### Coroner: No more color

#### 16/03/12 || InquisitorGeneralis

##### Introduction

Former staffer Baalzamon666 previously covered Coroner’s classic early albums with grace, skill, and a mid-sized throbbing boner. However, he is now (un)happily married, busy hitting on dudes, and not on staff anymore so Lord K deleted his shit faster than a burning hamster exits Daemonomania’s bunghole. That leaves me to at least say something about one of the greatest technical thrash records ever fucking made, “No More Color”. Seeing Coroner live at the Maryland Deathfest (has that review been posted yet? Probably not, I’m moving a bit slow on that) was truly one of the highlights of my concert-going life. Seeing them play “No need to be human” was almost as sweet as the time I banged a chick on her period and slept in the Ragu for three months. In english this time; it was fucking incredible. Coroner are fucking incredible. “No More Color” is fucking incredible. This is an album any fan of extreme metal music needs to own.

##### Songwriting

9.5. Coroner’s sound progressed with each record; “R.I.P” is a straight-forward thrash assault while “Punishment for Decadence” throws in spastic time changes and more complicated song structures. “No More Color” retains the technicality of its predecessor but streamlines the sound and style into a more focused, polished nuggets of awesomeness. “Die by my hand” shows that Coroner did not lose their thrash mojo after “Punishment for Decadence” and things here are much faster and more frenetic than later, groovier (but still awesome) records like “Grin” and “Mental Vortex,”. In his sexcellent coverage of said Mental Vortex (staffer) Habakuk identified “Metamorphesis” as the song that summed up everything right on that record. “Read My Scars” is that flag-waver for “No More Color”. It has a sick, heavy main riff, an insane guitar solo, and superb drumming from M. Night. Marquis. Coroner are the total fucking package with only three members. Suck on that, every band with a shit-ton of people who don’t do jack shit. “D.O.A” and “Tunnel of pain” are right up there also in the hunt for techy, proggy, thrash perfection.

##### Production

7.5 I think “Mental Vortex” has the best production for a Coroner record, but “No More Color” certainly sounds good…much better than the two albums before it! Some heavier guitars and an overall cleaner sound (not too clean though) would be nice, but I’m not complaining…shit sounds good in my Accord so I’m good. Ronald McRoder’s vocals are also a bit too low, but that also is far from a fatal flaw. While production is probably the weakest aspect of this record, it still is solid enough to get the job done.

##### Guitars

10. Tommy V is the fucking man. His playing on “No More Color” is perfect; memorable, groovy riffs combined with frenetic thrashing and solos make this an amazing performance. He gets bluesy on “No need to be human”, shreds like a fatboy going through pulled pork on “Die by my hand”, and just plain dominates “Mistress of deception”. The guitar sound is gritty and heavy; a perfect fit for “No More Color”. I would like a bit more volume from the guitars, but that’s just my fucked desire for pain. I really can’t say that a single thing is wrong or not done perfect here. Hence, ze 10.

##### Bass

9. After seeing him live, I now truly appreciate Ron Roder’s role and impact on Coroner’s sound. He is rock solid as both a member of the rhythm section and manages to provide backing rhythms as well. When it comes to amazing bass players in power trios, Ronny Rodeo has to be mentioned after you throw out the big names like Bruce, Kilmeiester, and Geddy Lee.

##### Vocals

8. Ron Roder is no Brucerob HalfordMcDickenson, but his creepy, snarling vocals and sinister delivery have always served Coroner well. They are a bit too low in the mix here, but that is not a style issue. Overall, another solid performance by the Ronster.

##### Drums

10. I am giving Marquis Marky and the Funky Bunch a perfect score here because the drum performance, sound, feel, and are fucking perfect. Like Selma Hayek perfect. From spastic thrashes (“Die by my hand”) to smooth-a-riffic grooves (“No need to be human”) Marky is 1,000% on fucking point. His strongest tracks are “Mistress of deception” and the amazing “Read my scars”, but an impeccable drum performance is dealt out on each and every track with no flashy tricks like hummingbird blasts or gravity (bong) hits. The Marquis gets it down with precision kicks, awesome fills, and a feel for groove and flow that is unmatched. Hence, perfection.

##### Lyrics

8. Sometime it is a little tough to tell what exactly a Coroner song is about, but the lyrics are pretty fucking cool nonetheless. Pain, suffering, emotions, evil chicks, and our true satanic overlord ,the media, are all covered here. “No need to be human” and “Die by my hand” feature the catchiest lyrics, mostly in the choruses.

##### Logo

7. Simple but effective is the way Coroner rolls in this category. I give them credit for sticking to it after several changes in style and musical direction. It gets the job done.

##### Cover

7. Coroner have never knocked it out of the park with their covers, but this image of a sad dude holding his head in his hands seems to work well enough. The fact that there is no more color seems to have upset this guy, and he’s pussy for being sad about it. Buck up, chump this is METAL!!!!!

##### Booklet

N/A. Don’t have it.

##### Overall and Ending Rant

When I first applied to write here at GD, I send in a review of this record as my trial run. I’d review “ No More Color” every fucking day if I could, just like I would lick Katy Perry’s nipples every five minutes for rest of my fucking life…if I could. If the production was perfect, I would be tempted to drop a 10 on this bad boy. But, production and vocals holds it back slightly. Still, it is a near perfect thrash record that shows everything that could be accomplished in that genre while still maintaining heaviness and aggression. This is the record that got me into Coroner, and seeing some of these tracks live was a big part of arguably the best live musical experience (Coroner at MDF ’11 is you missed it, bitch) of my life. It is awesome that these Swiss guards are finally getting the respect and admiration they deserve. Bottom line, if you don’t have “No More Color” go fucken get it. This album is progressive thrash done right.

- Information
- Released: 1990
- Label: Noise
- Website: Coroner MySpace
- Band
- Ron “Royce” Roder: vocals, bass
- Tommy “T” Baron: guitars
- Marky “Marquis” Edelman: drums

- Tracklist
- 01. Die by My Hand
- 02. No Need to Be Human
- 03. Read My Scars
- 04. D.O.A.
- 05. Mistress of Deception
- 06. Tunnel of Pain
- 07. Why It Hurts
- 08. Last Entertainment