Review by Greg on February 3, 2024.

Ah, the times when the energy of passion could fuel every means of transport. After the disappointing sales of The Final Separation, a label change and a local interest in metal which struggled to take off, Bulldozer took the bare minimum of time to rearrange their weapons and struck again with full force. Another year, another album: 1987 saw the release of IX, and things would never be the same.

IX is the logical conclusion of the maturational process carried through Bulldozer's first two albums: the sound has become almost pure thrash metal with an evil twist, and the typical Venom/Motörhead sound is by now largely abandoned. The title is still in typical Bulldozer fashion: quoting AC Wild, it was a reference to the ninth circle of Dante's Inferno, "the circle of treachery, where Lucifer, the rebel angel, stands together with Judas. The betrayers of the faith". However, such a complete evolution in style probably couldn't have been possible without the hiring of a new drummer. "Don" Andras left with a great performance on The Final Separation, but his substitute, Roberto Cabrini aka Rob "Klister", turned out to be the crucial factor for the overall IX sound: less fill-happy, but faster, and straight to the point.

This time, indeed, the title-track placed at the beginning wastes no time to sharpen the knives and let the listener know that Bulldozer are back, angrier, faster and more violent than ever. AC Wild's deranged voice is still fully recognizable, and his hatred towards religion fuels every second of this incredible opener, before Panigada decides it's time to slay his guitar for the first time in a long series and deliver a remarkable solo. The amount of sheer energy of this track alone can only be matched by how little one could expect Bulldozer to sound like this. Sure, someone still misses their brand of Venom-meets-Motörhead blackened speed metal which had been almost perfected on The Final Separation and now forsaken; but, as I said before, I do believe THIS is the music AC Wild intended to make, and the choice of the little experienced (in metal) label Discomagic helped. Also the production, though raw, is finally decent - take this, Roadrunner!

After the completely mid-paced 'Desert!', owned by a superb Panigada, the album begins to suffer a bit from the Reign in Blood syndrome, and tracks become shorter and faster as time goes. Nothing shocking considering that said album came to life an year earlier. However the choruses are often slower and can remain in your head after a while. So, as long as the fillers are good, nothing to worry about. For example, 'Rob "Klister"' is another song Bulldozer dedicated to their drummer, but this time it's a musically serious affair just like its neighbors, and it's rather one of the most intense thrashers they have ever written. Also, 'No-Way' starts essentially with a rehash of 'Rob "Klister"''s riff, and we can expect another speed-fest which wipes out mercilessly the needed mid-tempo break of 'The Derby', dedicated to soccer rivalry in their Milan. Yes, riffs are delicious, lethal and original like never before, yet it's thanks to songs like 'Desert!' and 'The Derby' that the members can showcase their abilities in a different way, breaking the constant barrage of high-speed attacks. Also the closer 'The Vision Never Fades' confirms our suspects that there are really no bad songs on here. IX really showed Bulldozer at their most inspired moment so far, no matter the tempo.

Oh, make sure you don't forget one of the band's hymns, the ode to pornstar and politician Ilona Staller 'Ilona the Very Best', because... well, it will be simply unforgettable from the first time you hear it. So, truth be told, one simply cannot go wrong with this album, as its running time of 31 minutes invites you to listen to the entire thing in one sit, and there are no songs longer than 5 minutes like before. It's a truly intense experience, maybe it's not a perfect album (but then, which one is?), but it's one of the best I've ever heard. The moment Bulldozer finally found their consecration... they would however strike only one more effort before putting a halt to their career. A sad ending, but the last demonstration that the Italian crew couldn't be further from being a one-album wonder...

Rating: 8.9 out of 10

Review by Felix on November 16, 2020.

Bulldozer’s third album, confusingly titled IX, was released in 1987, one year after The Final Separation and one year before Neurodeliri. Today we are happy that some bands need less than five years for a new full-length, but that’s another (dissatisfying) story. Yet in all honesty, the stories that Bulldozer tell on IX are not very appetizing as well. To glorify the possibility of putting a finger deeply in the ass of a porno slut or to praise the safer sex alternative called masturbation (“you won’t get a.i.d.s.”) imply a sexual frustration of gigantic dimensions. Of course, masturbation is sex with a person I really love, but this fact alone does not justify such totally idiotic lyrics. Not to mention 'Rob ‘Klister’'. Does anybody think that this kind of poetry is entertaining?

Let’s turn quickly to the music itself. Well, first of all, I am sorry to inform you that the production is more or less on a par with the lyrics. It has the power of a dick after two orgasms within the last 30 minutes. (I beg your pardon. Bulldozer’s lyrics have confused me.) Maybe due to a small budget, the guitars sound pretty thin and the snare drum has no impact as well. Thus, the voice of AC Wild is the most characteristic element and this dude cannot hide his biggest inspiration from time to time. Especially at the beginning of 'The Derby' he sounds like his venomous idol Cronos. By the way, this is another song with very strange lines that combine “Holocaust” with “Hooligans”. Does this form of lyricism make sense? Of course, not at all – but I wanted to write about the music.

IX offers ix pieces, but don’t expect any killer among them. The opening title track is fast and pretty expressionless, 'The Derby' seems to be written within five minutes in view of its simple football staccato and even the acceptable riffing of 'Desert!' has to face the enemy within when it comes to the moronic guitar line that appears for the first time after 86 seconds. 'Ilona the Very Best' has more than a modicum of momentum, but I guess this was the initial impulse that started the evolution which ended in “Yum Yum” and so I cannot enjoy the track whole-heartedly. Generally speaking, Bulldozer presents another portion of their speed/thrash cocktail, while the sporadic horror elements of the debut do not re-occur. The band does not lack energy and filth, but it is also true that their will to make noise was always bigger than their compositional skills. Songs like 'Heaven’s Jail' have a solid riff foundation, but the Italians fail to make a great track out of it and the stupid fade-out at the end of song illustrates the lack of convincing ideas – and you will find more fade-outs here.

The German metal media of the eighties hated Bulldozer and this alone was reason enough for me to like the trio. But juvenile opposition aside, I cannot deny that the evolution of the band between 1985 and 1987 was fairly questionable. IX is an under-average output of dirty metal, not totally bad, but with a significant lack of coherent song structures and creative substance. The playtime of less than 32 minutes says a lot in this respect. Maybe the dudes still had a finger or another part of the body in a natural orifice of a woman as they began to write this album. This would explain a lot.

Rating: 5.7 out of 10