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Chronicles of Chaos Issue 033
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Third Anniversary Mega-Issue
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, September 1, 1998, Issue #33
http://www.interlog.com/~ginof/coc.html
Editor-in-Chief: Gino Filicetti <mailto:ginof@interlog.com>
Coordinator: Adrian Bromley <mailto:energizr@interlog.com>
Contributor/Copy Editor: Pedro Azevedo <mailto:ei94048@tom.fe.up.pt>
Assistant Editor: John Weathers <mailto:grief@bellsouth.net>
Contributor: Alain M. Gaudrault <mailto:alain@gaudrault.net>
Contributor: Brian Meloon <mailto:bmeloon@math.cornell.edu>
Contributor: Adam Wasylyk <mailto:macabre@interlog.com>
Contributor: Paul Schwarz <mailto:saul@mcmail.com>
Mailing List provided by: The University of Colorado at Boulder
NOTE: For more Chronicles of Chaos information, check out the
'Details' section at the end of this issue.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Issue #33 Contents, 9/1/98
--------------------------
* Editorial
* Loud Letters
* Deadly Dialogues
-- Anthrax: Still a Threat
-- Arch Enemy: Unearthing the Demons Within
-- Crowbar: From Behind the Black Horizon
-- Dirty Deeds: Doing Dirt Cheap
-- Evemaster: Finnish Fire
-- Falkenbach: The Vikings' True Voice
-- Iced Earth: Glaciers Are Us
-- Sculpture: A Sculpture of Sorrow
-- Therion: Eloquent Emotions
-- Unholy: Tears From the Thousand Lakes
* Album Asylum
-- A Canorous Quintet - _The Only Pure Hate_
-- Abigail - _Sonnets_
-- Admortem - _Ad Extremum Supplicium_
-- Aeternus - _... And So the Night Became_
-- Alastis - _Revenge_
-- Altar - _Provoke_
-- Am I Blood - _Agitation_
-- ... And Oceans - _The Dynamic Gallery of Thoughts_
-- Angel Corpse - _Exterminate_
-- Aube - _Pages From the Book_
-- Behemoth - _Pandemonic Incantations_
-- Benediction - _Grind Bastard_
-- Beseech - _... From a Bleeding Heart_
-- Various - _Bestial Sampler: 1997-1998_
-- Calamus - _The Road Trax_
-- Various - _Call on the Dark II_
-- Callendish Circle - _Escape_
-- Cannibal Corpse - _Gallery of Suicide_
-- Charon - _Sorrowburn_
-- Christ Agony - _Trilogy_
-- Cranium - _Speed Metal Slaughter_
-- Crimson Moon - _To Embrace the Vampyric Blood_
-- Crowbar - _Odd Fellows Rest_
-- Cynical Smile - _Stupas_
-- Dawnbringer - _Unbleed_
-- Death - _The Sound of Perseverance_
-- Desekrator - _Metal For Demons_
-- Dies Irae - _Gargoyles_
-- Explorer - _ColdBlackUgly_
-- Various - _Fiesta Comes Alive!_
-- Gnosis - _Tribal Metal_
-- Gorgoroth - _Destroyer (About How to Philosophize With a Hammer)_
-- Gorguts - _Obscura_
-- Grand Belial's Key - _Mocking the Philanthropist_
-- Grimegod - _The Darkside (Pain in Another Dimension)_
-- Hateplow - _Everybody Dies_
-- Various - _High Radiation 4_
-- In Battle - _The Rage of the Northmen_
-- Incantation - _Diabolical Conquest_
-- Infernal Majesty - _Unholier Than Thou_
-- Kazumoto Endo / Incapacitants - <split>
-- Krabathor - _Orthodox_
-- Let Me Dream - _Medley Rain_
-- Lost Souls - _Fracture_
-- Masonna - _Frequency LSD_
-- Metalucifer - _Heavy Metal Drill_
-- Napalm Death - _Bootlegged in Japan_
-- Nifelheim - _Devil's Force_
-- Nunslaughter / Dekapitator - _Blood on Steel_ (Split 7")
-- Ophthalamia - _A Long Journey_
-- Pain Jerk - _Greater Curvature_
-- Primordial - _A Journey's End_
-- Rotten Sound - _Under Pressure_
-- Ruination - _Visionary Breed_
-- Sadus - _Elements of Anger_
-- Sentenced - _Frozen_
-- Sepultura - _Against_
-- Seventh Avenue - _Southgate_
-- Shellyz Raven - _Recrucify_
-- :Slogun: - _The Pleasures of Death_
-- Various - _Statements of Intent_
-- The Ancients Rebirth - _Damnated Hell's Arrival_
-- The Bloodcult - _Night's Plutonian Shore_
-- Voivod - _Kronik_
-- Vondur - _The Galactic Rock n' Roll Empire_
-- Warhorse - _Warhorse_
-- Within Temptation - _The Dance_
* New Noise
-- Cumdeo - _My Angel_
-- Funeral God - _Demo 1_
-- Hate Eternal - <untitled>
-- Hirilorn - _A Hymn to the Ancient Souls_
-- Iron Rainbow - _Never Settle for Less Than Metal_
-- Oberon - <untitled>
-- Raggedy Aneurysm - _Milk_
-- Suicide Culture - _Suicide Culture_
-- Tendonitis - <untitled>
-- Thornspawn - _Consecration of Evil Flesh_
* Chaotic Concerts
-- The Twelfth Hour Has Struck! The Milwaukee Metalfest XII
-- True Brutality Under Extreme Conditions: Brutal Truth in Toronto
-- Megalomaniacal Monsters: Monster Magnet plays Toronto
-- Milwaukee, Eat Your Heart Out: The London International Deathfest
-- A Meeting of Deities: Morbid Angel with Blood of Christ
-- Mad Max Lives: Soulfly with Cold
-- CD Release Bonanza: Bughouse, Lifebleed, Inertia, and Lethargy
-- Portuguese Radiation: _High Radiation 4_ Release Party
* What We Have Cranked
* Details
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by: Gino Filicetti
After long last, our third anniversary issue is now upon you,
constant reader. As you've noticed, it's quite a hefty beast; do
yourself a favour and don't try tackling it all in one seating. ;-)
It saddens me to report that yet another one of our writers has
parted ways with CoC. The great Andrew Lewandowski (not to be
confused with Lewinski) has called it quits. Andrew has cited the
lack of a vibrant and innovative scene to be his main reason for
leaving. No matter what, we all wish him all the best in his future
endeavors.
In this issue you will find the debut of a few new writers to
the CoC fold. First we have Gabriel Sanchez from Grand Rapids, who
will be mainly covering the ever underrated noise scene as well as a
few dabblings from elsewhere. We also have Aaron McKay, who has
joined us from the evilest state known to man, Iowa. Some of you may
recognize Iowa as being the (former) home of the great Steven
Hoeltzel. Another newcomer is Ryan Kriste from South Africa, who some
of you may recognize from his own zine: The Crusader. And finally,
we've got Matthias Noll, straight from good ol' Deutschland, who will
be doing concert reviews for us, now and again
As you know, we had to delay this issue for reasons
uncontrollable to us, but I'm glad that so many of you wrote to tell
me not to sweat it. CoC #33 is our largest issue EVER. Over 260k of
metallic mayhem for all of you to ponder. That's almost 40k more than
our last anniversary issue. So, now here's your reward for your
patience. Ladies and gentlemen... Chronicles of Chaos #33.
NOTE: We'd like to apologize for an error that appeared in CoC #32
and make a correction at this time. Apparently we misspelled the name
of one of the bands we reviewed. Namely "Children of Naami" should
have been "Children of Maani". Our apologies to Children of Maani,
please excuse our grievous error.
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M MMMMMMMM 88
M MMMMMMMM .d8888b. dP dP .d888b88
M MMMMMMMM 88' `88 88 88 88' `88
M MMMMMMMM 88. .88 88. .88 88. .88
M M `88888P' `88888P' `88888P8
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M MMMMMMMM .d8888b. d8888P d8888P .d8888b. 88d888b. .d8888b.
M MMMMMMMM 88ooood8 88 88 88ooood8 88' `88 Y8ooooo.
M MMMMMMMM 88. ... 88 88 88. ... 88 88
M M `88888P' dP dP `88888P' dP `88888P'
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This is the column where we print those lovely letters our readers
decide so graciously to write us. Whether they be positive, negative,
ignorant or just plain spelled wrong, you can rest assured that
they'll be here in their original form. If you'd like to see your own
letter here, e-mail it to <mailto:ginof@interlog.com> and enter
'Attention Loud Letters' in the subject field. Hopefully all letters
received will be featured in upcoming issues of Chronicles of Chaos.
Date: Sun, 5 Jul 1998
From: Alex <WOLLENA@wwg3.uovs.ac.za>
Subject: Chronicles Of Chaos & other tidbits
Hail from South Africa
Let me start by congratulating you on an excellent e-zine. I try to
get hold of every issue, but since I don't have internet at my home
yet, this is sometimes quite difficult. It's definately worth it
though, because I enjoy all the interviews, articles and reviews
tremendously.
I would just take this oppurtunity to say as well that SAMAEL is the
greatest band in the history of mankind. I have been following their
progression since Ceremony of Opposites up to their latest EP Exodus
and they just keep getting better and better. And all those Black
Metal purists that say Samael sold out, can fuck off! They are the
musical gods of our time!!
Date: Sat, 11 Jul 1998
From: "Ryan Kriste" <lunatic@smartnet.co.za>
Subject: ATT: Loud Letter's
Hail CoC
Thanks for a very informative 'zine. It's always interesting for me
to recieve!
My grudge is not with CoC but with Cradle of Filth. I have been a fan
since the release of "Principles...", and have really enjoyed the
music, despite all the bad press they have recieved. Dani's remarks
about a new album later this year were very interesting, a Maiden
cover (Fuck yes), a Manowar cover (Hail the Gods), a hardcore techno
track (???????). I have just lost mountains of respect for C.o.F, is
there any one out there, except for me, that believes that C.o.F
should be burnt at the stake for a blasphemous idea like that? If
they go through with it then they are truly Heretics.
Why do METAL bands feel they should do techno songs, didn't most of
us start listening to Metal to escape that sort of shit? If you share
in these beliefs write to me so I can tell you more about my 'zine
"The Crusader".
METAL IS LIFE
RYAN
<Lunatic>
Date: Fri, 10 Jul 1998
From: Matthew Jonathan Harper <llorenth@mindspring.com>
Subject: Correction for the latest issue of Chronicles of Chaos
Hi, just a very small remark. The reviewer for Virgin Steele said
that the band was from Canada. This isn't true at all. The band are
from New York, from the exact same area that Manowar are from. Thanks
for such a cool 'zine! Now and Forever, lmjh NP: Fredrik Thordendal,
_Sol Niger Within_...WILD STUFF!
Date: 27 Jul 1998
From: garm@oracle.net
Subject: attention loud letters
Hails to all ye readers of COC. I'd just like to discuss a few things
here...I've been a reader of COC for over a year now but this is the
first time I've actually been provoked enough to write a letter. I
was going to start this with a rant about one of my favourite bands,
Bal Sagoth, in response to Brian's review in issue 31...but I see
maarten De Jong already did a very stellar job of covering that, so
I'll just say that it's gratifying that at least a few other people
understand the grand vision of Bal Sagoth. I normally dig your
reviews quite a bit Brian, and thanks to you I've discovered some
really great shit like SPastic Ink (gods) and Symphony X...but one
has to look a little deeper when trying to do a review of Bal Sagoth.
another thing that I just have to discuss is this whole "trueness"
thing that some people seem to find so important. Now, before any of
you more elite than me jump to the wrong conclusions, I do enjoy much
of the rawer and more vitriolic/less acc3essible black metal a lot,
and in a way I do see where these people who complain about black
metal becoming diluted and trendy are coming from. But my view on the
situation is this. As far as I'm concerned, these more well known
acts such as Cradle Of Filth, Dimmu Borgir, COvenant etc do more good
then harm, simply for the reason that upon discovering such bands,
people will, so long as they are introduced to it, be able to relate
easily to the "truer" forms of black m etal. As someone who enjoysa
both styles, and many other genres of metal and other music besides,
I know that one has to start somewhere. I too listened to a lot of
Megadeth, Pantera and Korn a scant three or so years ago, and had no
idea this thing called black metal so much as existed. Does the fact
that I, and many others, were not born into the scene make us posers?
WHen mainstream media is saturated with so-called metal bands that
are a poor excuse for interesting and creative music in any genre,
and when we live in a country such as Canada where the music scene is
full of shit and it's damn hard to get into extreme music simply
because it's hard to find people who are interested in it, it's
inevitable that most people are going to start getting into the
heavier forms of music by listening to the more well known acts. One
doesn't listen to Immortal one day when the heaviest thing they own
is SOundgarden and say "oh, that's really cool, I think I'm going to
listen to black metal from now on". And lest you think that such
bands are harming the black metal scene, we of all people should know
that just because bands like COF exist, there is no reason why the
underground shouldn't flourish. I mean, a couple of years ago
everyone was crying that death metal was dying out...and listening to
stuff by bands like Amorphis, newer Carcass etc, one might tend to
agree with that assessment...but the fact that there have been
stellar new releases from bands like Nile and Suffocation, and the
new Cryptopsy should grace our gore-craving ears fairly soon, proves
that death metal in its most aggressive form is still very much
alive. So why the bloody hell can't the same be true for black metal?
I don't think the next Immortal album is going to bow to trends, and
if bands like Tulus or Arkanum continue to produce seething and
thoroughly black piees of work, then there is still lots of hope for
the "true" black metal scene. SO everyone should stop complaining,
and if they want to proliferate their favourite underground movement,
then start a band or something.
FFinally, I have to say that Steve and Drew's presence in COC is
going to be sorely missed by me for one...they both reviewed the kind
of stuff that I enjoy most, and although I didn't agree with what
they had to say much of the time they were both prety open minded and
had a pretty healthy objective perspective on the music they were
reviewing. Ah well...Your zine still rules, I don't think there are
too many printed zines that are this inclusive and well put together,
so you have my utmost congratulations and grattitude. May thy swords
be slaked with he blood of thine enemies, and may thy dark
ensorcelled legacy continue through the unfolding years. Long live
the barbarian metal kings..or something...later.
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S T I L L A T H R E A T
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Anthrax
by: Adrian Bromley
You'd think that after all that Anthrax has been through in the
last few years (label switch, loss of original members, constant
touring in a non-metal industry), the legendary thrashers from New
York would have thrown in the towel by now. Y'know? Called it quits.
Well, let me tell you something, my fine metal friends, Anthrax are
not quitters. And contrary to popular belief, the band has never gone
away.
The 90s have seen some of the best Anthrax material surface with
LPs like 1993's brilliant _Sound of White Noise_ and _Stomp 442_ in
1995, both managing to hold up against classic 'Thrax LPs like
_Spreading the Disease_ (1986) and _State of Euphoria_ (1988). Now
the band returns with their eighth LP titled _Vol 8: The Threat Is
Real_. Oh yeah, the boys are back in town. "It has been a hard road
for us the past few years with all the problems," starts drummer
Charlie Benante over the phone from a tour stop in Quebec. "But we've
continued on. Things are going good with Ignition Records. They are
doing a good job pushing the record for us. They are really promoting
the record a lot. The thing about labels -- all labels -- is that
it's gonna be great sometimes, bad another time, and okay other
times. You have to roll with all of those situations. That's just how
it is. This business is a fucked up place to be and you have to be
able to roll with all of these changes. Changing from label to label
is a pain in the ass, going from Island to Elektra to here was
something we had to deal with. We were with Island Records for a
while and then hooked up with Elektra for two records. The problem we
had with Elektra was that at the end of it we were lost. We were a
small fish in a big pond. With Ignition, we are a big fish in a small
pond. Things are looking good for us." Benante -- along with fellow
thrashers John Bush (vocals), Scott Ian (guitar) and bassist Frank
Bello -- have been at this for years and, as the years go on, their
love of what Anthrax is about is all that matters. One important
ingredient to the success of the band during this decade has been the
inclusion of singer John Bush. Bush, who was in Armoured Saint and
joined the band in 1993 (after original singer Joey Belladonna left
the band), has been an integral part to bringing out new ideas and a
cool sound to the band. Benante agrees. "I think it's because of him
[John Bush] that the band is still together, to be honest with you.
When you are making music and it's happening, that is such a great
feeling. I hate to use this expression, it sounds so cliche, but it
just seems so magical, the way things work with us now. It sounds so
good for us right now. We all get along so well right now. Prior to
John being in the band, we were getting on each other's nerves. The
thing about us was when we needed to be Anthrax, we did. But there
were problems with Joey [Belladonna], but that's all under the bridge
now. We actually saw Joey in Utica, New York early this year and he
came up on stage and sang "Indians" with us. It was great to see him
and talk a lot. I was glad it happened. But we move on as this band
and keep things focused."
"_Vol 8_ is a great record from start to finish. There is not a
weak part on this whole record. It's a great record," says Benante
enthusiastically of the new record. "The thing that makes this
special is that we reinvented ourselves with this record. There are
songs on this record that would have never been on any of our other
records. There are many songs here that make me so happy when I hear
them because they are things that we wanted to really try with this
band."
And the changes that Benante talked about within the new
material? "A few years ago we were probably too scared to take a
chance with anything. We did take chances back in the day and we took
some shit for it, but we stood by it. We stood by it and did it
'cause we wanted to. We didn't want to be like every other band and
sound like Metallica. Maybe it hurt us, but we kept doing our own
thing."
"I know exactly what we wanted to create here and I hear that
with these songs and the feedback from this record has made me very
happy," he continues. "The material here works so well, and to be
honest with you, if these songs weren't here, I would have not wanted
anything to do with this LP. These songs make the LP. I am so sick of
all the music out there right now. We want our record heard all over
the place and for people to say that this is the music that they have
been missing out on. I know people know the name Anthrax and go, "Oh
yeah, Anthrax. I know their sound." But do they? We have altered our
sound and brought so much into it over the last few years that our
music has taken on a whole new vibe and when people hear it they get
into it. People need to hear this LP and turn around and take notice
of what we are doing." He adds, "Word of mouth has spread about this
record. There is a good street vibe going on and that makes me happy."
When asked about bands jumping on trends, Benante "jumps" in:
"Oh, you know that is happening so bad right now. So many bands out
there are copying others and it makes me sick. There seems to be no
real initiative to have originality anymore. It makes me sick. I say
this now, and I'll say this at the end of everyday: It's all about
the song. And right now, all people care about is how they look. It's
not like that. It's all about music and it should always be that way."
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U N E A R T H I N G T H E D E M O N S W I T H I N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC talks with Arch Enemy
by: Adrian Bromley
It would only seem fitting to call guitar axeman Mike Amott a
"workaholic". He is. After all, this is the man who in the last
decade or so has been part of some of the influential metal of our
time. His work with Carnage is legendary. His days in Carcass are
still hard to live up to for most metal musicians. And his continuous
work with his two outfits (the stoner, doom/gloom-filled Spiritual
Beggars and the blistering assault of Arch Enemy) seems to slap on
the tag of "busiest musician in metal music."
But he loves his work and Arch Enemy's latest offering
_Stigmata_ (their debut for Century Media) is testament to his
dedication and hard work. As they say, dedication leads to
perfection. Amott knows this all too well.
"With our first album [_Black Earth_], it was a great lot of fun
arranging it and putting it together, but we never really spent much
time working on it," begins Amott about the difference between the
first LP and their latest. "We had done only four rehearsals for that
LP. I basically had all of it ready to go and told everyone what to
do, and it came out the way it did. I'm still proud of that record,
but _Stigmata_ is all-around a much more professional effort with a
lot going for it. The arrangements and guitar work are more advanced
and the production is much better, as I had more money to put into
the recording. This is really just the next step up for us. This is a
natural progression."
The band -- rounded out by brother Christopher on guitars,
vocalist John Liiva and drummer Daniel Erlandsson -- has had a knack
for being able to meld together melodic rhythms and powerful
dual-guitar harmonies with such ease, leaving us the listener crushed
beneath the weight of such strict, well-executed song styles. Is the
music easy to piece together in the studio? "I think the big part of
being in the studio is working on ideas and stuff. You can have all
of the material planned going into the studio but it never really
seems to work out as much as you want. No matter what you do you'll
always wind up in a situation where during the recording process
something will not work and you'll have to improvise. And that is the
fun of being in the studio. But for us, over the last few years, it
has become rather easy to do the recording thing, 'cause the more
experience you have, the more you know what's going on. When I did my
first record, I didn't know certain things on working a guitar in the
studio. I always left it up to the engineer or producer to do that
but now I know how to mike up to the cabinet and get the guitar tones
I want."
"Knowing how to do things, when we went into the studio to do
_Stigmata_ [produced by Fredrik Nordstrom, of At The Gates and
HammerFall fame -- Adrian], I really wanted clarity for the whole
LP," explains Amott. "I wanted to be able to understand every word,
every guitar solo note and hear the tone of the LP. I wanted to have
this both raw and intense, but as you know this is hard to accomplish
with this type of music. It's so down-tuned and heavy that things get
muddy and mixed together. It's hard to keep things focused and get
what you want. I aimed for clarity, but still trying to capture the
brutality of Arch Enemy." As mentioned above, Amott's double-duty
with Spiritual Beggars and Arch Enemy keeps him quite busy at the
moment. Tours, press days and working on new material has this
axe-slinger running ragged for the most part, but, like anyone
holding down two jobs, you get by. "I have managed to do this pretty
well for the most part, but maybe not too good as this year I lost my
life in a marriage split and that was due to the amount of work I was
doing with my music. So in some ways I have managed successfully to
do this two band thing and other ways I haven't."
He adds, "Musically, in my head, I have managed to keep it all
together. I don't have any other job. I have been able to make a
pretty decent living doing this for the 90s and that is fantastic.
And I have been lucky to be able to do this having a small fan base
around the world that keeps me in mind and keeps me going." It has
been a long transition of styles and sounds for Amott over the years,
but he has managed to keep things heavy and still radiate a stellar
guitar sound that feeds on aggression and powerful elements of
passion. His love for this style of music is easily visible -- and
heard. "I have so much hate in me that I gotta get it out," expresses
Amott about playing this type of music. "It is a great release of
energy to do this. When I play in Spiritual Beggars, it is a
different kind of energy that I am releasing, but still somewhat the
same as with Arch Enemy. I have always been into this kind of music
since growing up. I grew up on the 80s thrash/speed metal styles like
Metallica, Slayer and Kreator. It has always been in my blood and
been an important part of me over the years as a musician. I guess my
love for 70s style rock [influential to the sounds of Spiritual
Beggars -- Adrian] came later."
On the whole song writing aspect, he notes, "I am very intense
when I write songs. I lock myself away and write and write and write.
It all comes in bursts for me, though. I'll write two and a half
songs in one day and then go for a whole month with no new ideas. I
really can't pick out how I actually write my songs. Sometimes I
don't even think it's me writing. It's hard to describe it, but when
I sit back and hear what I have done, hearing the songs inspired
heavily by my thoughts and ideas, I can't figure out how I managed to
do them and/or come up with such arrangements. It boggles me. I never
had any classical training with guitar work. I was self-taught at
playing the guitar."
He finishes, "It's kind of strange to hear all that I have done
and take it all in, but I'm proud I have been able to create music
and be happy with what I have done for the most part. I am not happy
with some material, but it's the good stuff you create that keeps you
inspired to keep going. I'm still going, ain't I?"
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F R O M B E H I N D T H E B L A C K H O R I Z O N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC chats with Crowbar's Todd Strange
by: Paul Schwarz
Crowbar. A name synonymous with music which is as mind-numbingly slow
and heavy as it is good. Crowbar's previous albums, especially their
most recent, 1996's _Broken Glass_, have concentrated on churning out
sludgecore which, though always excellent, has stuck to riffs which
are primarily percussive and vocals which are low and guttural.
That's changed quite considerably with Crowbar's latest offering:
_Odd Fellows Rest_. The title takes its name from a cemetery where
people are buried above ground because of New Orleans', the band's
home town, proximity to sea level. This album has seen Crowbar take
their music to new levels of brilliance by incorporating tons of
atmosphere and a huge amount of melody, especially in Todd Strange's
vocals. This album also sees them with a new label. Abandoning the,
according to the band, very inadequate Pavement Music for the greener
pastures of Mayhem/Fierce, combined with the quality and increased
accessibility of _Odd Fellows Rest_, could give the band the break
they need to hit the next level of success, which this band has for
so long deserved. However, Crowbar aren't in this for the money;
they're in it for the music, and if their integrity helped make _Odd
Fellows Rest_ as good as it is, then we should be thankful they
aren't greedy. Here's what bassist Todd Strange had to say about _Odd
Fellows Rest_ and all things "Down", too.
CoC: How did the writing process change when you were making _Odd
Fellows Rest_? Did it change?
Todd Strange: Yeah, I think it has gotten a little bit more melodic
even before [we started this record]. More or less, I
just think the new stuff is more from our hearts, more
of a reflection of what we all listen to.
CoC: I'd say there is a more melodic approach on songs like "Planets
Collide", "December's Spawn" or the end of "Scattered Pieces
Lay". Do you think that has been a gradual thing, or do you
think it has been a sudden step with this record?
TS: I think it has all been a progression, you know. It has all led
up to this. It is just one of those things. It was just time to
do something else, something different, but still trying to keep
the same Crowbar edge and all that.
CoC: 'Cause you've still got the heavy tracks on there.
TS: Oh yeah. But you notice Kirk's doin' mostly singing on this
album; we've gone away from all the real angry, aggressive
shouting vocals.
CoC: Do you think having Sammy [Pierre-Duet] from Acid Bath has
changed the album's songs, or do you think Crowbar were changing
anyway?
TS: Honestly, the album was written; we wrote one song with Sammy,
which was "Beyond the Black Horizon", but most of everything else
was written before he even got in the band. Pretty much, though,
having Sammy in the band has given us a whole new breath of fresh
air towards what we wanna do. Now we've got somebody who was a
fan of the band for ever and to have him in there... he
understands what we're trying to do, what the whole approach to
Crowbar is and all that.
