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I Hear Black
Studio album by Overkill
Released	March 9, 1993 (1993-03-09)
Recorded	1992
Studio	Pyramid (Ithaca, New York)
Genre	Groove metal thrash metal
Length	51:38
Label	Atlantic
Producer	Alex Perialas, Overkill
Overkill chronology
Horrorscope (1991) I Hear Black (1993) W.F.O. (1994)

I Hear Black is the sixth studio album by American thrash metal band Overkill, released on March 9, 1993, by Atlantic Records. It was the band's first to feature drummer Tim Mallare.

Overview

I Hear Black was produced by Alex Perialas, who had previously worked with Overkill in the late 1980s, and was the band's first album released directly through Atlantic Records, whereas their previous albums were co-released by Megaforce.

The album once again presented a change in style for the band, from the up-tempo thrash of Horrorscope to a more groove metal style. The result was a metal album which had a much darker feel to it, incorporating Black Sabbath-influenced blues, doom and stoner tones, although the album retained many of their traditional thrash metal roots. The change of style from thrash to groove metal can be seen as a genesis of the experimentation that would continue into most of Overkill's 1990s and 2000s output.

The European leg of the 1993 "World of Hurt Tour" featured Savatage as a support act. A music video was made for the track "Spiritual Void" but it saw very little airplay due to the decline of metal in the mainstream. This album and W.F.O. were re-released on Wounded Bird Records in 2005.

At the beginning of the supporting tour the band played eight songs from the album live. However, the songs were quickly dropped from the setlist, and none have been performed since 2002.

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Rock Hard	7.5/10

AllMusic's Jason Anderson gave the album a positive review, awarding it three stars out of five and stating, "After releasing perhaps the finest, most musical recording of the band's already considerable thrash metal career in 1991, Overkill followed up Horrorscope in 1993 with I Hear Black, a slightly more dense, ambitious recording, and the band's first for Atlantic Records." Anderson then added, "While not an important release for its genre or even for the band, Overkill's I Hear Black is still a respectable post-thrash offering."

I Hear Black was one of Overkill's most successful albums to date, as it got their fourth-highest chart position (behind three of their 2010s albums The Electric Age, White Devil Armory and The Grinding Wheel), debuting at #122 on the Billboard 200 charts. The album also gave Overkill their highest ever chart position on the Billboard Heatseekers, peaking at number three.

Track listing

• All tracks written by Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and D.D. Verni except where noted.

Usage

• "World of Hurt" was featured as an unlockable song on the heavy metal-themed video game Brütal Legend.

Personnel

• Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth – lead vocals
• D.D. Verni – bass, backing vocals
• Merritt Gant – guitars, backing vocals
• Rob Cannavino – guitars, backing vocals
• Tim Mallare – drums

Additional personnel

• Produced by Alex Perialas and Overkill
• Engineered by Rob Hunter and Alex Perialas
• Mastered by Tom Coyne at Hit Factory

Charts

References

1. "Overkill - I Hear Black - Encyclopaedia Metallum". The Metal Archives. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
2. "12 Underrated 90's Hard Rock and Metal Albums". Worship Metal. 11 August 2015. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
3. "Ranking OVERKILL: The Studio Albums – Worst To First". Metal Nation. 22 February 2019. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
4. "Heavy Metal Culture — OVERKILL – 'I Hear Black' (1993) Album Review". Heavy Metal Culture. 30 January 2021. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
5. "Overkill Tour Statistics - songs played total". setlist.fm. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
6. ^ "I Hear Black - Overkill". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-03-02.
7. Kühnemund, Götz (1993). "Review Album: Overkill – Horrorscope review". Rock Hard (in German). No. 71. Retrieved 2017-01-04.
8. "Overkill - Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2015-10-09. Retrieved 2017-01-04.
9. "I Hear Black - Overkill : Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2016-03-14. Retrieved 2017-01-04.
10. "BMI: Songwriter/Composer: VERNI CARLO". Repertoire.bmi.com. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
11. Durmac, Turk (November 20, 2013). "The Only Overkill Interview You Ever Need To Read". Invisible Oranges. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
12. "Brutal Legend Soundtrack Revealed [Update] - IGN". M.ign.com. 8 August 2009. Retrieved 2013-06-26.
13. "Overkill Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
14. "Overkill Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.

External links

• Official OVERKILL Site

• Overkill (band) albums
• Albums produced by Alex Perialas
• 1993 albums
• Atlantic Records albums
• Thrash metal albums