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Chronicles of Chaos Issue 022
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CHRONICLES OF CHAOS E-Zine, July 14, 1997, Issue #22
Editor-in-Chief: Gino Filicetti <mailto:ginof@interlog.com>
Coordinator: Adrian Bromley <mailto:energizr@interlog.com>
Assistant Editor: Alain M. Gaudrault <mailto:alain@mks.com>
Contributor: Brian Meloon <mailto:bmeloon@math.cornell.edu>
Contributor: Steve Hoeltzel <mailto:hoeltzel@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu>
Contributor: Adam Wasylyk <mailto:macabre@interlog.com>
Contributor: Drew Schinzel <mailto:drew@magpage.com>
Contributor: Andrew Lewandowski <mailto:kmvb73c@prodigy.com>
Contributor: Pedro Azevedo <mailto:leic97@tom.fe.up.pt>
Mailing List provided by: The University of Colorado at Boulder
--> Interested in being reviewed? Send us your demo and bio to:
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CHRONICLES OF CHAOS
57 Lexfield Ave
Downsview Ont.
M3M-1M6, Canada
Fax: (416) 693-5240 Voice: (416) 693-9517
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 brutal music; from thrash to death to black metal, we have it all.
Each issue will feature interviews with your favorite bands, written
from the perspective of a true fan. Each issue will also include
record reviews and previews, concert reviews and tour dates, as well
as various happenings in the metal scene worldwide. If you'd be
interested in writing for CoC, drop us a line at
mailto:ginof@interlog.com. Concert reviews are especially welcome,
but please bear in mind that we cannot accept every submission we
receive."
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>.
WORLD WIDE WEB SITE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We are currently in the process of constructing a website for
Chronicles of Chaos. You can check it out by pointing your web
browser to http://www.interlog.com/~ginof/coc.html. If you have any
comments or suggestions, please e-mail Brian Meloon
<mailto:bmeloon@math.cornell.edu>.
FTP ARCHIVE
~~~~~~~~~~~
All of our back issues and various other Chronicles of Chaos related
files are stored in the e-zine archive at ftp.etext.org. Connect to
this site using your favorite FTP program and chdir to
/pub/Zines/ChroniclesOfChaos. For a description of each file in the
archive, check out the README file. You can also reach this site
through a web browser by pointing it at:
ftp://ftp.etext.org/pub/Zines/ChroniclesOfChaos.
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. 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. If you experience any problems
or are having difficulty, feel free to e-mail us the usual way at
<mailto:ginof@interlog.com>.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Issue #22 Contents, 7/14/97
---------------------------
* Editorial
* Loud Letters
* Ferocious Features
-- Geezer Butler: The Science of Heaviness
-- Hanzel und Gretyl: Children for Breakfast
* Chaotic Chat Sessions
-- Thy Serpent: Ophidian Oration
-- Theatre of Tragedy: "If Light Be The Brightest Light..."
-- Dominion: Interfacing
* Record Revelations
-- Abhorrent - _Rage_
-- Acrimony - _Tumuli Shroomaroom_
-- Amber Asylum - _The Natural Philosophy of Love_
-- Arcana - _Cantar De Procella_ / _Lizabeth_ EP
-- Various - _Awakenings: Females in Extreme Music_
-- Big Top Karma - _Contagious Bacteria_
-- Various - _A Black Mark Tribute_
-- Crown of Thorns - _Eternal Death_
-- Damnation - _Rebel Souls_
-- Dark Tranquillity - _The Mind's I_
-- Deafness - _Oppressing the Silence_
-- Dimmu Borgir - _Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_
-- Dissecting Table - _Dead Body and Me_
-- Emperor - _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_
-- GWAR - _Carnival of Chaos_
-- Hell-Born - _Hell-Born_
-- Hocico - _Odio Bajo del Alma_
-- Ildrost - _High_
-- Incantation - _The Forsaken Mourning of Angelic Anguish_
-- Intestine Baalism - _An Anatomy of the Beast_
-- Lake of Tears - _A Crimson Cosmos_
-- Makina - _Chorizo_
-- Megadeth - _Cryptic Writings_
-- Melechesh - _As Jerusalem Burns... Al'Intisar_
-- Mortal Remains - _No Cash Flow_
-- Satanic Slaughter - _Land of the Unholy Souls_
-- Siebenburgen - _Loreia_
-- ...The Soil Bleeds Black - _The Kingdom and Its Fey_
-- Soma - _Stygian Vistas_
-- Summoning - _Nightshade Forests_
-- Testament - _Demonic_
-- Thy Serpent - _Lords of Twilight_
-- Various - _The Kanada Compilation_
* New Noise
-- 34-D - _34-D_
-- Ambivalent Fluxation/Amish Mafia
-- Cromm Cruiach - _Cromm Cruiach_
-- Drag Pack - _Drag Pack_
-- Ember - _Chapter II: The Gate..._
-- Hologram - _Into the Hologram_
-- Lucifer - _Lucifer_
-- Manic - _Recollection of What Never Was..._
-- Meth - _Legacy of Vikings_
* Chaotic Concerts
-- An Endless Night of Wicked Misery: Infernal Majesty with Endless
-- Be Afraid, Be Very Very Afraid: Type O Negative with Fear Factory
-- Double-Oh-Orange: Agent Orange with Mess and Swindle
* What We Have Cranked
* The Final Word
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E D I T O R I A L
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
by: Gino Filicetti
Well people, we're back, and only one month to go before we can
officially celebrate our second anniversary. From our measly
beginnings of 80 subscribers, and a first issue with 2 stories, 8
reviews, 2 demos, and 1 concert review, to what you see before you
right now, and a subscriber list that is 1100 e-mail addresses
strong, I just want to thank everyone in advance. you'll hear more
next month.
As with our last anniversary issue, we hope to kill your
mailboxes with a huge mega-issue, jammed with some extra columns, and
more than our usual amount of stories and reviews. Be afraid, be
very, very afraid...
Well, it's July, people, and you know what that means? Finally,
the Milwaukee Metalfest is almost here! We hope to meet each and
everyone of our readers who will be in attendance. So go to our web
page, study our pictures, keep an eye out for the CoC baseball cap,
and for the bunch of fucking goofs with the CoC flyers and shit. We
will be there in full force with five or six of our nine staff
members in attendance. Let's all hope this year isn't gonna be
another disasterously lame show with ten-minute sets and whatnot.
Only time will tell, but as long as the current line-up stays pretty
much static, it's looking to be the show of a lifetime. See you all
there.
That's about it for this month, people. Next month, we hope to
surprise you with our anniversary issue as well as something else
which I'll leave to your imagination at this time... hehehe, I know,
I'm a bastard.
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CORRECTION
~~~~~~~~~~
We have a little correction from last month. For the Enthroned demo
review, we apparently printed an old contact address. The NEW address
where the band can be reached is:
Enthroned, c/o John Oster
2224 Halsey Cr., Davis, CA, 95616, USA
mailto:tenebre1@juno.com
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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: Fri, 6 Jun 1997 21:35:45 +0200
From: John Ryden <john@orion.boden.se>
Subject: Hammerfall and EOS
Hi, I write to you cause I don't know where to ask... I tried to find
an email address for questions in the CoC letter but didn't find any.
I hope you don't get angry...
Anyway, I have 2 questions
-Is it true that Edge of sanity is desolved? And, if so, what other
bands do Swano play/write in?
-Do you know if there is a way to get the Hammerfall CD here in
Sweden? I have been to record stores, but they say that it is a
"house of kick" band, and they don't sell in sweden.
Date: Sat, 14 Jun 1997
From: NKBA TOBME AZTAC KROMOS <KABAL@UWYO.EDU>
Subject: "Attention Loud Letters"
If your fucking magazine was printed, I would wipe my ass with it. In
your last issue, you gave Brutality's "In Mourning" a 6 out of 10! I
thought this was one of the strongest releases this year, but you
hammered it with remarks such as "feels underdeveloped and sometimes
even stale, with riffs that repeat five or six times when the song
naturally needs a change." "Intensity of the song is often lost in
repetition and bland song structure that creates an anti-climax."
"barks out lyrics so cliche, they couldn't even bring a tear to Tammy
Faye's eyes.", but these comments describe perfectly all the cheezy
black metal krap you fuckers glorify, dedicate 95% of your space to,
and try to shove down our throats. What the hell kind of Kommie
Konspriracy is this? Or are you just following the latest trend and
trying to kiss the asses of the bands that are popular right now, and
not necessarily talented? There are a lot of talented death metal
bands who konsistantly put out excellent releases, pushing the limits
of songwriting skills and technical prowess. But you always diss them
and kall them cheezy. Well look at your fucking black metal heros!
Their silly image of looking "tough" by wearing face paint and
carrying battle axes doesn't impress me, it just makes me want to
puke! I think the whole image thing is just something they use to
detract attention away from their music so fools like you won't see
that there is no thought or skill put into it at all. I ought to hunt
you down and slap you, you fucking jerky bastards!
Other than that, good job. Hope to see you at the Metalfest!
Over & Out.
Date: Mon, 23 Jun 1997
From: LOIC MAHE <106266.560@compuserve.com>
Subject: Can you help me?
Thanx for a very helpful magazine. I have so far trusted your reviews
and I haven't been disappointed.
Unfortunately, I am not too sure about some of your interviews. Don't
get me wrong, I don't mean the questions asked are stupid, but are
the answers given always worth publishing? I'm refering, for example,
to the Within Temptation interview. I love their music, but the
interview was downright embarrassing!
Right, enough of this. I am in fact writing to obtain some practical
information. I am going to New York next month and I was wondering if
any of your wonderful staff could give me the address of a good
record shop there (I am also interested in second hand CD's) where I
can find a better choice of metal music than at Tower Records or
Virgin Megastore.
Cheers!
Loic Mahe
Antibes, France
Date: Fri, 27 Jun 1997
From: thorn <nordlys@cnct.com>
Subject: CoC is GAY
When I read a rampantly homosexual publication such as SOD or
the Pit I cringe but think to myself, "Well, these people don't know
any better, so why even bother critisizing them." But when a piece of
filthy, gay, and cumsucking scum that Chronicles of Chaos is spews
forth another issue of their magazine claiming to be TRUE(tm) to
black metal I get upset.
Just yesterday I had the doubtful honor of speaking with the
editor of the zine himself, Gino Filicetti. When I voiced my sensible
concern with the zine he retorted that his publication has covered
black metal thoroughly. He even gave me a list of "black metal bands"
which were inteviewed in the zine. Well, besides Summoning (which I
like) he mentioned At The Gates (who aren't black metal at all), and
Cradle of Faggots. It is a known fact that both Dan Swano and Dani
(whom the band members affectionately call Danielle) are gay. Oh, and
let's not forget Peter Tantgren, a poser whose attempt of ripping off
black metal made him a laughing stock of black metal fans worldwide.
Yet, all of the above-mentioned faggots are highly esteemed by the
staff of CoC whose sexual preferences are, no doubt, in concord with
their gay tastes.
If CoC will ever be published it better come printed on a roll
of scented pink toilet paper or I'm not buying it.
nordlys@cnct.com gorelord on IRC
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The meat of the matter lies here. Read on for the juiciest morsels on
bands ranging from the reknowned to the obscure. No fat, no gristle,
just blood-soaked slabs served hot and ready. Dig in, readers.
T H E S C I E N C E O F H E A V I N E S S
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chronicles of Chaos talks to Geezer Butler
by: Adrian Bromley
Few albums this year will surpass the sophomore Geezer (formerly
known as G//Z/R) record called _Black Science_, in my mind. This
record has it all: intensity, groove, substance, and above all,
creativity. The songs leap out at you with multiple personalities,
scratching and carving at your psyche with its pulsating grind and
heaviness. This is a truly heavy record.
Geezer, the hard driving new band from legendary Black Sabbath
bassist Geezer Butler, had little to show last time out with their
TVT debut, _Plastic Planet_, other than a solid, well-crafted record.
The record was pure heaviness, an attack which was lead by Butler's
sci-fi song writing exploration and Fear Factory singer/screamer
Burton C. Bell delivering a blistering vocal assault. Guitarist Pedro
Howse and drummer Deen Castronovo rounded out the band.
Album number two and things have changed. Out is Bell, who's
commitments with Fear Factory had really not allowed G/Z//R to tour
much of their debut record and kind of led Butler to search out and
find a new frontman for his band. Who would sing for the newly named
Geezer? Who would it be? His name is Clark Brown, a relatively
unknown singer from Massachusetts. His mission? Keep all things
heavy. Mission accomplished.
