one of that death metal pearls of the early nineties released from the rich back catalogue of earache records. when i browsed the earache store after i purchased the bolt thrower re-press for "the IVth crusade", i came across a pre-order for "the key" re-issue on white vinyl. the label started a pretty cool re-issue campaign. they start out with a pre-pre-order and when a certain target is reached (200 sold copies), the label would start the manufacturing process.
the first 200 copies will come on clear vinyl and are the limited colour-way of the pressing. when they are sold, earache acknowledges the demand and presses another 800 copies for retail (300 white and 500 black vinyl copies). when i saw the white vinyl still in stock at the earache webshop, it was an offer too tempting to pass on it. the availability and the great album concept of "the key" were convincing enough. the lyrical concept is about a cyborg that travels back in time to destroy christianity and build a modern surveillance state.
musically nocturnus' debut was an outstanding piece of death metal at the time of release in 1990. the death metal genre was going strong but the level of progressivity and especially the use of keyboards were unusual for its time. this re-press stays pretty true to the original release. the only difference is the change from double sided insert to printed dust sleeve with the same layout. 300 copies pressed on this nice white vinyl. only the cover colours came out a bit too dark in my opinion. earache records. 1990/2018.
