruption get such a big reaction in their home country – now if only they could bring their music to these shores! Why do I say that? Simply because Corruption kicks ass! Capturing all of the best of the stoner genre in their sound, from The Quill to Black Sabbath, Corruption pounds away with both power and joy – it’s obvious that these guys love playing metal. With fuzzy, but sharp, riffs and Rufus’ distinct howl, the band rips through 15 of their own songs, followed by a revved up version of “Paranoid” to close the show. Throughout the band is animated and entertaining, letting their distinctive personalities shine. The sound and picture quality are about as good as I’ve seen (a trait shared by most Metal Mind releases) and the whole show just rocks from start to finish.

As always, the extras on a Metal Mind Productions DVD are a little lacking, but Corruption’s are better than most. There is a three song live set in what looks like a dingy basement club somewhere in Poland, a concert-type music video for “Revenge” (where Corruption plays for a HUGE audience), a written biography of the band, discography, the requisite interview with the band, and an purely audio version of their JUNKIE promo disc from 1998 (with their previous singer who isn’t impressive at all – a good choice in switching I’d say!).

All in all, this is a hidden jewel for all fans of stoner music as Corruption is about as good as it gets, and this DVD is first-rate all the way around. This is a no-brainer folks.