"_Plastic Planet_ was put together so fast," starts Butler on
the topic of new record _Black Science_ vs. debut LP _Plastic
Planet_. "I just grabbed people and put them in the band to get the
record out. I borrowed Burton from Fear Factory. And then I became
frustrated because we couldn't really tour with it. I decided that as
we were going into making this record, I wanted a permanent lineup,
to get a new singer and take him out on tour and to play with us. To
be able to play whenever we wanted to. Touring was the main objective
for us this record. It looks like we will be able to get out and play
this year and that makes me happy."
And what does Butler think about his new frontman Clark Brown?
"I think he is great. Having Clark Brown in the band has given Geezer
an identity now. A lot of people got confused with the record because
Fear Factory's LP (_Demanufacture_) was out at the same time, too.
People were just getting confused because Burton was singing on both
records. While _PP_ was a good album, it never fully had its own
identity. This one definitely does. Clark is great and much like
Burton, he can sing both aggressively and melodically." He adds, "I
like this record because of the variety. I felt that _PP_ had no
variety and was pretty much the same record throughout."
The thing that helps separate both LPs (in sound and style) was
Butler bringing in Brown to add his own personal touch to the music.
"When we wrote this record we didn't have Clark in the band yet. He
joined after we had written it. He didn't change anything when he
came to sing for us. He added to it. His vocals really helped make
this record. Doing the next album is going to be great because all
four of us will be there from scratch."
Butler mentions that the band has already started work on a
third Geezer record, something the band is eagerly anticipating,
seeing that this will be the second time out with its present day
lineup. Butler notes, "I have my own studio at home so we can record
and work on stuff when I want to. I do a lot of experimenting in the
studio and all that experimentation seems to be carrying over into
the new record. Weird vocals and stuff. I'm pretty sure come album
number three, you will hear what kind of weird things I am trying to
bring into the band."
Another thing that helped shape and separate both Geezer records
from the pack of other heavy bands is the lyrical content and ideas
explored by Butler. His songwriting, as was in his days in Black
Sabbath, is still very creative and unique. What does Geezer think is
the reason why his sci-fi story-telling goes hand in hand with this
heavy music? "I write all the lyrics for my songs. I am just
interested in all this stuff. I was into all this stuff back in the
Black Sabbath days too. Look at songs like "Iron Man" or "The
Wizard". This horror and sci-fi stuff just interests me and what I do
is take those ideas and put my own angle on them." He adds, "I have
never had to change my style of writing to adapt to a sound or a
style we play. I am writing the same way I did when I wrote stuff for
Sabbath."
"I am creative more than ever when it comes to songwriting now,"
Butler goes on to explain. "I am constantly writing new stuff now.
Whenever I am home I am writing. It's good to see that I still have
good ideas floating around in my head." So does Geezer think he still
has a lot more to express and do as a musician? "Oh, yeah... I think
I still have my 'ultimate' album in me. I'm never 100% satisfied with
what I do, anyway. If you are 100% satisfied, then you should just
get out of the business and do something else."
And seeing that Butler has toured all over the world, recorded
numerous records and dealt with the music industry hoopla for years,
has he grown tired of it all? He answers, "I'm tired of the 'big'
people. All these labels have everything set to a formula. That is
why I am glad to be on a label like TVT. They never interfere with
the music. The people at Warner, when we were putting together the
last few Sabbath records, there would be an A&R guy coming in every
day telling us what to change. Bands can't write or create music like
that. It's uncomfortable. Bands need to be given space and time to
work on their material. I have that now with Geezer."
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C H I L D R E N F O R B R E A K F E S T
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Hanzel Und Gretyl
by: Adrian Bromley
Few bands over the last little while have been able to create
music for the sheer sense of experimentation and creativity. Everyone
seems to be following a pattern or trend. Not so for New York-based
'space-rock' weirdos Hanzel Und Gretyl. While not even rock-oriented,
as the band's style of music includes techno, industrial, loops, and
heavy riffs into their music, the whole sound/idea of the band
garners a very futuristic spacey flow to it, capped off by
hard-driven musical numbers and odd imagery/lyrics. Over the course
of two years, the band has produced some excellent material on their
two Energy Record releases, 1995's _Ausgeflippt_ and their latest odd
and eccentric conception entitled _Transmissions from Uranus_.
Main vocalist and songwriter/space traveler Vas Kallas speaks
about the making of _Transmissions from Uranus_ and about life that
exists in outer space. "I found time to go to outer space and do
research for this record," jests Vas Kallas over the phone. "I'll
tell you what, I read a lot of books about the future and that gives
me a lot of ideas to write about. This stuff intrigues me and that is
why I write about it and this is why we chose to deal with this
subject. But this isn't science fiction, this is reality."
About some of the books that inspired _Transmissions from
Uranus_, she adds, "While we were making the first record, we were
totally into watching over and over again _2001: A Space Odyssey_. We
got inspired by that film and that may explain why the first album
was so mellow. This time around, this album was inspired by books.
Books like _The Pleiadian Agenda_ by Barbara Handclow and all these
other books. _Earth_ by Barbara Mansiniac and another book called
_You Are Becoming a Galactic Human_ which was cool, another book
called _Human Evolution_. This is real crazy stuff. This is real
stuff and not science fiction. This is like channeled information
from past and future lives, mixed with some scientific knowledge. All
this stuff makes sense to me. That is me and my world. People think I
am absolutely nuts about it, and I can't talk to many people about
it, but when I find people that are into it too, we tend to talk for
hours about it. Like I said, my music and I are in our own little
world." She continues, "The stuff that I write about is real
information that scientists say is wrong, but it's more about
spiritual, ritualistic, futuristic ideals. That's the subject matter.
As for the music, this is where we are at right now. I guess the
music is different for us now, as we have gotten our act together and
become more solid as songwriters. The first record was just Lupie
(programming/guitars) and I, and we did what we felt. But we learned
from touring and studio work and those experiences helped make our
music better."
The band's latest LP is chock full of great numbers (i.e "9d
Galactic Center", "Robot Logik", and "Pleiadian Agenda") and totally
warped in its own right. The music is a monstrous heapage of samples,
riffs, and mayhem all rolled into one solid package. How does Kallas
and the rest of HUG assemble the ideas for songs? Is it difficult to
bring all those sounds and ideas into one idea? "I dunno... I dunno.
It just happens. For example, we are in the studio and find some
samples and loops that sound cool and put it together. Both Lupie and
I will hear something and go along with it. We add lyrics and music
to those sounds and BOOM! you got a song. It just happens. It's
magic. You can't really explain how creating music happens. Our music
has no formula when we write it."
One thing that Kallas and Lupie (the rest of the band is rounded
out by bassist Gingerbread and drummer Seven) have going for them is
their strong belief in creative control and DIY methods of making
music and being in a band. Forget the music industry, i.e. labels,
press, etc... - they call the shots. Kallas explains, "I'll tell you
right now, the industry does not play any role in my life. I don't
have people telling me what songs to write or what to put on my
record. I just don't have that and I am happy about that and not
being on a major label. Even if people told us what to do, both Lupie
and I are the kind of people that would say, 'Fuck off!' I don't
care. We like to do what we want to do and if someone starts telling
me what to do I will step out of the business. I don't give a shit.
We have been lucky so far because we are on an independent label and
we have been able to do what we want so far."
But is there an agenda for success for HUG? Does HUG think they
could be a big thing in this music industry? Kallas starts, "If I
answer this question, I will sound like a pompous asshole but...
Yeah! I think so. If we had the backing of a U2-type band... forget
it. I mean, the ideas we have would be hysterical and a lot more fun
than that U2 concert. I mean, duh!? I think we have the capabilities
to do so. I would love to be this huge trippy band. If we had the
finances we would be like Hawkwind, The Orb, and Pink Floyd, and just
go out all the way. Wooh!"
Describing the record, Kallas says, "Intellectually, I would
tell people that this is a transmission from another planet and from
the universe. These are the messages that were brought to me to relay
to the public in song form. Sonically, it's like a sci-fi trip. But
this is nothing compared to what we are going to do next record. That
will be out of control."
And what does Kallas do in her spare time? "Spare time? I don't
really have any spare time. This is my full-time job. Twenty-four
hours a day I dedicate to this and lucky I can do so. I read or screw
around with my guitar. I watch a lot of TV and science fiction stuff
trying to get ideas. I am really into sci-fi stuff. I'm like one of
those Hale-Bopp people." <laughs>
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This is the column where CoC sits down to have a face to face, no
holds barred conversation with your favorite bands, and get the
inside scoop into what's happening in their lives.
O P H I D I A N O R A T I O N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Thy Serpent
by: Adrian Bromley
The Finnish quartet known as Thy Serpent brought about a
considerable amount of interest with their 1996 Spinefarm debut
release, _Forests of Witchery_. That 6-song release helped showcase
the bands rotating style of musical diversity: dark melodic metal,
mixed with haunting keyboards, rough vocals, and a true and sinister
ambiance circulating throughout. The new album, _Lords of Twilight_
(featuring old demo material and new and remixed stuff), touches on
the same style of playing, though the band - Azhemin on synth/vocals,
drummer Agathon, guitarist Sami, and bassist Luopio - have worked
hard with this release to bring about more of a chaotic feel within
the material. The music is still heavy, though now more intriguing
and the emotional/ambient deliverance is top notch.
By e-mail, guitarist Sami answered a few questions that
Chronicles of Chaos fired his way. Here is how it went:
CoC: Where do you feel this record (the newer material) differs from
the material found on _Forests of Witchery_? How has the band
grown musically? Also: This record seems to have a laid-back,
atmospheric sound at times as opposed to the groove and
deliverance of _Forests of Witchery_. Do you think that's true?
Sami: Yes, I think that's true. Thy Serpent has grown musically 100%
since the early demo days, changing as I found some great
individuals to play with me. We all have played our instruments
for more or less about 10 years now. So we have to do some
quality music, there's no other way!
CoC: Do you think that playing music, especially in this genre of
music, needs to offer something new and different each time out?
S: No, I don't think so. If the music is good, you don't have to do
something new with every release. I mean you don't have to change
your style...just do some killer tracks and that's it!
CoC: What influences around you (musically) went into the creation of
the material played on _Lords of Twilight_? Do you feel the need
to copy or borrow from other band and/or genre styles?
S: _Lords of Twilight_ is some kind of middle release for those who
want to hear something from us before we strike with our second
full-length album. There was a lot of people who wanted to hear
some old material from Thy Serpent. And seeing that both demos
we've released had really bad sound quality, we decided to
re-record some of those tracks for this release. What influence do
I have? Everything that I see and hear.
CoC: How do you think the imagery and lyrical ideas of the band help
the music? Do they work well off each other in your opinion?
Also: Atmosphere and emotions are drawn from all the songs you
create - what's more important to you for the song: atmosphere
or emotions?
S: Both atmosphere and emotions, as well as aggressive music, are
important for us. We also aim to have good lyrics to fit our
music, and that's why Antti L. from Babylon Whores is helping
write material for us. His lyrics are much better than ours.
CoC: How has the band been received in Europe? Is there a strong fan
base for the band there? What do you think about the European
(or Finnish) metal scene?
S: I think Thy Serpent is quite well known in Europe. At least I
think we are. I get tons of mail from all over the world. The
Finnish metal scene is growing all the time. Check out bands like
Twilight Opera, Bethel, Gloomy Grim, I Flow in Depths, Shadow
World, With the Winds... and many more great ones!
CoC: When did you become involved with music? At what age? What drew
you to play this type of music?
S: I started to listen to this type of music fifteen years ago when I
was nine. I was listening to bands like Twisted Sister, W.A.S.P.,
Accept, Judas Priest. They were very heavy, and then a little
later came Sodom, Possessed, Kreator, Mercyful Fate/King Diamond,
and Bathory. I have never liked bands like Kiss, Destruction, or
Venom. As for what drew me into playing this type of music?
Nothing drew me into this kind of music, it was very slow and
natural happening. This is my nature, and I can't change it.
CoC: Do you feel that what you create and do with Thy Serpent is
exactly what you want to be doing with the band (musically) or
do you feel that the band has yet to find their own style/sound?
S: Yes, I want to do just this kind of music with Thy Serpent. This
"mid-tempo melodic and atmospheric dark metal" is Thy Serpent's
style! If I want to do some other type of music, I will form a
side-project band. In fact, I've ideas got ideas for two projects.
I've just got to find some time for them - let's see what happens
shall we?
CoC: How often does the band write and record music? Is it an easy
process? How do the ideas and songs start?
S: Since the last recording we did in June of '96, we have had only
four rehearsals. And we didn't even rehearse much. We've just
worked on the second full-length. About writing: when I write
music, it's quite an easy process, and I think it's quite easy for
other Thy Serpent members, too. Thy Serpent rehearse usually a
little bit before we head into the studio, too. And you ask, how
do the ideas and songs start? Hard to say, they're just born in
our visions.
CoC: Does the band play live? If so, what can fans expect from a live
performance by Thy Serpent?
