Bosque de madera: Root

ROOT was founded by Big Boss (voc) and Blackie (guitar) at the end of 1987 as a way to express their darkness within. Their goal was to create Black Metal inspired by classic bands like Bathory and Venom. They began rehearsing in 1987 and soon recorded their first official demo tape entitled, "Reap Of Hell." In September of 1988, ROOT played their first gig in Brno, Czech Republic. Their second demo called "War Of Rats" was released the same year, and their third and last demo "Messengers From Darkness" followed soon after. The sound created by Root in these early recordings was distinct from anything else being created at that time. This could be attributed to the fact that they, like many Czech metal bands during this time period, were completely shut out of the international metal community by their Communist government. They created black metal in the face of oppression and the threat of arrest by the secret police. Big Boss once even went to jail for playing black metal and recording music. Musically, the band's sound from this time period might be closest to thrash metal, particularly given the overall pace of the songs. However, Root rarely sounds like a traditional thrash band, opting instead for a darker, occult style with interesting and original riffs and a surprising depth. The song structure is usually stripped down and very minimal, reminiscent of more modern black metal bands like VON, ildjarn, Burzum. The vocal styles range from theatrical baritone to blackish rasps. Also surprising is the inclusion of spacey, layered, guitar noise passages amidst the more structured black metal songs. ROOT “Dema” Boxset features all of their demo tapes from the late 1980's plus bonus live recordings taken from the Death Metal Session Festival vol. 2 (Prague 1988). This boxset contains over two hours of music including the original versions of now classic ROOT songs such as “666”, “7 Èerných Jezdcù”, “Høbitov” and “Píseò Pro Satana.” Also included is an extensive 32 page 12” x 12” booklet containing ancient, unseen photos from the early days, gig flyers, newspaper clippings, interviews, fanzine articles, etc. 4 LPs in two gatefold jackets, 32 page booklet, logo T shirt, A2 poster, a custom made box with artwork by Chris Moyen, and a vellum obi with a foil-stamped logo makes this one of the most complete and visually impressive boxsets to come out of the metal underground.

ROOT - Dema - 4xLP Boxset