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Chronicles of Chaos Issue 069
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CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, January 4, 2004, Issue #69
http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com
Co-Editor / Founder: Gino Filicetti
Co-Editor / Contributor: Pedro Azevedo
Contributor: Adrian Bromley
Contributor: Brian Meloon
Contributor: Paul Schwarz
Contributor: Aaron McKay
Contributor: David Rocher
Contributor: Matthias Noll
Contributor: Alvin Wee
Contributor: Chris Flaaten
Contributor: Quentin Kalis
Contributor: Xander Hoose
Contributor: Adam Lineker
Contributor: Adrian Magers
Contributor: James Montague
Contributor: Jackie Smit
Spiritual Guidance: Alain M. Gaudrault
The individual writers can be reached by e-mail at
firstname.lastname@ChroniclesOfChaos.com.
(e.g. Gino.Filicetti@ChroniclesOfChaos.com).
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Issue #69 Contents, 1/4/2004
----------------------------
* Chats
-- Mastodon: An Out of Body Experience
-- Alchemist: Continuous Evolution
-- Mnemic: Into the Great Wide Open
* Albums
-- Anata - _Under a Stone With No Inscription_
-- Armagedda - _Only True Believers_
-- Belphegor - _Lucifer Incestus_
-- Diamanda Galas - _La Serpenta Canta_
-- Dimension Zero - _This Is Hell_
-- Dwelling - _Humana_
-- Emancer - _The Human eXperiment_
-- Feral Horde - _Progressive Downfall_
-- Fortid - _Voluspa Part I / Thor's Anger_
-- Graveland - _Blood of Heroes_
-- Imperial Empire - _The Second Coming_
-- Impiety - _Kaos Kommand 696_
-- Intorment Black - _The Fallen Shroud_
-- Kalmah - _Swampsong_
-- Meatjack - _Days of Fire_
-- Nargaroth - _Geliebte des Regens_
-- Nordisches Blut - _Our Banners Will Rise_
-- Pest - _Desecration_
-- Swallow the Sun - _The Morning Never Came_
-- Widow - _Midnight Strikes_
-- Wigrid - _Hoffnungstod_
* Demos
-- Artificium Sanguis - _Ye Olde Demo Taype_
-- Failure of Usual Reasoning - _Failure of Usual Reasoning_
-- HFM - _A Virtual Theory_
-- Lupara - _Advance Rough-Mix Demo_
-- Vornoff - _Forledt_
* Gigs
-- And Out Came the Goths: Paradise Lost and Deathstars
-- Redemption at the Palace: The London Xmas Fest
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A N O U T O F B O D Y E X P E R I E N C E
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC chats with Brann Dailor of Mastodon
by: Jackie Smit
I'm standing in a queue outside the Camden Underworld, basking in the
anticipation of seeing a band in the flesh who has recently blown me
away in every conceivable sense of the word with their phenomenal
_Remission_ debut. Now, there's one thing that you should know about
London (if you haven't been here before that is): people don't speak
to each other. Unless someone knows you or is begging you for money,
verbal exchanges are anathema, especially mid-queue at a metal show.
But on this particular rainy evening, the unthinkable takes place. A
stranger taps me on the shoulder: "Have you seen these guys play?",
he asks. I am stunned. Quickly shaking off the disbelief, I reveal to
my fellow punter that this will be my first encounter with the New
York quartet. He takes this as his cue and waxes lyrical on the
band's greatness for several minutes.
In hindsight, it should not have surprised me. When you're an extreme
band of note and even the preppy, corporate salad tossers of MTV are
calling your band the future of metal, something is most definitely
up. And believe me: Mastodon transcend the hype. They are not The
Darkness. They are not Linkin Park. They are not a passing phase.
Their music flows from their instruments like a tidal wave --
stripped free of any bullshit; honest, fresh, emotive and aggressive.
But I digress, because I recently had Brann Dailor on the phone and
he had a lot to say about the band, their upcoming record, and, in
his own words, the "out of body experience" that is their music. Read
on.
CoC: Okay, firstly Brann: what's happening in the Mastodon camp?
Brann Dailor: We're working on the new album right now, and we'll be
going out on tour from January the 20th to February the
15th. Then we're heading to Seattle to record the new
record with Matt Bayles, and we'll be in the studio for
about a month.
CoC: You used Matt for _Remission_ as well. What made you decide to
bring him aboard again?