S: No, we don't play live shows. People have asked us to play in
France and Germany, even go out on a European tour and we have
said, 'No.' Maybe that'll change come album number two. Who knows?
As for our live show, fans can expect a good live show, I guess? I
haven't thought much about the live show from us yet, so I don't
know how to respond to that question.
CoC: How do you feel about mainstream/commercial music?
S: I don't have an opinion about that at all. It's nice if they
(bands) can earn some money with music. I know that I would like
to earn some bucks with Thy Serpent.
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" I F L I G H T B E T H E B R I G H T E S T L I G H T . . .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Theatre of Tragedy
by: Pedro Azevedo
... wherefore then doth it shadows cast?" You might remember these
words from Theatre of Tragedy's second, and latest, full-length opus,
_Velvet Darkness They Fear_ [CoC #17]. It all started when the year
of 1995 saw the debut of a seven-piece band that set new rules in
melodic metal with their first self-titled album. Nowadays, melodic
metal bands using female vocalists are relatively easy to find, and
quality is usually very high; however, Theatre of Tragedy, through
their very unique mix of Raymond Rohonyi's death grunts and the
angelic female vocals of Liv Kristine Espenaes (still my favourite
femme singer), and the extensive use of classical influences in their
music, managed to have a style of their very own, and one that truly
impressed me when I first listened to their debut. Since then, the
band's sound hasn't changed much, essentially an attempt to perfect
their sound was made in _Velvet Darkness They Fear_, which stands as
their latest album. They are already working on their third
full-length release, which is expected to be called _Aegis_. Besides
the two vocalists, ToT was founded by guitarists Tommy Lindal and
Paal Bjaastad, who meanwhile has left the band, having been replaced
by Geir Flikkeid. Lorentz Aspen (piano and synths), Eirik Saltroe
(bass), and Hein Frode Hansen (drums) complete the band. I'd just
like to quote guitarist Tommy Lindal, whom I have interviewed, about
his current health conditions, after having had severe health
trouble: "Compared to right after it happened, it's been going very
well. I'm still under treatment, and by the end of the year, I will
be playing again." I'd like to wish him the best of luck for the
future and a very quick and full recovery.
CoC: In your opinion, in which ways is _Velvet Darkness They Fear_ a
better album than your excellent eponymous debut?
Tommy Lindal: My opinion is that the sound on _VDTF_ is better, and I
like the result of how the songs turned out at the end.
I like the songs better.
CoC: What were the reasons for swapping guitarist Paal Bjaastad (who
I believe was one of the band's founders and still wrote some
music for _Velvet Darkness They Fear_) for Geir Flikkeid?
TL: Well, you're right about Paal. It was Raymond, me, and Paal who
started the band, and after the debut, _Theatre of Tragedy_, Paal
was not into our stuff anymore. That led to replacing Paal with
Geir. By that time Paal had already made some things for the new
songs which we chose to keep in the songs. Geir had no problem
with the ready made stuff, so he played it. Paal did not write
for Geir!
CoC: Would you say that this change brought some improvement to the
band?
TL: Yes, it did. With more experience with the clean parts, and a
different style (more like the rest of us, including Liv) he made
some very good parts.
CoC: Do you have any (musical) conflicts within ToT due to being a
eight-piece band, or do you all share a common musical goal?
TL: There are some disagreements, but we are all grownups (I think),
so we solve them quickly. We all come with different parts, which
we put together and make a song. That way we are all satisfied,
and I guess that's what makes our music special.
CoC: How well have both albums been selling?
TL: The first one, _Theatre of Tragedy_, has sold about 26000, _Der
Tanz Der Schatten_ (limited single), 2000 (sold out), _Velvet
Darkness They Fear_, 46000, and _A Rose for the Dead_ (EP) has
just been released so we don't know.
CoC: What about touring? Do you think your live sound is satisfactory?
TL: I'm pretty satisfied with the sound on stage. I don't know about
the sound out there, you tell me?
CoC: I heard you've been finishing your concerts with "A Distance
There Is", with Liv and the piano only. That must be an awesome
finisher for a concert. Would you say this is the "theme song"
for Theatre of Tragedy? Is it most band members' favourite ToT
song?
TL: I think "A Distance There Is" is a great ending song, but not a
favorite song for me or the rest of the band. Both me and Liv
like a song that hasn't been released called "Lament of the
Perishing Rose" (old song). From the released stuff, I must say
"On Whom the Moon Doth Shine" is my favourite. [very good
choice... personally, I just can't pick my favourite ToT song --
Pedro]
CoC: Speaking of Liv Kristine and her superb voice, how did you find
this treasure who adds so much to your band's sound?
TL: Actually she was Raymond's girlfriend, before she (now living
with Alex in Germany) took Alex Krull (vocalist of Atrocity). We
came with the idea of trying her out and see what she could do
with the music, and we liked it very much.
CoC: Is she happy in the band? Do you expect her to stay in ToT for a
long time?
TL: Yes, I do. ToT wouldn't be the same without her. ToT is her life,
just like mine.
CoC: What are the chances of Raymond keep his death grunts in the
future?
TL: I have told Raymond to keep his grunts, it's like a trademark for
us. He says he will never stop doing it. [cheers -- Pedro]
CoC: Why did you choose Pete Coleman to produce your latest album,
instead of Dan Swano, who produced your debut?
TL: Well, we think that Pee Wee is much better than Dan Swano. And
Massacre (our label) wanted a "professional" to do the mixing.
Pete is more experienced, so we chose him.
CoC: Would you say Coleman's work was better than Swano's?
TL: Yes, when we compare the results on the sound we were very
surprised about Pete's work. He also had more experience with
studio-stuff, so yes, he knows what he's doing.
CoC: What was the purpose of the remixes in the _A Rose for the Dead_
EP?
TL: It all is written in the cover of the CD. We wanted to see what
another musician could do with our songs, and we enjoyed it.
Therefore we chose to include them on the "thanks to our fans" EP.
CoC: What's your personal opinion about those remixes?
TL: The "And When He Falleth" remix is a bit messy, if you know what
I mean (too much happening at the same time), but I personally
love the way he made the "Black as the Devil Painteth" one.
CoC: What do you think your musical direction will be for your next
full-length album?
TL: I don't really know. As you know, I won't be playing on the next
album, because I'm still under treatment for my bleeding in the
little brain (I will return next year), and I don't want to play
things I haven't made myself. I have heard some of the new stuff
and it ain't bad at all. It is ToT-stuff, I guess.
CoC: And what would you personally like that direction to be?
TL: I would prefer a mix between the first and _Velvet Darkness They
Fear_, very heavy and melodic. [cheers again -- Pedro]
CoC: What bands would you currently recommend?
TL: Since it is me, I would recommend: DISSECTION, IMMORTAL,
SATYRICON, MAYHEM, ENSLAVED, EMPEROR, P.J HARVEY, IN FLAMES, and
MY DYING BRIDE.
CoC: Very well, this is the end of the interview... is there anything
else you'd like to tell our readers?
TL: I would like to thank everyone who has supported us, and I really
hope you will enjoy our future music as well. Visit our homepage
at http://www.darkwood.com/tragedy or mail me at tlindal@online.no
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I N T E R F A C I N G
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC interviews Dominion
by: Pedro Azevedo
Dominion's 1996 debut, _Interface_, for Peaceville granted them a
solid base for their upcoming second album; it was undoubtedly a
strong debut, and one which has clearly grown on me since my review
[CoC #18] - something that rarely happens. Composed of female
vocalist Michelle Richfield, who gives the band an unusual touch,
Mass Firth (vocals and guitar), Arno Cagna (also vocals and guitar),
Danny North (bass) and Bill Law (drums), Dominion have a rather
unusual sound, through the combination of a frequently melodic
approach to thrash with Michelle's voice. Now, as Dominion prepare
their next album, I had the chance to interview Mass Firth.
CoC: Would you like to describe your debut album, _Interface_,
yourself?
Mass Firth: _Interface_ was recorded at Academy Studios in Dewsbury,
West Yorkshire, England, during April of 1996. We had
Mags to engineer the recording whom we've always used
since way back in 1992 when our old band Blasphemer
recorded the first demo. More recently, though, Mags has
been doing loads of albums like My Dying Bride, Cradle of
Filth, Anathema, etc., etc... It's a very popular studio,
more so for us because we live so close to Academy. The
CD consists of 11 tracks in total running at about 50
minutes.
CoC: Are you happy with it, or would you say there's still lots of
room for improvement (or both)?
MF: We were really happy with it when we did it, but since we've had
a year or so to stand back and look at it, it's not really
representative of the new material we're doing at the moment. I
think that for the amount of time we had to do it in, with the
budget, etc., it came out real good. It was definitely the best
we could do at the time musically, and we wouldn't go back and
change anything 'cos it was a valuable learning point for the
band. There is always room for improvement with everything, and I
think we've rapidly progressed in songwriting since _Interface_.
It's like there was too much of an influence from Iron Maiden on
the CD back then, but that was where our heads were when we did
it.
CoC: Why did you choose to call the album _Interface_? Any special
meaning?
MF: We used _Interface_ as a title because we wanted something short
and to the point. There are all these albums coming out with long
epic titles nowadays and we didn't want anything like that so we
looked for something short. Interface is basically a level where
you combine parts of old and new and sit in the middle, if you
get my drift? Ha... it's sort of what we wanted with the music,
y'know, taking (or should I say ripping off? <laughs>) older
influences and newer ones.
CoC: What inspired you to write the lyrics for "Weaving Fear"?
MF: "Weaving Fear" was just a tale of battling with your feelings
towards your fears and doubts while trying to get on with shit in
life while some people continue to try and keep you down. As for
inspiration, I don't know, we just get concepts together and
write around them when it comes to lyrics.
CoC: When you invited Aaron (My Dying Bride) to do the vocals on
"Alive?", did you have the song done, and then thought Aaron
would fit nicely, or did you first invite him and wrote the song
later?
MF: When we wrote "Alive?", we got it done, we put all the phrasing
of the lyrics around it, then just decided it would be good to
get Aaron to do some singing on it. He lives near us and the
studio so we phoned him and asked if he would do it. He did a
great job, it sounds cool with it being a slower song, too, which
suited it. Also with the fact that he did it, there was a chance
other people may pick up our CD just for the fact he's on it...
<laughs> A cunning plan which probably didn't work in our favour.
CoC: What's your opinion on the other Peaceville bands? Which one
would you recommend to our readers as being the best?
MF: I think Peaceville have got some really good bands at the moment
and they're all very different in my eyes, rather than just
classing Peaceville as a sort of gothic doom label which the
press would have us believe. [well, not me personally, but then
again, I'm not really "the press" either... -- Pedro] As for the
best band, I can't say 'cos they all do different styles of heavy
music. You can't compare My Dying Bride to Anathema 'cos it's two
totally different styles. MDB do the Dead Can Dance turned into
metal stuff and Anathema do the more Pink Floyd atmospheric
stuff. Plus recently Hammy has picked up stoner Sabbath-type band
Acrimony [see this issue], ex-Carcass band Black Star, and
ex-Trouble vocalist Eric Wagners' new band, Lid, so it's a wide
variety of metal/rock on the roster now. My personal favourite CD
would have to be _Eternity_ by Anathema. I think that it's
fucking great and a big step forward for them.
CoC: How much help did you get from the more experienced Peaceville
bands in this debut of yours?
MF: With the album we had no help from any band. We keep in touch
with most of the folk in other bands for gigs and stuff, maybe
just a bit of advice now again, and keep friendships we've struck
up. Everyone gets along with each other fine, from what I gather.
Anathema gave us a bit more exposure simply 'cos Michelle, our
vocalist, did some vocals on their _Eternity_ CD.
CoC: One thing that must be said about _Interface_ is that you manage
to have a sound of your very own, namely the vocals. Why did you
choose to use such a wide range of vocals?
MF: It's basically our preference to use a few different styles of
vocals. There are certain parts that complement the old death
grunt and ones which require a more melodic approach. Having the
best of both worlds is a definite advantage 'cos you're not
restricted to one style. I know a lot of people who think female
vocals are cliche now, but we use them differently to other
bands, I think. Others seem to use more opera-trained singers on
doom music, or use women who sound like 10-year old choir girls
over a nice little medieval acoustic guitar part, which is -very-
cliche to me. Michelle sings as a melodic solid vocalist, it's
totally irrelevant to me that she's female, we just wanted a
proper vocalist in the band, being male or female never mattered.
CoC: Did Michelle have some professional singing experiences before
Dominion?
MF: This is the first album making band Michelle has been involved
with. She's done a lot of singing with pub/club acts in the past,
but not done albums. Also it was in a very different style of
music than Dominion, too.
CoC: How well have you been doing live?
