Fear and Bullets

by Cory Blackwood
staff editor

Caliber Comics published the first issue of "The Crow" in 1989. "The Crow" was the brainchild of James O'Barr and a product that would later evolve into two movies, a short-lived television series, two soundtracks, and countless spin-off comics.

In 1989 "The Crow" was just a black and white comic book about deadly revenge. Shortly after the publication of the first issue, James O'Barr, writer, artist, and part-time musician befriended fellow comic-book entrepreneur and musician John Bergin. Bergin read the first issue of "The Crow" and decided he was going to score the comic book, a new idea in the industry.

By 1990, the first four issues of "The Crow" were available, and the recording of the soundtrack was finished but had no packaging or design. In 1991 James O'Barr went to Tundra publishing and had the first four issues reprinted along with the fifth and final installment in the series. Once a graphic novel was completed and ready, the CD was set to come with the book, where the story and sound would come together.

The graphic novel did not come out until 1994, shortly before the release of the movie and was limited to a minuscule print run. For the majority of Crow fans, the CD (now under the band name Trust Obey) was little more than a rumor. Readers couldn't get enough of the book or the movie, but no one was familiar with the lyrics of James O'Barr.

The Trust Obey album, "Fear and Bullets" (the same name as a chapter in "The Crow" series) is only now widely available. The music of Trust Obey is written by John Bergin, and the lyrics are written by James O'Barr and John Bergin. Some lyrics are lifted verbatim from the comic book, giving an eerily familiar feel to the album to anyone who has read the book, even on the first listen.

Much of the music is very industrial (i.e. Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, KMFDM) in nature, with screaming guitars, wailing keyboards, and rapid-fire percussion. Oddest of all is the realization that the music on "Fear and Bullets" is now 10 years old, but sounds like albums that weren't out until the mid to late '90s.

"Fear and Bullets" is a must-buy for any industrial-music fan, an absolute necessity for fans of "The Crow," and a crowd-pleaser for patrons of hard music in general. Sadly enough, the spectrum of "Fear and Bullets" does not exceed far beyond these demographics. For those who own too many black T-shirts, however, "Fear and Bullets" is a true gem that belongs in any dark collection.