To be rendered as cult, as an elixir of the gods, an icon that past away from the world and remained as if it was a martyr, that is something else, a position for an artist to hope for. Of course it would be best if the status would have been a living legend. There are numerous European Metal bands that reached cult grandeur, and it appears that the German ASSORTED HEAP also attained the title, but we are still in a matter of opinion right? So, here I am, with the bands' sophomore album, "Mindwaves", originally released by 1MF Records, such label that provided equal chances to other underground acts as BLOOD / MEGACE / SACROSANCT. Vic Records resurrected the early 90s Death / Thrash Metal barbarians with reissue with live recordings plus that experience the band's stage presence. Such a cardinal sin.

Through the fumes of "Mindwaves" I received a pretty good picture of the other side of the extremity of German Thrash Metal, a molesting nature that isn't similar to the four icons of the Teutonic attack that has been sweeping the nation. I noticed several shared values with outer European Thrash Metal icons such as SLAYER / SEPULTURA / DEMOLITION HAMMER, bands which in that time already made a status for themselves worldwide. Even for that era, ASSORTED HEAP didn't bring anything outstanding to the table, they had some good riffs, maintained a fine groove, delivered nice lead guitar works but essentially lacked to deliver their full potential, needless to say intensity and vigor. For one thing, the album's sound is terrific, that clean and polished American driven sound excelled the listening experience.

The material attempted to be diverse, with the band trying to fuel up their assault. In overall, they manage to create a few notable songs that were probably good moshers and headbanging fun. The destructive "Coloured Eyes" and the more or less progressed "Dealing with Dilemma" are pretty impressive, though I am sure that with a charismatic vocalist, these two would have been a bomb. I also found promise in the riffs and songwriting of "Nice to Beat You" and "Holy Ground", a pair that contributed to the album's energies, which were at a struggling stage.

Generally, even with being anemic and numb, there is still something to hope for when listening to this album. As for being a cult band, I beg to differ as it turns out to be as an album for die-hard fans of the unison of Death and Thrash.