MF: We've not done many gigs at all for _Interface_, maybe seven or
eight, all in England and Scotland. We had some chances to get to
Portugal and Germany but they all fell through. [that really was
a shame. -- Pedro] However the gigs we've done in England have
been good, the best being support to Cradle of Filth last
December. As soon as we get the next album out we should get out
into Europe before long, which we really want to do.
CoC: Is the band going through line-up changes for the next album?
MF: The line-up in the band is exactly the same as before, no changes
at all.
CoC: Speaking of the next album, is anything scheduled yet? Do you
have any ideas of what will change?
MF: We're due to start recording again on June 2nd, 1997, again at
Academy. We've got nine completed songs ready with a couple more
to be written yet. Musically, it's much heavier and rocking than
before. A lot darker mood, and no oddball fucking about parts.
The new stuff is less technical but much better strong song
structures. You'll have to wait and see!
CoC: End of interview now... time for a final message...
MF: Another thing which will be released soon is the _Peaceville X_
compilation which features all the Peaceville bands doing
non-metal cover versions. We have done "Shout" by Tears for Fears
and "Paint It Black" by The Rolling Stones. Anathema have done
two Pink Floyd covers, Paradise Lost doing The Smiths, and The
Blood Divine [doing] "Crazy Horses" by The Osmonds... <laughs>
Should be good, that one! I don't know when it'll be released,
though. Thanks, Pedro, for the interview. Your support is much
appreciated! Keep in touch!
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This is where we rant, rave, and rip apart albums. Check this column
every month for the scoop on the latest in heavy hand-outs.
Scoring: 10 out of 10 -- If there was ever a perfect CD, this is it!
8 out of 10 -- A great piece of metallic mayhem
6 out of 10 -- Not too bad of an album
4 out of 10 -- You are treading in dangerous waters
2 out of 10 -- If you like this, you are fucked!
0 out of 10 -- My shit can put out better music than this!
Abhorrent - _Rage_ (Independent, 1996)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
This young Brazilian band released their self-financed debut, _Rage_,
in late 1996, showing their thrash/power metal sound to the world.
The result? Not bad. In fact, some of the tracks on this 35- minute
long album, such as "Eternal Doubt" and "The Witch", are rather good.
The main problem about Abhorrent is that they suffer from severe
deja-vu. I mean, most of us, if not all of us, have listened to stuff
very similar to this several years ago. Still, with a good drum/bass
sound and a constantly fast style, the album's not bad at all.
Abhorrent are good at what they do, but it's nothing really great,
and certainly nothing new either.
Acrimony - _Tumuli Shroomaroom_ (Peaceville, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10)
Peaceville's latest signing, Acrimony, are described as being
influenced by the 70s and Black Sabbath, and they sound a bit similar
to Kyuss - groove's the main word here. While this is far from being
my favourite dish, I was curious to check this album out, as this is
not the usual band I'd expect to find playing for Peaceville, who,
however, have been updating their roster a lot lately. The result is
that I was half-surprised to have enjoyed several parts of it, even
though it sometimes gets a tad boring. It's a long album, about 65
minutes, with some very short and some very long tracks, the last few
using a more "epic" (i.e. long) approach that doesn't seem to work
too well, at least not for me. _Tumuli Shroomaroom_ is the Welshes'
second album, a follow up to 1994's _Hymns to the Stone_. The
production is very good, as these stoners boost a strong and meaty
sound, even though the playing is sometimes a bit "free". All put
together, this album is enjoyable if you're feeling good; if you are
and happen to be a big fan of groovy stuff, then this is an album
surely worth checking out. If you'll only listen to doomy or dark
stuff, even when you're feeling good (more like myself), this won't
be your favourite album of the year, even though it's most likely
still worth a good listen.
Amber Asylum - _The Natural Philosophy of Love_
by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10) (June Records, June 1997)
The majority of the material found here on _TNPoL_ is a very
tranquil, atmospheric setting, where leader Kris Force
(guitar/violin/voice) helps guide us through the heartfelt halls of
our inner self and wallow in her intense emotions. The music is
beautiful, sculpted around mesmerizing usage of violins, cellos, and
angelic vocals, sounds that beckon at us to come forth and experience
sincere and passionate musicianship. While far from any harsh dosage
of music, _TNPoL_ caters more to soundscape and soundtrack philosophy
than harrowing guitar riffs and screams of anger. This music is meant
to help one become at ease with him or herself. This music works for
the most part, helping keep us sedated and loving every sound
presented to us, but as the album continues it begins to lose a bit
of its character. The end result? A record that starts off very
promising, mixing beauty and passion, and ending with just drawn out
numbers that provide little sparks of interest. An interesting
release nonetheless.
Arcana - _Cantar De Procella_ / _Lizabeth_ EP
by: Adrian Bromley (9 out of 10) (Cold Meat Industry, June 1997)
Just prior to the release of this album, the duo team of Sweden's
ambient outfit, Arcana (Peter and Ida), released a limited edition
three-song EP called _Lizabeth_. While the EP showcased the band's
ever-growing expression of emotions and beauty, the bad thing about
the latest 3-song EP was that it was a mere 15 minutes. Surely not
enough time to be transfixed with the vibrant and beautiful
amalgamations of noise and choir-like harmonies. But as I listen to
the full-length LP, _CDP_, one can only be in awe of the triumphant
beauty the band has provided us with this time out. Truly
breathtaking. Much like the versatile offering of the band's last
project, _Dark Age of Reason_, _CDP_ digs deep into the soul and
explores all the beautiful and dark angles that life has to offer
with masterful precision as seen on the songs "Gathering of the
Storm", "The Dreams Made of Sand", and "Cantar De Procella (The
Opening of the Wound)". You've got to hear this to believe how
powerful the music this band creates is. It's not the heaviness that
gets you, it's the passion that'll bowl you over.
Various - _Awakenings: Females in Extreme Music_ (Dwell, May 1997)
by: Zena Tsarfin (7 out of 10)
Despite the overwhelming female presence in the Pagan religions that
so many black and death metal bands claim to be influenced by, it
seems that the only portrayal of women that spills over into much of
their music is of subordinance or sexism. Recognition and respect for
a female musician has also been hard to come by, so I was fascinated
when I heard of Dwell's plans to put out _Awakenings..._. While the
original concept was to compile extreme metal bands that included
females in their line-ups, the eleven-track collection is as
impressive for the diverse underground groups involved -- the fact
that there are women in the bands is just icing on the devil's food
cake. Combining favorites such as the gothic Opera IX and Gehenna
with legends Demonic Christ and the dirge-like Noothgrush, Awakenings
offers a sample of some of the most divergent acts in extreme metal.
Also included are songs by Thorr's Hammer, November Grief,
Deathwitch, Ebonsight, Witches, Acrostichon, and Damad. If this
compilation does not change the attitude of stubborn sexists, at
least it will give them a run for their money.
Big Top Karma - _Contagious Bacteria_ (Independent, May 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (4 out of 10)
One guy, fusing together industrial beats, keyboards, and metal
riffs? Sound familiar? Hasn't this been done before? Anyway... BTK is
a one-man show led by sole creator Mr. Gib from Vancouver. Heavily
doused in industrial/metal cliche sounds and ideas, BTK steamrolls
through six angst-ridden numbers about love, truth, and
understanding. Again, hasn't this been done before? I hear a lot of
Ministry and NIN (go figure!) in this project - too much maybe? I
must admit, the numbers are catchy and well-written, but there is
just something about rehashed music styles that doesn't turn my
crank. Sorry Mr. Gib.
Contact: Big Top Kharma, c/o Gibtoons, 709 East 6th Avenue
North Vancouver, B.C. Canada V7L 1R5
mailto:gib@mindlink.bc.ca
Various - _A Black Mark Tribute_ (Black Mark, June 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (9 out of 10)
From the opening chords of Swedish outfit Soulquake System doing the
Prodigy techno-filled number "Firestarter" a la metal, I was hooked.
No question about it. While some may wince at the songs covered by
the Black Mark band roster - Quorthon doing The Sex Pistols' "God
Save the Queen", Edge of Sanity doing a The Police song, "Invisible
Sun", or Morgana Lefay doing a somewhat techno-style cover of the
classic Kiss number, "Parasite" - this is actually quite a cool
listen from start to finish. Granted some covers don't really go
anywhere (i.e. Tad Morose doing Savatage's "Power of the Night" or
Bathory's lackluster cover of Motorhead powerhouse number "Ace of
Spades"), but the remainder of the album is chock-full of unique
presentations of the choice songs that each band decided to cover. I
think this is a superb way for Black Mark to showcase all their
bands, even if the material isn't their own. Great idea and great
songs... and by the way, I'm still singing "Firestarter."
Crown of Thorns - _Eternal Death_ (Black Sun Records, 1997)
by: Drew Schinzel (7 out of 10)
As far as Swedish death metal goes, Crown of Thorns is probably the
most brutal band out there. With ten songs of energy-packed
conviction, _Eternal Death_ contains plenty of your typically sweet
melodies, yet also pummels the e
ars with the kind of blast beats and
all-out musical abrasiveness you don't usually find from a
Gothenburg-based outfit such as CoT. Genre pigeonholing aside, Crown
of Thorns have found a medium between the more brutal European bands
such as Altar and Sinister, and more melodic acts like Ablaze My
Sorrow, usually leaning towards the former with heavy doses of the
latter. "In Bitterness and Sorrow", the third track off the album, is
perhaps the best example of this. Commencing with a lone intro guitar
riff and quickly moving into a manic blast beat layered over a new,
more melodic riff, and accompanied by a rapid vocal delivery, the
song develops very nicely into a beautiful example of how good Crown
of Thorns -could- be. When it comes down to final judgment, however,
CoT haven't really mixed the brutality and melody well enough, and
many of the songs come off as feeling unstructured and extremely
loose. Add to this a hazy, unsatisfying production which places
unnecessary priority on the only average vocals and drums, and you've
got an album with much potential, but in the end whose whole is not
equal to the sum of its parts.
Damnation - _Rebel Souls_ (Last Epitaph Creations, 1996)
by: Steve Hoeltzel (10 out of 10)
Absolutely killer. Immense, intense, driving death-grind,
monumentally powerful and skillfully articulated, its primal energy
hammered into an arsenal of distinct and threatening sonic forms, but
never dissipated into overdone technicality or squandered in boring
descents into sloth. Damnation exudes the monolithic power of titans
like Incantation and the weird compositional talent of greats like
Morbid Angel - yet their sonic identity is very much their own.
Clones they are not. Songs flow like rivers of molten stone,
individual sections alternating between crushing slow to mid-paced
parts and vertigo-inducing whirlwinds of blasting, sharp percussion
backed by jagged, HEAVY riffing. Some riffs are propulsive and
guttural; others are patterned around notes that ring out like eerie
chimes over stop-start blasting beats. During the faster sections,
excellent drum technique pierces the wall of sound, sometimes by
rapidly alternating between precision blast beats and neck-snapping,
staccato snare drum strikes which keep up the momentum and elevate
the rage. Elsewhere, short blast bursts are connected by -ripping-,
militant fills. Earthquake, rockfall, cyclone - everything coheres;
the songs are not mere piles of parts thrown together, but cohesive
totalities packed with moments that send shivers down the spine. I
will not even try to capture in words the immensity of the title
track... Production is excellent. Great, grim vocals preside over
all: no mere gurgling, but a big-chested roar, phrased in a slow and
creepy complement to the high-speed instrumental assault. For those
who have heard the band's first CD, _Reborn_, this one is a big-time
improvement on pretty much every level. _Rebel Souls_. Hell, yeah.
Dark Tranquillity - _The Mind's I_ (Osmose, May 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (10 out of 10)
Brilliant from the very start of the first track. And I don't just
mean _The Mind's I_: I mean all of Dark Tranquillity's three full-
length albums, starting with _Skydancer_ and continuing with _The
Gallery_. Brilliant is just the right word for all three of them, and
after the first two stayed for a -very- long time in my CD player (I
still pick both of them up very frequently, they're two of my
favourite albums ever), _The Mind's I_ is by no means a
disappointment. In fact, after _The Gallery_, I wasn't really
expecting that Dark Tranquillity would manage to keep such a high
level; however, much to my surprise, _The Mind's I_ is perhaps even
better than _The Gallery_. What happens with _TMI_ is that there's
just so much to be found, and it's all packed tight into 45 minutes
of pure intensity. It's just that Dark Tranquillity, with their very
fast, melodic, and powerful Swedish style, don't need to repeat
themselves to keep up the quality: that's why there's so much
brilliant stuff on this album, there's really a lot to be listened to
here. Most of the songs are shorter than before, less experimental in
a way, but the quality's all there; the changes were towards
perfecting their very own sound, not necessarily towards clearly
changing it just for the sake of change. "Insanity's Crescendo" is a
perfect example of DT's mix of aggression, melody, and power, and
it's one of the best songs I've listened to in a very long while - in
fact, those words apply to the whole album. DT have progressed, yes,
have taken the now cliched "step forward", but they didn't need to go
softer, or radically change style; yet _TMI_ is no remake of _The
Gallery_. Thus, so far, for me this is THE album of 1997.
