Voivod ‘Angel Rat’ Sampler EP (1991)

This was another one of those lucky finds in the bargain bins – upon nabbing it, I didn’t expect that it would contain early mixes/pre-album rehearsals of ‘Angel Rat’ songs…but it surely delivered for the $2 spent.

At that time, I didn’t have the resistance to ‘Angel Rat‘ that everyone else in metal seemed to have: the cover art pretty much indicated (once again, that “spacey” motif) that VoiVod had undergone a transformation of sorts. The droll, mesmeric translations of “near”-pop with robotic mannerisms and Pink Floyd-ish vocals signaled a major shift in what anyone really could expect from thrash bands in those days.

This EP contains rough versions of “Clouds In My House”, “The Prow”, “Angel Rat”, and “Panorama”…They aren’t terribly different from the final press; but if you’re a metal completist like myself…well…they are very illuminating to hear:

VOIVOD Angel Rat sampler EP