Their final record (not counting the 1988 CD compilation or Torrao demos), POSSESSED released The Eyes of Horror on this day in 1987 through Combat Records.
I don't think that we ever "moved" away from the heavier stuff, I think that we were just doing something different at the time of the "Eyes Of Horror" album. That is the coolest part about being a non-conformist is that you can play whatever the fuck you want.
The Eyes of Horror was produced by Joe Satriani, from whom Larry LaLonde (later of PRIMUS) was taking lessons at the time:
Joe and Larry became really good friends. Joe did so much to improve Larry's guitar playing that he seemed natural to do the album. It really was an honor to work with Joe Satriani and I would highly recomend it to any up and coming band. Of course Joe had done work with STEVE VAI and THE SQUARES as well as playing on his solo projects so he was well versed in the art of production.
Joe didn't influence the arrangement so much as he did Larry's solos. Larry learned most of his riffs on those songs from Joe during his lessons.
Satriani released his own second LP, Surfing with the Alien, later in the year:
The 18-minute 12" includes a re-recording of "Swing of the Axe". This song dates back to their 1985 demo and was the opening song on Metal Massacre VI (1985).
We thought that it would be cool to do a high production remake of 'Swing Of The Axe' with Joe and also it would bring some of the old school to the album. It really offsets the other music as it is such a ludicrously simple and primitive song. It was fun to just go in and make some fucking noise and a great break from the technical parts of the other 3 songs.
- Jeff Becerra / Possessed interview, Voices from the Darkside