Deafness - _Oppressing the Silence_ (Independent, 1997)
by: Adam Wasylyk (7 out of 10)
I would sure like to find out what they put in the water over in
Quebec because we could sure use some here in Toronto! Yet another
cool band from Montreal, Deafness are well taught in the school of
brutal death metal. I've always held the opinion that if you play
this sort of music, that you do it the right way, a la good
production and skilled musicianship. Well, Deafness have those
qualities in spades, and most of the seven tracks here are worthy of
repeated listens. My only complaint was that sometimes, the speed
became monotonous, although admittedly those occurrences were rare.
Taking influence from bands like Morbid Angel, Suffocation, and
perhaps Incantation (in the vocal department), Deafness could have
had a bright future. I say could, because I've recently heard that
the band have broken up. Hopefully this'll turn out to be untrue, as
I would have liked to hear a future recording. Those who like their
death metal brutal should get in contact with the band and get a copy.
Contact: Deafness, c/o Martin Lefebvre, 191 de Bourgogne
St-Lambert, Quebec, Canada J4S 1E4
Dimmu Borgir - _Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_
by: Pedro Azevedo (9 out of 10) (Nuclear Blast, June 1997)
Dimmu Borgir are back, with the successor to the acclaimed
_Stormblast_. Now on German label Nuclear Blast, this Norwegian black
metal band will surely benefit from a much wider distribution and
promotion, as well as possibly better production facilities; for
Nuclear Blast, presenting Dimmu Borgir as sort of the new Cradle of
Filth might mean a lot of profit. This new album of theirs shows them
in top shape, and the major changes concern perfecting and enhancing
their old sound. Like guitarist Erkekjetter Silenoz had told us
before [CoC #15], "if we had been feeling good and happy about
ourselves inside, we wouldn't have been making this kind of music."
That's easy to see by checking out any of the band's albums, and
_Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_ is no exception; maybe it doesn't have
as much doom as _Stormblast_, but it certainly is a very dark and
doomy piece of symphonic melodic black metal. Keyboardist Stian
Aarstad is back after _The Devil's Path_ MCD, and thus the band's
sound resembles _Stormblast_ in a way, but it's faster now, and much
more powerful; in my opinion, clearly better. This album was
engineered by Peter Tagtgren (Hypocrisy), and the outcome is a very
strong and polished sound. Melodies are everywhere on this album, and
the shredding black metal parts show up all the time as well - both
really high quality, just about as good as it can get. In fact, this
9 I'm giving them is -very- close to an even better rating, as this
is now one of my favourite black metal albums ever. I must also
mention the very dark and well done digi-pak artwork. One thing that
could have been better, however, is that Dimmu Borgir could have
attempted to link their epic sound to tracks of a more epic length
(the average length is about 5 minutes). Still, _EDT_ is one hell of
an album and Dimmu Borgir is a name that you'll most certainly hear
very often in the future.
Dissecting Table - _Dead Body and Me_ (Daft Records, 1997)
by: Andrew Lewandowski (9 out of 10)
Never ones to remain content with a singular genre, Dissecting Table
have modernized their established incorporation of primordial
metallic pounding and guttural screams into hallucinogenic
soundscapes (see such classic releases as _Zigoku_ or _Between Life
and Death_). Now, DT's main composer, Ichiro Tsuji, mutates the
conventional sounds of a post-industrial wasteland into an utterly
desolate, stoic void replicating the contemporary psyche. Rarely does
Tsuji approach conventional music on this album, and his forays into
recognizable music is no less nihilistic than his more deconstructive
passages; a sudden blast of distorted, high-pitched noise unsettles
the idle listener on the second of the four lengthy tracks, "violence
of existence", and "sonic body" delineates the antagonism lurking
between the emotive self and the industrial culture which annihilates
this emotion. The vicious drumming of earlier albums reappears on
this track in a more schizophrenic and metallic form. Once combined
with distorted wails of despondent agony, "sonic body" exemplifies
just that, a "body" within a "sonic", or hyperreal, culture. In fact,
this jaded self has no body; severed from his outside shell and
thrust inside his skull, the individual stares blankly at his
computer screen at 1:15 am, unable to either sleep or feel his
fingers typing any of the incoherent sentences of a Dissecting Table
review, and sits crystallized within cerebral agony as the subtle
dissonance of the finale, "orgasm", confirms his fears.
Emperor - _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_ (Candlelight, 1997)
by: Steve Hoeltzel (8.5 out of 10)
"Emperor performs Sophisticated Black Metal Art exclusively!" says
the CD cover. Interestingly, good old Webster's lists the two primary
meanings of sophisticated as (1) "not in a natural, pure, or original
state" and (2) "deprived of native or original simplicity" - a
perfect description of _Anthems..._ compared to the band's earlier
work. Songs have grown more complex, and the style has altered to
include mainstream-friendly touches like squeaky guitar solos, and
frequent "clean" singing. Some listeners will be thrilled by this;
others, displeased. In any case, one cannot deny the high quality of
composition and performance. Hence the generous rating. Personally,
though, I am disappointed by all the glamorous new embellishments to
a sound which once was starker, darker, and capable of achieving
"epic" impact on decidedly non-mainstream terms. Anyway, a
well-constructed introduction opens the album, building to a peak
that's musically very well-conceived, but seriously weakened by
brassy synthesizer tones, sounding a climactic theme which would roar
like thunder if performed with guitar instead. Then again, for
optimal impact, the guitars would require a powerful sound, something
which they lack on this album. With the exception of the occasional
up-front riff, solo, or melodic lead line, the guitars sound awfully
thin, and they tend to get lost within a high-pitched wash of vocals,
drums, and keyboards which dominates the mix. Thankfully, though,
there is -plenty- of blazing speed maintained by Trym's excellent
drumming. Except for the opening and closing tracks, all the songs
build blasts of fiery energy into structures that house lots of
musical variation. "Ensorcelled by Khaos" and "The Acclamation of
Bonds" do this especially enjoyably - whereas some of the other songs
don't seem quite as well-constructed. In my opinion, the guitar solos
which occasionally pop up don't add much to the music except squeaky
sounds - and beware the glammy melodic lead line in the middle of "Ye
Entrancemperium." As for Ihsahn's bouts of clean singing... well, I
think they're conventional-sounding to the point of being quite
insipid at times. Still, there -is- some very cool stuff here.
Cautiously recommended.
GWAR - _Carnival of Chaos_ (Attic/Metal Blade, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (3 out of 10)
GWAR are back. Who cares? No, really, who the hell cares? I mean, why
are you still reading this? Do you expect my review to be funny or
something? Yeah, right, tough luck. Well, I did laugh with "Sex Cow",
but you'll have to hear it to believe it. Anyway, this doesn't seem
to be worse than _Ragnarok_ [CoC #5], actually, it's probably better,
but then again, I may not have enjoyed the "artwork" on this one as
much as Gino did on their previous. So, this time, instead of the
extra 3 points Gino gave them for the "artwork", I'll give them 2
extra points for the (short) last track, which proved to be a
surprise, as Slymenstra does some nice(?!) female vocals on this soft
song. Er, actually, I can't believe I'm really giving them 2 points
for that, but whatever... So, if you enjoy listening to an album
while feeling that everyone in that band is mocking you for having
bought the CD in first place, then go right ahead and buy it; if
you're -seriously- into metal, avoid it. Crap.
Hell-Born - _Hell-Born_ (Pagan Records, 1996)
by: Steve Hoeltzel (8 out of 10)
This Les guy means business! He's participated in Behemoth (briefly),
the pulverizing Damnation, and now this cool project, which teams him
up with ex-Behemoth drummer Ravenlock. Distinct from Damnation's
mighty death-grind pummeling, the riff stylings of Hell-Born mix
rusty blackened metal with mid-paced, thrashy breaks, and ominous
slower sections. No really grinding parts occur, but there are still
plenty of charging beats and bass drum pulsations. The material is
straightforward, heavy, and memorable, and Les again displays his
talent for sculpting some cool riffs out of eerie, ringing tones.
(Check out "Merciless Onslaught" especially.) The guitar has a warped
death metal tuning, which further adds to the music's weird pull -
but what really completes the Hell-Born sound are the wicked,
imperious vocal proclamations of "Hell cavalry machine gun
skullcrush" performer Ravenlock. I don't tend to get excited over
black/death metal lyrics, but I must say, when this guy lays down the
law with sonorous, semi-spoken proclamations like:
"Rain falls, drops of tears and blood,
Red like dust from the Martian ground,
Spinning in eternal circles of blasphemy."
Great stuff here. It's not as punishing as the best death-grind or as
lightning-quick as the most extreme black metal, but it's heavy,
energetic, and (best of all) fairly unique. Five tracks, 25 minutes,
worth seeking out.
Hocico - _Odio Bajo del Alma_ (Opcion Sonica, May 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10)
Hocico (Spanish for "muzzle") may just be *the band* to draw
attention to the ever-growing Mexican metal music scene. Other
Mexican acts like 34-D and Hologram are reviewed in this CoC issue,
too. Mexico City electronic/industrial metal duo Hocico (comprised of
Erk Aicrag and Rasco Agroyan) play a very vibrant and truly powerful
form of music. Its music relays numerous emotions and the atmospheric
offerings within _OBdA_ - Spanish for _Soul Full of Hate_ - not only
amazes me, but leaves me feeling dirty and unsure of what I have
heard or become a part of. Also, the riffs are deadly and the vocals
and keyboards are truly sinister. I'm pretty sure the music here
would go well as a soundtrack for a real scary horror flick. The
album's eleven tracks provides us with tales of darkness and the
exploration of the human mind and rarely does the band's material go
stale. The success of Hocico lies within the band's structure of
songs, programming of drums/keyboards/samples, as well as the band's
dark songwriting. While the band may be circulating within the realms
of Canadian greats Skinny Puppy at times with the music on this
release, the band truly deserves a listen as they have found their
own identity and successfully fused together the might of
industrial/metal music and the warped sounds of electronica.
Super-cool!
Contact: Opcion Sonica - Concepcion Beistegui 622-3 Col. del Valle
03100 Mexico D.F., Mexico
mailto:opcion@mail.internet.com.mx
Ildrost - _High_ (Cold Meat Industry, June 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (8 out of 10)
What a wacked out release this is. Haunting and truly mystifying is
the latest release by ambient/soundscape band Ildfrost, their
previous record entitled _Autumn Departure_. This is eerie shit here.
From the opening chimes of the church bell and softly played piano,
"Natanael" begins its journey of story-telling with melodic
interludes, spoken passages, and vibrant exploration of soundscapes.
This is, I guarantee, unlike any record you will have heard before.
Much like a concept record, this album reads like a book with
background music (a soundtrack, if you will), and like any good book
with plot changes, twists, turns, and characters, this album dishes
up some truer than life realism. It's stunning to hear and try to
follow. The lyrics (enclosed within the special gatefold pack) read
like a book/play and only help open your mind more to what is
actually going on within the music. I'm speechless. This is a great
find for anyone into well-crafted music and story-telling. A gem.
Incantation - _The Forsaken Mourning of Angelic Anguish_
by: Steve Hoeltzel (9 out of 10) (Repulse Records, May 1997)
Another great release from this great band. While still as crushing
as ever, the vibe is a bit quicker and more biting this time, thanks
to songs which focus on unkind grind and mid-paced malevolence,
without any really slow segments. The production is the clearest the
band has ever had, which really sharpens the music's edge, especially
by giving Kyle's excellent drumming a distinct place in the mix.
Craig's vocals sound great, as always, and the guitar sound is punchy
and thick. So the overall sound is a bit cleaner, less miasmic, and
less doomy than on their previous stuff - but it's still way heavy
thanks to the band's monster compositions; plus, the clarity of the
mix makes the grinding parts hit harder than before. This is an MCD
with 22 minutes of material; there are seven tracks, five of which
are proper songs, if you count the 51-second "Twisted Sacrilegious
Journey Into Our Darkest Neurotic Delirium". (The two non-songs are a
brief, warped interlude, and a well done five-minute outro that's
creepy enough to stay interesting all the way through.) I'd rank
opener "Shadows from the Ancient Empire" as one of the band's most
effective songs ever - right up there with the almighty "Christening
the Afterbirth" from their first CD. The title track definitely goes
on that list, too. There's also a cover of the old Schuldiner
chestnut "Scream Bloody Gore"... pretty cool, but not as good as
Incantation's stuff, which once again sounds killer.
