SABBAT
Mad Gods And Englishmen NOISE
UK’s unparalleled pagan thrashers get a richly rewarding history lesson
Against the odds, Sabbat were ahead of their time
AFTER 15 YEARS of British domination, by the mid-80s metal culture was almost entirely dominated by the USA. As the decade’s end loomed, UK bands were either bailing out or awkwardly slotting themselves into American paradigms. Our tiny homegrown thrash scene, for example, seemed submissively content to take its cues from San Francisco’s Bay Area. There was one honourable exception: a group of eccentric teenagers from Nottingham called Sabbat, whose theatrical presentation and paganistic themes straight away set them apart from the Metalli-clones. The distinctive venomous staccato and the poetic storytelling of frontman Martin Walkyier were a clear influence on the young Dani Filth, while current Judas Priest live guitarist and prolific producer Andy Sneap was another burgeoning talent in the ranks.