CoC: So you think the live arena has changed a bit, then?
TS: Oh yeah, for sure.
CoC: How about the lyrics? Has Kirk changed his writing of the
lyrics? The direct style still seems to be there.
TS: Honestly, Kirk writes all the lyrics and it's more or less just
things that have happened to him. It's just real stuff that
people can relate to; at all times, everyone gets depressed over
some chick or something and goes out and gets totally loaded and
then regrets it the next two or three days because they're sick.
CoC: So you think that the depression is the inspiration for the
music and the lyrics...
TS: Our music definitely leans towards the more negative sides of
life. It's kinda what a lot of people hush up; they think "hey,
I'm too much of a man to feel that way." But everybody feels it,
whether you can come out and say it or you can't. It just happens
Kirk can say it.
CoC: I've always felt Crowbar is very direct. Some black metal
albums, for example, have pages of lyrics for a single song.
Crowbar songs have ten or six lines.
TS: It is much more music oriented.
CoC: You've recently done the Metalfest and a tour?
TS: This is the third show of the tour with Eyehategod and Soilent
Green. A kinda New Orleans tour.
CoC: How's it going?
TS: Good.
CoC: How much of the new stuff are you playing live?
TS: About four or five songs a night. We've got six albums now and
one hour, so it's kinda hard to play everything everyone wants to
hear.
CoC: Would you say you wrote more accessible songs for this record?
'Cause if I was going to play someone any Crowbar record, I'd
play them this one.
TS: Well, that's good.
CoC: Because of the melodic approach and especially "Planets
Collide". It's easier to get into.
TS: It's one of those songs which kinda sticks in your head after
it's finished playing. Which is good, AC/DC has been doing it for
years. [Laughs]
CoC: What are your further touring plans?
TS: We're out on this tour for another four weeks. Then home for nine
days, then another tour: fourteen shows in fourteen days.
CoC: Are you intending to go to Europe this time?
TS: We hope to. We're gonna try to do it end of November, beginning
of December, about five weeks in that time frame.
CoC: Headlining or as support?
TS: We'd love to play with a bigger band, because at this point, the
more people we can play to, the better off it is. We might tour
with Iron Monkey.
CoC: Do you think this might be the album that will break you to a
wider audience?
TS: Sure, I hope so. I mean, after ten years...
CoC: It's been a long time since _Obedience Through Suffering_.
TS: That's a question you always get, I mean, you do an album, you
work it, you tour it, and if it doesn't catch on, then it is time
to do another album.
CoC: I was surprised _Broken Glass_ didn't get you further...
TS: Well, in the States we were with a crummy record company at the
time and it kinda hurt us. That happened with the last few
albums. But with Mayhem/Fierce we've finally got people working
their asses off for us, which is important.
CoC: Are you still collaborating with Phil and Pepper on the Down
project?
TS: Yeah, they started working on some new stuff right before we left
'cause Phillip is gonna be home, I think, until '99. They'll
start working on some new stuff for touring or whatever.
CoC: Is it likely to be another full record?
TS: Oh yeah, that's the intention. [Laughs]
CoC: With writing the music for Crowbar, is it a band or a single
person's effort?
TS: No, all the music is written in the practice room with everybody
there. Nobody comes in and says "hey, I got a song." We write as
we go. It usually takes us a week to write a song. Then we'll
play it for a while and make changes to it or whatever.
CoC: Do you think the band is going towards a more melodic angle in
the future?
TS: As long as we can stay true to ourselves, wake up and look
ourselves in the mirror. Believe me, we wouldn't just do one
thing to give us popularity. After ten years, I think we'd have
done it by now. It's weird, because everybody in the industry
knows who Crowbar is, now we just have to get the people who buy
the records to know who Crowbar is.
CoC: I think people, your fans, always thought it would be like how
Pantera suddenly became popular...
TS: ... And Pantera were playing in clubs for ten years before they
even got a record deal here in the States. Hopefully it'll
happen. It's one of those things I've learned over the years, I
can't count on it. I play music 'cause I enjoy it and if I get
popular and make a lot of money doing it, then so be it; and if I
don't, at least I can say I made a good effort.
CoC: Do you think the new album appeals to the old fans too?
TS: I definitely think it appeals to a wider audience. I had some guy
come up to me at the Metalfest and say "the new album is great,
y'all changed it just enough to keep it interesting." I thought
that was one of the coolest compliments I got off the album.
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D O I N G D I R T C H E A P
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Dirty Deeds
by: Adrian Bromley
It's always a treat to get special attention as a new band.
Dirty Deeds are being pampered right now and they love it. Dirty
Deeds, the first signee to Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris' label
Beast Records (formed with Sanctuary Music boss and Iron Maiden
manager Rod Smallwood), are getting first class treatment and, most
importantly, support with their debut disc for Beast Records, called
_Danger of Infection_. The album, a full-throttle love affair of 80s
metal music (a la Maiden, Judas Priest, Helloween), though
interspersed with heavy riffs and melodic choruses, appears as a
welcome addition to the metal styles of today. It may sound like old
style metal, but delivers a very present day punch.
The band -- Peter Franklin (lead vocals and rhythm guitar), Tony
Newton (bass), Barry Fitzgibbon (lead guitar) and drummer Dave Cavill
-- have just toured the shores for the first time as part of the Iron
Maiden / Dio tour this summer (which was canceled due to band member
health problems in Iron Maiden), but are expecting a return visit in
the near future.
"It was a great time we had over there," says bassist Tony
Newton from his home in England. "Everywhere we went it was to great
crowd responses and stuff like that. We had a blast. We were very
hesitant about coming over and playing, seeing that it was the first
time we had ever been to North America, but in the end it was great.
The first show in Chicago on this tour was awesome. It's always a bit
nervous to play with many bands and open for someone who may have
fans that don't know your music. In America, we got such a buzz to be
on such a great bill, and, to top it off, the responses were good
too. It was a great high for us. We were having fun and it was
unfortunate that the tour was called short."
So in the crunch and grind of the hard rock / metal community,
where does Newton see Dirty Deeds fitting in? "I've never called us a
metal band. More of a hard rock band. Being called "metal" sounds so
80s to me. The thing about Dirty Deeds is that we are a guitar
oriented band. We love guitar riffs and how they shape our music.
Most bands nowadays are going for that tuned-down guitar sound, with
very little melody to the vocals. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love
Pantera and other heavy bands like that, I just wish they had more
melody in the vocals. I think that's what we do. Heavy riffs with
melody. Makes for a good mixture, I think."
About the recording process of their debut disc, Newton says,
"It was a great experience for us to be working in the studio and
making this record. We worked hard to make the music. But we don't
really have a plan. We just create the music as it comes out. I've
done lots of interviews for this LP and people are under the
assumption that Dirty Deeds has some form of a master plan for making
metal music come back around again. They think we have surfaced at
the right time. We've been playing this music for years and we
haven't changed our preference in hard rock for anyone. This is just
what we create. We know the stuff we like and if it doesn't fit into
what we are doing, it doesn't get written at all."
Any thoughts on how the record writing process could have been
changed? Anything Newton would have changed? "Yeah... a few things.
When we started working on the record, we wanted to work with mixer
Nigel Green, but he was busy doing the new Iron Maiden record
(_Virtual XI_). So we had to wait for the time to work with Green.
That was ten months in waiting and he finally worked with us and we
finished up the LP. It was great to work with him but the time frame
doing this record was too long. This LP was two years in the making.
I would change that if we could go back and do this again. It was
worth the wait to work with Green again, but the wait... never again."
Luck has been on the side of Dirty Deeds. The story on how
Deeds' bassist Newton hooked up with Iron Maiden's Harris is quite
interesting. "It's a funny story. We both love soccer and I was
playing in this soccer league and discovered that Steve did too. We
also had other things in common -- I played bass and we both enjoyed
tennis. We spoke about all of this and he came and checked out our
band a couple of times and liked us. He gave us some help, telling us
that our material was good, just needed a bit more work. Then he
offered a small tour part on the X-Factor tour of Europe in 1996. We
did that and the reactions were great. We got off the tour and went
into the studio to record and we started to sort things out from
there. At that time, Beast Records was just an idea and he was just
concerned on helping us get a deal. Then he decided he wanted to
create a label and felt the time was right. It was luck for both of
us. And it has worked out since then for both parties."
"I am in this just for the fun of it," states Newton. "Sure I
wanna be successful, but that success is measured by me being able to
have a comfortable living from doing this. I just want to be able to
continue doing this and making music. I'm not into being a
millionaire or making money. If I was, I'd have been coming up with
music that was big and trendy right now. We're doing what we are
doing and as long as we can keep doing that, then I'll be happy. I
just want to enjoy the music I'm playing and be able to maintain
doing it for years to come." He finishes, "I have been playing guitar
since I was twelve years old and always wanted to be a rock star and
play guitar. And now, when I am on stage playing in front of
thousands of people, it all comes back to me. This is all I have ever
wanted to do. Hopefully this will be here for me for a long while.
That's all I want out of this, as I said before. This is it for me.
Nothing more."
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F I N N I S H F I R E
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Jarno Taskula of Evemaster
by: Pedro Azevedo
There may be quite a flood of Swedish (or Swedish-sounding) melodic
metal right now, but Evemaster, from Finland, are rather unique in a
way. The main reason for that is that there is essentially only one
person writing and playing all the music: Tomi Mykkanen, accompanied
by Jarno Taskula on vocals. Their promising debut _Lacrimae Mundi_
[reviewed in CoC #32] is out now on KTOK Records. The following is my
interview with Evemaster vocalist Jarno Taskula.
CoC: Can you tell us some of the recent story behind Evemaster and
what led to your signing by KTOK Records?
Jarno Taskula: We just got our CD _Lacrimae Mundi_ out and we are
awaiting reactions from the underground people right
now. As far as we are now, we are positively
surprised. We sent our demo _In Thine Majesty_ to many
labels and got some interesting answers from some of
them. KTOK Records went a bit deeper than the others,
so that is why we are where we are right now.
CoC: How do you manage to make your music work being just a two-piece
band? I mean, it mustn't be easy for a band to work having only
two members.
JT: You are right, and the fact is that Tomi Mykkanen does all the
music from beginning to end by himself, and the same goes for the
lyrics. I am only the vocalist, but of course I give some
feedback to Tomi Mykkanen about the music, lyrics and especially
arrangements that he makes. Although it's sometimes very hard and
time consuming to create a song, it gives Tomi 100% freedom to
make the music he believes in without any interfering comments
from other composers in the band (which would happen if we had a
full line-up).
CoC: Your album _Lacrimae Mundi_ mixes some styles, namely, in my
opinion, some Swedish melodic death/black and some doom here and
there. Do you agree?
JT: Yes, _Lacrimae Mundi_ mixes some different styles and that is
what Evemaster's music is all about. We create metal that has
intriguing emotional melodies, but still has a very aggressive
touch and dark feeling in it, both music-wise and lyric-wise.
That's why we call it dark metal. In my opinion we didn't use any
pure doom elements in _Lacrimae Mundi_. I know that "Equinox
Nocturne" is a slower song and that's where you got that doom
thing, right? Although it's slower, it is not as oppressive as
doom metal usually is.
[Indeed, it was mainly "Equinox Nocturne" that made me ask this
question; however, I did detect a few other melodies that seemed
somewhat doomy to me. On a side note, doomy sequences occur more
frequently in Swedish-like metal than most people seem to notice (At
the Gates, Opeth and Dawn being three good examples, and all of
superb quality). -- Pedro]
CoC: Yes, that final track, "Equinox Nocturne", seems to me pretty
much black/doom metal, though not very extreme doom-wise. How
did that track came up? It's quite different from the rest of
the album, in my opinion.
JT: Yes, it is. We had a discussion about a slower song, when Tomi
started to write new songs for _Lacrimae Mundi_, and we ended up
agreeing that it would be a really good idea to create one slower
and longer song as a final track -- since all the other songs are
by one way or another faster, the slower final track will make
the whole album more interesting. And although the final track
"Equinox Nocturne" is much slower (during the first eight
minutes) than the other songs, it still has the same dark feeling
and touch as the others; it is the darkest song we have ever
made. When the song turns to the end sequence, it gets faster and
faster and in the end it is almost as fast as some of our other
songs, so it also has its aggressive side in the end.
CoC: What bands were your main influences?
JT: Musically, Tomi's influences are all the great metal bands he
listens to. Yeah, that's a very standard answer, but Tomi doesn't
want to create music in a way that Evemaster would sound like,
for example, Cradle of Filth or Old Man's Child or whatever. He
picks up some influences here and there and adds a big pile of
his own ideas to create the music of Evemaster. The same goes for
the lyrics. Actually, for our new release, Tomi is planning to
write lyrics for a concept album. Of course we first have to find
out what our next release's format will be... MCD or CD? So we
will see... In the beginning, my main influence was Mille from
Kreator and he still is, but I have also tried to add more
emotion to the vocals to make them sound like -my- vocals.
CoC: Do you have a live line-up? Have you been playing any live shows?
JT: Well, we can't play live since we are only a two-piece band and
we haven't found a stable line-up yet. We just got a positive
answer from a local drummer for our next release, but there
aren't any plans concerning tours.
CoC: How's the metal scene been going lately in Finland? More
specifically, how does it feel being so near Norwegian black
metal and Swedish melodic black/death, two thriving styles,
whereas there's no specific metal style associated with Finland
(not that there aren't some really good Finnish metal bands,
though)?
JT: I don't mind that Finland doesn't have any specific notable
style, because, in my opinion, most of the Finnish bands are
aiming at originality with their music and not following the so
called trend style. As I said, this doesn't stand for all of the
Finnish bands. Yes, you are right. There are a lot of good bands
in Finland, but they differ quite a lot from each other and I
think that's very good.
CoC: Any plans of signing for a bigger label now, like your neighbors
Children of Bodom, who are on Spinefarm Records and had an album
released by Nuclear Blast?
JT: It would be good to get signed by a bigger label, but it doesn't
have to be as big as Nuclear Blast. We just want to have a good
budget for our next release, so that we don't have to hurry at
all in the studio and we can do all the stuff we would like to do
there. Of course it would be great to get a good deal from a big
label and sell more CDs, but if we just get a good studio budget,
it will sell quite well anyway, because the album will sound
better. Of course the amount of album advertisement the label
will do means a lot, but the most important thing is that it
should sound great!
CoC: What are you planning to do after the release of _Lacrimae
Mundi_?
JT: Tomi will concentrate on writing the new material for the
forthcoming promo tape and I will try to help the label promote
the CD as much as possible by sending promos to zines, radios,
etc. and doing interviews. Of course Tomi will do some promotion
as well, but we think that it is better that he has as much time
to write new material as possible.
CoC: Any idea of what will change in your sound from now on?
JT: Our sound will change at least a bit, because we are going to use
a session drummer in our forthcoming releases. Musically I am not
sure, because it's Tomi who makes the music, but our music will
still have its main elements: melody, aggression and emotion. I
will try to use some different vocal styles now and then instead
of screaming all the time. I like to scream, so that's not the
point, but it's good to use varied vocals in some parts to make
the music more interesting and original.
CoC: Would you like to add a final message to this interview?
JT: Visit our homepage, read the reviews of _Lacrimae Mundi_ and
listen to samples; then, if you liked what you just heard, order
the CD as soon as possible. Thanks a lot for the interview!
Contact: mailto:jarno_taskula@hotmail.com
WWW: www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Towers/7015/
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T H E V I K I N G S ' T R U E V O I C E
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC talks to Falkenbach
by: Adam Wasylyk
A blend of black metal and Viking rock, Falkenbach play the sort
of music that breathes life into a genre polluted with wannabes and
copycats. Mesmerizing keyboards, black metal snarls, driving guitars
and rock beats, while Vikings serve as the imagery and ideologies
behind it all. Having recorded their debut _... En Their Medh Riki
Fara..._ for No Colours, the band signed to Napalm Records in Austria
and released _... Magni Blandinn ok Megintiri..._, one of the better
records of 1997, with hopefully many more albums to come.
Sole creator and musician Vratyas Vakyas wrote back to my
queries on his band and what he's up to presently.
"The whole thing began in '89, I think, when I decided to record
my first songs and lyrics" began Vakyas on how Falkenbach got started
and whether the Viking imagery was the initial inspiration. "Back
then, I searched for a new kind of sacrifice for the Goddesses & Gods
besides blood, life, etc. I also wanted to give something direct from
my heart and soul, a donation made of art, emotion and yearning. So
you could say not the Viking period itself inspired me, but the
Goddesses & Gods who ruled that age on Midgaard, and who will rule
forever!"
Getting into detail about Falkenbach's prior releases, Vakyas
said "All in all, I've done seven tapes so far, all in a strictly
limited edition, furthermore a tape called _Promo '95_ and the debut
CD _... En Their Medh Riki Fara..._. The earlier stuff is mainly
folkloristic music with percussion, acoustic guitar and clean vocals,
but during the years also drums, distorted guitars and keyboards
became more and more important. Every recording differs a bit from
its predecessors due to the fact that more instruments were added to
the songs, and my musical skills grew a bit, too."
As to what happened with No Colours and his leap to Napalm
Records, Vakyas explained "No Colours did a good job for Falkenbach,
but this step simply had to be done, as I don't want any stagnation
with Falkenbach ever! Napalm offered a deal about one year after the
debut album was released and after some changes in the offered
contract I signed to Napalm." Vakyas also went on to explain his role
in Falkenbach, which could be called a one-man project but it wasn't
necessarily designed to be that. "Since the very first days, I'm the
only musician involved in Falkenbach, and not even session musicians
were used for the recordings. Maybe this will change for the third
CD, as I'm looking for a session drummer and flutist, too. By the
way, it's not that I don't want any people to be involved, but as a
matter of fact it's quite hard to find musicians who're both skilled
in playing their instruments and good characters, who fit 100% into
the concept of Falkenbach. Trust me, it's hard to find worthy people!"
On my first few listens to _... Magni Blandinn ok Megintiri..._
I made the comparison to some of Bathory's Viking-era material along
with his last (and brilliant) effort _Blood on Ice_. I thought the
feelings captured by both _Blood on Ice_ and _... Magni Blandinn ok
Megintiri..._ had some parallels, both dealing with Viking themes at
a rock beat pace. As to whether there are any similarities to Bathory
or if he's taken them as an influence, Vakyas states "In my opinion,
there are not too many similarities between Bathory and Falkenbach,
not music nor lyric wise. I used to play this kind of music from the
very beginning, so I can't say any bands or musicians influenced
Falkenbach anyway. The only band I know playing a bit similar music
[to us] is Vargas."
I also ask what the lyrics deal with, despite the overwhelming
chance that it has something to do with Vikings. "Most of the lyrics
are about Asatru, the religion of Germanic and north-European tribes,
and Vartan, a mixture between science, art and philosophy, which is
based on Asatru. Viking themes are the way to describe them, as the
lyrics of Falkenbach are usually written with metaphors. Every
character, every symbol used has a deeper meaning, so mental power is
needed to understand those lyrics and the message they convey, but
superficially will only lead to misunderstandings."
After asking about newly written material, Vakyas affirms "At
the moment around 20 minutes of new material does exist, but it's not
recorded yet. None should expect any "stylebreak", but, as always,
the new songs are one step further in the right direction. I can say
the new material contains clean vocals, flutes, powerful guitars and
drums, acoustic guitars, ancient percussion, etc., but most of the
arrangements are much improved! I can promise this new release will
be far better than both of its predecessors! It's a fact that my main
intention isn't to be successful, or to be popular, but to be
relevant!"
What does Vakyas see black metal evolving into in the upcoming
years and into the next century? "Countless new bands, and 99%
worthless crap will enter the market. We'll have to wait and see
who's still left after the next five or six years, then we can say
who's true and who's not."
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G L A C I E R S A R E U S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Iced Earth
by: Adrian Bromley
Florida metallers Iced Earth are in route for global domination.
Or so they hope. The band's latest offering, _Something Wicked This
Way Comes_ (a follow-up to 1996's brilliant _The Dark Saga_), is a
brilliant testimony to the ways that metal should be played:
passionate and oh so heavy. Draped within pure metal geniusness, the
latest offering from Iced Earth digs deep into the soul of metal,
lashing out with truly dynamic sounds and a real stellar production.
Is this their best work to date? Many with say it is. Guitarist/
lyricist/mastermind Jon Schaffer is one of them.
"This record has a lot of diversity on it," he starts. "When we
made _The Dark Saga_, and seeing that it was a concept record, we
aimed to follow the love story that grew out of the whole Spawn /
Dark Saga thing. There were slow songs and powerful choruses that
chimed with melody. But many of our fans who still liked the record
thought we were lacking a heavy sound. Fast songs were lacking. We
listened to the fans and tried to bring a good array of diversity to
this record. There is this whole rainbow of sounds here. Matt
[Barlow, singer] did a superb job singing on this record. It flowed
very well. I am very happy with the results."
He continues, "I am very proud of what we did here with this new
LP. We approached this record the way we approached all of our other
records. We just record what comes out. The basic thing for the
record was that we were going to make a concept record on a story I
wrote. I had written some material after _The Dark Saga_ sessions
["Watching Over Me" and "Stand Alone" -- Adrian], and that was about
a year and a half ago, and then we decided that they were cool tunes
that stood on their own and not with the story. So what we did was
include the first ten songs that stand alone by themselves on the
record and then have the three-song trilogy at the end of the record.
The idea was to give the listener a sort of prelude to the next
record, stemming from the three-song trilogy on this LP. The next LP
will be a full-concept record based on that story, Something Wicked."
"At first, while making this record I was having a hard time
making music," acknowledges Schaffer. "All of the stress was getting
to me and I really couldn't concentrate too much on what I was doing.
Then I got things in control and went back to the old way of just
letting things flow and it all worked out in the end."
The role of Iced Earth -- whose current lineup is rounded out by
Randy Shawver (guitars), Brent Smedley (drums) and bassist Jimmy
McDonough -- has been well-documented in metal music through their
various early releases (_Iced Earth_, _Burnt Offerings_, _Night of
the Stormrider_), but it wasn't until singer Matt Barlow took over
that the band sort of got a kick in the ass and some well-deserved
recognition. Things were clicking, the sound was great and they
weren't just a run-of-the-mill metal outfit slaving through the waves
of the metal industry. They had hit a hard and definite bullseye with
_The Dark Saga_. Metal fans took note. "We had put a lot of hard work
into this band from day one and it shows. But I dunno... I am so
dedicated to this band. I have never, ever felt like giving up.
Well... there was a bit of time during the _Night of the Stormrider_
sessions that everything was all fucked up and stressful, but we
carried on. We struggled and the success of _The Dark Saga_ was a
great feeling for us. Now things are starting to go our way and it's
exciting. We come over to Europe and play to all these rabid fans for
two hours and it kind of erases all the bullshit that comes with this
industry."
"Things are surely starting to roll for us a bit better now,"
states Schaffer. "_The Dark Saga_ helped get us out in North America,
thanks to the marketing from our label. In the early days it wasn't
much like that. The label really worked hard to get the name out and
it paid off."
Through the years of trudging through the industry to make ends
meet, how does Schaffer feel he has managed to keep Iced Earth intact
with their metal roots? "I've never been tempted to do anything other
than play metal," says Schaffer with sincerity in his voice. "I only
do things I wanna do and doing stuff outside of metal music has never
been an issue. I don't want to play this noisy shit of the 90s. I
wanna play metal music. If metal music gets popular again like it is
in Europe, that's gonna be great. If it doesn't happen and metal goes
away or no one cares, we are still going to be doing this. This is
what we are about. Being a metal band. Another thing is that I don't
really listen to many other bands, so I don't get influence to change
my style or bring ideas into Iced Earth that are not metal. I don't
listen to music much 'cause I am in the business. It's as if I was a
carpenter who works all day and then goes home and has to work on his
house. I don't wanna do that. When I drive around in my car I listen
to the shit I grew up with, none of this current music trends. I
don't wanna be influenced by things I don't like."
On the topic of their dedicated fan base, Schaffer says, "We
have been lucky to have a good
fan base with this band. And with the
success of _The Dark Saga_, we gained many more new fans. That is
expected with every record -- if not, you are going backwards, right?
We definitely have reached a bigger audience and that comes with
touring and making LPs. We have been lucky to have dedicated fans
over the years who have stuck with us, kind of forming a cult-like
following of sorts for Iced Earth. It's very dedicated and we stay
true to them and our music fully."
As many would expect from being a musician, sacrifices are made
all of the time. Schaffer has made many to keep the metal torch
within Iced Earth flickering. "I have sacrificed everything for the
band. From the early days of leaving home at the age of 16 and eating
mayonnaise sandwiches and living on the streets to putting my band
before my family and my friends, I have made a number of sacrifices
to make this band the number one priority in my life. There is just
this intensity within me, a burning ambition, that makes me want to
do this. I can't divert from it. I am completely driven to make this
happen and I'll do whatever it takes."
"There is a lot of creativity coming from me for Iced Earth. I
don't really see an end in sight," Schaffer states. "If you ask me
five or ten years from now, it may be a different story. I can't
predict the future. I know right now all of us feel the intensity of
what is happening and the chemistry of the band is killer. It's
working out great. As for what I have done, I have never seen myself
as a great musician. I never wanted to become a superstar musician or
guitar hero guy. I don't even like being called a rock star. I am a
songwriter and composer. That's what I do. The whole drive behind the
band from day one is to write songs. I dunno why. It's just the way I
have always been. And I'll keep doing this 'till I run out of song
ideas. Could be a while though."
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A S C U L P T U R E O F S O R R O W
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Pedro Daniel of Sculpture
by: Pedro Azevedo
While some Portuguese bands gain success abroad nowadays, some others
remain unknown while playing much more extreme (not to mention much
more interesting) forms of metal. And, as far as doom is concerned,
Portugal is fortunate to have two quality bands such as Desire (whom
I hope won't keep us waiting for a new full-length for too long) and
Sculpture (whom, in turn, I hope will be able to record a quality
debut full-length for next year). My e-mail interview with
Sculpture's bass player Pedro Daniel touches that subject, as well as
what the band has been about so far and their debut MCD _Like a Dead
Flower_ [CoC #30].
