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Trouble is an American doom metal band noted for their slow (by 1980s standards), heavy albums such as their 1984 debut, Trouble (later Psalm 9), The Skull (1985), and others. Other than their influence on the just-emerging subgenre, they are also known as being one of the better, more prominent Christian metal bands, now or then. Many critics disagreed that they were Christian because use of the word "Fuck" in "Bastards Will Pay" (it should be noted that the band does not consider themselves as a Christian act). Trouble's first record label, Metal Blade Records, marketed the band as "White Metal" (in contrast to the rising black metal movement), although the band was not particularly fond of that tag.
Their sound is mid-tempo compared to Funeral Doom bands like Skepticism or Esoteric or even Doom-Death like My Dying Bride, but was some of the slowest metal being written at a time when NWOBHM and then thrash metal bands were playing faster and faster; Trouble songs generally move about as fast as a slower Black Sabbath song, like "Iron Man," "Lord of this World" and "Into the Void," but while the tempo had been done before, the sound is all their own. While most slow songs by Iron Maiden or Saxon tend to border on ballads, all of tracks on The Skull are as heavy as they are slow, with the distinctive fuzzy distortion and melodic, integral (rather than superfluous or ostentatious) guitar solos that are all their own.
No band deserves as much credit for keeping the gospel of classic Black Sabbath-derived heavy metal (not to mention bell-bottoms) alive during the '80s as Chicago's Trouble. And while the group's legend never exceeded cult status, their work would serve as inspiration for an entire generation of '90s bands in the thriving underground doom/stoner metal scene.
Biography
Trouble was formed in 1979 by vocalist Eric Wagner, guitarists Bruce Franklin and Rick Wartell, bassist Sean McAllister, and drummer Jeff Olson. Drawing deeply from Black Sabbath for inspiration (with occasional nods to the psychedelic sounds of the late '60s thrown in for good measure), the band forged an uncompromising brand of classic metal all their own, made more unique by their gloomy down-tuned riffs and spiritual, often openly religious lyrics, which quickly earned them the dubious "white metal" tag.
The band toured throughout the Midwest during the early '80s before signing with Metal Blade Records and releasing their amazingly mature eponymous debut (later referred to as Psalm 9) in 1984. The equally impressive (and even more depressing) The Skull followed in 1985 and reflected singer Wagner's struggles with substance abuse as well as the growing turmoil within the group. This led to the replacement of bassist McAllister with Ron Holzner and the departure of drummer Olson, who, as legend has it, had decided to become a preacher. Dennis Lesch was drafted as his replacement for 1987's Run to the Light.
A three year haitis followed. Luckily, just when it seemed that Trouble's fortunes had run out, the band was snapped up by Rick Rubin's visionary Def American Records for whom they recorded another self-titled album (Trouble) in 1990 with Rubin in the producer's chair. More experimental than previous efforts, the album (featuring new drummer Barry Stern) expanded upon the group's tentative psychedelic notions of the past while abandoning none of their thunderous power chords.
Encouraged by a euphoric response from the media, the revitalized group embarked on a year-long tour, expanded their fan base considerably, and returned to the studio with every intention of making their next album the one that would push them over the edge. Sure enough, 1992's stunning Manic Frustration realized all their creative ambitions, delving even deeper into Beatlesque psychedelia and featuring some of Trouble's most aggressive, energetic performances ever. But when the album still failed to connect with a wider audience (due perhaps to the grunge revolution that made metal a bad word in 1992), it seemed that Trouble had apparently missed their last window of opportunity.
Ultimately dropped by their record company (that by now was experiencing financial problems of their own), the band issued 1995's Plastic Green Head through the Music for Nations label. But despite offering consistently strong songwriting that harkened back to their doom roots, and the return of founding drummer Olson, the album's impact was noticeably dulled by a badly concealed weariness. Vocalist Eric Wagner would quit the band soon after (going on to form Lid).
Though Trouble had been on hiatus ever since, rumors of an eventual re-formation persisted. On January 26th of 2002 the event that all Trouble fans worldwide had waited for finally happened. The band took the stage in Chicago to once again pound the planet with their particular brand of doom. Eric, Bruce, Rick, Ron and original Drummer Jeff Olsen took to the stage to perform a short blistering set that announced to the world that they were back. Since then the band has been out and about in the greater Chicagoland area playing local one off gigs and headlinning various metal festivals while working on their upcoming album.
In February 2004, Dave Grohl of Nirvana and Foo Fighters fame put together a tribute to his metal roots by assembling a who's who of metal with his Probot project. The disc featured various vocalists from Dave's favourite metal bands singing on tunes that he recoded the music for. Eric sang on the track "My Tortured Soul". Last year bass player Ron left the band and was replaced by Chuck Robinson. In 2006, tragedy befell the Trouble camp when former drummer Barry Stern passed away.
Rumor's on various Trouble fansites talk of a yet to be released Unplugged album and an album containing new Trouble originals Called Simple Mind Condition.
Discography
Studio releases
| Album Cover | Year of Release | Title | Label |
 |
1984 | Psalm 9 (formerly 'Trouble') | Metal Blade |
 |
1985 | The Skull | Metal Blade |
| 1987 | Run to the Light | Metal Blade | |
 |
1990 | Trouble | Def American |
 |
1992 | Manic Frustration | Def American |
 |
1995 | Plastic Green Head | Century Media |
 |
2007 | Simple Mind Condition | Century Media |
Compilation and live releases
- One for the Road (1994, demo of Plastic Green Head)
- Demos & Rarities 1980 - 95 (2005, compilation)
DVDs
- Live in Stockholm (2006)
External links
- Official Trouble website
- Trouble discography at MusicBrainz
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- Template:Metallum