CHUPACABRAS

Looking at the reviews here, it is clear that this album didn't make many waves on progarchives before the release of Doomsday Afternoon, with only two reviews having been written before the release of Phideaux's most famous and arguably best release yet.

This is somewhat of a shame, for this truly is a monstrous album (okay, that's partially a pun on the title of the album - Chupacabras - named after the goat-blood-sucking monster). It's actually pretty much made of left-over bits and pieces (the title track, Chupacabras, was originally intended for Fiendish, and the three track Ruffian suite was originally intended for Ghost Story) that didn't fit on the album that they were intended for.

There is no denying that the title track is the central piece of the album, at almost 21 minutes long taking up nearly half of the 49 minute disc. The characters in this one seem to be a Chupacabra, a shepherdess, and, well goats. It is ultimately a light-hearted track given that it's about a goat-blood-sucking monster, but that isn't really a problem here. Otherwise, the folksy/country-sy "Get My Goat" section (including goat sound effects) would sound quite out of place.

The Ruffian suite, originally intended for Ghost story and featuring the tracks Ruffian on the Stairs/Sunburnt/Return of the Ruffian, doesn't sound like anything else I have heard from Phideaux to date. It opens with fast and very heavy (although not metallic) guitars, which are reprised near the end, and it even features the only swearing I've heard in my exploration of Phideaux's music to date. Regardless, the suite features catchy moments and some rather good lyrics and themes.

This doesn't feel like it is an album made up of leftovers. If it were, one would expect the album to have a fair amount of filler, tracks that weren't used before for good reason. But really, there are no tracks on this album that match this description. Every track is pretty dang good. Beyond the two suites, both Party (which is somewhat catchy and eerie) and Titan (a very emotional piece) are of equal quality, if not quite as wide in breadth.

Ultimately, yet another great piece of music by the very talented Phideaux.