Intestine Baalism - _An Anatomy of the Beast_
by: Steve Hoeltzel (8 out of 10) (Repulse Records, 1997)
Some solid death metal from this Japanese outfit. It's not especially
brutal by 1997 standards, but it's nicely varied and precisely
played, with a sound that is in some ways distinct. Overall, the
compositions are highly reminiscent of some of the earliest stuff
from Swedes like Entombed and Dismember, but with the frequent
addition of mid-paced, semi-melodic riffing and lead work that has an
emotive, rather doomy feel. "Cannibal Sodom" makes great use of this
technique, which crops up in several other songs as well. Occasional
doses of more overt blast-heavy brutality are also offered, but most
of the time the band switches off between punchy riffing and
down-tuned rudi-melody in the vein of _Left Hand Path_. (But check
out "Blasphemy Resurrected" if _Like an Ever Flowing Stream_ is more
your style.) For my money, "Energumenus" wins the day, since it's the
most slamming track here, but "Cannibal Sodom" and "A Place Their
Gods Left Behind" also prove enjoyable thanks to the mix of death
metal crunch and moody leads. Great production, too, and the playing
is top notch. It's not quite what I personally look for in death
metal (warped, hyper structure and slamming percussive weight), but
it's undeniably a quality chunk of metal all the same.
Lake of Tears - _A Crimson Cosmos_ (Black Mark, 1997)
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10)
This album seems to have been written while totally disregarding any
boundaries whatsoever; in fact, this album has a clear mainstream
feel to it at times, something I really don't like. However, besides
that, Lake of Tears have included lots of very nice easy-to-catch
melodies, which are what makes this album very much worth a listen
for fans of soft melodic/gothic(?) metal; in fact, I even happened to
enjoy it myself, which is unusual, considering my statements above.
LoT's music spreads to very different areas, yet things never go too
much out of proportion. _A Crimson Cosmos_ is varied (even though its
total length is under 40 minutes), and therefore has its ups and
downs, but if you're not worried about its softness, and happen to
enjoy mellow and melodic stuff, this might very well turn out to be a
good buy for you, as it's musically pretty good.
Makina - _Chorizo_ (Discos Manicomo, May 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (7 out of 10)
From Mexico City (my old stomping grounds) comes Makina, a powerhouse
death/thrash metal outfit that plays their music like there is no
tomorrow. What is interesting about this CD is that it acts as an
intro to the band (a series of questions and answers by band members,
in English and Spanish) and a few select choice cuts (five in total)
from the band's album, _Red_. It's interesting to hear the band speak
about the origin of the band (formed in 1990), themes of songs and
their future plans as a metal band. To note: the band has opened
numerous shows in Mexico City for big named metal acts in the past
few years and it seems as though that experience and band growth has
allowed their music to strengthen itself. And how is the music of
Makina? Pretty good and most importantly, it shreds when it has to.
While the band relies heavily on standard thrash metal riffs,
death-like growls, and drum beats, it's the unique pairing of groove
and violent spurts of anger/intensity that help make the band's
material stand out. I liked the title track, "Red", due to its
explosive opening. It is hard to actually judge the band on just a
few songs (ahem... a full copy of _Red_ would be nice, guys...) but
if I had to pass judgment on this band from what I know of them now,
I would have to say that Makina provides us with great music. Heavy
and worth a listen.
Contact: Makina, P.O. Box 763 Admon 11
Hipodromo, Mexico D.F. 06101 Mexico
mailto:maina@servidor.unam.mx
http://www.maicomio.com.mx
Megadeth - _Cryptic Writings_ (Capitol, June 1997)
by: Drew Schinzel (8 out of 10)
Surprise! It's actually good! After the very disappointing
_Youthanasia_, an album full of weak riffs and poor songwriting, I
have to admit that I didn't expect much out of _Cryptic Writings_. We
all know that once bands change for the worse, there's usually no
chance of salvaging another decent album; everyone hopes "yeah, their
last album sucked, but for the next one, they're returning to their
old style!" While I can't say that the new Megadeth release is a
return to the days of such shredding classics as "Hangar 18" and
"Take No Prisoners", I can say that it's a refreshing reminder that,
yes, aging metallers who had their heyday in the late 80s/early 90s
-can- in fact write decent material without falling back on old
ideas. Sure, none of these songs are going to blow any long time
'Deth fans out of the water (except maybe "She-Wolf", killer song
that is), but pretty much all of them are structurally tight, albeit
maybe a tad too predictable and commercially inclined, efforts which
are eons better than the majority of the drivel present on
_Youthanasia_. On the whole, _CW_ is a bit heavier than
_Youthanasia_, and at the same time more experimental, creating a
balance between the Megadeth trademarks such as Mary Friedman's
classic solos and newer elements like acoustic interludes and a very
minor use of keyboard highlights here and there. We even get a treat
in the form of the aforementioned track "She-Wolf", a truly bitchin'
song using the speedier riffing style from _RiP_ with the aesthetic
of the modern material, coming off overall as a song that should've
been on _Countdown to Extinction_. Examining what counts, _Cryptic
Writings_ can be summed up like this: As expected, it's not a return
to the days of old, but thankfully it's also not a _Youthanasia part
2_. And when you compare it to what the "other" M-band out there is
putting out these days... no comment is necessary.
Melechesh - _As Jerusalem Burns... Al'Intisar_
by: Steve Hoeltzel (8 out of 10) (Breath of Night/Pulverizer, 1996)
Further complicating the tumultuous world of black metal geopolitics
are Melechesh, who hail from Israel and proclaim themselves "the
pioneers of Assyrian Mesopotamian black metal." Ave... Hoo hah....
Anyway, some of the music offered here is quite cool. Much of the
time, the band sounds a -lot- like Marduk did on _Opus Nocturne_:
crisp, straight-ahead, and fast as hell black metal with sharp and
well-phrased vocals, and without keyboard embellishment. Yet unlike
Marduk, Melechesh employ a broader range of tempos, along with a
generous (but not excessive) incorporation of well-played
Middle-Eastern flavored riffs, lead guitar lines, and percussion.
This gives them a little bit of early-Satyricon zing, but the Eastern
feel is more pronounced in Melechesh's music - while the frosty
atmosphere of "Northern"-style black metal is diminished. (You could
do some pretty sensuous hip-shakin' to "Dance of the Black Genii" if
you felt like it.) But as I say, there's some cool stuff here.
"Planetary Rites" is highly great: mid-paced, yet sharp, hard-edged,
and full of ache, with a great Mesopotamian interlude (or maybe its
Assyrian; I don't know.) "Devil Night" also deserves mention for its
well-captured eighties hell-thrash feel. "Sultan of Mischief" blasts
along quite powerfully, as does the more monumental "Assyrian
Spirit". And the list of interesting and varied moments could
continue. This isn't anything earth-shaking, really - but provided
that you enjoy energetic black metal, can live without keyboards, and
find yourself intrigued by the Middle Eastern flair, you'll probably
find it to be worth seeking out.
Mortal Remains - _No Cash Flow_ (Tender Stone, May 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (6 out of 10)
Okay... this record starts off as a somewhat hardcore/metal record
and as it progresses, it turns into a tight, blazing, metal-riffed
thrash metal record. _NCF_ by New York's quartet, Mortal Remains,
isn't all that bad, I liked a lot of what I heard, it's just that
what it supplies us with is a typical dosage of thrash-styled music.
I hear a lot of Slayer, Anthrax, and Metallica influence within their
music on _NCF_, as well as hardcore/metal stylings a la Biohazard. I
like what the band is doing in regards to going back to an old school
style of playing and mixing with a 90s feel of hardcore/metal. I'll
be honest, I was pleased when a band like Meliah Rage surfaced last
year after a long hiatus with their self-titled album plugging hard
and heavy at old school metal and I am glad that Mortal Remains isn't
afraid to play music that may seem old or forgotten. It sounds good,
they just need a bit more variety and creativity in some parts. Not
bad.
Satanic Slaughter - _Land of the Unholy Souls_
by: Drew Schinzel (6 out of 10) (Necropolis, June 1997)
With this their second album released on Necropolis Records, Satanic
Slaughter have brought forth a CD filled with older material from the
early stages of the band in the mid- to late-80s, before the criminal
acts of a member or two halted development. I haven't heard their
self-titled debut, so I can't say exactly how dated this album
sounds, however, judging it solely on its own qualities, I can't see
how a release such as this can hold its own today in the late 90s.
Pretty old-school (obviously), with a very one-dimensional take on
80s black metal, with much thrash influence (similar in some respects
to Sodom and others, but with more emphasis on the black metal part
of things), Satanic Slaughter give us thirteen tracks of very spotty
material. There -are- a couple of songs which stand out as killer
efforts, namely "One Night in Hell", "Servant of Satan", and "Demon's
Feast". Unfortunately, the penetrating, menacing guitar riffs and
perfect mix of mid-paced rocking sections with all-out blasts of
energy present in those songs are all too rare throughout the rest of
the album, and this quickly becomes the type of CD where you
immediately find your favorite songs and forget about the others.
Though I hate to use the word, the one that comes to mind when
listening to Satanic Slaughter is generic.
Siebenburgen - _Loreia_ (Napalm Records, June 1997)
by: Steve Hoeltzel (6 out of 10)
Some enjoyable music here, but nothing especially innovative or
aggressive. It's mostly mid-paced metal which emanates a blackened
feel, while never becoming particularly harsh or dark. Melancholic,
mid-paced riffs and a semi-spoken black metal snarl define the style,
which sometimes reminds me a lot of Dimmu Borgir's _Stormblast_ -
minus the stirring keys and variation. In place of keyboards,
Siebenburgen incorporate folkish female vocals and the occasional
well-placed violin. By black metal standards, the album's speedier
parts are not especially fast. Still, there's definitely some
effective material, especially the songs in which the riffs and
vocals display the strongest folk influence, like "Ungentum Pharelis"
and the title track. Also worth mentioning are the punchier "Dodens
Somn" and "Vittring av Liv", both of which express some more
traditional heavy metal influences. The mix and production are good -
but it seems to me that with less studio polish, the band might have
a more "woodsy" atmosphere which would really add to their sound,
given its poetic and folkish sources of inspiration. And at 52
minutes in length, the album is fairly repetitious, with very little
real dynamic variation within each song, or difference in song length
(between five and six minutes), structure (conventional), tempo
(mostly mid-paced), or feel.
...The Soil Bleeds Black - _The Kingdom and Its Fey_
by: Adam Wasylyk (6 out of 10) (Cruel Moon, June 1997)
From the label that brought us the amazing Proscriptor, Cruel Moon (a
sub-division of the Cold Meat Industry label) have brought us yet
another musical oddity that is worthy of attention. The trio that
comprises ...The Soil Bleeds Black play Medieval-influenced folk
music who's pure, authentic sound lends the it a lot of credibility.
Tracks like "Burh Stede Beated", "Dragon Arte", "To Thy Queen",
"Ecce, Victoria", and "Homonuculus" showcase some pretty well- played
music (exhibiting horned and stringed instruments, and flutes). The
only bone I had to pick with _The Kingdom and Its Fey_ are the
vocals, which were used sporadically throughout the 25 tracks. Both
the male and female vocals at times sounded awkward, showing their
flaws in tracks like "Redivivus 'Ole Norwich, the Triumph of
Horamane" and "At that Fiery Pond". ... The Soil Bleeds Black have
something great happening here, I very much look forward to future
recordings by the band. Not recommended for more traditional metal
listener, but for more open-minded music lovers.
Soma - _Stygian Vistas_ (Extreme Records, June 1997)
by: Adrian Bromley (6 out of 10)
While I really wanted to like this EP by noise duo Soma after the
brilliant _Inner Cinema_ last year, an ambient trip into chaos and
expressionism, I felt kind of short-changed with this remix EP. With
radio edits and remixed versions of some material scattered
throughout eight cuts, most of which come from _IC_, there is not too
much material here that really stands out. Granted, some of the
remixes help shorten Soma's lengthy songs and add a little bite, but
the whole beauty of what Soma does is the long ambient soundscapes.
It's like their bread and butter. I dunno, I like remix albums, but
there seems to have been some kind of tampering or remixed ideas that
just didn't cut it in my books. Stick with the original material on
_IC_, and you'll thank me.
