The Pilgrims – Terror of the Deadly Mantis
Rumble Records RUMBLE010 [1991]
Death House Party – Phantom Archer – Katjuschka – Don´t Fall Asleep – Celery Man – Hundrum & Humbug – Go Nuts – House Of Gallows Hill – Ghost Town – El Dorado – Big Fat Mama – Wild Man – Creep Of The Pilgrims
Remember all those Italian post-apocalyptic B-movies from the 1980s? The ones with superbly designed and very promising posters, but which in no way reflected the quality of the film; quite the opposite, in fact. The lower the film’s budget, the more the poster tried to compensate. The Pilgrims album is pretty much the same. The cover, which is a copy of the poster for Nathan Juran’s film “The Praying Mantis” (1957), evokes all those excellent B-movies from the 50s with giant insects. Our imagination runs wild… but alas, the content falls far short.
The Pilgrims are from Germany, and the band consists of Kurt Kickback on lead vocals; Heamph Headband on guitar and slap bass; Andy Hammer on drums; and Tito Turtle on bass. They play fast (too fast), have a heavy, aggressive sound (not quite Psycho, not quite Garage, but something a bit messy in between), and their singer does what he can, but by screaming. The compositions are plodding, and the two covers, the traditional Katjuschka and Wild Man by The Tamrons, don’t change much.
To give you a rough idea, they’re a notch above Captain Coma and The Punishers (but only just), because to be honest, the playing isn’t bad, it’s just not original, powerful, or well-produced. In short, it’s all rather pointless.
The Radioactive Kid
