I’m not altogether sure about this reissue lark especially of relatively new CD’s. In this case I appreciate that Spinefarm are trying to get their shit together in the UK and get their acts more exposure than first time round but myself (and many of you, I’m sure) went out of our way to track down this record first time round and now here it is again five years later albeit with a bonus track and the video for Pyre of Gods tagged on as well. 

In many ways time gives the reviewing process the benefit of perspective and time shows us that Suffer Our Pleasures has weathered the intervening years well. It’s not an all time classic but is very much falls into the realms of being a very good CD that should have a place in the average metalhead’s collection. There are some truly excellent songs on this CD, most notably the aforementioned Pyre of Gods which is typical of Tarot’s muscular approach to their music. 

Power is very much at the core of what Tarot do. There’s precious little subtlety in their work which is dominated by Marco Hietala’s slightly sinister sounding vocals whilst Janne Tolsa’s keyboards flesh out the sound and give proceedings a slightly less traditionally metal sheen. Dare one say that it makes them sound as if they are one of the many fine bands to come out of Finland? I suppose there’s a reason for that... 

The best songs like the single Undead Son and Follow the Blind have the obligatory sing along choruses that remain memorable without ever drifting towards cheesiness unlike other bands. Zachary Hietala’s guitar work is uniformly excellent without being showy and is a key reason to get acquainted with Suffer Our Pleasures. 

The allegedly Unique Selling Point(s), of this reissue  would be the video for Pyre of Gods which has long been a favourite in my household, mainly because of the song but also because the band just look so cool in it. Like all the best rock stars, Tarot do what we only wish we could do and I remember when I had long hair (or indeed hair generally) and it reminds me of the kind of things I could get away with in my youth before real life revealed its ugly head. The bonus track is a cover of practically the only Genesis song I could ever stand – Mama and Marco Hietala is far more expressive than Phil Collins could ever be and this adds to the value of the whole package.

Simon Bray