Maniac

Just a few months after their initial full-length “Acid” in 1983, Belgium’s finest of the same name churned out a record that perfectly blended their debut’s spontaneous energy with the subtlety of a well-practised band at the height of its powers.

“Maniac” is Acid’s key work without any doubt and belongs to the canon of early extreme metal, with genuine classics such as swaggering opener ‘Max Overload,’ the satanic romp of ‘Black Car’ or the rhythmically complex closer ‘Bottoms Up’ and, of course, ‘Lucifera’ as the group’s unofficial anthem.

The Bruges-based troupe, led by drum dervish Anvill and one-of-a-kind front woman Kate de Lombaert, were able to combine the spirit of punk and rock ’n’ roll with a degree of precision that antedated thrash as we know it today, thus becoming a much-revered name within the international underground.

As such, the album is the proverbial “all killer, no filler” affair, giving the likes of Black Sabbath, Motörhead and Venom – all of which shared stages with Acid – a hard time wherever the band played live … and will do so again. Right on time for Acid’s first reunion performance at Keep It True Festival 2020 in Germany, High Roller represses “Maniac” together with its pre- and successors.

The four tracks from the 1984 EP “Black Car” serve as bonus for both the CD and LP versions, added to the latter on a seprate 7” with with picture sleeve while the album proper comes in different colours, housed in 425g cardboard with lyric insert and poster. Patrick W. Engel restored and mastered the best lossless audio sources available at Temple of Disharmony, the LPs were cut at SST Germany on Neumann machines for optimal quality on all levels.