Amebix, Arise

Arise! originally came out on LP in 1985 as Virus 46, and was the first U.K. signing by Alternative Tentacles. The album was released as a CD on A.T.U.K. about 10 years later. Arise! + 2 contains the original 9 songs plus 2 songs that were previously never released. (They are 8-track demos) AMEBIX were far ahead of their time playing slow, grinding, steamrolling, moody, dark, Venom-esque, heavy, punk rock. The Bristol U.K. based band created lengthy doomscapes with political messages sung through lacerated vocals. They disbanded in the mid-eighties after releasing two singles, an EP and two albums. Many bands, such as Sepultura, Neurosis, and Winter cite them as influences.

In the wake of Crass, the UK bore a large scene of anarcho-punk bands such as Subhumans, Rudimentary Peni, Flux Of Pink Indians, and, perhaps the best known of all, Amebix. Their seminal Arise album, originally released by Alternative Tentacles in 1985, remains one of the genre's ultimate statements, featuring elements of Black Sabbath, Motorhead and Venom infused with a healthy dose of early punk's gutter grime.