CoC: Please tell us about Sculpture's early days. What was your
objective when you formed the band?
Pedro Daniel: The birth of Sculpture goes way back to early 1993,
when our vocalist Carlos D'Agua was still heading
Evisceration (a powerful grindcore band). At that time,
few were the Portuguese bands playing or recording the
sort of sound known as doom, and Carlos was feeling a
strong urge to initiate a project within that area for
quite some time. He was a bit tired of the primal,
extreme and violent sound of the grindcore genre; all
those deep, personal and intimate feelings you now hear
in Sculpture began to fill his heart and his mind. From
that point to the beginning of the project itself was
just a matter of gathering the right people. Our main
objective when we started was to write as much material
as we could and get in the studio to record it.
Unfortunately, things around us never got that easy.
Our first label shut its doors while we were recording
the first version of _Like a Dead Flower_.
Conceptually, it's all about wounded, obscure feelings,
and the particular way we see life, its sadness and
somehow its happiness.
CoC: Where did the name Sculpture come from? What does it mean to you?
PD: Carlos came up with the name Sculpture after we discovered that
our previous designation was already taken. Personally, I don't
know the reason why he chose that name, but its meaning is very
clear to us. The facts of life that make us all wonder are quite
simple, but yet they have always existed and always will exist. A
sculpture is much like those facts of life. It made those long
departed wonder and is yet to be admired by those to come. We
don't call ourselves Sculpture as if we want to be admired as
one, but because we admire things like sculptures. Eternal like
the stone from which it is made...
CoC: Listening to _Like a Dead Flower_, it's impossible for me to
avoid thinking of early Anathema (namely _Serenades_), which is
a good thing, considering the quality of your MCD. I suppose
Anathema must have been a major influence to you. What are your
views on this subject?
PD: Anathema was surely very important for us when we began to write,
but it wasn't our objective to copy what they were doing. The
resemblance between Anathema and Sculpture depends on one's
opinion. Some say that there are similarities, some disagree.
Influences came unconsciously; we don't pick this or that
particular idea from this or that band. There are some names that
compelled us to play this sort of music, but we didn't make any
attempts to imitate them. Doom settles its basis in very simple
and specific concepts and ambiance, and it's very easy to find
similarities [between doom bands]. We are truly honest in what we
do, and we don't have pretensions of being too original or so
because we don't write about original feelings -- they are as old
as the human race. We just want people to find some meaning in
our music, to cry if they want to, to laugh, to hate or to love.
CoC: Does the name of your song "Autumn Serenades" have anything to
do with the title of Anathema's debut full-length _Serenades_?
Is it just a coincidence or did you want to express something
with this?
PD: When the lyrics for "Autumn Serenades" were written, Sculpture
only existed in Carlos' mind, and it goes back to 1992. It was
probably a coincidence. [_Serenades_ was released in 1993. --
Pedro] For as much as we consider Anathema important, we would
never title a song the same way on purpose.
CoC: What is it in life that makes you want to play doom metal?
PD: I think people should feel peace about their inner selves. The
balance between light and darkness is very important to someone's
mind and spirit. If you try to erase or ignore darkness from your
personality you will lose a fundamental piece of yourself and
become a hypocrite. We feel compelled to play and write doom as a
tribute to those darkest feelings.
CoC: I feel the production on the MCD was very good, achieving a very
strong sound. Are you happy with it?
PD: Yes, we are quite pleased with the result, considering the scarce
time and budget available. Our main goal was to achieve the best
results within those limitations.
CoC: And what about the music there contained? What would you change
now if you could (if anything)?
PD: Structurally, I don't think there would be any changes. Perhaps a
re-recording of this or that song, but the songs themselves would
never change. They were composed in a particular way because
there was a reason for them to be like that.
CoC: I heard you had some line-up problems lately. Would you like to
tell us more about that?
PD: Well, the problems emerged right after the recording of _Like a
Dead Flower_, when Carlos had to abandon the band due to personal
matters. Later, he rejoined Sculpture, but he still could not get
along with us. We just hope that he solves all his misfortunes so
we can gather the line-up at 100%.
CoC: What are your plans for a forthcoming album? Do you have any
dates set yet?
PD: What you heard in _Like a Dead Flower_ was a footstep for what
Sculpture is doing right now. I won't say more about it, sorry...
We'll be in studio this November, but the release date is still a
bit blurred; sometime during the forthcoming year of 1999.
CoC: How do you feel about all the Portuguese bands who are being
more or less successful abroad, like Moonspell, Heavenwood, and
now In Solitude, Inhuman, etc. (who may be in the near future),
playing easily listenable, soft metal?
PD: I deeply respect what they are managing to achieve and I wish
them all the luck, but if my opinion matters, I am not
sympathetic with the path they chose along these few years. When
a band assumes a certain musical style, it should remain faithful
to it. In some of the cases you mentioned above, I don't consider
them an evolution, but a regression. Beginning with a powerful
and majestic sound and progressively making it softer and keen to
massification is exactly the opposite of the purpose of art as a
way to express the self.
CoC: And then there are other bands, like yourselves and Desire, who
don't have the kind of success those other bands have, since the
music you play isn't exactly of a very commercial nature. Do you
intend to change your music so that this situation will change
accordingly and you receive more attention, or will you keep
playing -doom- metal (considering the kind of musical and
emotional characteristics it implies)?
PD: For me, music is not my only activity and I do not depend on it
to live. But I don't blame anyone who needs to make something
more commercial to earn money. The problem is to assume that
position after you started with a belief that is not in any way
mercenary, and when you look at yourself, you are a victim of
trends and fashions that rule the scene you're part of. Sculpture
will be playing doom for as long as it can, but of course we
won't be stagnating or something like that. The world around us
shapes us, even if we don't want it to, and things will be
naturally, progressively changing; but I'd rather just stop
playing and keep my honesty than have a label or the public
telling me how I should do things.
CoC: What about live shows? What are your current plans?
PD: The line-up problems (and others) are the reason why we didn't do
live shows yet. But before we get back in the studio, we should
be doing a couple of dates around the country so we can loosen up
a bit before we get in all that natural stress that comes up when
you're recording, and also to sharpen the appetite and curiosity
of the audience for the forthcoming album.
CoC: What is your greatest wish for the future of Sculpture?
PD: Every band dreams of having full conditions to work without
problems such as time and money limitations. That usually comes
with a major deal with a big label, but I guess that's not our
primary focus. We just wish to touch people in their deepest as
much as we can.
Contact: mailto:Sculpture_doom@hotmail.com
WWW: www.artmusic-pt.com/sculpture/
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E L O Q U E N T E M O T I O N S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Therion
by: Adrian Bromley
There is no denying that the power and strength within Therion
mastermind Christofer Johnsson's music is an extraordinary feat. It's
unbelievable how one man can make metal music so majestic and so
grand, yet easily accessible to the metal buying public and
beautifully draped with luscious melodies. His work is his craft. His
craft is stunning.
While Therion (rounded out by guitarist Tommy Eriksson,
additional guitarists Waldemar Sorychta and Siggi Bemm, drummer Wolf
Simons and bassist Ian Kazda) has managed to pry themselves away from
their death metal beginnings (i.e., _Of Darkness_, _Symphony of
Masses_ and _Lepaca Kliffoth_) over the years, the band has emerged
from the transition with powerful music that speaks volumes of
creativity and renders the listener weak at the knees. Therion's
_Theli_ record set the stage for the band (though _Lepaca Kliffoth_
did showcase some innovative ideas) with its massive use of
symphonies, choirs and sheer brilliance masking the music with
attractive melodies. _Theli_ was and is one of the most breathtaking
LPs to emerge this decade.
Following the release of the band's cover/soundtrack mish-mashed
LP titled _A' Arab Zaraq Lucid Dreaming_, the band returns to the
metal scene with the hotly anticipated outing called _Vovin_. While
much more subdued and sombre than past efforts, Johnsson's delicate
ways of mixing sounds and ideas shines like the sun. His work tells
plenty.
"I definitely think this is a big change for Therion since the
_Theli_ record a few years back," begins Johnsson. "Of course we will
never be able to do such a massive change to the music as we did with
_Theli_. I basically stopped singing and created huge classical
arrangements and choirs singing. If we were to do another such
drastic change for Therion, we'd have to stop playing and introduce
hip-hop into the Therion sound."
"We want every album by us to be different. We want people to
get a lot out of what we do. It's important to have changes within
our music. It's very important to myself to see us changing over each
LP. On _Vovin_ there are more guitars and more mid-tempo and
melancholic ideas. _Theli_ had a lot of soft guitars in the
background. Here they are more up front. There is more attention for
me to focus here with all the guitars and ideas coming together."
"I love this LP and how I worked the choirs on _Vovin_. With
_Theli_ I used the choirs to kind of take the place of rock and
guitar harmonies within a song. They were used to help guide the
song. With this LP I used the choirs very conservatively and in the
vein of an opera performance. I used the material and choirs
effectively to sound like a real opera working within the music of
Therion. As for the future, who knows, but at this point in time the
use of choirs seems very effective for Therion's work."
He adds, "I can honestly say this now, I was very worried with
the direction of the band when _Theli_ came out. I thought it was
going to flop. I thought that was going to be the last record that we
ever made. When I was making _Theli_ I was happy to have a big budget
and be able to make a powerful LP that could have been our last
recording. I thought it was going to sell nothing, which had always
been the case 'cause people thought of us always as being a weird
band, and it was the weirdest effort so far. I had to go out and sell
the record even though I had my doubts. I was worried, but beyond my
wildest dreams, the album took off and people really got into what we
had done. I was pleased."
Does he miss the early death metal days of Therion? He says,
"This is where we should be. I liked what we did before and I don't
regret anything we did musically, but I have grown as a songwriter
and now I am working with many different styles of music. We did try
to play some of the older stuff live to satisfy old fans. We always
try to play some old stuff, in respect to what we have done in the
past. But as things go on, it just seems that Therion are getting
further and further away from what we did in the past. And that's
fine by me. I enjoy being creative with our music."
Getting more in depth about his songwriting process, Johnsson
says, "Basically, with the way I work, everything I write and work on
in the studio goes on the record. If it's left over, we hold onto it.
The music doesn't go onto the next record either. We find something
special to do. There are some songs from _Vovin_ left over and that
may one day make it onto an EP. Who knows? The songs that were cut
just didn't work into the feel of what we were doing with _Vovin_."
While _Vovin_ is getting some pretty rave reviews, many critics and
fans seemed to have been under the impression that _Vovin_ was going
to act as "Theli Part II". What's Johnsson's take on the work within
_Vovin_? "I think this is some of our best work. If I wasn't happy
with it, I wouldn't put it out on record. I have this way of thought:
'If it ain't better than the previous record, I ain't putting it
out.' There are so many bands out there that put out a record and
reach the peak of their career and then go downhill from there. I
don't want that. Even if our sales in records slip, I am still going
to be proud with what we put out 'cause that is what keeps me going:
good music. We have been around for eleven years with Therion and if
we want another eleven years, then we have to think this way and make
great records. If I don't think it is better than the last record,
how can I expect someone else to think it is better?"
So what does make up a record worth putting out in Johnsson's
mind? "I want the production to be far better than the LP before. I
want the playing to be better than before and I want the songwriting
to be different. I want to offer something new. Sure we used choirs
on this LP as we did with the last one, but we used them in a
different way. It's all about using what you have and making the best
of it. Variety is key."
The thing that has always seemed to stand out from the music of
Therion is the band's utter compassion and care for what they do.
Each note and harmony is executed with a sincere and heartfelt
direction. Therion is quite frankly a band that presents itself with
as much respect as it does delivering its music. Honesty runs deep.
"We are one of those bands that care deeply for what we do. There are
many other bands out there that feel the same as we do. For example
Amorphis, they don't give a shit. They play what they like. Many
bands nowadays make music with the thought of, "What will people
think if we play music like this?" And then they change. Myself, I
always seem to concentrate on making music stand firm with my own
ideas. Nothing ever affects what I do. When I hear back final results
I wonder how things could have been changed, but I don't fuss over
it. I'm just glad to have been able to create such work."
The ending topic turns to his past work with _A' Arab Zaraq
Lucid Dreaming_ and the soundtrack/soundscape stuff he worked on for
that release. Johnsson was pleased with what he did, but feels that
his work in that style/genre is not much to his liking. Would he do
such a bizarre project again? "I won't do anything like that ever
again," states Johnsson. "It was great to be able to do that, I was
offered a nice price to work on the soundtrack, but it just wasn't my
thing. I always wanted to work on a soundtrack, but discovered it was
something I wasn't really into. It was a great experience, but I
wasn't really paid enough money for the time I had been working on
it. The thing about doing this is that it puts a strain on what I am
doing with Therion, 'cause I have to devote time to other projects. I
won't do anything else like this unless it's worth it and doesn't
take away too much of my time with the band. My band is all that
matters to me. Always has, always will."
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T E A R S F R O M T H E T H O U S A N D L A K E S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Ismo Toivonen of Unholy
by: Pedro Azevedo
Some bands don't conform to trends, and Unholy's _Rapture_ [CoC #31],
the follow-up to _The Second Ring of Power_, is a proof that the
Finnish Unholy are (or, at least, have been so far) one of those
bands. My e-mail interview with guitarist/keyboardist Ismo Toivonen
ended up being delayed for reasons that every band usually considers
very welcome: they were in the studio recording the successor of the
very depressive _Rapture_. With Veera Muhli, who performed some nice
vocals for them in the past, as a permanent member now, the new
Unholy album may very well be a fine piece of doom metal; however,
things may not be so linear, considering Ismo Toivonen's answers
below.
CoC: _Rapture_ becomes rather hard to describe as a whole, as it goes
from dirgeful doom to mid-paced doom/death, to doom with female
vocals. How would you describe the music contained in _Rapture_?
Ismo Toivonen: It's just Unholy music. I think there is no need to
describe it in any other way. People always want to
use those terms like doom, death and black metal. I
don't want to use those words. When someone listens to
_Rapture_, he or she will notice that it's not so easy
to describe in those normal terms, so I think the only
right word is just Unholy.
CoC: How do you explain the considerable differences between several
of its tracks?
IT: It's refreshing to make different kinds of songs, because if you
do the same kind of stuff for ten years you start sounding like
the same -- every song sounds like the same. And we have always
tried to change musically and try some different things because
it makes the whole thing more interesting. And when I think about
our forthcoming album, it's once again something different from
what you used to know. You know, the most important thing has
always been -feeling-, and that's still the same, even if the
music changes a little bit in every album.
CoC: What is your songwriting method? The reason why I ask this is
because your song structures are (fortunately) far from normal.
IT: What is normal? [Four minute long chorus-based songs. -- Pedro]
Well, OK, I think we have a normal way of writing songs. We have
two main ways: one is just writing riffs and finally putting them
together. The other one is more interesting, in my opinion. We
just start playing together, improvising, and maybe we can find
one or two good riffs. Then we start playing them and making all
kinds of modifications, and finally we have some good riffs ready
that fit together better than those that have been written in
that "old method". This new way has became more and more common.
I don't remember how many songs in _Rapture_ were written like
that, but in our next album over half the songs were written like
that. But of course there are more ways to make songs and we use
everything between those two ways. Every song is a different
case, so I cannot give any specific formula of how we write
songs. I can tell you one more way: sometimes we just have one
riff that myself or Pasi [Aijo, bassist/vocalist/guitarist] wrote
earlier. We start playing it and making new parts for that song
by improvising.
CoC: Is there a logical sequence in the tracks? I mean, is there any
special reason why you placed "For the Unknown One" and its nice
female vocals just before a much more barren track like
"Wunderwerck"?
IT: There is a logical sequence, but that's not the sequence in the
album. The "artistic" sequence of songs can be found in our
website, in the lyrics page. [According to which, the sequence
would be: 6, 5, 3, 7, 1, 4, 2, 8. -- Pedro] The lyrics form some
kind of a story or something like that, but it's not easy to
understand. Therefore, we didn't put those songs in that
sequence, because most people wouldn't be able to understand
this. (You know, you are probably the first person who has
mentioned it.) So, we just made a sequence that was musically the
best possible. Why is "For the Unknown One" the third song? I
don't know, maybe because the third song in _The Second Ring of
Power_ had female vocals too. Hah!
CoC: What's the story behind Veera Muhli's participation in "For the
Unknown One"?
IT: I don't know exactly what you want to know. I didn't know her
before, but Pasi knew that she is a good singer. So we asked her
to come and sing in our album. She agreed and made melodies for
that song. And we are really satisfied with it. So she's a
permanent member now and will sing in about half the songs in our
next album.
CoC: "Wunderwerck", being about 15 minutes long and having that large
acoustic section, is a good example of something that is seen
throughout the album: you never really bothered about how long
it would be, did you?
IT: No, we make songs and we don't think about how long they should
be. When the song is ready and contains everything it has to
contain in our opinion, we just check, and "oh, it's 15 minutes,
OK". If you start making songs with thoughts like "is this too
long or short?", you are going in a very wrong direction. And the
album could have been even longer, but we left one song out
because it didn't work the best possible way and we noticed that
too late, when all songs had already been mixed. But it has some
changes now and it will be in our next album, which, if
everything goes well, should be an even longer album. About 70
minutes. But we are not worried about it.
CoC: How did the strange "Unzeitgeist" appear?
IT: As a matter of fact, I wrote that song when Unholy was
inoperative. I played it to Jan [Kuhanen, drummer] and he said it
was a good song. When we re-formed again after that break, Jan
still remembered that song, so we took it to Unholy. Same story
for "Wretched". I made it, during our break, with my sequencer,
and when we joined back together we just re-arranged it.
CoC: What inspired you to write such doomy compositions?
IT: Nature itself. Everything around us. Being Finnish, I think. I
don't know one or two reasons because there are millions of them.
It's the same kind of question as "why do you want to live?".
CoC: Do you feel like you're part of the doom metal scene?
IT: No. I don't like that word because it's far from us, I think.
Sometimes I say that we are playing doom metal, but that's only
because it is closer to our music than, for example, punk or
classical music. But it's not our music, I think. And I will be
quite surprised if someone calls our music "doom" after our next
album... Get ready to find a new word...
CoC: Is there any doom band you relate to in some way?
IT: Not exactly, but when I read Skepticism's lyrics I noticed that
they have quite similar thoughts to ours and that was great to
know. Their music is different (simpler, slower), but they have
the same kind of basic feeling in their music that we do.
Greetings to them!
CoC: How do you feel about the other Avantgarde bands?
IT: I haven't heard much of them, but there are a few promising bands
who will be something one day. At least that's what I hope. I
must say I like Katatonia, even though I have only heard their
old material and one song from their new album [_Discouraged
Ones_]. They know how to do things in a very simple way, and it
still works.
CoC: What about the future? What are your plans for Unholy?
IT: We have no plans yet, because right now we are just trying to
finish our next album -- which should be out by the end of the
year, but I think it'll only be out in January or February 1999.
But when the album is finished, we are going to do some gigs
during the Winter, and after releasing a new album we'll start
doing more gigs. Right now, we are looking for a booking agent,
because it's really too hard to organize tours in other countries
by ourselves.
CoC: Is there anything else you would like to tell our readers?
IT: Wait for our next album... You will love it, or hate it. I love
it!
Contact: mailto:i.toivonen@mail.wwnet.fi
WWW: wwnet.fi/UNHOLY/
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_____ .__ ___.
/ _ \ | |\_ |__ __ __ _____
/ /_\ \| | | __ \| | \/ \
/ | \ |_| \_\ \ | / Y Y \
\____|__ /____/___ /____/|__|_| /
\/ \/ \/
_____ .__
/ _ \ _________.__.| | __ __ _____
/ /_\ \ / ___< | || | | | \/ \
/ | \\___ \ \___ || |_| | / Y Y \
\____|__ /____ >/ ____||____/____/|__|_| /
\/ \/ \/ \/
Scoring: 10 out of 10 -- A masterpiece indeed
9 out of 10 -- Highly recommended
7 out of 10 -- Has some redeeming qualities
5 out of 10 -- You are treading in dangerous waters
3 out of 10 -- Nothing here worth looking into
0 out of 10 -- An atrocious album, avoid at all costs!
A Canorous Quintet - _The Only Pure Hate_ (No Fashion, April 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
This is one of those bands that surely won't be seen as innovators,
but who do know what they're doing and are very good at it. ACQ had
made a fine debut album, and managed to create a follow-up of perhaps
equal quality. The main changes may be explained by the new studio:
while their more melodic debut _Silence of the World Beyond_ was
recorded in Peter Tagtgren's Abyss studio, _The Only Pure Hate_ came
out of the Sunlight studio. As a result, their sound is harsher and
not as sharp and melodic as before, the result at times bringing to
mind a mix between their debut and some of the characteristics of At
the Gates' ripping _Slaughter of the Soul_. As in _Silence of the
World Beyond_, ACQ are remarkably good at keeping the minimum quality
level quite high throughout the album, ensuring that every track has
something good to offer. Just like before, they do achieve several
memorable moments of Swedish melodic death metal. Not much of an
original album, but one that, like ACQ's debut, shouldn't be missed
by anyone who likes good Swedish metal.
Abigail - _Sonnets_ (Bestial, 1998)
by: Brian Meloon (8 out of 10)
Not to be confused with the Japanese band of the same name, this
Abigail plays gothic, gloomy doom/death, and they do it well. Their
sound reminds me of early Septic Flesh and Katatonia ("Love of the
Swan" from the WAR compilation). It has some gothic influences, but
not as much as on _The Ophidian Wheel_. The playing is generally very
good, but the guitar solos seem to be a weak point. The music shows a
good range of tempos and textures; there's enough variation to keep
the music interesting, even though it's slow. The vocals are mostly
death grunts, but they use some clean vocals also. Keyboards are used
frequently, but they aren't overused -- they're mainly used for
accompaniment. The production is a little disappointing, as it
appears to have been mastered too loud -- there is a noticeable
distortion in the music. It isn't really noticeable in the heavy
parts, but takes away from the clean parts a lot. Overall, this is
quite an impressive album, and I hope to hear more from these guys.
Admortem - _Ad Extremum Supplicium_ (Noise Solution, 1998)
by: Brian Meloon (8 out of 10)
This is the first release from Noise Solution Records, which is a new
division of Velvet Music international (Mundanus Imperium, Wallachia,
Children of Maani, et al.). Admortem are a French band who mix
straightforward death metal with a quirky death metal somewhat in the
vein of Lethargy [US; CoC #4 and #14], Dissonance (Slovakia) or
Atheist. Their music isn't as technical, but it's impressive, and a
good blend of the two styles. They also remind me of Death (_Human_,
_Individual Thought Patterns_) in some of their guitar solos and the
fretless bass work. The playing is solid and competent, and handles
the material well, though there are a few places which could be a
little tighter. The production is adequate: it's not brutally heavy,
but it is clean and solid. It certainly fits the music, which at
times is too quirky and noodly to be heavy. The songs are typically
short (8 songs, filling out 25 minutes), and don't have a predictable
structure. They also show a good mix of tempos, and feature a few
melodic parts as well. The guitar solos are good: they fit the music
and they're not overused. The guitarists do a good job of changing
their soloing styles for each song. The band should have finished
recording a new album by the time you read this, so we should have a
new offering from them soon. They have the potential to be excellent.
Contact: mailto:velvet@wanadoo.fr
Aeternus - _... And So the Night Became_ (Hammerheart Records, 1998)
by: Aaron McKay (9 out of 10)
One could get lost in this release! -So- much happening. -So- much
going on. Every note and masterful passage is something that has to
be absorbed. To immerse oneself in _... And So the Night Became_ is
to fully enjoy the musical fabric woven around you. I have yet to
recover from the initial baptism upon spinning Norway's Aeternus for
the first time. I can only hope that I can maintain my passion
through numerous times experiencing the disc, which, no doubt, I
*can*. Notice that I said "experiencing", because I believe that you
cannot simply hear _...AStNB_. It infects you at a basic level. Truly
befitting, severe vocals accompany the dark, brutal, yet often
enchanting, melody. Creations manifest themselves in the songs, vocal
and otherwise, that take on a vehemence all their own. Eight original
pieces welcome you for a stunning sixty-three minutes, thirteen of
which are devoured by the opening opus, "There Is No Wine Like the
Bloods Crimson". Throw on Aeternus, prepare, smoke 'em if you got
'em, and relish in the crushed blackness of _... And So the Night
Became_.
Alastis - _Revenge_ (Century Media, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (4 out of 10)
Well, the chances of my review of this record being positive were
pretty low even before I received it. Why? Because one of these
tracks was aired on London's XFM Rock Show and I spent the entire
song racking my brains to remember which Samael song it was. Imagine
how I felt when I found out it wasn't my memory that was failing me.
Unsurprisingly, the full length album also diverges little from the
musical path which Alastis' more popular fellow countrymen have
paved. Chugging riffs give way to brief keyboard interludes and are
occasionally interspersed with bass and drums passages. I really
didn't hear much on _Revenge_ that hasn't been done on Samael's
_Ceremony of Opposites_ let alone in their entire, and extensive,
back catalogue. If you are truly obsessed with the _CoO_ Samael
sound, then this album may interest you. For myself, I don't really
find much originality here and I don't need more than one _CoO_
either.
Altar - _Provoke_ (Displeased, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (6 out of 10)
Like a bat out of hell, the death n' growl onslaught of Altar hits
fast and hard. In other words, it "provokes" from the get go. Sharp
riffs whip this sucker into shape, slapping together some ferocious
amounts of metal anguish and frustration during numerous tracks,
rarely slowing this sucker down. Like a softened Napalm Death, the
music of Altar fluctuates sincerely on _Provoke_, allowing the band
to capture an angle and approach with each and every song. There are
also some great melodies here keeping things intact. Those good
points aside, it becomes apparent that there really isn't much
groundbreaking here after we filter through the good qualities. Some
of the songwriting deserves a round of applause, and those detonating
drum blasts deserve praise, but Altar can only keep it interesting
for sometime before it becomes pretty much standard. Choice cuts:
"W.E.B." and "Wasted World."
