Production: The science of the live album has come a long way since its origin. The sound reproduction here is excellent, if a little too slick: a soundboard recording with fade-ins of crowd noise at the beginning and end of every track to give it the "live" feel does not inspire confidence as to its authenticity, but the clarity of a flattened drum layer underneath an aggressively forward dual-guitar construction explains the advantages of this approach. Glen Benton's vocals turn out better than his basswork, which holds position tucked into the lower-end of the guitars. Neither input nor mixing compensates for the directness of this induction, but the clarity holds up except instances of extreme synchronous discontinuity on all instruments.

Review: For a live album, this is a reasonable effort. Deicide showcases their rigorous technicality through songs spanning four albums with heavy emphasis on the most recent two, a failing perhaps to consider the importance of the more fundamental Deicide and its followup, the majestic and theatrical Legion. All songs are showcased in the newer digital neo-Swedish distortion unveiled on the last album with excellent instrumental precision, to the point of being identical to the work on the albums except for instances where the live material is more accurate to technicality than the original.

Tracklist:

1. When Satan Rules His World
2. Blame It On God
3. Bastard of Christ
4. Children Of The Underworld
5. Serpents of the Light
6. Dead But Dreaming
7. Slave To The Cross
8. Lunatic Of God's Creation
9. Oblivious To Evil
10. Once Upon The Cross
11. Believe The Lie
12. Trick Or Betrayed
13. Behind The Light Thou Shalt Rise
14. Deicide
15. Father Baker's
16. Dead By Dawn
17. Sacrificial Suicide

Length: 55:22

Copyright © 1998 Roadrunner

Glen Benton's normally-deep voice ranges on this recording between a chanting shout, a deep growl and a shrieking black-metal-esque howl cast in the burlesque rather than strictly confrontational nature of his other vocals. The most phenomenal performer in the band, the versatile and prolific Steve Asheim, is heard somewhat in the background playing with exuberance and a form of prescient tightness. His rhythmic exactitude urges on the power riffing and cadenced vocal polemic of the band around him, providing a firm basis to one of the most demandingly scripted and yet energetic releases to come from a metal band live.

• Deicide - Deicide (1990)

• Deicide - Legion (1992)

• Deicide - Once Upon the Cross (1995)

• Deicide - Serpents of the Light (1997)

• Deicide - When Satan Lives (1998)