Forgotten Gems: Rat Attack

Self Released
1983

In the early eighties there wasn't much of a metal scene to be found in Hawaii. Most clubs there catered to New Wave and Top 40 music. That didn't stop this young heavy metal band though from putting out what would be a well circulated demo. Despite the fact that the band never got beyond the demo stage this 8 track affair made the rounds among tape traders and ended up getting radio play locally. In fact it received praise in numerous metal mags (including Kerrang) and was heard in internationally markets. Now though if people do know about Rat Attack it is only because of Tom Azevedo (vocals, guitar) who ended up in another cult eighties band by the name of Hawaii (he also spent time in Liquid Mirror and Vertigo Children). While the band Hawaii is cool in their own right I just love the raw and primitive metal sound of Rat Attack. It has a real early eighties metal charm all it's own. It was bootlegged for awhile before being re-released on CD in 2008 by Old Metal Records. This is the version I have and it includes 6 bonus tracks. The bonus tracks ("Rat Attack", "Holocaust", "Lose Control", "As The World Burns", "Fast Get Away" and "Diamond Dancer") are all live and showcase a young hungry band that was playing the music they loved. In a day and age when metal has become modern and glossy it is good to have albums like this that remind of us how things were when the scene was just starting off.