Am I Blood - _Agitation_ (Nuclear Blast, August 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (6 out of 10)
This album attempts to combine the more aggressive thrashings of
Metallica (and at points their penchant for acoustic interludes) and
mid-paced riffing in a style similar to Sentenced's with the kinds of
catchy, and often melodic, choruses which have brought both of the
aforementioned a great deal of success. As with many of the bands I
have reviewed in these "pages" (and many I have not), however, they
do not, in doing so, create music which is in any way outstanding.
The most diverse and impressive display of what talents Am I Blood
have is unfortunately showcased in the album's first track
"Negative". This is unfortunate because it inevitably leads to an
album the next 40 minutes of which are disappointing. "Negative"
itself is not a "classic", but it is good and indicates that Am I
Blood have the potential to produce substantially more consistent
works than _Agitation_. Me, I am not into their style as a whole. It
doesn't have Metallica's (_Master of Puppets_ era)
vicious-yet-crafted thrash songwriting or Sentenced's perfect blend
of melodic catchiness and rock 'n' roll. It doesn't have what I want,
it's as simple as that.
... And Oceans - _The Dynamic Gallery of Thoughts_
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10) (Season of Mist, 1998)
Although the band name and album title don't give many clues, one
might guess that whatever the style found in _TDGoT_, it would be
very likely to have a strong atmospheric component. As a matter of
fact, however, the album isn't very atmospheric; this is mid-to-fast
paced black metal with plenty of keyboards, sometimes resembling
Dimmu Borgir's _Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_, but without much of
the doom that is one of _EDT_'s main qualities. The keyboard melodies
tend to be simple and easy to follow, and, if not much else, at least
usually effective. The production is clean and well balanced
(somewhat similar to Legenda's _Autumnal_ in some ways, both having
been recorded in the Tico-Tico studio, in Finland), and the band
performs competently throughout the album. The major problem here is
a certain lack of outstanding moments (since their sound, by itself,
isn't innovative); most of the album is very enjoyable and well done,
but not exactly mindblowing. The result is therefore an album that is
unlikely to be a clear disappointment for someone who enjoys, for
example, Dimmu Borgir, but equally unlikely to become that person's
favorite album.
Angel Corpse - _Exterminate_ (Osmose, April 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
Well, it just goes to show that trusting first impressions can easily
be a mistake. When I first played _Exterminate_'s 40 minutes through
my stereo, I thought the reports of this album's quality had been
grossly exaggerated. What I thought of _Exterminate_ after my first
listen was that it was rather average. However, I persisted. On about
my sixth spin, I was rewarded for my persistence. It was like
suddenly my speakers had been fixed or my ears unblocked: I suddenly
realized that _Exterminate_ rules! Though _Exterminate_ is not one of
the year's most innovative death metal albums, it has power, energy
and riffing to rival even the most formidable of contenders. Imagine
"Altars of Madness 2", but without the imitating genericism that this
tag suggests. This has the pure energy and vicious death metal kick
which makes albums like _AoM_, _Left Hand Path_ and _Necroticism --
Descanting the Insalubrious_ so amazing. This is one searing piece of
death metal brutality. Pete Helmkamp's vocals and bass leave deep
scars, the twin guitar attack of Gene Palubicki and Bill Taylor
further burn the body beyond recognition and John Longstreth's drums
clinch the deal by eradicating any flesh still left. These war
analogies do not only come from my twisted mind and the wholly
violent quality of the music: Helmkamp's lyrics also focus on war and
violence and fit the battle-hungry music to a "t". Listening to the
chorus of "Into the Storm of Steel" ("Exterminate -- feed the
battlefield hunger, With Honor that is loyalty unto death"), you can
hear and experience the power which the two combined can produce. I
really can't see any fan of brilliant, powerful death metal resisting
the temptation to indulge in serious neck snapping activities as a
result of listening to _Exterminate_. Though _Exterminate_ has
highlights ("Into the Storm of Steel", "That Which Lies Upon", "Sons
of Vengeance"), you don't sit there waiting for a good song.
_Exterminate_ is a 40 minute hymn to war, death and brutally fast
death metal. Prepare yourself for the slaughter.
Aube - _Pages From the Book_ (E+J Recordings, 1998)
by: Gabriel Sanchez (7 out of 10)
When there is a month in the year without an Aube release, I predict
it is a sure-fire sign the world is coming to an end. Despite this
recording being several months old, unlike much of Aube's recent
output, it holds a special place in my heart as one of the truly
masterful and unique pieces Akifumi Nakajima has produced since
Alien8's 1997 release Cardiac Strain. Instead of choosing the usual
use of metallic objects for his source sound, Akifumi Nakajima has
truly gone out on a limb to entice new listeners and possibly make
others very angry. And what, you may ask, could do just that? Why,
none other than that glorious motel mantle piece placed there by some
guy named Gideon, known quite well as The Bible. For whatever reason,
Aube has decided to throw aside all convention and add an aesthetic
touch to his noise by using this once revered, now made chic to scoff
book which is the foundation for the world encompassing theology of
Christianity. Akifumi could have just as easily used a phone book to
produce the sounds heard on this recording; however, the "Biblical"
touch serves to raise a lot more eye brows than a directory of last
names and how to contact them. Despite claims made by the label
stating otherwise, each of the four lengthy tracks are tied together
by a distinct ripping sound which, if you are to believe the liner
notes, were produced by The Bible. The label maintains (and this may
very well be true) that they were made by rubbing the pages together,
however this proves worlds less interesting than a new-fashioned
Bible ripping in order to produce a noise composition. Whatever the
actual sound may be, it does remain a constant in every track,
surrounded only by subtle rumbles and surrealistic whirls of sound
used to augment the "ripping". At certain points, the "ripping" sound
becomes the main focus, with multiple "rips" churning in and out of
the speaker channels, while at others they seem to blend in and out
of the rest of the disorderly sounds found on the disc. In the end,
one may be inclined to wonder if this disc is worth it more for what
the source sound is than the actual noise produced. And, in the end,
I am forced to admit that, while the tracks easily stand up with the
best of Aube's work, at least half of the interest comes from the
source sound used. Perhaps this is not the most logical way to
purchase a noise album or bill it; however, it is likely to sell many
more a copy than something as drab as a phone book or a tin can for a
source sound. If anything, this release can be used to argue that
(love it or hate it), The Bible (or just the name) still holds some
power and, if anything, Akifumi and E+J Recordings should be credited
with having enough sense to utilize it.
Contact: E+J Recordings, PO Box 230316, Grand Rapids, MI, 49523, USA
Behemoth - _Pandemonic Incantations_ (Connected, 1997)
by: Aaron McKay (7.5 out of 10)
Maybe it is the fact that I just listened (many times) to the
overwhelming Gardenian release _Two Feet Stand_, but I have to say
that, to me, this newest Behemoth effort ingrains thoughts of a
rawer, very blackened _TFS_. From the well-orchestrated opening,
"Diableria", to the backmasked hidden track located appropriately at
track 66, _PI_ is potent through and through. Highlights of the disc
come midway through the release, namely "In Thy Pandemaeternum" and
"The Past Is Like a Funeral." Even though _PI_ is never dull or
contrived as some mediocre black metal potentially can be, the afore
mentioned song in particular exist, seemingly, to enthrall the
listener. Three souls comprise the membership of Behemoth: Nergal
(guitar and vocals), Mefisto (bass) and Inferno (drums and
percussion). With such a slim rank and file compared to say,
Gorgoroth, Behemoth suffers little in the fullness of their sound.
The quality of the packaging and sound is beyond reproach. I would
not hesitate to say this forty-six minute effort by the great
Behemoth is a purchase one could certainly be convinced into making.
Benediction - _Grind Bastard_ (Nuclear Blast, July 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (6 out of 10)
I'll be honest: I haven't been a big fan of the band since 1993 and
the ultra-heavy and cool sounds that were emanating from their
_Transcend the Rubicon_ LP. Five years and numerous releases later,
Benediction still seem to be caught in a rut. The music, pretty much
standard (not too exciting) death metal, has never really reached a
peak of interest for many fans, and for that the band has suffered
numerous bad reviews and lack of interest in them. The newest LP from
the Birmingham, England quintet, _Grind Bastard_, sees the band
turning things up a notch. Note: only a notch. More detailed and
hard-hitting than 1995's _The Dreams You Dread_, _Grind Bastard_ is
quite a refreshing take on the sound and evolution of Benediction
since their early days when Napalm Death's Barney Greenway still
fronted the band. The music seems a bit livelier here on _GB_ and
singer Dave Ingram has allowed his voice to wander away from
repetition and sample out various singing styles. On numbers like
opener "Deadfall", "Agonised" and the title track, Benediction seem
to be on a groove; it's just the somewhat mediocre other efforts here
that bring down the high. Mixed about this LP, and I am still shaking
my head to the poor covers: Judas Priest's "Electric Eye" and Twisted
Sister's "Destroyer". Actually, I shouldn't laugh. Death cover
Priest's "Painkiller" on their forthcoming LP _The Sound of
Perseverance_ and I thought it was bad. Now I think it kicks. Even
though this ain't a masterpiece, _GB_ is the best Benediction album
in years.
Beseech - _... From a Bleeding Heart_ (Metal Blade, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10)
Woah! I wasn't expecting this. I was thoroughly pleased with what I
heard with Beseech on the first listen. Passionate sculptured works
of art that dabble in a very gothic/dark overtone are everywhere
here. This is so wicked. In order to sum up the excellent
arrangements found on the LP, think Type O Negative meshed with The
Gathering and My Dying Bride. Hard to imagine, but Beseech do a good
time combining qualities of those three aforementioned bands into a
solid work of art. This is very caressful darkened music that calls
out for lit candles and the blackness of the night. Sounds so cheesy
and cliche -- maybe it is?! --, but Beseech have certainly pushed all
the right buttons and created cool metal music with stamina and
uniqueness. Make room for Beseech.
Various - _Bestial Sampler: 1997-1998_ (Bestial, 1998)
by: Brian Meloon (7 out of 10)
This sampler contains a song from each of Bestial's eleven releases
so far. It contains a song each from Dies Irae, Grimegod, and
Abigail, all of whom are also reviewed this issue. The compilation
showcases a variety of styles, which are different enough to make
this an enjoyable listen. Each of the bands is competent musically,
but the production is a little weak for a lot of them. Negora Bunget
start the tape off, with a sound reminiscent of Satyricon's _The
Shadowthrone_, but more rhythmically advanced and less repetitive.
Keyboards are used sparingly, but effectively, and the music is quite
good. Makrothomia is a death metal band (dubbed "progressive death
metal") with black metal production. I don't find much about it
that's "progressive", but it is a novel mixture of black and death
metal. Deimos play industrial death metal. They're good, but it's not
really anything you haven't heard before. All the elements that they
use (keys, samples, guitars, etc.) are standard. Interitus Dei
finishes off the first side, and they're very impressive. They play
atmospheric doom/black metal. The music varies between guitar-based
and keyboard-based, keeping a nice contrast between the two styles.
God starts off the second side, and they're melodic/gothic/doomy
black metal. They're good, but the various components of their style
aren't terribly original. Archaos are up next, and they play very
mellow gothic/ambient music, in the vein of Mortiis, but more
complex. Gothic are up next, and they play melodic, guitar-driven
doom. They're competent, but not really exceptional. The vocals are
growled and clean, and the production is very good. Agathodaimon (now
on Nuclear Blast) also appear, and although not an official Bestial
band, they contribute one (long) song. They're melodic black/death
metal, but not really any better than the other bands on the
compilation. All in all, this is a worthy compilation, with enough
diversity to remain interesting, and a good variety of classy bands,
the best being Abigail and Interitus Dei. I was quite impressed by
this label's output.
Contact: Bestial Records, Str. Caras 12, 1900 Timisoara, Romania
mailto:bestialr@banat.ro
Calamus - _The Road Trax_ (<Independent>, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (5 out of 10)
Although the Kyuss-influenced wave that has been growing lately does
not particularly interest me, this German band does show some skill
on this MCD -- enough to keep me listening, as both songs flow
reasonably well. As far as originality goes, things could be worse;
although the instrumental side brings nothing really new and isn't
anything special, the vocals are somewhat different from the usual in
this genre. The major problem with this MCD is that it only has two
tracks, totaling less than nine minutes, as the band didn't have
studio time to record any more. As a result, this seems to be more of
a demo pressed on CD and played by an already somewhat experienced
band than an actual commercial release. The production is average,
and Calamus perform well enough; could be a band to watch in the
future, for those interested in this genre.
Contact: mailto:ut2f@rz.uni-karlsruhe.de
WWW: www.uni-karlsruhe.de/~ut2f/c/calamus.htm
Various - _Call on the Dark II_ (Nuclear Blast, July 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10)
The second installment of this dark and gothic-based compilation is
quite good. Actually, it's as good, if not better than the first one,
and the reason that _Call on the Dark II_ shines brighter (or is that
darker?) than its predecessor is due to its ample variety of
material. Strong unreleased material from Therion ("Black Sun")
London After Midnight ("The Bondage Song") and album closer "Die With
You" by Christian Death help adorn this LP with flavor and with a
definite dark edge. The material here, mostly soft creepy numbers
(aided by keyboards, ambiance, etc.), show off the talent of many
acts, some unknown to myself. While those latter mentioned songs were
my faves, other suppliers of material here include Lacrimosa, Type O
Negative, The Gathering and Autumn. Fans of gothic metal take note,
as you have one more LP to light a candle to and call on the dark.
Hit the lights and enjoy.
Callendish Circle - _Escape_ (Polar Bear, March 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (7 out of 10)
This is quite a decent EP from a band I have never heard of -- I am
assuming this is one of their first releases. With that in mind, I
must say I was quite impressed. _Escape_ reminds me of Mexico's Agony
Lords and of the best parts of _The Karellian Isthmus_ era Amorphis.
They combine atmosphere and keyboards with some death metal and folk
tinged riffs and round it off with decent growled vocals. However,
the synth ridden second track really adds nothing to the record.
Though not astounding in their originality, Callendish Circle display
a fair amount of skill and plenty of potential for development which
they can exploit.
Cannibal Corpse - _Gallery of Suicide_ (Metal Blade, May 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (6 out of 10)
It is possible that if this were the debut of a fledgling death metal
band I had no background on I would have given it more than a 6 out
of 10. So am I being unfair to Cannibal Corpse? I don't think so.
This is the band's sixth album and the change of vocalist, and more
recently guitarist, have, according to the band, only strengthened
their musical vision. For a band with a reputation and history such
as Cannibal Corpse's I expect better than _Gallery of Suicide_; it
really is that simple. With production handled by Jim Morris,
Cannibal Corpse obtain a pretty good sound, although I don't notice a
marked difference from the Scott Burns produced _Vile_, but
personally I feel the drum sound could have been more powerful. The
album is not seamlessly uninteresting in that there are 14
well-defined songs, including an instrumental, but the riffs are
simply not exciting or new and don't really pack a great deal of
punch. The album is perfectly listenable, but once this review is
done I can't see it ever passing through my CD machine for my own
pleasure. The lyrics are what we have come to expect from Cannibal
Corpse: songs about killing, songs about dismemberment. The lyrical
content is nothing new and the style is not compelling either. There
are two places where this album is almost surprisingly good, however.
About two minutes into "Blood Drenched Execution" an out of tune, off
time piano part accompanies the guitars and creates a feeling of
chaos which surpasses anything else on this album. The instrumental,
"From Skin to Liquid", has a dark atmosphere, created through well
thought-out guitar work, which gives it a quality exceeding other
compositions on _GoS_. Overall, though, I don't find anything
outstanding on _GoS_. Cannibal Corpse would be hard pressed to find a
worse year to release an album this lacking in true brilliance or
innovation. This year so far, and remember we have five months left,
has yielded so many great death metal albums it is almost
overwhelming. Cannibal Corpse do not look good against the
competition from either the old and established or the new and
inexperienced. Well, now the review is finished...
Charon - _Sorrowburn_ (Diehard, August 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (6 out of 10)
With a clear and powerful production backing up _Sorrowburn_, Charon
are saved from the nightmare every band has when they unleash their
debut: being misrepresented on disc by bad production. Once the band
are in the full swing of "Wortex" they instantly bring to mind
_Draconian Times_ era Paradise Lost and as the album progresses the
band also gives a nod towards goth giants Type O Negative. Although
these comparisons seem pretty favorable, they are also rather typical
and worryingly so for Charon. Charon are a talented band and some of
their songs, especially the aforementioned "Wortex", did make a good
impression on me. They are also a band who, by riding on current
trends, whether intentionally or coincidentally, have the potential
for imminent commercial success in mainland Europe. This would be
good for getting the band exposure, but might limit their longevity
after this particular trend loses popularity, probably giving way
under the weight of the current surge of interest in power metal.
Cast all the politics and prospecting aside and look at _Sorrowburn_
in the cold light of day and you have a decent debut drawing from
classic metal enough to let you know the band were into it, casting
veiled shadows from their death metal past and ultimately producing a
perfectly listenable, but in no way boundary-breaking or astounding,
album. If you didn't want Paradise Lost to take that last step to pop
stardom on _One Second_, Charon have the kind of metal tunes they
should have penned waiting for you on _Sorrowburn_, sitting alongside
some more original tunes of their own which aren't quite as good.
Christ Agony - _Trilogy_ (Pagan, May 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (7 out of 10)
Christ Agony are a band whose underground respect I have never been
able to understand. Though I have never heard their _Unholyunion_
debut, my experience of their _Daemoonseth (Act II)_ and _Moonlight
(Act III)_ has never provided me with sufficient proof of their
worth, and I found _Darkside_ an awful and uninventive venture into
the realms of industrial-tinged metal. What always seemed to let the
band down was their inability to know when to stop. Songs with
sufficient riffs to sustain a 3 minute song ran for 10 minutes. At
last, it seems, Christ Agony have taken mercy on their listeners.
_Trilogy_'s seven tracks fill less than half of this CD's length,
with the bonus of their second four track demo providing 27 of the
CD's 52 minute total running time. In the 25 minutes Christ Agony
produce the most concise and listenable work of their career: tracks
like "Hellspawn" and "Eternal Darkness", displaying the guitar
riffing and drum style they have practiced for so long along with
Cezar's distinct vocals. All are mid-paced, the drums utilizing a few
different parts of the kit and the guitars a few chords and lots of
palm-muting along with some skillful acoustic accompaniment. Add some
keyboards, as is their trade, and, on "Dying Star", some dance beats
which actually sound cool. Overall, Christ Agony have not written an
album which changes their trademark sound, but what they have done
with it is made it less indulgent and, as a whole, made an album
which is possible to see through without having a lot of patience and
a lot interest in their music. The band's apparent usage of a drum
machine does seem to make the music a little too regimented and I'd
suggest they recruit a real drummer for the future. What some might
say is that Christ Agony's greatest problem is that their record
company have some calculation problems, as they seem to think that
this 52 minute CD provides "over an hour" of Christ Agony's music. I
just hope they don't persist in these mathematical difficulties when
it comes to paying their artists. This is definitely the best -album-
Christ Agony have produced thus far in my experience.
Cranium - _Speed Metal Slaughter_ (Necropolis Records, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (5 out of 10)
The album title _Speed Metal Slaughter_ does capture most of
Cranium's intentions, as this is indeed all about speed metal
revivalism -- but with a major lack of seriousness, mainly thanks to
their attempts at humor. Vocalist Frederik Soderberg tries to bring
back the 80s' high-pitched speed metal vocals style, and the result
is -very- annoying. Hard to believe that this is the same Frederik
Soderberg who plays guitar for the excellent Dawn, another Necropolis
band. The adequate instrumental performance turns out to be the best
side of the album, although originality and noticeably good moments
are equally scarce throughout its 32 minutes; but with these vocals
on top, the rest of the band would really have to excel in order to
make this a good album, whereas they just do their job. The fact that
the vocals are most likely close to what the band intended does not
necessarily make them better in my view. Apart from that, and even
though there is nothing anywhere near groundbreaking in _Speed Metal
Slaughter_, it will still probably be attractive for those speed
metal fans who happen to find the vocals enjoyable.
Crimson Moon - _To Embrace the Vampyric Blood_ (Abyss Productions)
by: Aaron McKay (5 out of 10)
I suppose there are two schools of thought on music to the listener:
one dictates that you innovate your chosen genre (Sabbath comes to
mind), the other dictates that you enter an established genre and be
a helmsman in your own right (Hypocrisy). Crimson Moon is definitely
following the path of the latter -- and struggling. I -wanted- to
like this disc a lot more than I did. Damn, near a dozen times I
kicked back with a cup o' joe and threw in _TEtVB_. Over and again I
came back to the same notion that this release is reminiscent of
early Ancient. In no way is this a bad thing or disparaging to either
group -- as a matter of fact, Aphazel lends his talent on tack seven,
"The Eye of the Draconis", but Crimson Moon has a feel, intentionally
or otherwise, tainted with _Trolltaar_-ian overtones. Once again,
imitation is the highest form of flattery, and Ancient has been
flattered too many times to count. Two individuals comprise Crimson
Moon: Vampir Scorpios filling the bass and vocals duties, and
Nocturnal Overlord picking up the guitar, synths, and drum
programming. Vampir's voice is a unique blend of a warmer Themgoroth
from Black Funeral and a somewhat restrained Hedlund on The Abyss'
_Summon the Beast_. Excellent company to be in, I might add. On the
whole, with open disregard for Crimson Moon's music mimicry and
verbose satanic diatrib
e that begins _TEtVB_, the effort is not bad.
Like I stated, I -want- to like this more than I do, so, suffice it
to say, I will expect my next Crimson Moon purchase -- and I will
purchase it -- to exceed even their own expectations.
Crowbar - _Odd Fellows Rest_ (Mayhem/Fierce, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
So, a new album from what, to my mind, is New Orleans' finest musical
export. Crowbar have not yet attained the success that I always felt
records with the strength of _Crowbar_ and _Broken Glass_ would, and
should, have brought them. _Odd Fellows Rest_ could now justifiably
take them to that next level. I don't mean to imply that Crowbar have
"sold out" or even unwittingly made their sound substantially more
accessible; it is just that _Odd Fellows Rest_ is 1) very good, and
2) more atmospheric, diverse and melodic than their previous efforts.
Both things open the band to a wider audience. Though tracks such as
"... And Suffer as One" or "It's All in the Gravity" retain the
heavily Sabbath-influenced, downtuned form of heaviness that Crowbar
have perfected and become noted for. Tracks such as these are now far
from all that Crowbar are about. Crowbar have moved into new and more
diverse territory with songs such as "Planets Collide", "December's
Spawn" and specific sections of songs such as "Scattered Pieces Lay",
that mixes their previous style with more melodic vocals and almost
catchy riffs, which in turn augment the music's greatness and produce
a truly remarkable album. Kirk Windstein's insightful lyrics are as
beautifully depressive and brilliant as ever, with such sublime and
subtle metaphorical passages as "You've been baptized in a lake of
tears, crucified yourself with your own fears" occurring frequently
throughout the album's 54 minute running time. It is interesting to
note also that this is Crowbar's fifth full length, for, if we are to
continue the minor Sabbath comparison, it was on Sabbath's fifth
release, _Sabbath Bloody Sabbath_, that they truly outdid themselves,
at least in my opinion; and if we look even deeper, much of that
album's brilliance revolved around the increased use of melody it
contained. Jumping 25 years ahead to the present, what is so
gratifying is that, although to the narrow minded Crowbar may have
"wimped out", they have in fact done quite the opposite. Part of _Odd
Fellows Rest_'s charm is that its melody and creepy, atmospheric
riffs and bass lines create a sound which is heavy in a quite
different, and in some ways more extreme, manner.
Cynical Smile - _Stupas_ (Org, March 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (8 out of 10)
It is always pleasing when the talents you notice in a band when they
are starting out are realized on their debut full length. This is
certainly the case with Cynical Smile's debut record _Stupas_. Though
less raw and marginally slower than their 1996 two track promo tape,
_Stupas_ accurately reproduces much of the energy and songwriting
ability which attracted me to this band when I first saw them perform
live back in July 1996. A rich guitar sound and a tight rhythm
section provide the backbone of Cynical Smile's powerful sound.
Though not a million miles away from the standard crossover fare, the
riffs and vocal passages are infectious and excellent at getting a
groove going. What it really comes down to is that the music Cynical
Smile produce is custom built for a live arena and that is where this
material really comes to life. Songs like "Gunga Ding" and "Live 4",
though bonafide crowd movers, are only good, as opposed to great,
from CD and cannot match their live intensity. This is the case with
most hardcore, in my view, and is certainly not a problem unique to
Cynical Smile. I recommend this as a companion to the more intense
live experience of these very decent mid-paced rap-metal/crossover
tunes.
Dawnbringer - _Unbleed_ (Twilight Records, 1997)
by: Ryan Kriste (8 out of 10)
The reviewer's nightmare: music that defies description. Originally
intended as being a return to the classic metal sound, this album
features just about every metal sub-genre I can think of. The overall
sound is one of black metal styled vocals over classic metal music.
Prolific use of acoustic guitars, even for some of the solos, which
give a very bluesy feel (acoustic minor-pentatonics with string
bending tend to do that). Then suddenly the music changes totally
with track eight into a total tribute to Omen. "Untold" is a medley
of songs that appear on Omen's _Battle Cry_ LP. "To Circadia" seems
highly gothic with its keyboards and almost spoken vocals, but once
again the music is pure metal, with its NWOBHM style chorus. One of
the most highly original albums I have ever reviewed, not an easy
listening album, but one that you'll find yourself returning to on
many occasions. Check out the cover painting by Chris Cooper!!!!
