Show No Mercy is the debut album by the American heavy metal band Bride

Bride (band)

Bride is a Christian heavy metal/hard rock band formed in the 80s, by brothers Dale and Troy Thompson. During the band's peak years it was known for covering a wide range of musical styles and remains popular in places like Brazil...

. It was the band's debut on the label Pure Metal Records. Less commercial than Bride's later works, the album received a mixed reception in its time, as it was somewhat more extreme and darker than many Christian releases coming out at the time and did not sell particularly well.

Recording history

After recording four demo tapes over the next three years, the brothers Dale and Troy Thompson got their change when promoter Dorn Repport arranged for Matrix to open for Daniel Band in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Thompsons were joined by guitarist Billy Sutherland and drummer Steve Gilbert to perform for a crowd of 1000. Amongs this crowd were executives from the Refuge Music Group. The band caught the label's attention when the band sold out of all the tapes it brought to the show. This led to the label contacting Matrix. Six months later the band changed its name to Bride and were signed a contract with Pure Metal Records, the Refuge Records' imprint that focused on Christian metal. Pure Metal Records was exclusively set up for Bride.

Bride's budget to record Show No Mercy was $2500. According to the band, when entering the studio in October they incorrectly believed it had to meet a release date only a month away. The album ended up rushed with the production being thin and muddy.

Overview

Musically, the album features a dark sounding heavy metal style with occasional speed metal influences. Dale Thompson represents his high-pitched and pseudo-operatic lead vocal style on the record. Troy Thompson and Steve Osborne handle all the albums guitar duties. Dale plays bass on eight tracks and Scott Hall does the other two. Stephen Rolland's drum work is more based on traditional metal drumming and lacks the double bass that would be heard on the band's following releases.

The album starts with "Forever in Darkness," a fast, rhythm guitar and bass driven song that contains an epic chorus. Followed by a minute of lead guitar playing, the song closes in a haunting way as Dale repetitiously wails "forever in darkness" with a high-pitched voice. "Follow Your Heart" also contains a chorus in which Dale represents a wider range of vocals. The song breaks for a brief guitar solo before slowing to several seconds of acoustic guitar playing. A quiet guitar interlude opens the album's title track, followed by a groovy riff. "Show No Mercy" takes a slowe pace with an acoustic guitar playing, and the lyrics deal with spiritual warfare: "I am strong and you are weak/ Jesus gives me power to defeat/ I can't be bought and/ won't sell out/ The battle cry is good and loud/ Show no mercy!" "I Will Be with You" starts after a spooky output of keyboards, acoustic guitar, and bass. The song progresses through its verses, and reaches it peak at its chorus. "Thunder in the City" combines a fast combination of piano and rhythm guitar before the song slows for its first verse. "Thunder in the City" progresses aggressively until it peaks for a chorus. "No Matter the Price" includes some Keyboard playing, and a brief drum solo as well as some melodic rhythm guitar work. The song slowly proceeds through its verses, and gains momentum until it attains an anthemic chorus backed by a powerful guitar riff. Steve Osborne displays virtuoisic guitar playing throughout a minute and a half long instrumental interlude. "The First Will Be Last" is a mid-tempo track before it evenly develops to a chorus containing a touch of vocal harmonies. The song features a passage narrated by a female voice low in the mix, followed by Osborne's sweeping lead guitar work.

Track listing

1986 Pure Metal Records original release

1. Evil That Men Do (3:37)
2. Now He Is Gone (3:49)
3. Fly Away (4:12)
4. Forever In Darkness (3:43)
5. Follow Your Heart (4:29)
6. Show No Mercy (3:36)
7. I Will Be With You (4:29)
8. Thunder In The City (5:53)
9. No Matter The Price (4:18)
10. The First Will Be Last (4:07)

1999 Millennium Eight Records re-release w/ 7 bonus-tracks

1. Evil That Men Do (3:37)
2. Now He Is Gone (3:49)
3. Fly Away (4:12)
4. Forever In Darkness (3:43)
5. Follow Your Heart (4:29)
6. Show No Mercy (3:36)
7. I Will Be With You (4:29)
8. Thunder In The City (5:53)
9. No Matter The Price (4:18)
10. The First Will Be Last (4:07)
11. I Can Fly Now (3:40)
12. What Must I Do (4:00)
13. Butterfly (3:54)
14. Missing Children (4:24)
15. Fright (3:28)
16. Look At Me Now (4:12)
17. No Matter The Price [demo] (4:12)