Summoning - _Nightshade Forests_ (Napalm Records, May 1997)
by: Steve Hoeltzel (8.5 out of 10)
According to band member Silenius Gregor [see CoC #18], this
thirty-four-minute MCD will conclude Summoning's reliance on the
works of J.R.R. Tolkien as a main source of lyrical and musical
inspiration. Hence, the music presented here is faithful to the
tradition begun on _Minas Morgul_ and refined on _Dol Goldur_:
stirring, layered compositions which evoke the aura of fantastic
places past and far away. "Kotirion Among the Trees", "Habbanan
Beneath the Stars", these songs and two others weave together
emotive, dominating synth lines, buzzing backline guitar, mostly
laid-back beats, and black metal vocals which blend eerie whisper and
lonely rasp. As always, the music is crafted and constructed with
considerable feeling and skill - and without reliance on a bunch of
"true unholy" cliches. It's great stuff from start to finish, with
"Kotirion Among the Trees" easily taking its place as one of Silenius
and Protector's most stirring songs yet. "Flesh and Blood" is cool,
too - hell, they're all cool. All in all, I think that _Dol Goldur_
still represents the pinnacle of the band's work so far, but
_Nightshade Forests_ is a greatly enjoyable set of songs nonetheless.
(By the way, the -song- "Nightshade Forests" from _Dol Goldur_ does
not appear on this disk; all the material here is new.)
Testament - _Demonic_ (Mayhem/Fierce, June 1997)
by: Drew Schinzel (7 out of 10)
Pop quiz, hot shot: How many times did Testament break up, reform,
and change drummers and other members in the last two years? I don't
know the exact numbers, I prefer to leave such matters to the
metal-statisticians among us, but it seemed for a while like every
month, there was a new line-up, but now they've finally put together
a stable line-up and emerged from the shadows with their seventh, and
by far heaviest, studio album, _Demonic_. When I say this is their
heaviest ever, I mean it. You might have thought that _Low_ was some
pretty heavy material, but trust me, this is much more so. Vocalist
Chuck Billy's predominant use of death vocals (present in small bits
on _Low_) and the chugging guitars should be all one needs to hear to
prove it (plus the members all put on some weight and now resemble
Sepultura, _Chaos AD_ era). Now, whether this is a good thing or not
I'm still undecided on. On the one side, ripping tracks like the
eerily addictive "Burning Times" make a compelling argument for the
former, but in comparison to their previous work (I can listen to any
previous Testament album besides _The Ritual_ and be in bliss),
something falls short. I can't really recognize this as Testament. It
certainly doesn't bare much resemblance to their albums prior to
_Low_, and even _Low_ can probably only be considered a step-brother
to _Demonic_. To me, it sounds like Chuck, Eric, and the rest of the
Testament guys have been very pissed off lately, as well as listening
to a fair amount of mid-paced death metal. Not that there's anything
wrong with that. I love Testament for what they are, and I love death
metal for what it is, however, _Demonic_ just doesn't strike the
right balance between the two, in my eyes, and while the band might
win over new fans with this release, older fans of their more
thrashier days may be mildly disappointed with this much altered
effort.
Thy Serpent - _Lords of Twilight_ (Spinefarm Records, May 1997)
by: Adam Wasylyk (8 out of 10)
With the current trend of black metal bands releasing badly recorded
demos onto CD, Thy Serpent have gone one better by re-recording some
of their demo songs for their newest MCD, _Lords of Twilight_. Thy
Serpent's concentration on creating moody, atmospheric music
separates them from the endless number of Immortal clones, while
never getting caught up in mindless speed, especially considering the
beautiful harmonies that arise from tracks like "The Forest of
Blakulla", "In Blackened Dreams", and "Unknown". Some nice
instrumentals can also be found in the likes of "Prometheus Unbound"
and "As Mist Descends from the Hills". This is my first taste of Thy
Serpent, and I'm already contemplating checking out their back
catalog. Check them out, if you're look for quality in your black
metal music.
Various - _The Kanada Compilation_ (Lifestyle Records, June 1997)
by: Adam Wasylyk (3 out of 10)
If the intention of this CD was to represent the music that comes out
of Canada, then I'd vomit right now. This is just pure shit, no doubt
about it. Comprised of three bands with two tracks each, only one
band is worthy of your time coming in the form of Infernal Majesty
(which earned the 3 marks for this review). Oddly this is the FIRST
time I've ever heard their music; they offer two cool unreleased
tracks ("Where Is Your God?", "Gone the Way of All Flesh") that were
recorded earlier this year. Reminiscent of the late 80s thrash/death
scene, hopefully Infernal Majesty will release something soon. The
remaining bands, The Harpoons (punk metal) and Custom (industrial
rock) are just time-wasters, and have no place being on the same disk
(musically or talent-wise) with Infernal Majesty. Don't waste your
time, wait for the next I.M. release and forget about this.
Contact: Lifestyle Records, 509-264 Queens Quay W.
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 1B5
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/\ \ \_____ __ /\ \ \___ (_)___ ___
/ \/ / _ \ \ /\ / / / \/ / _ \| / __|/ _ \
/ /\ / __/\ V V / / /\ / (_) | \__ \ __/
\_\ \/ \___| \_/\_/ \_\ \/ \___/|_|___/\___|
Your best source of information on the newest of the new, and the
deepest of the underground, New Noise is the place to read about all
the coolest shit you never thought existed! And 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 header.
Scoring: ***** -- I see a record deal in the future
**** -- Great piece of work
*** -- Good effort
** -- A major overhaul is in order
* -- A career change is advisable
34-D - _34-D_ (10-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (****-)
This is a good demo and I'll tell you why. This demo showcases us ten
songs that are delivered fast, furious, and in a totally reckless
fashion: no holds barred intensity. 34-D's demo is yet another
release from Mexico City that we are reviewing, a city in a country
where metal music is so cherished and loved that fans eagerly await
every new metallic release. 34-D is a bar-styled thrash metal/rock
outfit with influences from Entombed to Metallica and even Pantera in
their music. It's violent and angry and rarely does the anger within
the music and lyrics subside. While the lyrics are written and sung
in Spanish, not to mention the production of the record not being the
best it could have been, the band's ability to hit us right between
the eyes almost every song out distracts us from not really
comprehending what is being sung. I like this record for the fact
that the band has no set agenda on what or how they should play. It
seems as though the band had a few beers, plugged in and let it all
out. For those who like their music rough.
Contact: 34-D Apdo. Postal 22-513 C.P. 14410 Mexico D.F., Mexico
Ambivalent Fluxation/Amish Mafia (??-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (***--) / (*****)
Again??!! YES folks! Another fucking demo from that "Bill" guy in
California. Yep, this is one of the three I recently received from
that creative mind out West and I must admit, this is definitely one
of my favorites. Not for the fact that the music is good - I admit a
lot of it is not - but that there are gems hidden everywhere on the
Ambivalent Fluxation side of this split demo. AF is a roller coaster
ride into a totally distorted wall of noise and sound effects. A lot
of this ambient/noise-styled stuff has seeped into other
side-projects of Sannwald's (Thought Masticator, for example) but
there is something really eerie about the music here. Sannwald has
brought some kind of weird vibe here (more noticeable on Amish Mafia
side). I personally liked the fucked up version of Nirvana's "Rape
Me" and the long-winding collage of noises bestowed by the clever
"Dancefloor Hit". Now onto Side 2 with the material by Amish Mafia,
probably one of my favorite Sannwald releases (though I yet to have
studied the works of the other demo I got - Acrobats of Apocalypse).
The "story" goes that three Amish folk (The Tiller, Jeremiah
Quakerkiller, and The Churn) broke into Jon Apgar's home (he of
Ephmeron demo fame) and used the "forbidden technologies" found at
Apgar's home to experiment. Sounds cheesy, I know, but actually, this
is good ambient/noise stuff here. Throughout the demo, we actually
get to follow these Amish folk and their experimentation with
"forbidden technologies." Quite a clever idea and concept is this
release. I seriously can't get enough of it. Damn! Those Amish folk
are warped! You *seriously* have to hear this to see why this is so
good. 'Nuff said.
Contact: Bill Sannwald, 3538 Paseo Salomoner, La Mesa, CA USA 91941
mailto:satan666@ucsd.edu
Cromm Cruiach - _Cromm Cruiach_ (6-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (***--)
For the love of God (or should that be Satan?), I cannot find any bio
or contact information from this band. Did we at CoC ever get one
with this demo tape? Who knows? Anyway, whoever's band submitted us
this tape for review, I'm sorry for not including an address but
c'est la vie, eh? Onto the music of CC. While a lot of the music here
is played very well, some of the instrumental pieces are pretty top
notch, if you ask me, but where the band's style and sound begins to
fade fast in the originality or awe-inspiring area is when the music
incorporates death growls into the flow of things. Not good. The two
just don't mix well. It's like Dream Theater or Rush trying to
incorporate Obituary vocals. Um... NO! In any case, some may find
this blend of styles in CC's music interesting - I'm not one of them.
To be blunt with ya, I think the band has several talented performers
that bring the sound up to the front. Too bad the vocals and lyrics
can barely keep up with that level of musicianship.
Drag Pack - _Drag Pack_ (4-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (***--)
Question: What do you get when you mix the music of Fu Manchu, Kyuss,
Monster Magnet, and Black Sabbath with low budget production? Answer:
New Jersey trio Drag Pack's self-titled 4-song demo. Get the picture?
I've heard this high-powered dirty sludge rock all before, but it
still sounds good. If you like any of the bands mentioned above, and
have a taste for indie-style rock/metal, then this is worth
investigating.
Contact: DRAG PACK c/o Keith 93 Gourley Avenue
Clifton, NJ, USA, 07013
mailto:shorty@eden.rutgers.edu
Ember - _Chapter II: The Gate..._ (3-track demo)
by: Steve Hoeltzel (*****)
Another great demo from this potent and promising young band. What
struck me about Ember's previous demo was the skill with which the
band blended impassioned new school blackness with the punchier,
hellish vibe of old school Satanic thrash. That skill is evident
here, too. In fact, the band has become even more powerful and adept
at fusing their influences into truly kick-ass, memorable material.
The music displays more texture and structure than their first demo
offered. The crustier segments sound energetic and up-to-date, and
the presence of more modern influences elevates the music miles above
that of many other old-school-honoring bands. The songs contain cool
riffs, crafty and compelling dynamic shifts, stylistic variation, and
solid performances all around. Plus, the music just oozes that
thrash-on underground hell-metal vibe which cannot be faked. Three
tracks, pro-copied, with a pro-printed J-card. First rate stuff; I
really hope Ember gets signed.
Contact: Ember, c/o Peter Mlot
P.O. Box 2177, Darien, IL, 60561, USA
(send $5 US / $6 World for a copy)
Fax: (630) 985-1169
WWW: http://www.xnet.com/~odin/ember.html
Hologram - _Into the Hologram_ (6-track demo)
by: Adrian Bromley (***--)
Totally working off their set style as a progressive metal/thrash
outfit, Hologram, from Mexico (YES! another Mexican band) really do
bring a certain flare of excitement to the music they play. The
technical focus of the guitar playing and other musical aspects of
the band are of a high calibre, well-executed, and carefully thought
out. One would think that a band of this style would stay clear of
any death metal influence and go for a more Fates Warning or
Queensryche feel to it, but I'm sad to report that the band has
brought into the fold an annoying screamer/growler who just taints
the exquisite music with poor vocals. Not a good sign. I'd have given
the band two stars, but felt that the music itself at least garnered
three. So, to put it in a nutshell: good music, bad vocals. You
decide if you'll pick this up. Recommended for fans of solid
musicianship.
Contact: Hologram, c/o Fco. Javier Quintanar
Apartado postal 19-513 C.P. 03901 Mexico D.F., Mexico
Lucifer - _Lucifer_ (7-track demo)
by: Pedro Azevedo (***--)
This is the first demo tape from this American band who plays
fast-paced death metal, showing some black metal influences as well.
For this first demo, Lucifer used a drum machine (they don't have a
drummer yet, but are planning to get one), but it didn't really
bother me - I didn't notice it most of the time, anyway. As well as
in need of a new drummer and an extra guitarist, these guys could
very well use some improvement in what concerns the vocals - not
necessarily a new vocalist, but a change of style is very
recommended. Lucifer produce a reasonably thick wall of sound, but
the riffs aren't really brilliant, even though the tempo changes are
well done. The main problem is now that the 25 minutes plus of this
demo are rather repetitive, they never really show too much besides
what's apparent after the second track (first after the intro). This
wouldn't have been all that bad if something weird hadn't happened:
side B has a much worse production (and I mean -clearly- worse, even
the stereo's balanced more towards the right), either because of a
production fault or some problem with the dub they've sent us. One
way or the other, this isn't a bad demo by any means, but it doesn't
have anything really remarkable either and does suffer from a few
faults.
Contact: Lucifer, PO Box 49, Goldsboro, MD, USA 21636
voice: 410-482-7247 (Jake)
voice: 410-754-8515 (Jeff)
Manic - _Recollection of What Never Was..._ (4-track demo)
by: Adam Wasylyk (****-)
After reading their bio and hearing the demo, I realized that I'm not
dealing with amateurs. The trio that comprise Manic are
professionally-taught musicians who play a music hybrid of jazz,
fusion, and metal. Death's technical prowess comes to mind when
hearing any of _Recollection..._'s four tracks. Getting up to a
mid-paced speed, the tempo is always changing which prevented sound
stagnancy. A number of vocal types are utilized throughout the demo
like screams, death growls, and spoken word. Manic are all over the
map when it comes to musical influences, and that is what makes
"Recollection..." work. A full-length CD is coming up this summer,
and I look forward to hearing more from this band.