Contact: Dawnbringer, c/o Twilight Records, P.O.Box 416
Devault, PA 19432, USA
Death - _The Sound of Perseverance_ (Nuclear Blast, September 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
I can't say this is Death's best album, because I haven't yet picked
up their first three releases. However, I don't care what the
worshippers of _Human_ say, this is my favorite Death album of the
last four. Roughly speaking, it combines some of the slower, more
calculated riffing of _Symbolic_ with, in places, the technical speed
of _Individual Thought Patterns_ and also contains a liberal dose of
_Human_ quality writing for good measure. However, it is a very
individual creation and excels in all the right places. Great
thrashings, technical solos, memorable choruses and clear vocals are
the order of the day. Though very well done, I don't think the
closing "Painkiller" cover is a great way to end the album, but it is
a small weakness. Chuck has also chosen to play around, once again,
with some almost syncopated, technical and, in places, jazzy
sections. The beginning of first track "Scavenger of Human Sorrow" is
an example of such a section and one could easily cite other parts of
this song or others. Death don't, as they did to an extent on _ITP_,
make their music too technical, as the slow, simple chorus of "Spirit
Crusher" beautifully emphasizes, but at the same time they do not
abandon fast technical playing, as you could argue _Symbolic_ did.
_The Sound of Perseverance_ is nearly an hour long with only eight
songs and a cover, but, oddly enough, the length does not make the
album dragging, though it does make the songs far more
multi-dimensional than, for example, the new Cannibal Corpse. Death
never were, and never tried to be, the most brutal of the death metal
crowd, but _TSOP_ reinforces and newly legitimizes their reputation
as one of the finest.
Desekrator - _Metal for Demons_ (Hammerheart, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (9 out of 10)
Here are the Top Five Reasons Why You Should Have This Record:
1. Good retro/thrash/metal.
2. Pure chaos reigns from start to finish.
3. Satan, sex and loud music are high on the band's agenda.
4. No rules. No trends.
5. Any band that plays V-neck guitars in the 90s rules.
Note: The band is comprised of ex-members from Gorgoroth, Dark
Funeral and Enslaved. Also, the liner notes read: "Your soul belongs
to Satan if you've been desektrated by Desekrator." What are you
waiting for, pumpkin head? Go get some clean underwear, get your
bullet belt and give Beelzebub a call. This rules beyond belief.
Dies Irae - _Gargoyles_ (Bestial, 1998)
by: Brian Meloon (7 out of 10)
This is standard black metal. It's predictable, somewhat repetitive,
and it shows the "usual" diversity: folky parts, clean parts, etc.
The riffs have a distinct thrash element to them at times. Other than
that, there isn't a lot that's really different from the rest of the
hordes out there, but it does have its moments. Some of the songs are
rather average, and some are quite good. The playing is competent all
around, but not outstanding. The production is unfortunately very
weak: the guitars are very fuzzy, and the drums (especially the bass
drum) suffer from the "cardboard box" syndrome. This is a good
effort, but it falls a little short in the originality and creativity
departments.
Explorer - _ColdBlackUgly_ (CyberSlam Records, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (2 out of 10)
Those of you that enjoy a little bit of a Motley Crue sound with your
metal music pick this up. If not, avoid like the plague,
motherfuckers. Sorry to be so blunt, but this stinks. <YAWN>.
Contact: Explorer, P.O. Box 495 Scotch Plains, NJ, 07076, USA
Voice: (908) 233-0975
Various - _Fiesta Comes Alive!_ (Slap-A-Ham, April 1998)
by: Adam Wasylyk (8 out of 10)
Lately I've taken a turn against compilations. It seems as though
when a band is chosen -- Mayhem, for example --, it's always either
the track "Freezing Moon" or "Pagan Fears". Every time. _Fiesta Comes
Alive!_ not only offers me music by a genre I'm presently exploring
and getting into, but it's all live! There's an annual
powerviolence/grindcore show sponsored by the Slap-A-Ham label in
California, and this CD is the culmination of some of the finer bands
that have taken part during the last five years of the event. Bands
such as Excruciating Terror, Discordance Axis, Phobia, Enemy Soil,
Man Is the Bastard, His Hero Is Gone, Spazz, Benumb and Capitalist
Casualties rock out; live, raw and in your face! Damn fine shit. I'll
certainly be investigating some of these bands and seeking out their
wares. One of the better compilations to come my way. Those into the
early Napalm Death type of grind should seek this out immediately.
Contact: Slap-A-Ham, P.O. Box 420843,
San Francisco, CA, 94142-0843, USA
Gnosis - _Tribal Metal_ (<Independent>, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (5 out of 10)
A bizarre sounding metal record at that, Gnosis play metal music with
a real feel of in-depth cultural sounds and sharp contrast of ideas
marked by powerful riffs and rough, but clear, vocals. This five-song
outing explores a melodic, yet aggressive, display of metal wielding
that showcases sincere shades of progressive metal as well. The ideas
and musicianship are there for the most part, it's just the mediocre
vocals supporting the music are the ideas here that lack some push.
And the production is rather weak, too. I dunno, it's good here for
the most part, but it seems as though the whole idea of mixing
culture and metal (i.e., _Roots_ by Sepultura) has influenced this
band to strive to do something unique. It works for the most part, as
the soft interludes are nice, but in the end there is no real longing
to hear this over and over. Adequate.
Contact: Pahkneetah Management
Voice: (718) 628-9779
Gorgoroth - _Destroyer (Or About How to Philosophize With a Hammer)_
by: Aaron McKay (9 out of 10) (Nuclear Blast 1998)
To be honest, I feel moderately inferior to jugde something as great
as this release by Gorgoroth. _Destroyer_ completely knocked me on my
ass! Powerful is sorely understating the effort. Crushing is nowhere
near the mark. Searing is inadequate. All-encompassing is as close to
summarizing _Destroyer_ as I could hope to come. I am finding it
somewhat difficult to communicate my passion for this release. Seven
tracks comprise _Destroyer_, beginning with "Destroyer", totaling
thirty-seven minutes. I, quite frankly, thought that my CD player was
malfunctioning due to the terror that ensued with the first moments
of the title track. Pure concentrated ferocity! From there, the disc
builds steadily in ardor until its highlights coming to a well placed
finality. "Blodoffer", track six, stears one's thoughts and emotions
down a jagged path of mortified hopelessness and unadulterated
passion, sounding much like a battle raging while an underwater
cannon attack demolishes the hull of a great battleship -- hence the
destroyer motif is championed. On rare occasions invoking My Dying
Bride images amidst the harsh backdrop that Gorgoroth's Norwegian
black metal paints. Wonderfully hypnotic and certainly addictive as
any drug ever could be. I can tell you this, _Destroyer_ will see
much more than occasional spin in McKay's JVC disc player. As someone
once said, "It is easier to philosophize with a hammer." Gorgoroth
proves that beyond any doubt. Here's to the mighty Gorgoroth. Buy
this!
Gorguts - _Obscura_ (Olympic/Mercury, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9.5 out of 10)
Apart from being one of the longest death metal albums ever recorded,
at just over 60 minutes, _Obscura_ is also one of the finest. Gorguts
have done something which has become increasingly more difficult as
the years have gone by: they have produced a strikingly original
album. How did they achieve such a feat? Well, judging by the music,
artwork and lyrics of _Obscura_, it has something to do with residing
in a world not entirely earthly. But without speculating on the
current or recent past mental states or experiences of the musicians
involved in it, what can still fairly be said about _Obscura_ is that
it is abstract and discordant to a point where I almost feel like
narrowmindedly labeling the music which ensues as the product of a
sincerely twisted mind. The discordance of the guitar riffs which
decorate _Obscura_'s tapestry are the core of the madness; add
strange, almost off time, drumming, astoundingly individual bass
lines and Luc Lemay's tortured vocals, and you have a sound which,
when represented perfectly by Pierre Remillard's (Cryptopsy,
Obliveon) production, has the power to take its listeners to other
worlds of astounding beauty, dark mystery and intense complexity. I
find it very difficult to describe what Gorguts have captured or
compare it to anything else I have heard. I listen to and love a huge
volume of death metal, it is my favorite musical style at present,
but I still find few albums which are even comparable to _Obscura_.
Whether there will be as many clones of Gorguts new found take on the
style as there was of others' innovations in the past will remain to
be seen. What is certainly the case, however, is that Gorguts are due
credit for the original musical path they have chosen to follow. I
commend them for it and, after one listen to _Obscura_, I think you
will too.
Grand Belial's Key - _Mocking the Philanthropist_
by: Ryan Kriste (9 out of 10) (Wood Nymph Records, 1998)
I suppose I should call this black metal, but I actually have a
better name for it: heavy metal. The black metal vocals are there,
occasionally death growls come in, but if you look past it all and
just listen to the music, all you will hear is metal; brutal metal,
but still metal. The keyboards featured accentuate and do not
overpower the guitars, a trick a lot more bands could learn from. The
CD's packaging is of very high quality, with a twelve page booklet
including band pictures (no corpse paint), with tray print and really
well done cover art. Each track has something special that sets it
apart from the others, be it the solo or the rhythm of the song.
Speed varies considerably from song to song, going from slow and
doomy to hyperfast mosh parts. Check out "Savouring the Virgin's
Pessary" for one of the best riffs since "Angel of Death". If you are
into any extreme metal and/or black metal, you must have this.
Contact: Wood Nymph Records, Langebeekstraat 28, 3210 Linden, Belgium
Grimegod - _The Darkside (Pain in Another Dimension)_ (Bestial, 1998)
by: Brian Meloon (7 out of 10)
This is a remix album of Grimegod's best material. It's generally
doomy, atmospheric black metal, but it has some elements of other
styles as well (the intro to "Dreamside Scream", which in the
original version was the middle section, is notable for its
"progressive" and neo-classical touches). The music is generally
good, but it isn't consistent: some parts are a little drawn out and
boring. The keyboard parts are varied and interesting, showing a
variety of tones and textures. The band doesn't have a drummer, but
the drum programming is very good: it's interesting, and doesn't
sound like a drum machine most of the time. The production is good; a
little light on the guitar tone, but average for black metal.
Certainly the weakest link for this band is the singer, whose clean
parts are way too flat to be ignored. The rest of the playing is
great, but the singing ruins parts of it. Overall, these guys are
good, and they appear to have potential, but they need some work to
flesh out their ideas and get consistently good output.
Hateplow - _Everybody Dies_ (Pavement, March 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (8 out of 10)
This is a side project of sorts for Phil Fasciana and Rob Barret of
Malevolent Creation, among others. However, this is not some lame
music thrown together without skill and marketed solely on the
standing of the people involved in it. Hateplow is certainly not a
million miles away from Malevolent Creation, however, and will
certainly appeal to fans of the band. What is different is, to some
extent, down to the lyrical content as well as the music. The music
is a similar mix of the crunch and precision of death and the punk of
grind to that the mighty Terrorizer purveyed. The sound of this
classic band is especially noticeable on such tracks as "Challenged"
and "Prison Bitch", while "Stalker", among others, leans far more
towards the kind of death metal Malevolent Creation typically create.
Lyrically, the band concentrate on sick and unpleasant aspects of
life such as crack addiction and mental illness. They state, however,
in the album's credits, that "These songs are real stories. Names
have been changed to protect the guilty. In no way are we fascist,
racist or hatemongers." Their reasons for including this disclaimer
may relate to past experiences Malevolent Creation have had with
their lyrics being misconstrued. The band includes a cover of Cream's
"Sunshine of Your Love" rendered in their grindcore style, which,
though it provides some amusement, does not fit with the tone of the
album and is rightly noted as a bonus track. All in all, a very
vicious collection of songs both musically and lyrically, and most
likely to appeal to fans of Malevolent Creation and Terrorizer.
Various - _High Radiation 4_ (Independent Records, July 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
The fourth edition of this Portuguese compilation (watch the concert
review in this issue featuring four of these bands) is quite a
miscellaneous one: from unsigned bands to others who already have a
full-length album out, from Portuguese bands to others from far
countries (whenever a band's origin isn't mentioned in this review is
because they're Portuguese). Starting with the best bands, Lacrima's
new song is bereft of some of the death metal influences found in
their enjoyable first demo, _Tears From the Inside_, except for the
death growls that still mix with the quality female vocals, but is
still a good song from a band with a future. The Slovakian Lunatic
Gods sound quite doomy, although not necessarily slow, with a sound
of their own and plenty of variations and originality that keep the
song interesting. Dead Meat mix grindcore, death, female vocals,
medieval influences, keyboards, major speed variations, some strange
rhythms and completely unpredictable sequences -- probably even
stranger than the third Pan-Thy-Monium album. Still needs work, but
sounds interesting and original. Ciborium, who now have an album out,
present some technical, atmospheric death metal of very interesting
quality. Buried Alive show their powerful and technical thrash, but
the song is short. On the average side of things are Morbid Death and
In Solitude, more experienced bands who play two kinds of reasonably
well done, but not very remarkable, melodic metal. From there on,
Without Faith (from Greece), Bellwitch and Disarrey (USA) are just
average, The Royal Blood sound better than on their demo [CoC #30],
but worse than in their live performance [reviewed in this issue],
whereas Imortalis, Eternal Cry (Spain), Tomb Gods, Vortex and Violent
Hate (Brazil) are all below average, with Cisma (Brazil) winning the
title of most uninteresting band of the compilation. Nothing really
outstanding to be found in this compilation, just a few bands who do
have quality and some who seem to have something interesting to offer
in the future, while most lack originality and many also quality.
Just some final words about several band names: stuff like Morbid
Death, Without Faith, Lunatic Gods, Violent Hate and several others
isn't exactly brilliant and is unlikely to help the bands.
Contact: mailto:ind.rec@esoterica.pt
In Battle - _The Rage of the Northmen_ (Napalm Records, July 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (9 out of 10)
The especially noteworthy first couple of tracks introduce In
Battle's second album of blazing war-inspired black metal, and no
track ever drops the pace until it's all over. Before listening to
_The Rage of the Northmen_, I was aware of In Battle's reputation,
but had never listened to their debut (which I will now undoubtedly
seek); _TRotN_ turned out to be just about as fast and brutal as I
expected, but also much catchier than I anticipated. This somewhat
unexpected catchiness does take the album to far greater heights,
together with the often incredibly fast (yet precise) drumming and
vicious vocals. Every song just overflows with energy and the band
(which has been reduced to a duo) shows remarkable skill at enormous
speed. The production is neither too clean nor harmful to the sound
quality, achieving a kind of sound that seems very adequate for the
music. A -very- intense album.
Incantation - _Diabolical Conquest_ (Relapse, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
I purchased and began listening to Incantation's two previous albums,
the original mix of the second, to prepare myself for _Diabolical
Conquest_. What I was to realize was that nothing could fully prepare
me for the brutal death metal assault which _Diabolical Conquest_'s
eight tracks and 45 minutes bring. The blasting of opener "Impending
Diabolical Conquest" immediately alerts the listener to the first
important change _DC_ brings for Incantation: an improvement in
production. The clarity of all instruments, even the low, guttural
vocals, has been increased near tenfold and bestows even more power
to Incantation's ever vicious assault. What one further learns as the
album proceeds on its road to hell is that Incantation have also
pushed themselves to write the best songs with the best playing they,
even with their high standards, have ever done. Though the overall
quality of the death metal on offer is superb, the segments certain
songs include, such as the stop/start section in "Ethereal Misery",
give the album a yet sharper knife edge with which to slice into the
carcass of musical brilliance upon which the band have chosen to
feed. Though the last sixteen minute track "Unto Infinite Twighlight
/ Majesty of Infernal Damnation" may seem long, it is not ponderous,
and I also excuse the similarity of its first riff to that on Sodom's
"Obsessed by Cruelty", as it provides a final crushing testament to
_Diabolical Conquest_'s unshaking quality. Incantation's finest hour
is upon us and, even in such a good year for the style, their album
ranks as one of this year's best death metal albums.
Infernal Majesty - _Unholier Than Thou_ (Hypnotic, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (3 out of 10)
It is eleven years since the band dubbed "Canada's Slayer" unleashed
their now classic, in the underground, album _None Shall Defy_, and I
feel that if we were to look for a similar label to place on them
today, it would be "Canada's Death". The similarity of _Unholier Than
Thou_ to Mr. Schuldiner and his various mobs' creations is such that
this would not be wholly unfair either. The comparisons can become
embarrassing, for example if one checks out the beginning of second
track "The Hunted": the opening lyrical passages and the timing in
which they are delivered is disturbingly similar to Schuldiner's own
vocal style and the kind of lyrics he pens. But what did we expect
Infernal Majesty to do? If we expected _None Shall Defy Mk.II_, then
we certainly don't have it, but I must question whether that is what
anyone did want or expect. To many that album is classic; I
personally find it good but not astounding. To follow such a revered
debut eleven years later is more than hard and is highly unlikely to
produce a similar disc. Think of how much Slayer or, dare I say it,
Metallica changed in eleven years. If this was a debut, it would be
marked down as a Death clone and justifiably so. It suffers from a
lack of variation between songs and the fact that it is so derivative
of Death. However, it is an enjoyable 37 minutes which are well
produced and technically proficient. If you want what could
effectively be seen as "the lost Death record", then you have it
here. Problem is, Death have got a new record which is better than
_UTT_ and this is not a CD which I feel will capture the imagination
of fans of the original Infernal Majesty sound. I have to ask, then:
who will buy this record and why?
Kazumoto Endo / Incapacitants - <split> (Gentle Giant Records, 1998)
by: Gabriel Sanchez (8.5 out of 10)
Before starting this review, it should be noted that I am not a big
fan of 7" vinyl noise releases; however, I chose to make this one a
prime exception from the rule due to the powerful and highly
entertaining quality of the noise found on it. Despite the rather
short length of both artists' tracks, they still manage to deliver
enough high quality noise that makes this a very worthy investment.
Kazumoto Endo's track contribution (hilariously entitled "Most of My
Problems Are Solved by an Afternoon Snooze") is a cut up swirl of
sound and loops which ranks up as one of the best tracks Endo has put
out thus far. Starting off with a few sporadic bursts of sound which
are mat with a wall of silence, the track eventually moves into a
mighty collage of electronic madness with the trademark Endo loops
creeping their way into the mix. Closer to half way through the
track, the unpredictable walls of silence are once again tossed up to
allow the listener to catch his/her breath before once again diving
back into the chaotic mixture. On the other side, Incapacitants
wasted absolutely no time in just ripping out a massive aural assault
that touches on every tonal level imaginable. As it goes with their
brand of noise, the sounds remained unrelenting with new ones
layering in and out of the chaotic mix with absolutely no rhyme or
reason. No matter how many times one listens to this track, there is
always a new pattern in the chaos to be found, and, quite frankly,
that is what makes Incapacitants and especially this track the
highlight of the split. No silence, no patterns, no loops... just
pure fucking noise that is as unfeeling as the electronics it is
produced from. This is easily one of the best noise splits I have
heard with neither artist having to carry the other, as both deliver
in top form with their equally harsh but distinctive compositions.
Contact: Gentle Giant Records, PO Box 50013, Kalamazoo, MI 49005, USA
mailto:gengiant@aol.com
Krabathor - _Orthodox_ (Morbid, March 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (8.5 out of 10)
Now this -is- pleasing. I have been trying to pick up a Krabathor
album for a while, having heard many a rumour of the quality of their
music. On first listen I was very pleased with _Orthodox_, and that
opinion didn't change too much upon repeated spins of the disk. First
and foremost, Krabathor have a damn fine sound. Raw but clear, the
guitars bite and the drums smash with precision and force. The vocals
are also well performed and come out well in the mix. Krabathor do
owe quite a bit to Malevolent Creation and others of their classic
kind, but they play out in style without sounding generic and don't
fall into the "where have I heard that riff?" trap. The opening title
track is a particularly vicious assault and one of the best tracks on
the album, not least for its catchy-yet-intensely-brutal chorus: a
rare thing in death metal. Though much of their music consists of the
traditional mix of low tuned riffs, mean kick drums and precise blast
beats, Krabathor also often manipulate a groove the quality of which
is not seen every day in death metal. It is this infectious
"death-groove" which Krabathor use to pull themselves above the level
of the merely ordinary. What helps them is their lyrics. This is not
a band who sit down to write standard death metal lyrics. Krabathor's
lyrics come from their hearts and address issues which are close to
the same. Whatever your political opinions, Krabathor make no bones
about giving you theirs. A great example is "To Red Ones":
"Communist, community of red Hitlers / Get out of my way! / Your
chance is lost, you are less than dust / You're living corpses /
That's my revenge, don't ask for human rights / We don't need you! /
You wished us hell, that's what I wish you / Twice". Despite some
failings in their English, which is not surprising for a band from
the Czech Republic, Krabathor convey their feelings about real issues
very effectively. It also helps that I agree with a lot of their
complaints. All in all, a great fourth album for a band whose talents
have so often gone unnoticed on an international level; I hope that
this changes that, 'cause it certainly deserves to.
Let Me Dream - _Medley Rain_ (Succubus Records, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
Long gone are the days of this Finnish band's 1995 debut album _My
Dear Succubus_ for Adipocere Records. Now, Let Me Dream return with a
new MCD and a label of their own. They describe these new songs as a
combination of gothic, dark pop and metal; fortunately, however, the
obnoxious three-letter word in that recipe isn't too prominent in
their music, as this is essentially gothic metal with plenty of
keyboards and rather weak guitars. The vocals are semi-operatic,
reminding me of a mix of Moonspell's vocalist Fernando Ribeiro's
clean vox in _Wolfheart_ with the kind of vocals more frequently
found in gothic rock. These vocals take time to get used to, but
aren't bad. Although some blackened vocals are also occasionally
used, more variety (perhaps some female vox) would have been welcome.
The music is reasonably well composed and executed, but not
especially captivating; it lacks either more metallic qualities or a
more emotional (perhaps more depressive) atmosphere, anything that
would make the MCD become more captivating for the listener. As it
is, _Medley Rain_ is a reasonably good MCD, although not every choice
for their sound was the best possible this time.
Contact: mailto:wolfborn@freenet.hut.fi
WWW: www.mygale.org/11/gore/LMD.html
Lost Souls - _Fracture_ (Nuclear Blast, July 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (3 out of 10)
It's amazing that it has been so long since Machine Head's _Burn My
Eyes_ took the metal world by storm (that was in 1994, if you've
forgotten already) and still the band's sound and style influence the
ways of many bands out there. The riffs. The vocals. The attitude.
It's all there and circulating through the sounds of many newer metal
acts out there nowadays. The latest culprit, Lost Souls. For sure,
this is a total rip-off of Machine Head in terms of guitar sound. As
for the other aspects, the vocals are more death-ish than what
Machine Head singer Rob Flynn has been accustomed to providing us
with, but still this is total Machine Head -- start to finish. The
only saving grace of this LP is the ultra-cool rip n' roar feel of "2
Pieces" and "Downfall". Other than that, it's all been done before. I
know I've said that before, and you know what? I'll keep saying it
again and again if bands keep rehashing and/or ripping off other
bands.
Masonna - _Frequency LSD_ (Alien8 Recordings, 1998)
by: Gabriel Sanchez (9 out of 10)
The cult icon of Japanoise once again makes another proverbial
anti-statement with his uniquely harsh blend of screams, feedback,
and constantly changing blasts, rumbles and blips of sonic
destruction. As always, this release is very much comparable to his
lengthy back catalog of material; however, Maso does manage to get
across the point that he is far more than a "one trick pony". The
main attraction of this release to new and old fans alike is the
rather unskilled, though highly interesting (and somewhat comical),
use of 60's psychadelia in the warped textures of sound laid out in
each track. Despite not being very noticeable at the start of the
album, with each successive track the influence becomes stronger and
stronger until the final fourteenth track almost sounds unlike
everything that one would come to expect from Masonna. Instead of
being treated to a barrage of uncontrolled, harsh, and maddening
noise, we are treated to lengthy explorations into the joys of warped
synthesizer repetition and digitally altered radio frequency loops.
After all is said and done, one is easily left with the impression
that Maso has abandoned his glorious "roots" and has taken the
proverbial next step in his noise sound. Whether this is the case or
not remains to be seen. However, it is undeniable that the alteration
and inclusion of entirely new sounds for the artist is a successful
venture. Slowly but surely, Maso seems to have been able to calm down
and "trip out" his sound so well during the album, it almost becomes
unnoticeable until the later tracks. With any luck, Maso will take
these two distinct styles he has incorporated so beautifully on this
disc and further expand on them in the not-so-distant future. This
is, thus far in the year, the best noise release put out by any
artist and, after just one listen, it's not hard to hear why.
Contact: Alien8 Recordings, P.O. Box 666, Station R
Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H2S 3L1
mailto:alien8@alien8recordings.com
Metalucifer - _Heavy Metal Drill_ (Iron Pegasus, December 1997)
by: Paul Schwarz (8.5 out of 10)
Classic heavy metal. Metalucifer are testament both to its brilliance
and its timelessness. Although not original by any standard, the
quality of the music which this Japanses trio, which features current
and former members of Sabbat, pen is of such compelling quality that
any similarities to classic, pioneering bands such as Iron Maiden,
Manowar or Helloween are instantly forgiven. Anyway, _Heavy Metal
Drill_ is better than anything produced by the aforementioned in the
last ten years. It's at least 666 times better than Iron Maiden's
latest effort, _Virtual XI_, beats Helloween's decent _Better Than
Raw_ and tops both of Manowar's patchy efforts since 1988's
incredible _Kings of Metal_ easily. With song titles and lyrics as
firmly focused on pure metal as the riffs and drums are, the first
three songs all start wih "Heavy Metal..." and the seventh is simply
entitled "Headbanging", this becomes a 50 minute journey into the
melodic, distortion filled world of classic heavy metal -- and what a
journey it is. Solos are what axemen's dreams and egos are made out
of, vocals are as infectious as they are balls out, and quite simply
every feature of a great, classic, heavy metal album is present. The
band even sucessfully toy with keyboards on their "Metalucifer"
instrumental track. When the old boys can no longer match themselves,
it is up to others to remind them of the greatness of heavy metal.
