RETCHED is a US metal band from Fresno, California, USA. Well, I do say band, but in fact this is a one-man project by David DerManisian, so he is in fact responsible for all the noises he’s making. RETCHED has been active since 1988 and the only release I can find that has come from them is “The Overlord Messiah” from 2016. And now it has been released again. Don’t ask me why, as the reason of this release seriously escapes me.

On the Bandcamp page of RETCHED the musician states that he has had problems with his studio gear, but that it has been sorted and he will be hitting the ground running. He makes it sound as if “The Overlord Messiah” has been rerecorded for this release, but I seriously question that when I start listening to “Black Leather And Me”, as there are gaps and interferences occurring, making it sound like I’m listening to a demo recording. That is corrected halfway through the song and thankfully doesn’t return during the rest of the music.

I mentioned the fact that RETCHED plays US Metal. I can be more specific, if you like. If you are prone to the early years of OMEN, you will certainly like the sound as well as the music. If you are a fan of the first albums of MALICE, you will love the music and find it a pity that the sound is lacking a bit of conviction. Especially “Pharao’s Curse” has that very distinctive MALICE vibe. As for the quality of the songs, musically they are more than adequate to be compared with the peers mentioned. It took me a bit of time, but as I listened to “The Overlord Messiah” more often I really got into it all. This is very good music indeed.

What makes them fall a little bit behind is the fact that the vocal lines used on “The Overlord Messiah” are very simplistic. Too predictable, really. That in itself shouldn’t be a problem, but when you have a chance to distinguish yourself in comparison to other bands, you need to have a message to send and be received by your audience. And I somehow would have liked David DerManisian to be more creative. Unless his intention was to keep “The Overlord Messiah” as straight forward as possible, without avoiding any cliches he would encounter all the way. In that case RETCHED has succeeded with flying colours.