Piece Of Time

''Piece of Time'' is the debut album by Florida death metal band Atheist, recorded in 1988 and released locally on August 30, 1989 through Active Records, and internationally in 1990 through Metal Blade Records.

''Piece of Time'' is the only Atheist album to feature bassist Roger Patterson, although he wrote a great deal of the basslines used on the band's sophomore album '' Unquestionable Presence''.

Background

The album's release was delayed due to Atheist's original record label Mean Machine Records going bankrupt, which forced the band to find a new label. They eventually signed with UK label Active Records, who released the album in Europe soon after. The album was not released in the US for another six months, until Metal Blade Records arranged a licensing deal with Active Records and released it to the American market in November 1990.

Composition and music

''Piece of Time'' has been described as sounding like "a death/thrash record made by players who had heard a Return to Forever record in their time." The album's tracks have been called "brain-twisting," and its style is characterized by "unpredictably shifting tempos, non-linear riffing progressions, and sheer technicality." Additionally, it has been described as "a death etalalbum as conceived from a jazz-rock aesthetic." According to Langdon Hickman of Invisible Oranges, "the guitars, bass and drums id not seem tobob along in straight time like the cliche of metal bands, nor did they indulge in bluesy syncopation like some groups; instead, they had a microrhythmic thrust, a slight swing that seemed to recall samba, bossa nova, or perhaps jazz. This was tight and rich in the string instruments but perhaps most wild and loose-limbed in Steve Flynn’s drumming. He punched, stretched and pulled the beat; but not much, not yet. That would come later." According to Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic, the album " eshesfrantic, severely discordant chords and sparse melodies with the agonized growls of frontman Kelly Shaefer." The album makes use of start-stop rhythms and turnarounds.

Reception and legacy

In 2005, ''Piece of Time'' was ranked number 402 in '' Rock Hard'' magazine's book ''The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time''. It was described by James Hinchliffe in ''Terrorizer'' as the band's "least technically accomplished release and their most lyrically immature, etit remains an exceptional work of late 80s deaththrash, crackling with an uncommon energy and creativity". Langdon Hickman of Invisible Oranges assessed, "''Piece of Time'' is a good record, but it is also clearly a compilation of the best songs of their demo period, tunes that worked well live, and a few to fill out the remaining space, which is to say that it does not have the greatest structural integrity in the world. Still, debut records for many are an extension of demo years, acting as a sampler of things to come. For Atheist, this was certainly true. It was their second album that would display them at full strength."

Retrospectively, Mike DaRonco of Allmusic wrote that ''Piece of Time's'' sophisticated songwriting and dissonant riffs "stumped most casual listeners but wowed critics with the sheer audacity of the band's death-jazz."

The album has been cited as an influence by Dark Tranquility frontman Mikael Stanne. He said, "The mind-bending songs of Atheist were just so out of this world and even if I didn’t understand the songs back then they still resonated with me."

Track listing

2002 Re-release

In 2002, EMG Entertainment re-released ''Piece of Time''. Originally, EMG Entertainment was supposed to reissue all three Atheist albums, but Kelly Shaefer aborted those plans after only ''Piece of Time'' had been reissued. This release has been digitally remastered, and features six bonus tracks.

2005 Re-release

In 2005, Relapse Records re-released ''Piece of Time'', this time along with the rest of Atheist's catalogue. This release was also digitally remastered, and features nine bonus tracks.

Personnel

Atheist

* Kelly Shaefer – vocals, rhythm guitar
* Rand Burkey – lead guitar
* Roger Patterson – bass
* Steve Flynn – drums

Production

* Scott Burns – production
* Atheist – production
* Borivoj Krgin – executive production
* Scott Burns – engineering
* Mike Fuller – mastering
* Ed Repka – cover art

Recorded at Morrisound Recording. Mastered at Fuller Sound.

References

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1989 debut albums
Atheist (band) albums
Active Records albums
Relapse Records albums
Albums produced by Scott Burns (record producer)
Albums recorded at Morrisound Recording
Albums with cover art by Ed Repka
Death metal albums