This is better than HammerFall too, by the way. All this from a
Japanese band. Who would have thought it? "The next album _Heavy
Metal Chainsaw_ is planned to attack you with spell somewhere in
1999", say the band in their booklet. You have been forewarned.
Contact: Iron Pegasus, Costa Stoios, Brunnenstr. 6, 54538
Kinderbeuern-Hetzhof, Germany
Fax: +49 6532 5243
Napalm Death - _Bootlegged in Japan_ (Earache / St. Clair, June 1998)
by: Adam Wasylyk (8 out of 10)
I am one who holds the opinion that Napalm Death have deteriorated
into a weak excuse for a death metal band. I'm certainly not against
musical progression -- in fact, I'm into bands like My Dying Bride,
Amorphis, Morgoth and Katatonia, who all sound quite different from
when they first started. In my eyes, Napalm have progressed much too
far and I'm sure they will one day leave most of their fans behind.
_Bootlegged in Japan_ features over an hour of music, performing
material from the early days to their present record at the time this
bootleg was recorded, _Diatribes_. I was very happy, to say the
least, that a good amount of old material was included -- tracks such
as "Lucid Fairytale", "Control", "The Kill" and "Scum". Also mid-era
Napalm was present, including "Mass Appeal Madness", "Suffer the
Children", "Unchallenged Hate" and one of my personal faves, "Seige
of Power". "Nazi Punks Fuck Off" serves as the lone cover, and it
tops off a great (both material and sound wise) bootleg, despite my
personal view that Barney Greenway can't sing well in a live
environment. Napalm Death fans (both old and new) should pick this up.
Nifelheim - _Devil's Force_ (Necropolis Records, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
Looking at all the evil imagery Nifelheim seem to have tried so hard
to put together through band photos, ridiculous front cover and
utterly unimaginative song titles, I expected _Devil's Force_ to be
quite a brutal album, even though probably not very technical.
However, the rather simplistic thrashy retro-sounding black metal
Nifelheim play throughout this half-hour long album failed to impress
me as far as brutality is concerned. It may be fast, aggressive and
not exactly the most melodic metal album ever made, but the brutality
level is still far from the standards set by many bands by now and
fails to entirely compensate the technical simplicity. Another
problem is that the more quality Norwegian black metal you know, the
worse Nifelheim's attempts at producing "evil music" sound. Still,
and although there is hardly anything new to be found in this album,
Nifelheim are reasonably good at what they do and _Devil's Force_ is
an acceptable average album.
Nunslaughter / Dekapitator - _Blood On Steel_ (Split 7")
by: Ryan Kriste (9 out of 10) (<Independent>, 1997)
Triumphing old school death/thrash played by those who were there.
Nunslaughter deliver three insane tracks of true old school death
metal. I think the worst thing about finding out about bands like
this now is that you want to kick yourself for not getting into them
earlier -- Nunslaughter have been doing it since 1987. This is the
way I like my death: brutal, evil, fast and you can still hear the
lyrics. Sounds a lot like Acheron. Very short songs for death metal,
but the message shines through in the five minutes. "Bring Me the
Head of God". All I hear when I listen to Dekapitator is
"Destruction" (the band as well as the feeling). Straight, vicious
old school thrash -- I love thrash, again I love thrash. Six minutes
of power, in the finest tradition. Hail!!!! Comes in a very cool
glow-in-the-dark vinyl; it really works.
Contact: Nunslaughter, 132 Old Village Ln.,
Bethel Park, PA 15102, USA
Ophthalamia - _A Long Journey_ (Necropolis Records, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
Re-recordings are always a risky enterprise for any band: they may go
unnoticed by those who didn't know the album before and may
disappoint fans who did own the original version and, since it's the
one they know better, still find it superior. And what my experience
tells me is that the original versions -are- indeed better most of
the times. That's not the case here, however. Ophthalamia have taken
their 1994 debut _A Journey in Darkness_ and gave it a very different
treatment. The production is completely different (for the better),
and the band's execution is significantly better as well. Most of the
keyboards have been suppressed, which isn't as terrible as it might
sound at first, and some structural changes have occurred. Still, the
opening track "A Cry From the Halls of Blood / Empire of Lost Dreams"
and "Enter the Darkest Thoughts of the Chosen / Agony's Silent
Paradise" (which is now the sixth track) are as brilliant as ever. An
extra song has been included, as well as a Venom cover, which is
rather out of place in this album, especially after it has been
closed by "I Summon Thee, oh Father / Death Embrace Me". The overall
result, with all the instrumental and production improvements, is
superior to the original and, despite Ophthalamia's annoying tendency
to insert more 'rocking' sections very harmful to the atmosphere,
most of the album is quality mid-paced black/doom.
Pain Jerk - _Greater Curvature_ (Spite, 1998)
by: Gabriel Sanchez (8 out of 10)
Anyone who denies Kohei Gomi a position right alongside other
"worshipped" noise artists such as Masami Akita, Maso Yamazaki or the
ever loved Joe Roemer is only denying a truth which becomes clearer
with every new output by Pain Jerk. _Greater Curvature_ finds itself
divided into four parts, encompassing some 45 minutes of time well
spent listening to this magnificent noise creation. As always, Gomi's
amazing editing and stereophonic effects techniques are put to great
use with layers of harsh sound finding themselves augmented by spacey
blips and bleeps which come pouring in and out of the speaker
channels. The entire feel of this release seems to be less of one
large sonic attack on its listeners than a venture into mixing and
editing (which could be said for many a Pain Jerk release). While the
noise remains consistently loud and often takes a turn for the
punishing at points, it also remains very hypnotizing. Unlike some
noise releases that tend to drone on endlessly, Pain Jerk keeps the
sounds fresh, sporadic, and always mixing in order to add a level of
depth and interest rarely found in many newer artists, who seem
content to turn on their pedals and let them run with little thought
or innovation being given to their sound. With every listen, I still
find myself attempting to pin down all of the sounds that Gomi seems
to have knitted together so well in this excellent noise venture.
With the ever growing audience of Pain Jerk fans out there mixed in
with the especially skillful quality of the noise found here, I
expect this limited edition of 50 releases will soon be gone, so make
a point to act fast on it. To those unfamiliar with Pain Jerk or
noise in general, this is a more than ample place to begin building a
hefty collection of both, as this easily rivals almost everything
being put out by almost everyone in the noise scene today.
Contact: Spite, P.O. Box 56153, Kalamazoo, MI 49005-1653, USA
mailto:monoanie@aol.com
Primordial - _A Journey's End_ (Misanthropy Records, June 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (9 out of 10)
Something that annoys me in many albums out there is that either the
music or the lyrics have little to do with the artwork, or lyrics and
music don't match, or when they do the whole concept is far from
original and interesting. Fortunately, there are still plenty of
albums that don't fall in any of those traps, and _A Journey's End_
is one of those. As the artwork and interesting lyrics suggest, the
music is doomy and doesn't really try to be catchy -- in fact, the
album took a while to grow on me. _A Journey's End_ doesn't sound too
much like anything else, but it could be compared to a somewhat
blackened Darren-less Anathema mixed with a lot of Primordial's own
work. This is essentially an evolution from their previous album,
_Imrama_, showing vast improvement in some areas. There are less
blackened vocals, but Averill's clean voice has improved enough to
avoid turning this change into a problem; the song structures and
atmosphere changed significantly as well. The album is formed by four
long doomy tracks (over eight minutes each) and three shorter ones
that differ from everything else on _A Journey's End_: the great
acoustic "Dark Song", the sombre spoken "Solitary Mourner" and the
finishing instrumental "On Aistear Deirneach". It may be Primordial's
Irish origins that make them sound different, but this is far from
being folk-influenced music, despite the frequent use of acoustics;
what it does have is a certain uniqueness in some ways. Definitely
not a vulgar album.
Rotten Sound - _Under Pressure_ (Repulse, March 1998)
by: Adam Wasylyk (7.5 out of 10)
I've never hid the fact that I don't like much of what Repulse puts
out. I mean, when a lot of the bands sound like second rate
Suffocation, there's only so much one person can stand. However,
Repulse have released some talented artists -- namely Golgotha,
Intestine Baalism and just recently its first black metal band,
Ouija. You can add Rotten Sound to that list, as their
hardcore/grind/ crustcore is quite enjoyable to listen to. These
Finnish lads deliver the goods with 22 tracks of tight musicianship
and uncompromised aggression. Those who love the insanity displayed
on fine recordings such as Napalm Death's _Scum_ or Terrorizer's
_World Downfall_ will certainly find a lot to like on _Under
Pressure_.
Ruination - _Visionary Breed_ (Goldtrack Records, June 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
Although Ruination were once a doom/death band, neither style has any
practical weight on their current melodic atmospheric metal that even
reminded me of the somewhat standardized style some Portuguese bands
have been choosing lately. This Lithuanian band has its moments
during _Visionary Breed_, though; they also have acceptable
musicianship, and the sound is good enough (recorded at the Abyss),
although the vocals should have been better. The problem with their
medium sized songs is that they lack something the band may have had,
to some extent, when they were still playing doom/death (I don't
know, though, since this is the first material of theirs I've ever
heard): globally, _Visionary Breed_ is neither especially heavy (far
from that), emotional, doomy, nor even especially melodic -- or
rather, especially remarkable by its melodies. What remains is a well
performed but average work that tends to conform to the reigning
normality more than it should.
Sadus - _Elements of Anger_ (Mascot, November 1997)
by: Paul Schwarz (7 out of 10)
Sadus have, throughout their career, been a band who have remained on
the fringes of the thrash/death metal genre. They have never attained
the success or widespread critical acclaim of some of their peers.
Will _Elements of Anger_, the first Sadus album in more than five
years, change all this? Well, in fact, a more appropriate question is
actually "-has- _Elements of Anger_ changed all this?", since this
album's European release was back in November last year. I think you
know the answer. It is "no". Whether it deserved to is what I will
assess, though my answer will be rather longer than one word.
_Elements of Anger_ is grounded on a Scott Burns production which,
whatever your view of his talents, ought to give the record a full
and bassy sound. Surprisingly enough, this is not the sound _Elements
of Anger_ has at all. Instead, the sound is similar to Sadus' other
releases, with flat sounding drums, crunchy, rather than rich, guitar
tones and a good, clean bass sound topped off by raspy vocals. As
songwriting goes, Sadus have altered the formula set down on previous
releases to some extent by including instrumental work which attempts
to create atmosphere and has some success in doing so. Combine this
with their traditional vicious and speedy thrash attack and you
certainly have an album which contains variation. Steve DiGiorgio's
bass work is complex and inventive and increases the album's overall
ability to impress. However, Darren Travis' raspy vocals lack power
or ability to flow seamlessly with the music. What this means is
that, although Sadus produce a decent, listenable album, they fail to
produce anything that is truly outstanding. Ultimately, I would say
that _Elements of Anger_ is a good place to start the ball rolling
again, but it is not the album that will push them further than
previous releases have, and it doesn't deserve to.
Sentenced - _Frozen_ (Century Media, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
In only four days _Frozen_ spun through twelve times in my CD player.
This is not usual for me. It is worth explaining, or trying to, why
this particular piece of plastic -was- spun so many times in my
stereo in such a short space of time. The answer: I was hooked.
_Frozen_, you see, is one of those albums which I can happily say
satisfies on far more than one level. Sentenced have committed 48
minutes of music to tape which are addictive like hard drugs and
lyrically as suicidal as an addiction to hard drugs. Before exploring
_Frozen_'s musical tapestry further, a short look at where Sentenced
are in their musical career. This is Sentenced's fifth full length
and follows 1996's successful _Down_ album, which saw the replacement
of long-time vocalist Taneli Jarva with Ville Laihaila, whose vocal
talents also grace _Frozen_. The melodic approach which set _Down_
apart from older albums such as _North From Here_ is continued and
adapted on _Frozen_. Apart from enjoying the music in this new
direction of itself, what I enjoy so much about _Frozen_ specifically
is its flow. Each track fits with the tracks around it and into its
place in the album as a whole. Each new track is another step on
Sentenced's way to musical Valhalla. Sentenced don't quite make it
there this time, otherwise you would see a perfect rating at the top
of this review, but they come damn close. This flow does not stop
_Frozen_ from having highly individual songs. Part of the album's
quality is the fact that all nine full songs (with three
"instrumentals") can stand alone so perfectly while also composing
such a highly structured album. Songs like "Farewell" or "Let Go (The
Last Chapter)" are not ponderous or irrelevant when considered out of
their position in _Frozen_'s entirety. Then again, the way that
"Farewell" slides in from the majestic climax of "Kaamos" is
brilliant and provides the perfect introduction-of-sorts for the
song. _Frozen_ also sees Sentenced very effectively mixing the
keyboards/orchestration part of their sounds with the classic guitars
/ bass / vocals / drums arrangements. This means that while the album
still "rocks", it contains sweeping melody and tons of atmosphere.
"For the Love I Bear" perfectly demonstrates the value of combining
these elements effectively. It makes use of the keyboards and
atmospheres in its verse to great effect. It also has a very catchy
chorus full of guitar hooks and memorable vocal lines. However,
Sentenced also build the song to a crescendo with drums and palm
muted guitars, at which point Ville burps and a ripping, heavy rock
solo ensues. _Frozen_ is a crafted album with much to explore in a
recorded format. It also contains very well written songs which will
sound great when the band plays them live without the additional
orchestration, as they do. For my money, this is the best album of
its kind which is likely to see the light of day this year and we
should be thankful for it.
Sepultura - _Against_ (Roadrunner/Attic, October 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (9 out of 10)
I don't know what you metalheads were expecting with the new
Sepultura, seeing that Max Cavalera was out and Derrick Green was
taking over vocal duties. I was only hoping that the return of
Sepultura would be unforgettable. I now have a copy of _Against_ and
let's just say my ass has been kicked hard. This is totally heavy
shit and easily surpasses what Max did (no offense) with Soulfly.
It's heavier, more aggressive and easily one of the best releases of
1998. Does the band let down any of their fans? A big NO! New singer
Green (ex- Outface / Overfiend / Alpha Jerk) does a superb job
keeping things fast and furious. Elements of hardcore are the most
noticeable new changes within the music, yet a welcome change to what
Sepultura are doing, keeping the momentum going on _Against_. From
hardcore-styled opener and title track "Against", Sepultura's groove
hits the pedal to the metal, crushing all in its path with powerful
concoctions of ferocity with numbers like "Choke", the blistering
"Boycott", "Rumors" and the Jason Newsted (of Metallica fame)
collaborated piece "Hatred Aside". There is no downside to this
record, as it all grooves with an intense sound and style that fans
have been craving from Sepultura since _Chaos A.D._. Though 1996's
_Roots_ was a truly triumphant record with the use of the Xavantes
tribe and the cultural bonding of music and rhythm, _Against_ sheds a
huge spotlight on what Sepultura has always been about: variety and
passion. The new LP focuses on and showcases the real power of
Sepultura, managing to reinvent themselves once again with this LP,
but still stay so close to Sepultura's trademark sound. People
thought they were a dead horse with Max's departure, but Sepultura
regrouped and threw all that negative press and uncertainty out the
fucking window. This kills and every metal fan should witness the
resurrection of Sepultura in 1998. All you other fuckers, get the
hell out of the way.
Seventh Avenue - _Southgate_ (Treasure Hunt Records, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (4 out of 10)
It's not that _Southgate_ is musically bad -- the vocals are
reasonably competent and so is most of the instrumental execution.
But it brings no innovation whatsoever and its traditional heavy
metal songs tend to go by without leaving much behind -- they depend
too much upon their choruses, which, in turn, are often too long and
poor, drowning some good instrumental passages that the album does
have. Plus, I found the album's general atmosphere poor, especially
in mellow tracks like "Father", "Heart in Your Hand" and "Goodbye".
However, Seventh Avenue's biggest problem may be that all the
revivalism that seems to be going on in some areas of Europe lately
(mainly in their own home country, Germany) will end up making them
face far superior competition within their own genre (not to mention
darker and more extreme genres outside the aforementioned revivalism
wave). As a result of all this, and despite showing a salvageable
instrumental side, Seventh Avenue just don't manage to make the album
stand above its own lack of originality.
Shellyz Raven - _Recrucify_ (<Independent>, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10)
When we got this in the mail and I got my stash of review material
from Gino, I was wonderin' what this band would sound like. I had my
thoughts of what this band would be like, but after the first listen,
my early impressions of them went right out the window. I had been
expecting a dark, oh-so typical gothic rock / metal band trying to
come across as Moonspell or something like that, only indie sounding.
Much to my surprise, Shellyz Raven is an interesting dark, doomy
progressive outfit that shines with sincere musical adeptness, yet
still flaunts its independent sound. In other words, good music and
adequate enough production to keep it sounding good. This disc only
has six songs, but the material here is substantial enough to keep
the listener interested. Singer Seayia has a very heartwarming vocal
style and the work of the band to comfort and work with her vocals is
truly talented. The intense use of keyboards also adds strong flavor
to the music of Shellyz Raven. Most impressive is track two, called
"Mortifir". Awesome tune. So, fans of The Gathering, Lacuna Coil and
even The Dreamside, you might want to contact this band. Good music
here.
Contact: Oystein Kristoffer Paulsen, Haugenesveien 11,
4870 Fevik, Norway
mailto:macros@online.no
WWW: www.ravenz.home.ml.org
:Slogun: - _The Pleasures of Death_ (Death Factory, July 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (5 out of 10)
Imagine, if you will, a world in which your TV set was on full
volume, stuck on the "static" channel, and some weirdo was
communicating through your TV set with distorted vocals. Sometimes
laughing, sometimes chanting gibberish. Sometimes he's even using
voice effects to make his voice stop n' start and seem so haunting.
Now repeat this for eight songs, clocking in at almost 60 minutes of
pure noise. Pretty scary shit, eh? Think of this as Poltergeist noise
music. It's fucked and creepy to boot. But it's also one-dimensional
and boring for the most part. Only for those that -TRULY- worship
noise music.
Various - _Statements of Intent_ (Wicked World, July 1998)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
As samplers go, this is about the best one I have ever encountered.
As has been Earache's tendency with past samplers, _Statements of
Intent_ contains mostly unreleased or EP-released material by
excellent bands within the extreme metal genre. Just pick up a copy
and check out the bands featured. Established bands like Katatonia,
In Flames and Emperor sit comfortably alongside newer bands such as
Gardenian and The Haunted, and among the rest are some of Wicked
World's new signings. These bands, Gandalf and The Elysian Fields,
are not by any means the newest of the bands here, but it is worth
pointing out they do not stick out in the quality of their music
either. Both bands sound good and it seems that Wicked World are
choosing well in their new signings. Let's hope they can renew the
reputation of the Earache camp for signing quality death/black/grind
bands. There are plenty of tracks here which are from EPs that are
hard to find and many excellent bands are sampled. Overall, this is a
sampler of excellent value and quality.
The Ancients Rebirth - _Damnated Hell's Arrival_ (Necropolis, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10)
While this may not be close to the best of Swedish black metal,
_Damnated Hell's Arrival_ is still a good MCD with plenty of
aggression and good technical skills. Plus, it's 30 minutes long,
which is more than the usual for an MCD. The black metal found here
contains a certain thrash influence with good results; this follow-up
to TAR's 1996 debut full-length _Drain the Portal in Blood_ is thus
harsher and less melodic than what most Swedish bands have been
producing, adding more of a black/thrash feel while trying to retain
some of the technicality of those other Swedish acts. The result can
get quite good at times, but isn't much above average most of the
time. Still, as an MCD, it contains enough quality to deserve some
attention.
The Bloodcult - _Night's Plutonian Shore_ (Unisound Records, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
On one hand, _Night's Plutonian Shore_ is nothing special musically;
but on the other hand, most of it has such a sombre, oppressive
atmosphere that it does become a somewhat interesting album. After a
rather tedious intro made of something similar to a church organ, one
can hear some drum rhythms and keyboard melodies more akin to goth
than anything else. The guitar sound is very low, almost nonexistent,
and the vocals are deep and gloomy. Despite its start, this track
already hints at the more depressive side of the album. The third
track confirms it: a slow, sad song made of mostly atmospheric
synths, similar vocals to those of the previous track, some
unobtrusive percussion and hardly any guitars. The fourth song, on
the contrary, starts with some needless atmosphere-ruining rhythms,
but improves as the keyboards appear with the spoken female vocals,
which in turn mix with the male vox. After a poor short keyboard
instrumental comes a track that is atrociously misplaced in this
album. Keyboards, guitars and percussion have very little in common
with the rest of the songs, and nothing in common with the album's
best sequences. Forgetting about this one, the last track is no less
than eighteen minutes long, and therefore the most important song of
this 45 minute long album. Showing some violin sounds in the
beginning, it then becomes a surprising piece of slow doom with
keyboards, still very gloomy vocals and plenty more of that sad
violin sound. Later, piano and female vocals enter the composition as
well. Overall, if you forget about the sixth track, this is a
reasonably worthy album as far as depressive gothic atmospheres are
concerned (especially the third track and some parts of the last
one), although stained by several wrong choices. An album that most
will probably hate and only a few will find interesting.
Voivod - _Kronik_ (Hypnotic, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10)
Remixed Voivod? I was -very- apprehensive about this release, and so
I should be. Voivod was always about being one step ahead of the
metal genre community, always a bit out there and exploring the
realms of metal, but this was Voivod fused with electronic music.
Remixed versions of some of their heavy and most memorable numbers
are found here ("Nanoman" and "Forlorn"), not to mention previously
unreleased numbers ("Vortex" and "Erosion") and a slew of live
version numbers (such as "Astronomy Domine" and "Nuclear War").
Voivod continues on in the trend of many metal acts who have decided
to go along and remix their records/material (i.e., Fear Factory,
Avulsed, Pantera, etc.) and done it reasonably well. The Fear Factory
_Remanufacture_ LP sounded great and so do the three numbers Voivod
worked on. As for the unreleased material
here, it's still heavily
experimental and definitely Voivod sounding. Fans will not be
disappointed. And the live material from Germany? Stunning. This band
is both a strong studio and live act, thrilling fans for more than a
decade and still going strong. If this LP had been more of a remix
record rather than a remix / unreleased / live effort, I would have
more concern with what they did. But enough said -- this compilation
of material from Voivod rules. It has enough variety to keep fans
happy.
Vondur - _The Galactic Rock n' Roll Empire_ (Necropolis, 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (2 out of 10)
Don't be fooled by the Ophthalamian links to Vondur: this MCD is much
more the kind of thing a band would do for a few laughs during a
rehearsal than something likely to end up on CD. In fact, I found
almost no seriousness whatsoever here. The mediocrity of Vondur's
instrumental side, including their use of a drum machine (sometimes
at very high speeds), is only comparable to that of their
songwriting. The Motley Crue and Judas Priest covers and the
(somewhat funny) Elvis Presley song mutilation add practicaly nothing
to the poor original tracks. Trying to destroy standards doesn't
necessarily lead to interesting results.
Warhorse - _Warhorse_ (Burden of Being Records, August 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10)
It's incredible, with the amount of stuff that we receive -- most of
the independent stuff being somewhat bland or repetitive --, that we
are able to savage some great material from the heaps of stuff. But
you do find gems, and Warhorse is one of them. Much like the other
great indie release that I reviewed in this issue, Shellyz Raven,
Massachusetts natives Warhorse are a truly powerful and heavy band.
Labeling themselves as "psychedelic-doom-crust" (a pretty accurate
take on their sound), Warhorse deliver the goods from the start on
this five-song CD. From opener "I See" to closer "The End of", this
East Coast trio (led by singer/guitarist Krista Van Guilder) lay the
riffs on ultra-thick and create patterns of melodic heaviness with
each song. Think Kyuss with a female singer and add doom and
psychedelic sounds for good measure. Krista Van Guilder has got a
really captivating voice, taking on a strained sound for the most
part as she lets loose with those deadly, sludge-like riffs. The
music, for the most part, doesn't really turn into a frenzied assault
of fuzz and sludge; it maintains a rather sedated sound throughout
this five-song release. Cool pot smokin', kick back kind of music for
us to take in. This'll make a good addition next to your Kyuss and
Monster Magnet CDs.
Contact: Warhorse, P.O. Box 673 Worcester, MA 01602, USA
mailto:warhorse@aol.com
WWW: members.aol.com/warhorse66
Within Temptation - _The Dance_ (DSFA Records, June 1998)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
Sounding very much like a mix of Theatre of Tragedy and Orphanage
(minus the strange rhythms) will make a band sound very attractive to
some and totally uninteresting to others, who may claim that they are
unoriginal. However, although comparisons may be made to a few other
bands, Within Temptation's sound is different enough from the rest
(the closest being perhaps Tristania). But, regardless of their
originality or lack thereof, Within Temptation are very good at what
they do. That was clear in their 1997 debut _Enter_ (which I'd rate 9
out of 10), and the three new songs presented in this new EP are all
quite similar to the material found in their debut: symphonic doom
metal with female vocals and death growls. Sharon den Adel, their
headbanging female vocalist, owns a delightful voice (as well as a
radiant smile), and the rest of the band perform very well, too. Of
the new songs, "The Other Half (of Me)" is faster than anything
they've done before, and also very catchy. The rest follows their
usual symphonic doom closely. There are also a couple of remixes
here, both enjoyable, though nothing special nor better than the
originals (not a surprise). The soft nine minute long remix of
"Candles" plus "Pearls of Light" is an interesting idea, but the
passage from one to the other doesn't work well, in my opinion. A
CD-ROM track also includes some pictures and info one would expect to
find in their homepage, plus an MPEG3 file with the nice classical
version of "Restless" first released in their debut EP. Therefore, if
you can play MPEG3 files, you'll get a 33 minute long EP -- not bad
at all, but more than half of it are remixes, even though they are
all very acceptable. It was a strange choice to include a song in
MPEG3 format, though. Within Temptation confirm that they are one of
the leading bands of their genre, and I'll certainly be waiting for
their next full-length album.
