Exorcist - Nightmare Theatre (1986)

   Not only the attention of the restless youngsters was sparked by the slowly growing popularity of extreme music and their darker, unusual topics. Exorcist was a secret project of  the members of Virgin Steele, and by this act they showed some hidden inspiration, wich might sound surprising after their ordinary style.
   After the glory seeking adventures of heavy metal warriors, lyrics about witch burnings and invoking black masses could sound drastical, but this is what side projects are good for. Unlike side projects in general, which are often almost exactly the same like most main projects. The Exorcist was interesting, because their music fills the empty space between the sometimes evil sympathizing cheesy heavy metal bands and the directly aggressive and sick extreme ones. Like a bridge between the two aspects, because it could be same enjoyable for both audience. Classic heavy metal themes upgraded with fast and noisy solos, fast hammering, distorted vocals and occultism is a recipe that always could work, but not many bands made it. Plus it's a great concept album too, the theatrical horror feeling comes down well.