One of the earliest death metal bands (and first to hail from Poland) is
Vader. Although their debut album,
The Ultimate Incantation, didn't reach U.S. soil until 1990,
Vader had been riffin' and growlin' in their native land since 1986. One of their earliest releases was
Sothis, which has been in and out of print since its original release in 1994. Come 1998, the folks at Metal Mind Records dusted off the seven-track set and gave it a proper reissue. As with all
Vader albums, you know what you're in for as soon as the little laser light hits the shiny disc -- metronome-perfect drum work, horror movie-worthy lyrics, etc. And as evidenced by such tracks as the title track and "Vision and Voice,"
Sothis is certainly no different. Lastly,
Vader prove once and for all that
Black Sabbath have influenced just about every heavy metal band since 1970, as they hand in an album-closing cover of "Black Sabbath."