St. Madness

Vampires in the Church

Related Content

• Metal Mondays: Phoenix Needs a Heavy Metal Strip Club
  April 30, 2012
• Metal Mondays: Those Dungeons and Dragons Nerds Are More Sane Than You
  March 26, 2012
• Metal Mondays: New Music From Pantera Calls for a Home-Made Vulgar Display
  March 19, 2012
• Portland Cello Project @ Crescent Ballroom
  May 10, 2012
• Down at Marquee Theater, 9/11/11
  September 12, 2011

More About

• Patrick Flannery
• Pantera
• Divinyls

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Music Newsletter: Keep your thumb on the local music scene with music features, additional online music listings and show picks. We'll also send special ticket offers and music promotions available only to our Music Newsletter subscribers.

Privacy Policy Cancel Continue

St. Madness singer Prophet (né Patrick Flannery) won his battle with testicular cancer earlier this year, and now he's ready to rock hard again with St. Madness' newest album. Musically, St. Madness' sound has always harked back to the old-school days of heavy metal, with crunchy power chords, screaming guitar solos, and sludgy, thunderous rhythms, but several tracks on Vampires in the Churchshow a lighter side, musically and lyrically. Flannery's brush with death influenced "Ever After," a power ballad that serves as a promise to Flannery's son that the singer will watch over his progeny from the afterlife. There's another power ballad called "Arizona," which pays heavy homage to Flannery's adopted home state. The introduction to "Speaking in Tongues" even has an acoustic country feel, but once the intro's over, the band launches back into its usual brutal audio assault, with Flannery's growl wrapping itself around the speeding six-strings. The rest of the tracks — including a breakneck-speed bastardization of The Divinyls' "I Touch Myself" (which St. Madness morphed into "I Cut Myself") and a dead-on cover of Pantera's "Walk" — showcase the powerful musical prowess of St. Madness, honed by more than 13 years of recording and touring.