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/ /\ / __/\ V V / / /\ / (_) | \__ \ __/
\_\ \/ \___| \_/\_/ \_\ \/ \___/|_|___/\___|
If you have a band, don't forget to send us your demo with a bio if
you want to be reviewed; our address is included in the zine's footer.
Scoring: ***** -- A flawless demo
**** -- Great piece of work
*** -- Good effort
** -- A major overhaul is in order
* -- A career change is advisable
Cumdeo - _My Angel_ (4-track demo)
by: Paul Schwarz (*****)
Wow!, what a demo. This really caught me off guard. I am a cynic for
thinking this way, but I expected a doom/death demo from Russia to be
boring, unimaginative and about as feisty as roadkill. Let's just say
I was wrong. _My Angel_ plunders the elements of doom and death which
made the styles noted and loved and uses them, along with other
brilliantly executed touches, to produce a varied and highly
listenable demo. _My Angel_ is a musical journey beginning with the
calm stillness of acoustic guitar followed by the introduction of
skillfully layered keyboards. Then the band bring in a _The Fourth
Dimension_ style Hypocrisy riff of gut wrenching and bludgeoning
mid-paced heaviness and from there on in it seems they can't go
wrong. Although only two of these tracks have vocals, the feeling of
the demo is not of two songs filled out to four by instrumentals but
one 20 minute work carefully carved into sections by beautiful
instrumentation. For any demo band, the quality of this demo would be
astounding; but from Russia, a place not usually noted for this sort
of thing, Cumdeo are an even bigger, and as a result more pleasant,
surprise. If this band can write a full length and maintain this
quality, then Cumdeo could justifiably become one of the
underground's big names in the years to come.
Contact: Alexander Ivanov, Komsomolskaya Str.11,
Smolensk, 214033, Russia
Funeral God - _Demo 1_ (3-track demo)
by: Ryan Kriste (****-)
I suppose my obvious biases towards this release make me unfit to
review it, but I love it so much I feel compelled to. Pretoria's own
Funeral God bring forth their first brutal offering to the tables of
metal. And what a feast it is. Nothing original here, but the
classics are usually the most appetizing. Track one, "Blessed by the
Devil", showcases a strong German speed influence ala "old" Kreator,
as evidenced by the picking style, although at a slightly less
frantic pace. Track two, "Insomnia", is a slow death number with one
of the most instantly infectious grooves I've ever heard -- screw the
nineties' bands. Track three, "Abomination", with its thrash riffs
and acoustic parts (played on electric), belies softer influences as
well. If you want to wear your influences (death, black, speed and
thrash -metal-) on your sleeve, do it as well as Funeral God.
Hate Eternal - <untitled> (3-track demo)
by: Aaron McKay (****-)
Blistering! If I ever utter the word again, it will be in praise of
Hate Eternal. Being a simple Joe, like I am, this constitutes death
metal boiled down to its finest, most descriptive, three syllables --
blistering! Fits like a damn straight jacket, so I can't help but use
the word. Hate Eternal isn't the first, but second, brainchild / solo
project of the NON-genre challenged guitar wizard, Erik Rutan (the
first one being the ethereal majesty that is Alas). Many will
remember Erik from his days with the incomparable Morbid Angel. The
beginning track, and the only one I know for gospel, is dubbed
"Messiah of Rage". The tune was written with technical expertise by
Alex Webster of Cannibal Corpse, who also more bellies-up to the bass
duties on the demo as well. Taking into consideration Mr. Rutan's
other musical obligations, Hate Eternal is truly an ambitious
undertaking, but this taster truly begs for better financing. How
about an Alas / Hate Eternal split? Someone throw some money their
direction -- soon!
Contact: Alas / Hate Eternal, P.O. Box 21922,
Tampa, Florida 33622-1922, USA
Hirilorn - _A Hymn to the Ancient Souls_ (5-track demo)
by: Pedro Azevedo (****-)
By adding a certain personal touch to standard black metal, Hirilorn
have managed to create a rather interesting demo tape. They have
essentially used more guitar leads than usual in black metal, and did
it quite well, too: plenty of good melodic guitar leads emerge from
within their relatively harsh mid-to-fast paced black metal sound. It
may not seem obvious at all, but it works -- and I strongly dislike
pointless, vain guitar solos. What happens is just that these leads
merge well with the rest of the music. The rest of the band members
do their job too, and there are plenty of changes in the music during
the 30 minutes of this demo, though they do tend to sometimes repeat
some melodies a bit too much. Still, this doesn't happen too often,
so the demo doesn't suffer much from that. I also listened to
"Through the Moonless Night", a song taken from their upcoming album
_Legend of Evil and Eternal Death_, which shows expectable
improvements while essentially retaining most of the demo's
characteristics -- it's therefore likely to be an interesting album,
if they can keep the quality at least as high as in this song.
Contact: Olivier Borzeix, 23 Rue du Capitaine Bes,
86000 Poitiers, France
mailto:hirilorn.sinn@wanadoo.fr
(Demo tape prices: 6$ Europe, 7$ elsewhere.)
Iron Rainbow - _Never Settle for Less Than Metal_ (3-track demo)
by: Ryan Kriste (****-)
It's 1983 and I've just received a very cool demo from Iron Rainbow.
Straight metal, culled from the likes of the last remaining NWOBHM
bands. Lyrics warning against evil -- or is it promoting evil? It's
so subtle (for metal) that you just don't know. The types of riff
that will undoubtedly be used by Manowar on their upcoming album
_Hail to England_, most probably on the track "Army of the
Immortals". OK, so it's not 1983, but so what? If something works,
don't fix it! This is the way metal was supposed to sound! The tape
title got me thinking (scary thing) -- WHY do I try to find something
good in an album that obviously was not made by a metalhead? If it's
crap, it's crap; end of story. Iron Rainbow are not crap, end of
story. If you are a metalhead, you will feel the power emanating from
Iron Rainbow's sixteen minute, three track tape.
Contact: Bad Posture, P.O.Box 932, Middle Island, NY 11953, USA
Oberon - <untitled> (3-track demo)
by: Pedro Azevedo (***--)
This Norwegian duo does seem to have plenty of ideas, but, in the
end, this demo also has some important flaws. I suppose this band has
nothing to do with another band called Oberon, who already have a CD
out. I seem to recall that this other band is much more atmospheric,
although currently I do not have access to any of their work.
Regardless of that, this Oberon plays folk-influenced black metal
and, as I mentioned, do present some interesting ideas. Using both
blackened and clean vocals (needing more work), as well as plenty of
synth, their sound is varied... for a 13 minute long demo, that is.
The other main problem seems to have been caused by the studio
conditions they had (or didn't have) to record this demo. Being a
two-piece metal band should demand more studio work than the usual; I
don't think they had such conditions, and it shows in the music.
Nevertheless, they try to get their musical ideas across, and do
manage to create some good moments, mostly in the first couple of
tracks; shame about the production. This demo is also available on
CD, even though I received it on tape, but most of the problems in
their sound don't seem to come from there. I'd like to hear more from
this band, but with suitable studio conditions and more time to
perfect things.
Contact: Oyvind Sundstrom, Damstien 15, N-2200 Kongsvinger, Norway
mailto:eriks@east.no
Raggedy Aneurysm - _Milk_ (7-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (***--)
This is really well done weird shit. With song titles like
"Hatemouth", "Ext. #666" or "My God Can Kill Your God", you might
wonder where this 7-song demo is going, right? Me too. And I'm still
wondering. With a definite sound/style reminiscent of Tool / Marilyn
Manson / Psychotica (samples, distorted vocals, weird ambiance,
etc.), Raggedy Aneurysm do the job here and do it very well. This is
freak music for the underground, so come on in and enjoy. Not sure if
this is up to par with what most CoC readers would scope out, but
those that do will enjoy the fucked-up barrage of material here.
Interesting, to say the least.
Contact: Marquee Management Inc., 274 Madison Ave. Suite 300,
New York, NY, 10016, USA
Suicide Culture - _Suicide Culture_ (3-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (***--)
After a couple of listens, this three-song demo really grows on you.
Strong grooves and hard-hitting vocals line the work of Suicide
Culture, a Slayer-influenced band coated with a very modern feel to
what they do. The thing that stands out most from this outing by
Suicide Culture -- other than the impressive guitar work -- are the
vocals: ample and heavy, they suit the music so well with a real
flare of clarity and powerful expression and guide the heavy
overtones of what the band plays. I'd like to hear more from this
band, as most three-song demos really lack any real expression of
what bands can do on a grander scale. Standout track here:
"Mothercursedearth."
Contact: Suicide Culture, 3847 24th Ave., Seattle, WA 98199, USA
Voice: (206) 286-7861
Tendonitis - <untitled> (13-track demo)
by: Aaron McKay (***--)
A good friend of mine gave me a copy of this demo at the Milwaukee
Metal Fest this year. After more than just a few spins in the disc
player, I'm really glad he did. Tendonitis describes themselves as
"grindpukedeathfastheavyfasterheaviergrindingbrutalpoundingabusiveins
trumentalgrindcorebeef". I think that covers all the damn bases,
gentlemen. The key to this whole potpourri hodgepodge is intense
instrumental musicianship. No vocals to attract one's attention
elsewhere from the bludgeoning that one subjects themselves to when
whipping out Tendonitis for a listen. Excellent form and execution.
Clear separation among the three members of this Canadian powerhouse.
The bass, on occasion, pounds through as to completely envelop the
meticulous guitar playing and savage drumming that moves Tendonitis
in aggressive circles. Thirteen tracks hovering at about the two
minute mark, making easy to swallow caplets of hostility for just
under twenty-six minutes. Never boring or uninteresting, but this
demo doesn't exactly warrant unlimited listens back to back either.
However, once a day would be enough to satisfy a metal fix for more
than a couple hours. Another notable point of curiosity is the
numbering of the songs listed on the disc: song one is entitled
"Fifteen", song two is called "Fourteen", song three is dubbed
"Twosix", and so on. Just another example of the intrigue of
Tendonitis.
Contact: Tendonitis, P.O. Box 91735,
West Vancouver BC, V7V 4S1, Canada
Thornspawn - _Consecration of Evil Flesh_ (6 track demo)
by: Paul Schwarz (**---)
OK, let's not beat about the bush. This is just about all you'd
expect from the title and band name. Black metal in the vein of such
artists as Marduk and Dark Funeral. Mostly fast black metal riffs
accompanied by continuous blast beats. However, this is actually very
well produced, especially for a demo band. It contains the usual fare
of offensive blasphemous lyrics ("Licking the Virgin Mary's Cunt"
being a notable song title with accompanying offensive lyricism) and
corpsepainted participants with ridiculous pseudonyms ("Swornghoul --
Infernal Archgoat of Blood War"). Though the songwriting is far from
innovative, there are worse bands in the underground and less
inventive ones. Thornspawn are brutal and at present this is their
most impressive asset.
Contact: Blackthorn, 1001 Boiling Brook, S.A. Tx 78245, USA
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T H E T W E L F T H H O U R H A S S T R U C K !
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC Attends The Milwaukee Metalfest XII
at the Eagles Ballroom, Milwaukee, WI, July 24th and 25th 1998
by: Paul Schwarz, Adam Wasylyk and Adrian Bromley
Paul's Proclamation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two days of metal mayhem have now passed. But man, was it fun
while it lasted. Here's my angle on what those two days, and numerous
bands, brought. This year's Metalfest boasted three stages which more
or less worked out, except for the fact that the Rave stage was
increasingly late on both days, making running around to check who
was presently on a bonafide necessity.
Friday:
~~~~~~~
Friday began at 4 p.m., and, after checking out, and purchasing
at, the excellent CD mart downstairs, the first band I caught was
Deaf American signees Burn the Priest. This was a searing assault
which I can vaguely describe as a mixture of grinding death metal and
sludgecore. It was cool sound to behold but not a captivatingly
varied set of material. Next I saw Ember hit the Rave stage at around
5:40. Their set was well executed and their music damn cool black
metal with quite a bit of Celtic Frost and very little Immortal. I
got their demo as a result, so there's proof I was impressed, and,
judging by the crowd at the end of the set, I wasn't the only one. I
caught the last half of The Chasm's set and their impressive live
prescence coupled with their skillfully constructed death/doom songs
impressed me. I would suggest checking their second album out, it's
on Oz productions. Completing this double bill of classy Mexican
bands was Cenotaph, whose Gothenburg tinged _Epic Rites_ album I own
and love. Starting with that album's crushing opener "Crying Frost",
Cenotaph totally decimated their audience with classy musicianship
and excellent songs. Their set drew from both _Epic Rites_ and their
_Riding Across Black Oceans_ debut. Cenotaph proved to be one of the
Metalfest's highlights for me. Back to the Rave bar for Today Is the
Day and an incredible live performance. Although my experience of
their recorded material is scant, to say the least, TItD's live set
is not at all dependent on the listener having heard them before.
While the drummer and keyboardist perform perfectly well live, it is
TItD's vocalist/guitarist who is the visual focal point for the live
show. Moving as erratically and captivatingly as a rabid animal and
frequently swallowing the microphone to create interesting vocal
touches, he was mesmerizing. Couple his performance with the band's
killer sound and you have one of the best performances of this year's
Metalfest.
Impaled Nazarene made their North American debut on the Rave
stage and I was there to see it. Though in all honesty Impaled
Nazarene are not a band I am too familiar with, I still feel their
sound and live presence could have been more imposing. After hearing
"1999: Karmageddon Warrior's", I left the late running Rave stage for
my first trip to the Ballroom and my first live experience ever of
Suffocation. Despite being short, at only five songs (25 minutes),
Suffocation's set was 110 percent of crushing and brilliant brutal
death metal. Playing three of the four new songs from _Despise the
Sun_, the awesome "Funeral Inception" acting as their opener, "Liege
of Inveracity" and "Pierced From Within", Suffocation chose well for
the time allotted to them. The sound was good and did both old and
new material justice. The major down note was that Frank Mullin
confirmed rumours that the band were in turmoil, saying "this might
be the last time you see Suffocation live." Though he seemed to
regret saying it as much as the audience regretted hearing it, we can
only hope that things work out. To lose Suffocation now, when they
have just blasted back with some of their best material, would be bad
enough, but now that I have witnessed them live I can add that we
would also lose one of brutal death's best live performers. Crushing,
in both senses.
As I make it back to the Rave stage to await Angel Corpse's
arrival, I am met with cows' heads on spikes. That is definitely not
Angel Corpse's stage set up. I find out, to my dismay, that Angel
Corpse will not be playing due to a van breakdown. So I wait for
Mayhem. After some time, and a short intro, the new Mayhem (as
opposed to the true Mayhem) take the stage. Though receiving a big,
universal thumbs up from other attending CoC staff, I was not too
excited by Mayhem's set. Maybe this is because I was disappointed at
Angel Corpse's non-appearance, but one way or the other, despite the
decent sound and Hellhammer's truly phenomenal drum performance,
Mayhem's near 40 minute set did not leave a deep impression on me.
Cannibal Corpse were also canceled (Angel Corpse's drummer was on
their bus). Immolation (who had to mix their new album -- I hope it
is a good one) met the same fate.
Though rather disheartened by these cancellations, I headed back
to the Ballroom for Death's performance. Due to the total slamming of
Death's performance at Dynamo by Terrorizer ("If we had wanted to see
Fates Warning, we would have gone yesterday"), I went with
trepidation and arrived just as the first song finished. Despite a
set which included some of _Symbolic_'s best moments and "Lack of
Comprehension", my favourite Death song, I was not wholly pleased by
Death's performance. Though they seemed to be playing okay, Chuck's
vocals were inaudible and lacked any power. Whether this was the mix
or his voice will remain to be seen in future live shows. The overall
sound mix, with that death metal curse of a totally over-cranked
snare drum, made the performance very unsatisfying. I would expect
Death to be able to get a mix good enough to do themselves justice,
since Suffocation managed it, and so I am undecided whether it was
Death or "the PA" that let me down tonight. All that I know is that
it was definitely one of them. Irritated as I was, I left shortly
before Death finished up and caught the end of Usurper's set. Their
armoured appearance and viciously raw sound immediately told me that
I should have stayed for their set and waited to see Death on their
next tour. I heard they played "Necrocult (The Metal War)" and kicked
myself for missing it. I decided, despite my dislike of their new
album _Something Wicked This Way Comes_, to check out Iced Earth, who
hit the Rave bar shortly before midnight. Despite looking very metal
and having a chunky sound, I wasn't captivated enough to risk missing
a second of Mercyful Fate, and so I proceeded to hit the Ballroom for
the last time that evening.
After waiting in anticipation for a short time, Mercyful Fate's
intro began. This ran for a minute or two before the band burst onto
the stage and began "The Oath". Their sound was nicely mixed and
brought out the melodic subtleties of both Hank Sherman's guitar
passages and King Diamond's impressive vocals. It also gave a great
big crunch to the drums and low power chords. It thus captured the
whole of the "Mercyful Fate Sound". Classics from 1984's _Don't Break
the Oath_ such as "Desecration of Souls" and "Come to the Sabbath"
were aired, although only a few songs from _Melissa_ got a look in
(though this did include the record's epic title track). Strangely
enough, Mercyful Fate chose to compose around half their set of songs
from more recent albums such as _In the Shadows_ and the recently
released _Dead Again_. Though I thought the band would opt to air
more of the material which is considered truly classic, the audience,
including myself, did not hold Fate's decision against them and Fate
were as good as forced back on for not one, but two, encores. King
Diamond seemed surprised and also very happy at the response they
received and thanked and praised his audience to a similar degree
that their cheers and reaction praised him and Mercyful Fate. Though
the Ballroom was emptier for Fate than it had been even for
Suffocation, what the crowd lacked in numbers they easily made up for
in persistence and devotion to their idols. A classic band and a
great show to end Friday night with.
Saturday:
~~~~~~~~~
Before relating Saturday's musical treats I want to devote two
lines to mentioning the fact that some good but unknown bands (e.g.,
Jaww) got useless 20 minute sets at times such as 11:50 a.m.. Since
virtually no one arrives the second day to a non-camping festival
this early, I suggest the organizers avoid giving any bands sets at
these sorts of times in the future, especially if they are only
appearing on a pay-to-play basis.
We arrived at just before 3:00 pm. Luckily for us, Solus started
late (at 3:00 pm), so we saw all of their set. Having already
witnessed their searing live assault in Toronto, I was anticipating a
good performance. I was not disappointed. Once again, Solus delivered
the goods, and I think left many of the audience as total converts to
their cause. If the quality of Solus' songs on their new album is as
consistent as it is on their three song EP, then I suggest watching
out for it. Played live, these songs sound as good as they do on
disc, and live you are also treated to lead singer Will's manic and
energetic stage antics, which today included a dive from stage into a
virtually unmoving crowd, a quick solo mosh and a speedy return to
the stage to finish the song. Excellent musicianship and more than
just comparable showmanship. Next on the Rave stage, we were treated
to Darkmoon. Though amply performed and written death/black was what
I heard, I was not interested enough to persist 'till the end of
their set.
After a look downstairs, I came back to catch the end of Death
of Millions' 20 minutes. Though I laughed at the singer's habit clad
appearance, it was at least a vaguely original piece of stage
apparel. What impressed more than their unoriginal death metal was
their last song. Introduced by the singer as "everyone should know
this one", I assumed he was addressing his home crowd and that we
were to be treated to a local live favorite. Instead, as I was
informed later (not being a fan), the band played a Twisted Sister
cover which, I must admit, though not maintaining the vocal style of
the original, was surprisingly good. Catching a few of the last
minutes of Travail, I found them quite good, certainly better than I
expected for a name unknown to me. Their blend of death and hardcore
sounded cool, though not astounding. I wouldn't mind checking them
out on record sometime.
At around 5:30, I wandered into the Rave stage room expecting to
catch a few minutes of the Death Kids (who were supposed to have
Grimoire Girl #9 "dancing" for them), and instead caught the
beginning of their set. The Rave was actually surprisingly full,
considering the quality of this band's actual music. I personally put
the large numbers, and in fact the band's billing (above Solus?) down
to: good promotion, the appearance of a half naked woman and the
novelty of the drummer and guitarist/vocalist's ages. After a song or
two of waiting to see the "dancer", I was bored with the simple
heavily Deicide-influenced dirge and was off to the downstairs again.
When I returned, she was in full swing. Though amusing, her
appearance exemplifies what is wrong with the Death Kids: they are
cheap attention grabbers who intend to stay in the spotlight as long
as they can hog it. They should -all- grow up. I was going to check
out Mortician, but the Rave bar was full to the rafters, so I decided
against it. Instead, I bided my time outside until The Dillinger
Escape Plan took the stage. Despite some technical problems which
held them up, TDEP were not disappointing. TDEP fit the profile of a
few too many of Relapse's signings at present in being mindnumbingly
extreme and very much influenced by grindcore and bits of hardcore.
Despite fitting a profile which is beginning to lose its impact due
to oversaturation, TDEP were impressive and enjoyable, though I was
not hungry for any more after their 30 minute set. Benumb's music
seemed better crafted but too similar to TDEP to give them the impact
they needed. Although I would have liked to see all their set, I had
to leave for Crowbar and it must be said I could have been more
unhappy to go.
Crowbar are a band I have not seen live in over two years. Their
cancellation of last year's planned UK tour due to illness was a
disappointment to me and so I was consequently expecting a lot out of
their Metalfest performance. I was evidently expecting more than the
sound system or set length could deliver. Although the band seemed to
be playing pretty well, the sound system was not giving us the best
impression of this. Add to this the fact that Crowbar didn't play
"All I Had I Gave" or "Existence Is Punishment" and that they were
playing in the oversized Ballroom and you have a disappointing set.
The high point came right at the end. Crowbar played "The Dawn of
Megiddo" to compensate for Celtic Frost's non-appearance (early
rumours said they would reform for the Metalfest). Using Soilent
Green's vocalist, Crowbar pulled this off with more than just
credibility. It was great to hear that Frost song live; it is a pity
it overshadowed the rest of the band's set of original material.
Considering the crush for Mortician, and the fact that I saw them in
Toronto, I opted out of seeing Brutal Truth but hit the Rave bar for
Pyrexia's set. Pyrexia were pretty good. Although they will never
surpass their big brothers Suffocation, Pyrexia's New York death is
damn brutal and in parts pretty damn good. The band were so tight
while playing songs such as "Hatred, Anger, Disgust", "Confrontation"
and "System of the Animal" that I don't think even the most picky
could complain about their playing. Vocalist Keith DeVito was
especially brutal and vicious in his delivery. If Pyrexia have one
problem, it is that their material is not the most compelling of the
NY brutal death crowd, but all the same their set was good and served
as a nice warm-up for Cryptopsy who were due to appear on the Rave
stage soon after.
I caught the end of (who I found out was) Fall on the Rave stage
and realized this meant I would have to wait for Cryptopsy. Instead
of watching Gorgasm, I decided that I would have another scout
around. Just as Cryptopsy were taking the stage (the Rave stage now
being 45 minutes late), other CoC-ers returned from seeing Meshuggah
on the Ballroom stage. They said it was good; I regretted missing it.
Still, Cryptopsy were here. Beginning with "Phobophile", the band
showcased an average sound but incredible musicianship. It was
evident that whatever the sound system was giving us, Cryptopsy were
playing it all. While the set comprised classics such as
"Defenstration", "Crown of Horns" and "Slit Your Guts" along with new
track "White Worms", the sound didn't do the intensely technical
material favours, and so, while Cryptopsy were good, they were not as
phenomenal as I had hoped and as they apparently have been. I await a
full tour. The end of Six Feet Under in the Ballroom had a better
sound than most bands that day had achieved, but I wouldn't really
call their set anything to write home about. Not being familiar with
new material or favorable to their old didn't help.
If yesterday's most anticipated band was "Norweigan black metal
legends" Mayhem, then today's was "Norweigen black metal legends"
Emperor. However, whereas many felt that yesterday Mayhem lived up to
that reputation, I think few would deny that Emperor were a
disappointment however you look at it. Firstly, they had no
keyboards. Why? Because the rig couldn't handle it. This was a
problem which succeeded in bringing any set Emperor could have done
down because of the centrality of keyboards in their sound. The sound
was overall, as was the Ballroom's tendency, also disappointingly
tinny. Combine this with the fact that Emperor did not play
outstandingly enough to allow us to overlook these problems and you
have a set which would be disappointing from most good bands. From a
band this legendary, making their debut in North America, it was more
than just disappointing: it was disheartening. Gorguts, as we found
out when the lineup sheets were issued yesterday, were canceled for
reasons unknown to me. I hope the reasons were good.
The Ballroom's next attraction was German thrashers Sodom.
Strangely enough, this legendary thrash band are making their debut
in North America tonight. Despite the fact that Sodom have been
around about twice the time Emperor have, their set was not
disappointing. Though the Sodom sound could have been a bit crisper,
it still captured their simple, all-out thrash attack very adequately
and gave them the tools they needed to seriously impress. Sodom were
not disappointing, despite slight imperfections, because their
attraction -is- their expertise in producing and cranking out
excellent raw-power thrash tunes. A raw sound doesn't hurt them like
it hurts an atmospheric and technical band such as Emperor. When
Sodom cranked out classics like "Blasphemer", "Ausgebombt" and
"Outbreak of Evil", their live prescence, musicianship and
songwriting abilities came together to form one huge unstoppable
monster. The pity is that their set, even with encore, still clocked
in at under an hour. But there was still Destruction left...
Destruction sucked. There is no denying this fact; they sucked.
There was apparently one original member present and, whoever he was,
he sure wasn't the vocalist. The guy sounded nothing like Schmier and
his style sucked. They played later Destruction material mostly --
that sucked. They played a wholly new song -- that sucked. They
played nothing from _Infernal Overkill_ -- that sucked. They played
about two songs from their truly old material; they played them badly
and even though the audience cheered for an encore, obviously hoping
for something old, they refused to come back on -- that sucked. I
really can't see how Metalfest could have come to a worse conclusion.
Why couldn't Sodom have played twice as long and Destruction have
canceled?