Contact: Manic, Dimitrios Tasikas, CU Box 7070
Potsdam, NY, 13699, USA
Meth - _Legacy of Vikings_ (12-track demo)
by: Adam Wasylyk (****-)
Not bad, not bad at all! Meth play Viking-inspired black metal that
contains plenty of interesting guitar hooks and varying tempos. Songs
like "Whores of Norway", "Palace in the Mountains", and "Frostbitten
Soul" testify to this. Each song has at least one intriguing aspect
which I find hard to find these days on a demo (well, judging from
the demos I've reviewed in the last two issues of CoC). Influences?
Hmmmm... that's a hard one, no band really comes to mind. There's a
little Bathory influence here, but no other noticeable influences are
present. Meth are a hard band to describe, but its music is
definitely not hard to enjoy. The only thing that prevented this demo
from a perfect mark was the production, which isn't shit but could
have been better. I hope that Bill continues with Meth, as I hear he
has a number of other musical projects going. This demo is worth
picking up, for the music is top rate.
Contact: Meth, 3538 Paseo Salamoner, La Mesa, CA, 91941, USA
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\/___/ \/_/\/_/\/__/\/_/\/___/ \/__/ \/_/\/____/
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\ \ \/\_\ ___ ___ ___ __ _ __\ \ ,_\ ____
\ \ \/_/_ / __`\ /' _ `\ /'___\ /'__`\/\`'__\ \ \/ /',__\
\ \ \L\ \/\ \L\ \/\ \/\ \/\ \__//\ __/\ \ \/ \ \ \_/\__, `\
\ \____/\ \____/\ \_\ \_\ \____\ \____\\ \_\ \ \__\/\____/
\/___/ \/___/ \/_/\/_/\/____/\/____/ \/_/ \/__/\/___/
Here is where Chronicles of Chaos gives you the lowdown on the latest
shows coming your way. Check out Chaotic Concerts every month for the
scoop on the bands brutalizing the masses with their own form of
terror.
A N E N D L E S S N I G H T O F W I C K E D M I S E R Y
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fleshless, Endless, The Wicked, and Infernal Majesty
At the Generator in Toronto, Ontario, April 21, 1997
by: Adam Wasylyk
Let me start off by saying this was by far the WORST show I've
ever been to. I was surprised that I didn't flip, but I was damn near
close. I hate to come down on indie bands, but what entered my ears I
will NEVER forget. I will now question going to a future show if one
of these bands are on the bill. However, my complaints don't stop at
this particular band. Read on and witness my Hell.
The Generator. What a fucking horrible place for bands to play.
The stage is at the very back of the bar, and it's sideways so only
the back 1/3 of the place can see the band actually playing. Coupled
with the heat (and apparent lack of air conditioning), it made my
blood boil. "What else could go wrong?", I said to myself. You fool,
you.
Starting off the night's festivities were Fleshless, who I had
seen before previously with this being only their second show.
Fleshless, I must say, are a great band, play brutal death metal the
way I like it: with plenty of tempo changes and technical/skilled
guitaring. The band impressed much of the 80-100 on hand to see the
show, actually a good turn out considering Toronto's pathetic metal
scene (excluding some indie bands).
Next were Endless, who carried the momentum well with their
mid-paced death metal music. Dueling growls was cool, along with the
superb drumming that make the band stand out and move away from
mediocrity. A classy act, hopefully a lot will be in store for this
talented band.
Okay, here's where Hell breaks loose. Setting up and ready to
take the stage were St. Catherines' The Wicked. I had seen this band
in London with Hemdale (see CoC #19) but I guess the heat and shitty
club had me extra irritated by the band's industrial/gothic/black
metal musical shit. The band's drum machine sounded beyond pathetic,
while the keyboards just sounded cheesy. The singer's vocals ranged
from typical black metal vocals to a yelling sound (a la Marilyn
Manson), but picture it done as unconvincingly as possible. The
highlight of their set was when I noticed that behind the bar was a
television, where it was showing a Saturday Night Live repeat episode
with the Spice Girls performing. I would have given my soul (had I
not already sold it to Satan) for The Wicked to just stop, but I was
reduced to reading zines that I had brought along and cleaning my
glasses to absolve me of the boredom.
Finally the aural-assault (literally) ends and we (Adrian "The
Energizer" attended as well) leave, missing Infernal Majesty, who was
the band we originally came to see. Why, you ask? Both Adrian and I
were sickened by what we heard in addition to being exhausted by the
shitty conditions of this bar. We couldn't stand to stay for another
minute. What an unforgettable night.
[ed: You guys are wimps. -- Alain]
[ed: Yeah, fucking wimps! -- Gino]
Fleshless and Endless rule, check them out if you get the
opportunity to do so. If The Wicked comes to your town, run for your
life. Your ears will thank you for it.
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B E A F R A I D , B E V E R Y V E R Y A F R A I D
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fear Factory and Type O Negative with Drain and Powerman 5000
At The Warehouse in Toronto, Ontario, June 6, 1997
by: Adam Wasylyk
A one-off show from the Ozz-Fest tour, Toronto would be the
receptionist of the better bands on the bill (as opposed to bands
like Vision of Disorder... Yuck!). After seeing Fear Factory last
November in New York, I was looking forward to seeing them again,
this time on more familiar soil.
Of course, tonight in attendance were the usual sluts and
Marilyn Manson freaks. What would a Type-O show be without them?
When the show eventually started, it was Sweden's Drain who
would open the show. A female quartet, the band plays dirge-ish,
heavy rock with dueling female vocals. Not much appreciated by the
audience, nor I. I consider Drain "background music," something to
listen to while talking to friends. Thankfully, it ended soon.
Following up were Powerman 5000, whose funk/rap metal style
bored me to tears. When will people recognize that metal and rap
don't belong together? [ed: Don't care what anyone says, I still
think Stuck Mojo is cool. -- Alain]
Finally, the good stuff! Fear Factory took the stage, to what
would be the loudest response by the crowd for the night. Starting
out sounding horribly, luckily the sound guy fixed his fuck up and
make them sound like the great live band I remembered them to be.
Some songs that were played are "Demanufacture", "Self-Immolation",
and "Replica", coupled with some remixes off FF's new album,
_Remanufacture_ and my favorite FF remix, "Scum Grief (Deep Dub
Trauma Mix)" off the _Fear Is the Mindkiller_ EP. What a great set; I
hope to see them back here soon.
Closing out the show was Type-O, who I admit I've never been a
great admirer of. Still supporting last year's _October Rust_
release, songs off it such as "Love You to Death" and "My
Girlfriend's Girlfriend" were mixed with older favorites like "Black
#1" and others I'm not familiar with. What was odd about Type-O's set
was the number of cover songs the band did, this being my first
attendance at a Type-O gig, I don't know if this is usually what they
do. Bands like Black Sabbath, Neil Young and The Doors were covered
with mixed results. Not a bad set, but FF were definitely tops for
this night. [ed: Type O played too damn FAST, seemed rushed, perhaps?
-- Alain]
Overall I had a great time at the show. Not only did I hear some
great music (mostly on behalf of Fear Factory) but I was able to meet
the night's bands, media people, musicians, writers, and metal fans.
A Toronto metal show that is unforgettable. Who woulda known?
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D O U B L E - O H - O R A N G E
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Agent Orange with Mess and Swindle
At the Bay Street Bar in Savannah, GA
by: Steven Cannon
I had almost wanted to tell my friend Chris I thought he was lying
when he said that legendary Southern California surf punk band Agent
Orange was going to be in town... And since my usual videotaper was
out of town going to school for six weeks, I was in dire straits. I
HAD to do a videotaped interview and film the show, and luckily my
friend Chris had all the necessary items ready to go! The show
started rather late, but by the time the bands rolled out, the place
was quite crowded. The interview, by the way, was very informative
and quite humorous at times, done with the only original Agent Orange
member left, singer Mike Palm. Mess started the show with a kind of
poppy punk style, sounding a little at times like Green Day-type
stuff. Some of the lyrics were kind of weird too, tracks like "Brain
Dead", "Infection", and some kind of perverted tune about smelly
fingers. Some of their songs had a rather Ramones-type influence, but
nothing really outstanding. Finally, the moment we had all been
waiting for (no I didn't leave anyone out, so bear with me!) arrived
as Agent Orange, as a three-piece STILL, hit the stage! The first
song they ripped into surprised me, as it was "Pipeline", that
all-time surf anthem which sounded VERY thrashy! They only played two
songs off of their newest album _Virtually Indestructible_, and the
rest were mostly classic cuts from my favorite Orange album, _Living
in Darkness_. The only weak spot of the show, which by the way saw a
vicious pit when they ripped into "Bloodstains", was the chorus lines
on one of their songs, I forget which. They did all the heavy
classics, like "Living in Darkness", "No Such Thing", and "Too Young
to Die", and many of these renditions sounded much heavier live than
on record. They also performed a few cuts off of their later albums,
like "I Kill Spies" and "Tearing Me Apart". Live, they were very
energetic and humorous, jumping around, and basically feeding off the
audience and allowing us to do the same. They ended their set with
"The Last Goodbye" and left the stage (after Mike did a
fire-breathing act which he probably got the idea as a result of
looking at pictures of other artists a lady friend of mine had taken
at previous shows) to an unbelievable crowd response! They had
announced that Swindle had just arrived (even though they were to
play second instead of last) and they would graciously allow them
ample time to play after Agent Orange's set. They're really nice
guys! Anyway, the audience was so loud and kept cheering and calling
for Agent Orange that they came back to play three additional songs
for us. Swindle, I didn't get to hear much of, but they sounded loud
and brash and quite intense in a hardcore punk sort of way. The new
Agent Orange album will be reviewed in issue #15 of Vibrations of
Doom, and sound clips from their new album also will be presented, as
well as portions of the video interview that yours truly will never
forget. Thanks go to Mike and company for being really cool guys.
Steven Cannon,
Editor in Chief of Vibrations of Doom Magazine
http://www.kmf.org/~cl/vod_home.html
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W H A T W E H A V E C R A N K E D ! ! !
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Gino's Top 5
1. KMFDM - _Retro_
2. Mundane - _Feeding On A Lower Spine_
3. Various - _Amp_
4. Pitch Shifter - _Infotainment?_
5. Monster Magnet - _Spine of God_
Adrian's Top 5
1. Geezer - _Black Science_
2. Hanzel Und Gretyl - _Transmissions From Uranus_
3. Faith No More - _Album Of The Year_
4. Arcana - _Cantar De Procella_
5. Autumn Tears - _Love Poems For Dying Children - Act 1_
Brian's Top 5
1. Spastic Ink - _Ink Complete_
2. The Jerky Boys - _The Jerky Boys_
3. Symphony X - _Divine Wings of Tragedy_
4. Red Tide - _Vicious Circle_
5. Clockwork - _Search_
Steve's Top 5
1. Damnation - _Rebel Souls_
2. Arckanum - _Kostogher_
3. Summoning - _Nightshade Forests_
4. Incantation - _The Forsaken Mourning of Angelic Anguish_
5. Cryptopsy - _None So Vile_
Adam's Top 5
1. My Dying Bride - _Like Gods of the Sun_
2. Pain - _Pain_
3. Various - _A Black Mark Tribute_
4. Emperor - _Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk_
5. Pan-Thy-Monium - _Khaooohs & Kon-fus-ion_
Drew's Top 5
1. Megadeth - _Cryptic Writings_
2. Dimmu Borgir - _Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_
3. Iced Earth - _Iced Earth_
4. Absu - _The Third Storm of Cythraul_
5. Dark Tranquillity - _The Mind's I_
Andrew's Top 5
1. Dissecting Table - _Dead Body and Me_
2. Merzbow - _Music For Bondage Performance 2_
3. Discordance Axis - _Ulterior_
4. Incapacitants - _Asset Without Liability_
5. Dismembered Fetus - _Generation of Hate_
Pedro's Top 5
1. Dark Tranquillity - _The Mind's I_
2. Dimmu Borgir - _Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_
3. Within Temptation - _Enter_
4. Theatre of Tragedy - _Velvet Darkness They Fear_
5. Septic Flesh - _The Ophidian Wheel_
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T H E F I N A L W O R D
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That's it dudes. Hope you've enjoyed this issue as much as the rest.
Remember to keep your eyes peeled for us in Milwaukee, and don't be
shy, come up and say hi, or even say "Fuck you!", if you feel like
it. See you all there.
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End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #22
All contents copyright 1997 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.
