SAINT - TIME'S END (The Originals Series)

Retroactive Records has continued to re-issue classic Christian Metal albums with their Original Series. Having started with the first three Bride albums last year they continue with the first three albums by metal titans Saint.

Time’s End is the second album for Oregon’s Saint. With a solid heavy metal sound reminiscent of Judas Priest’s British Steel era, this album was a classic when it was released back in 1986 and with this re-issue, its status as a classic is ingrained permanently.

This re-issue has been remastered by the wizard himself, J Powell at Steinhaus. Not only has the volume been increased, but the frequencies themselves through out the spectrum no longer bleed together preventing the listener from hearing the music as it was recorded.

Of particular note is how the guitar parts are much cleaner, i.e. I can actually hear the multi tracked rhythm parts in such songs In The Night or Space Cruiser for instance. The bridge section change in Space Cruiser feels fuller and stronger. It’s almost as if I can reach inside the music as opposed to it being one solid mass. (How many times did John Mahan track his parts! 3x’s?)

The songs are even more grinding than before. Steel Killer is just a sheer facemelter. Primed and Ready rocks even harder than before while the title track has more menace to it, all of the tracks have benefited from this updated studio mastering. BBE?

To me this is like when I first heard the album on vinyl and then obtained the original Pure Metal CD. The guitars are what struck me first with a crisper, biting sound. This time Richard Lynch’s bass resonates stronger, Josh Kramer’s vocal cuts through with ease. I purposefully put the original disc and this latest issue on back to back to help determine some of the differences.

Retroactive has reissued this in a tri-fold digipak. Added liner notes by bassist Richard Lynch help to make this a solid release.


Time’s End is an album that has stood the test of time and should be in your collection. Original studio engineer David Lohr (Elton John, Quarterflash) captured some great tones here and now you can enjoy his work in full. Saint fans rejoice this is a definitive reissue, grab yours NOW!

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