Adam's Assessment
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Good:
~~~~~~~~~
Most bands scheduled to play -actually- played. The quality of
bands has improved year after year, and 1998 was no exception. This
year (thankfully) held more grindcore or grindcore-related bands like
Benumb, Brutal Truth, Soilent Green and Flesh Parade, so hopefully
this trend will continue in years to come. Norwegian black metal made
its presence felt, via Mayhem (climaxing with "Freezing Moon") and
Emperor (culminating with "I am the Black Wizards"). Sweden's
Meshuggah ending their set with "Transfixion". Powerful North
American death metal bands like Cryptopsy and Dying Fetus totally
crushed; I look forward to seeing them again soon. Last, but
certainly not least; hanging in the hotel room while drinkin',
smokin' and talking metal!
The Bad:
~~~~~~~~
Emperor played without a keyboardist -and- for only 25 minutes
-- what a fucking rip-off! Mayhem had the cow heads on stage, but why
no self-mutilation by the vocalist? Dawn canceled for some reason.
Angel Corpse were unable to play because of a broken tour bus, but
luckily played Toronto without problems a couple of days later.
Impaled Nazarene (guys, don't drink yourself stupid -before- your
play). Vocalist Frank Mullen announced that Suffocation are breaking
up, a true loss for death metal.
The Plain Ugly:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The bad sound -- when will this be fixed or compensated for?
Mercyful Fate (what the fuck was that!!??!!). A third stage was added
this year, meaning I was able to miss even more bands than in prior
years. Three dollar pizza that tasted like shit. Border guards still
suck. Individuals that will remain nameless who bump your shoulder
during a particular band's set and ask, "What do you think??".
Adrian's Addendum
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Plus Points (+'s):
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meshuggah, Today Is the Day, Cryptopsy, The Dillinger Escape
Plan, Iced Earth playing in a small club, Denny's, interviewing
Death, good pot, Ember, buying lotsa CDs, purchasing mega bottle of
Gin, nice comfortable ride in min-van.
Negative Points (-'s):
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Punched in chest (thanks Insaniak!), Nick Cave worshipping
(thanks Chris!), strip club "Features" stories (thanks again Chris!),
border staff, Gorguts not showing up to play, long drive home, didn't
eat at Bob Evans' restaurant, Gino wasn't there.
Alain's Brief MMF Briefing
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thumbs up (in order):
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today Is the Day (mind altering; Col. Austin, I salute you!).
Suffocation (hugest pit of the show! Their last?).
Soilent Green (love these guys, flawless set).
Death (sound blew, but Chuck's still got it).
Meshuggah (intense, fairly tight; band seemed elated).
Mayhem (no bloodshed, though good presence).
Sodom (kicked my ass, they still rock).
Shango (NY mobster metal is cool).
Emperor (musicianship high; Black Wizard alone...).
Thumbs down (in order):
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Destruction (headliners? without Schmier? ridiculous!).
Emperor (no keys, unconvincing presence, no keys... no keys!).
Immolation (for not showing, major disappointment).
Gorguts (for not showing).
Angel Corpse (ditto).
Dominion (for not being the euro-Dominion, as anticipated).
Paradox (for not being the euro-Paradox, as hoped).
Impaled Nazarene (for not living up to expectations).
Six Feet Under (for being a yawn while waiting for Emperor).
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
TRUE BRUTALITY UNDER EXTREME CONDITIONS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Brutal Truth, Kataklysm, Solus and The Swarm
at the El Mocambo, Toronto, Ontario, July 20, 1998
by: Paul Schwarz
At last my time came to experience Brutal Truth live -- and what
an experience it was --, but before I go into that any further, a run
down of the other bands who accompanied the masters of grind. I
caught about half of local band The Swarm. They were a
hardcore/grind/ death crossover similar in sound to Neurosis but less
prolonged and atmospheric and with a more traditional song structured
approach leaning toward hardcore. They sounded pretty good and
possessed a particularly vitriolic live prescence. All members played
well and were good to watch on stage, but, as is the fashion, and
often the very nature, with such vitriolic live groups, the singer
was very much the focus. He rambled between songs and during them
went vocally ballistic and physically manic -- at one point even
running off the stage and into the crowd. If the band could
concentrate this much rage and violence onto disc they could be going
somewhere in the future.
Solus came on next. Having checked out their new EP, which
follows on in style from where their impressive _Slave of Mind_ debut
left off, I can say that on disc Solus are moving to greener
pastures. They reproduce their new and old material well live and are
dealt a decent hand with the sound to help them along. If the band
seem to lack anything this evening it is crowd movement, which was
lacking in The Swarm's set also; maybe it is the Monday night crowd
or maybe it is the fact that no-one in the band but Will seems to
move a muscle which is not used to play their instrument. Whichever
it is, a little of Solus' impact is lost through the sound and music
being the only vicious thing on display. I can't wait for the new
album, though.
Kataklysm are back in town with a new album and a new vocalist
to showcase. Not having heard the band either live or on record,
apart from owning their first 7", I can't really tell you how they
reproduced their material, but I can say that I was impressed by both
their musicianship and stage prescence. The band sounded cool and
some of their new material, though markedly simpler than some of the
older compositions, came out well live. The band weren't captivating
in the sense that their set didn't fly by, but they were a good band
to see all the same.
So now it is time, time for the Brutal Truth. You'd think, with
as much anticipation as I am displaying even in this review, that
Brutal Truth would have trouble living up to my high expectations.
Well, actually, I bet you were only thinking that if you've never
seen this band live. Sufficed to say Brutal Truth totally blew me
away. Brutal Truth played a varied set which included many tracks
from the monumental new album _Sounds of the Animal Kingdom_,
alongside such classic as "Godplayer" from _Need to Control_ and
"Birth of Ignorance", among others, from their legendary debut. The
songs didn't matter, however, as much as the feeling. Brutal Truth
capture the raw, living essence of grindcore and everything that is
good about it. Songs like "Fisting" have the hyper rhythms along with
the groove and innovation which makes Brutal Truth the justified
kings of grind today. The participants in this whirlwind of genius
should be well known to any lover of extreme music and well loved for
their performances on disc and performances like this live, despite
being held up for eight hours at Canadian customs and braving heavy
traffic on the road from Montreal without drugs. An astounding and
virtually unstoppable live performance. Do not headline above this
band: it is (Kill Trend) suicide.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
M E G A L O M A N I A C A L M O N S T E R S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Monster Magnet in Concert at The Opera House
July 17th, 1998 in Toronto, Ontario
by: Adrian Bromley
This had the making of a great show. I was a longtime fan of the
band, our CoC writer Paul Schwarz had just flown in from England for
a few months stay in Toronto (plus trekking to Milwaukee Metalfest
with us) and Monster Magnet had a wicked new LP called _Powertrip_
just out. What more could a concert goer want going into a show, I
ask you? Despite some mediocre opening acts, New Jersey acid
dropping, pot smokin' noisemongers Monster Magnet took the stage and
for the next 75 minutes fans were treated to a blistering assault of
hypnotizing guitar riffs and powerful expressions of chaotic frenzy.
Singer/guitarist/mastermind Dave Wyndorf was in fine form
tonight for this sold-out show, pouncing around on stage, guitar
strapped to his back, leading the anxious crowd through chorus after
chorus of Monster Magnet material. The fans loved it. The good thing
about this show was that, unlike past Magnet shows, the band had an
extra guitar player on stage this time, allowing Wyndorf to work the
crowd. Was great to see him losing it on stage as the band played
such classics as "Spine of God" and "Twin Earth" and good to see such
new numbers as "Tractor", "Temple of Your Dreams" and first single
"Space Lord" sounding really good and raw. Even numbers off of the
popular _Dopes to Infinity_ LP (i.e., "Negasonic Teenage Warhead")
sounded strong and un-slick. The only thing that really, really
sucked about the show was the size of the crowd. This was too packed,
and as some know of the Opera House in Toronto, it has bad sight
lines if you don't get a good spot early on. Other than that, Monster
Magnet ruled as was anticipated. This was the fifth time I have seen
Monster Magnet, second time headlining, and I am so pleased that the
band has done well for themselves over the last few years, just
proving my point that good bands who stick it out for the long haul
always get rewarded in the end. Short live review here, eh? Yeah. But
the show rocked. Need I say more? Fans of the band, go see them live
this tour. You won't be disappointed.
Note: Rumor has it, this could be a tour this Fall: Fear Factory and
Monster Magnet with Nashville Pussy and Rob Zombie.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
M I L W A U K E E , E A T Y O U R H E A R T O U T
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC Attends the London International Death Fest
at The Embassy in London, Ontario on Tuesday July 28, 1998
With Withered Earth, Necronomicon, Deeds of Flesh and Dying Fetus
by: Adam Wasylyk
Ah, London Ontario. A place that Toronto metal fans could
venture into to see extreme metal that their city couldn't offer.
However, those days are now over since Toronto's metal scene is as
strong or perhaps moreso than London's. But London still has some
great shows, one of them being the annual London Death Fest. With
some cunning words and many false assurances, a ride there and back
was secured. Onward, ho!
Three hours later, we arrive as the first band are just starting
their set. New York's Withered Earth boast a death metal sound,
sounding tight albeit predictable. But damn if I can remember one
tune or memorable moment. The crowd response was almost nil, as there
was hardly a crowd to speak of. Most would arrive later to see the
bigger acts on the bill.
Montreal's Necronomicon proves that Quebec is still producing
some of the best metal bands in North America. Labeling themselves
"occult metal", it's an apt description, as it fuses together some
clever guitaring and interesting song arrangements. Yes, this is
death metal, but it's a lot more than just that. Thumbs up go to the
drummer for his psychotic drumming, but what's up with that drum
stick twirling? Yikes! Also, the guitaring deserves an extra mention
on two fronts. The Morbid Angel-isms and technical flair were
appreciated, but a second live guitarist is sorely needed to fill in
some of the holes in Necronomicon's live sound. Necronomicon already
have a strong foundation; should they successfully build on it, then
they'll receive the recognition they deserve.
Readers of CoC may know Summertime Daisies from either their
appearance at last years' Milwaukee Metal Fest or from their coverage
in prior issues (mostly in the form of live reviews). London death
metal fans really came out to support the lone London band on the
bill, and they showed their appreciation accordingly. To tell the
truth, I've really given up on this band, as I thought Summertime did
some great work on their first demo but have failed to live up to the
potential they've demonstrated. The more the band played on the more
interesting the Blue Jay game on a TV behind the bar became.
Deeds of Flesh played next to a noticeably smaller crowd as many
of the Summertime supporters scattered or gathered at the bar near
the back of the venue. I'll admit they were both technical and at
times brutal, but so what? No memorability whatsoever. Playing songs
off each of their CDs on Repulse Records (_Trading Pieces_ and
_Inbreeding The Anthropophagi_), neither I nor most of the crowd got
into their sound. Time to check to see what's happening with the Blue
Jays...
Closing out the night were the headliners Dying Fetus, who not
only demonstrated how to play both brutal and -memorable- death
metal, but were tight as a ten-year-old to boot. Not only were tracks
like "Blunt Force Trauma", "Skull Fucked", "Raped On The Altar" and
the mighty "Nocturnal Crucifixion" played from the bands' infamous
_Putrification Through Violence_ CD, but also a few new tracks from
_Killing Adrenaline_ (just released on Morbid Records) were played,
such as the title track and "Kill Your Mother / Rape Your Dog" (gotta
love that title!). This is a live band that must be seen to be
believed.
Incidentally, the Blue Jays won. Happiness is me.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
A M E E T I N G O F D E I T I E S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Blood of Christ and Morbid Angel
at the El Mocambo in Toronto, Canada, on July 3, 1998
by: Adam Wasylyk
This show could have spelled doom from the very start.
Most of the crowd found out inside the venue that both Vader and
Incantation were stopped at the Canadian border and wouldn't be
playing. The crowd booed when the announcement was made by one of the
earlier bands on the bill (whose name escapes me), and rightfully so,
since both bands have not only recorded a lot of great material in
the past, but are also formidable live acts.
It would take some great music to make up for the loss of the
aforementioned bands, and the final two acts were up for the
challenge.
London's Blood of Christ were totally amazing, to say the least.
A death/black quartet formerly on Pulverizer Records (who I hear has
gone belly-up), the band put on an energetic set consisting mostly of
material off the bands' debut CD _... A Dream to Remember_. Most
worthy of note was the drumming, which held two levels of intensity;
blast beat and hyperblast (ala Kataklysm or Cryptopsy). I tells ya,
when Blood of Christ find a suitable label, they'll become as
noteworthy as the aforementioned Canadian bands in the death metal
scene.
Morbid Angel's set was without prejudice the -best- set I've
ever seen a band play in my life. Even better than when the band last
came to Toronto with Grip Inc. a few years ago. New vocalist/bassist
Steve Tucker fit perfectly into the live situation, doing both new
and old material almost flawlessly. Trey Azagthoth was a wonder to
watch, his guitar wizardry a sight to behold. Pete Sandoval did a
great job behind the drum kit, hitting peak speed during the first
blast beat in "Day of Suffering". Morbid Angel played a set list that
touched on every album except _Domination_ (which wasn't surprising,
since Azagthoth had told me himself he didn't care for that album),
playing older songs like "Lord of All Fevers and Plague", "Rapture",
"Blood on My Hands" and "World of Shit (The Promised Land)". The bulk
of live material came from MA's newest opus _Formulas Fatal to the
Flesh_ -- tracks like "Heaving Earth", "Prayer of Hatred", "Bil
Ur-Sag", "Nothing Is Not", "Covenant of Death", "Hellspawn: The
Rebirth" and "Invocation of the Continual One". "Chapel of Ghouls"
ended it off, which in my opinion is one of the best death metal
songs ever written. What a spectacle to behold; it truly was the most
exciting hour of live music I have yet to experience.
An unforgettable show, Morbid Angel (with the help of Blood of
Christ) made this show one for the books, a momentous occasion that
should go down as Toronto's best metal show of the year.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
M A D M A X L I V E S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Soulfly with Cold
at Batschkapp in Frankfurt, Germany on June 2, 1998
by: Matthias Noll
These days I don't look forward going to shows that feature more
than two bands. Of course "value for money" has its appeal, but it
seems that it's more often "quantity for money", which is a
completely different thing. Fortunately, at least for me and some of
my friends who share my opinion, Limp Bizkits, who were announced as
one of the bands in tonight's package, jumped off the tour for
unknown reasons. No offense toward LB fans intended here.
At 2100, Cold entered the stage and played for about 50 minutes.
The band was unknown to me and their dark melancholic style, in my
opinion, left a lot to be desired. Reminding me sometimes of a
lightweight version of Tool mixed with bits and pieces of Killing
Joke, their song material sounded rather samey and, due to a lack of
good and crunching riffs, failed to rock most of the time. On the
other hand, the melancholy and emotion in their songs failed to
impress, as there were no real climaxes but a constant whining feel
that made me start to yawn halfway through the set. The crowd reacted
in a friendly manner, applauding after each song, but in general
stayed rather calm.
A long break followed, during which the audience grew more and
more impatient. Members of the crew appeared on stage over and over
again to check one more time if the towels were in the right place
and other important stuff. As the crowd grew more impatient by the
minute, a lot of yelling and cursing took place until finally the
lights went down and tonight's headliner took the stage. Soulfly's
opener "Eye for an Eye" blasted through the PA. The guitar sound hit
the audience as if made of concrete, the tribal style drums, a
monstrous bass, Max's growling vocals, everything received the right
attention in the mix, blending into a crunching wall of sound that
made the crowd bang and jump like crazy from the front row to the
back of the venue. Guitarist Logan Mader, with a new hairstyle that
made his head look like some kind of exotic vegetable, jumped up and
down, his guitar providing Soulfly with an improved metallic edge.
More songs from the Soulfly debut followed with the excitement and
energy from both band and audience constantly keeping its high level.
As expected, some Sepultura goodies were offered during the show: a
medley of "Beneath the Remains" and "Dead Embryonic Cells". Later in
the set, "Roots", "Spit" and "Straight Hate" brought back memories of
Brazil's finest band. While the downtuned guitar sound failed to
provide the lightning fast "Beneath the Remains" with enough power,
the newer Sepultura stuff sounded absolutely killer. Too bad the band
played none of the Nailbomb covers I had expected. The Gloria and Max
vs. Sepultura bullshit that fuels the daily soap opera on several
Soulfly and Sepultura websites luckily didn't play a role that night
and Mr. Cavalera never mentioned the split and its circumstances
throughout the set. With the constant banging, slamming and stage
diving that took place in the Batschkapp (an old bomb shelter from
WW2, by the way) the place reached temperatures that came close to
being unbearable. Therefore, Max was constantly showering the front
rows and himself with water. After about 55 minutes, the show reached
a climax with "No" and right after that was already over. Having paid
quite some bucks for the ticket, I should have left disappointed, but
the quality of the Soulfly show was truly compensating for that. If
this band manages to keep a high quality level with its future
releases, I'll come back to see them anyplace anytime. Let's wait to
hear what Sepultura have to offer with _Against_. Hopefully we'll
experience two fantastic bands emerging from the split.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
C D R E L E A S E B O N A N Z A
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bughouse, Lifebleed, Inertia, and Lethargy
at the Water Street Music Hall in Rochester, New York
Friday, July 24, 1998
by: Brian Meloon
If you were stuck in upstate New York on the first day of the
Milwaukee Metalfest, with no way to traverse the thousand miles to
Milwaukee, what would you have done? Well, you could've gone to this
show. It was a CD release party for Inertia and Lifebleed, both of
whom were releasing their debut albums. I was previously familiar
with the first three bands from their songs on the Watchmen studios
compilation [see CoC #27], but for two of them, those first
impressions were misleading.
The doors opened at 9, and Bughouse went on at 9:30. They played
for more than half an hour. Their music is a mix of
alternative/modern rock (Pearl Jam, et al) and heavy hardcore. It was
diverse -- and that's good --, but it didn't seem to quite make
sense. Their performance was enthusiastic, but the crowd didn't seem
to really get it either.
Lifebleed was up next, and played for about an hour. They are a
straightforward hardcore band, with a twist here and there, but much
more straightforward than I was expecting. They played with a lot of
energy, and were entertaining. Despite their youthful appearances,
their music was very well played, and pretty mature. The crowd was
rather subdued, but came alive in a few sections. Mostly people sat
around watching, though.
Inertia came on next, and they also played for about an hour.
The first half of their set was excellent, but the second half
dragged on too long. They play technical death metal, along the lines
of Deeds of Flesh: very rhythmically based, with little or no melody.
The playing was very tight and aggressive, but the songs didn't
really have enough diversity to keep from sounding the same after a
while. After peaking at around 150, the crowd started to thin towards
the end of their set, as I'm sure some people got as bored with them
as I did. A number of people were escorted out as well, as a handful
of fights broke out about three-quarters of the way through their
set. Other than that incident, the crowd really didn't react much to
them, as their music is too technical to really get into. I was
suitably impressed by their performance, but could've done for a few
less songs.
Lethargy went on a little after 1:00. They played six songs: one
from _It's Hard to Write With a Little Hand_ [CoC #14], one from the
Watchmen studios compilation [CoC #27], and four new songs. The new
songs were less noodly and more hardcore than their older songs, a
fact which seemed to encourage the fans who stuck around until the
end. The playing was precise as always, but their performance was
less than enthusiastic. Unfortunately, their sound wasn't mixed
right: the bass and snare drums were way too high, drowning out the
other drums and the guitars and bass. In addition, one of the guitars
cut out during the last song, and the band kind of fell apart and
stopped playing. And so the show ended. Most people in the crowd
seemed confused as to why they would play only six songs, and give it
such a lackluster effort.
In any case, it was a successful outing for the two bands whose
CDs were released that evening: Lifebleed and Inertia. Both put on
impressive shows, and should be around for some time. On the other
hand, the future for Lethargy seems less sure.
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P O R T U G U E S E R A D I A T I O N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buried Alive, Lacrima, The Royal Blood and Imortalis
at the Hard Club, Gaia, Portugal
July 25, 1998
by: Pedro Azevedo
Those who organized this concert aimed at promoting the _High
Radiation 4_ compilation [reviewed in this issue], as all four bands
who played in this release party are featured there. The bands, all
from northern Portugal, obviously aimed at promoting themselves
through their performance. However, things could have been better,
considering the problems most bands suffered.
The first band to play in front of a rather cold audie
nce, most
of which preferred to watch the concert from the balcony, was
Imortalis, who presented some very standard thrash. They started very
nervous and never really managed to impress me; the fact that they
were playing without their lead guitarist probably didn't help much.
Still, the three band members who did make it to the stage did their
job for 25 minutes, but didn't exactly leave me in awe.
Neither did The Royal Blood [whose demo tape I reviewed in CoC
#30] with their 35 minute long performance, although their
performance was more interesting than Imortalis'. The good sound
quality provided for all the bands benefited them the most relative
to their recorded material (considering their mediocre demo
_Incantation of the Queen_ as well as their compilation track). With
this much improved sound, The Royal Blood proved to be a competent
band, although very unoriginal (too similar to Cradle of Filth). A
poorly staged "vampyric" scene opened a performance that showed
plenty of improvement since their demo (the drumming was quite good,
for example). As a result, The Royal Blood did leave a far better
impression than that caused by their _Incantation of the Queen_ demo.
I was looking forward to the third band, Lacrima, whose first
demo tape _Tears From the Inside_ sounded very promising; they have a
new demo coming out now, and, not surprisingly, they seem to have
left some of their melodic doom/death with male and female vocals
behind in exchange for more gothic-oriented parts (judging by the new
material they played live, since I haven't listened to their new demo
yet), but that might only be true for some of the new songs.
Nevertheless, disappointment was immediate as soon as they entered
the stage, because their female vocalist couldn't be there, for some
reason. Imagine, say, a Theatre of Tragedy concert without Liv
Kristine... that's similar to the situation here, minus the keyboards
(Lacrima don't use any). Their 30 minutes ended up being more of a
mid-paced melodic death metal show, with some doom here and there and
not much brutality as far as death metal is concerned. Opening with
the fine "Show Me the Way" from their first demo (a song that's very
good with female vocals), Lacrima still managed to produce an
interesting show, which the deep growls and good drumming helped
improve.
By now, most people were probably wondering which member of
Buried Alive would miss the show, but they all actually made it. More
thrash, but better than Imortalis. Their set was much longer than any
other (about 45 minutes), but they had technical problems with one of
the guitars during the show. Good instrumentally, very powerful at
times and just plain unremarkable some other times, Buried Alive
tried their best to get the crowd moving, as there wasn't even a mosh
pit by then; a dozen loyal followers responded to the call. Indeed,
most people were in there just because the tickets weren't too
expensive for a four band concert and the price included a free _High
Radiation 4_ CD. A rather flawed and not very interesting concert,
but it's not like good foreign bands come here every day (or every
month, for that matter) anyway.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
W H A T W E H A V E C R A N K E D ! ! !
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gino's Top 5
1. Absu - _Sun of Tiphareth_
2. Monster Magnet - _Powertrip_
3. Pitch Shifter - _Desensitized_
4. Biohazard - _Urban Discipline_
5. Beastie Boys - _Hello Nasty_
Adrian's Top 5
1. Vision of Disorder - _Imprint_
2. Sepultura - _Against_
3. Korn - _Follow the Leader_
4. Transport League - _Superevil_
5. Pulkas - _Greed_
Brian's Top 5
1. Death - _The Sound of Perseverance_
2. Various - _A Call to Irons: A Tribute to Iron Maiden_
3. Morgul - _Parody of the Mass_
4. Siebenburgen - _Grimjaur_
5. Abigor - _Supreme Immortal Art_
Alain's Top 5
1. Gorguts - _Obscura_
2. Nile - _Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka_
3. Genitorturers - _Sin City_
4. Cryptopsy - _Blasphemy Made Flesh_
5. Aldo Nova - _Subject_
Adam's Top 5
1. My Dying Bride - _Like Gods of the Sun_
2. Osculum Infame - _Dor-Nu-Fauglith_
3. Type O Negative - first two records
4. Dark Throne - _Transilvanian Hunger_
5. Nile - _Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka_
Pedro's Top 5
1. Opeth - _My Arms, Your Hearse_
2. Primordial - _A Journey's End_
3. At the Gates - _The Red in the Sky Is Ours_
4. At the Gates - _Terminal Spirit Disease_
5. Aeternus - _... And So the Night Became_
Paul's Top 5
1. Vision of Disorder - _Imprint_
2. Manowar - _Into Glory Ride_
3. Sepultura - _Against_
4. Malevolent Creation - _Retribution_
5. Hellhammer - _Apocalyptic Raids_
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FTP Archive: ftp://ftp.etext.org/pub/Zines/ChroniclesOfChaos
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e-mail: ginof@interlog.com
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DESCRIPTION
~~~~~~~~~~~
Chronicles of Chaos is a monthly magazine electronically distributed
worldwide via the Internet. Chronicles of Chaos focuses on all forms
of chaotic music including black, death and doom metal, dark/ambient,
industrial and electronic/noise as well as classic and progressive
metal. Each issue will feature a plethora of album reviews from a
wide range of bands, as well as interviews with some of the
underground's best acts. Also included in each issue are demo reviews
and indie band interviews.
HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You may subscribe to Chronicles of Chaos at any time by sending a
message with "coc subscribe <your_name_here>" in the SUBJECT of your
message to <mailto:ginof@interlog.com>. Please note that this command
must NOT be sent to the list address <coc-ezine@lists.colorado.edu>.
AUTOMATIC FILESERVER
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All back issues and various other CoC related files are available for
automatic retrieval through our e-mail fileserver. All you have to do
is send a message to us at <mailto:ginof@interlog.com>. The
'Subject:' field of your message must read: "send file X" where 'X'
is the name of the requested file (do not include the quotes). Back
issues are named 'coc-n', where 'n' is the issue number. For a
description of all files available through this fileserver, request
'list'. Remember to use lowercase letters for all file names.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #33
All contents copyright 1998 by individual creators of included work.
All opinions expressed herein are those of the individuals expressing
them, and do not necessarily reflect the views of anyone else.
