SUDDEN DARKNESS / ECONOMIST
THE COMPLETE HISTORY 1985-1995

Some careers take place posthumously. Sudden Darkness from Frankenthal/Ludwigshafen were a local heavy rock band who, through line-up changes, gradually shifted towards speed and thrash – mirroring the development of the metal scene in Germany from the mid-eighties onwards. They secured a record deal with GAMA (Stormwitch, Gravestone, Paul DiAnno, Tokyo Blade...), recorded their debut 'Fear Of Reality' in Stuttgart, but after 12 test pressings, nothing further came from GAMA. Today, this LP is one of the most sought-after and expensive rarities in German metal and has been sold twice on Discogs for around 1,000 euros. The band's entire catalogue has been compiled, restored and remastered by Golden Core on a double CD, complete with a comprehensive, lavish booklet. The story continued, albeit under the name Economist. With a melodic vocalist and a far more creative guitarist, the band shifted their style to a unique take on heavy power metal. Economist were unique and today fall into the category of 'no other band sounds like them'. Their debut album, *New Built Ghetto Status*, was licensed by Massacre Records and released on CD in 1994. Unfortunately, Economist were stylistically misrepresented in the promotional material; furthermore, there was a lack of touring and sufficient promotion. Despite good sales, Massacre showed no interest in the second, already completed album 'Mind Movies', which consequently remained unreleased. This renewed frustration, following the problems with GAMA, led to the band's definitive break-up in 1995. Years later, some of the musicians involved have become known through other bands. The collector's scene became aware of the rare test pressings, and the price of the self-pressed Economist CD (prior to the Massacre licence) rose. Not only were Sudden Darkness posthumously rewarded with a double CD, but so were Economist. Here, too, one can find every track the creative group ever recorded. That's history!