REVIEWS

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Society 1
Live and Raw

InZane Records

Posted: Friday, July 25, 2008
By: Ilker Yücel
Editor

Lost in a strange space between festering putridity and soaring prosperity, Society 1 is a band that has endured much in their near-decade-long career. Headed by Matt "The Lord" Zane, the band and their music have often been derided either for their derivative style of industrialized thrash metal, their connections to the adult film world, or their raucous behavior on and off stage. Of course, the criticism they've received for their copious shock rock tactics is almost ironic given Zane's past statements that musicianship was often not the goal as much as to provoke a reaction from the audiences; and Society 1 has certainly never failed to do so. This is a band that has lived and not yet died by the philosophy of sex, drugs, and rock & roll, which has become something of a rarity in modern times, so it's somewhat refreshing to see a band like Society 1 actually practicing what they preach. Now in the studio working on the Sadist Messiah record, the band releases in the meantime their first live record, exclusively through iTunes. Recorded in Los Angeles on June 6, 2006 (06/06/06), Live and Raw lives up to its name as it presents a blistering set of various songs from across the band's three past albums, though primarily focusing on their sophomore record Exit Through Fear, as well as one song from Zane's spoken word album, albeit given an instrumental backing for the show. As live recordings go, Live and Raw is more than passable in terms of sound quality; the guitars, bass, and drums hardly sound muddy, though they lack the crispness of the average modern live recording, and while the electronics are present, they are subdued to the background almost to the point of being imperceptible. However, this only emphasizes the band's live energy, focusing more on stirring the audience up into heavy metal frenzy. Still, the band proves to be a tight-knit and powerful unit as they produce a solid performance as songs like "Nothing," "Six Months," "Lord," and especially "Everyone Dies (Rock Stars Don't Count)" blast their way through the speakers with the audience letting out the loudest cheers, shouts, and screams they can muster. Strangely enough, a second version of "Everyone Dies" featuring Orgy's Jay Gordon as a guest vocalist is also present, and "Slacker Jesus" is for some reason reduced to a mere minute's worth (although this could simply be an error in the CD this writer was given). At the absolute least, Live and Raw fulfills its purpose in both satiating the fan's need for a new release from Society 1, and in demonstrating the band's prowess on the stage, blasting out some raw and grating metal/industrial. Love 'em or hate 'em, one thing's for sure: Society 1 will not allow you to ignore them.