BD: I feel comfortable working with him and I feel that we've
established a relationship with him. I also feel that if we go
with him and go to a place that's comfortable for him, leaving
our daily lives behind and just concentrating 100% on the record
-- not having jobs and other conflicting interests -- then we can
come up with a product that's even better than _Remission_. We
know him and we know what direction to go in. We can say: "The
last one sounded awesome, but here's a couple of things we want
to change." It's much better than starting with someone new, I
think.
CoC: Let's discuss the new album for a moment. What direction has the
band taken with the new material?
BD: I think the biggest difference is that the progressive stuff is
much crazier this time round. I also think that in spots, certain
songs are heavier. And when I say that, you know, there's two
kinds of heavy: the blatant Slayer-esque heavy (which is great
and there's definitely some of that on the record), and the mind-
melting Neurosis and Melvins-style heavy that we also are akin
to, and it's also there. Maybe a bit more deep-rooted and
cerebral. I'm really happy and I'm really starting to know the
new material much better. You usually have a song in your head
and it usually takes us a good three weeks to a month to get the
song to the point where we're really happy and really positive
about where it's at.
CoC: Do you constantly change the songs as you go along, or do you
take it to a point and consider it to be complete?
BD: I guess it depends on many things. I think that you really get to
work on a song when you're on tour, where you get to play it over
and over and try new things with it every night. And I think that
it's going to be a really cool experiment with the album this
time round, because with _Remission_ we didn't really tour any of
the songs before we started recording. I mean, we played them,
but we didn't actually do a full tour before we started
recording. I spoke to Scott Kelly and he told me that's how
Neurosis did their _Through Silver in Blood_ record -- they
toured for like a month, month and a half on the material and
then went and recorded it. That's what we're going to be doing
with this album, and I think that a month and a half of
constantly playing those songs every night and then going to
record is going to sound awesome.
CoC: So would you say that the Neurosis album was the main reason you
decided to do it this way?
BD: No, but it did put the final nail in the coffin about that idea.
I mean, they told us about it, we thought that it was a great
idea, and then Clutch happened to offer us a spot on their tour
-- and it's just perfect timing, because we'll be able to
rehearse the songs every single night for that month. And then,
up from the East Coast to Seattle, we'll be having our own
headlining tour where we'll play the whole album from start to
finish, maybe add a couple of old songs, and just hit the studio
directly afterward.
CoC: Considering how sonically dense Mastodon's music is, have you
ever considered incorporating synths into your stuff the way
that Neurosis or Strapping Young Lad have?
BD: We have considered it, but I think that it will take the right
person. I mean, we've been in this band for four years, which
isn't that long, but we've been through a lot as a band and it'll
be difficult to accept a new person into our 'club'. I really
think that it would have to be an old friend, simply because
we're such good friends -- or it would have to be a truly kindred
spirit type relationship. We'd automatically have to have that
click that the four of us had when we first met. We were into the
same stuff, the same ideas, and we were just ready to go. And we
played basements and played for sandwiches and played to the
doorguy who walks away -- we had all the disappointing moments
that a band is supposed to have. We went through that together
and it would be hard to let someone into the band who didn't have
to experience that. I mean, it's similar to Metallica when Jason
Newsted joined the band -- we're certainly not near to where
Metallica was at that point, but when they had to accept Jason
into the band they held a lot of animosity toward him, simply
because he hadn't been there for all the shit that they had to go
through in the beginning.
CoC: So, speaking of Metallica -- I'm sure that you know the quote on
MTV.com where Mastodon was referred to as the second coming of
Rush and Metallica, and this is the tip of the iceberg as far as
hype surrounding your band is concerned. How does that impact on
your and the band's collective psyche?
BD: Well, I think that when you see stuff like that, it just makes
you go "wow". It's pretty tremendous, but I'm scared shitless.
You know what you can do and I've been doing this for my whole
life, but when something is hyped up like this, I'm the first
person to say: "Oh well, bla, bla, bla." I guess it's like The
Darkness for instance -- everywhere you go you're hearing stuff
about them and you almost don't want to like them because you're
hearing about them all the time. I don't want to be one of those
bands.
CoC: To be fair, you're in a slightly different league to The
Darkness. I mean, let's be honest -- The Darkness are the
musical equivalent of used toilet-paper.
BD: <laughs> Yeah, that's true. But anyway, getting back to the
question -- it makes me nervous, but it also makes the band work
harder to create something solid. And it forces us not to use
_Remission_ as a benchmark; to just forget that we wrote an album
in the first place, and just work on something new and play our
music and make sure that we're happy. Apart from that, there's
nothing we can do and I can't control what people are going to
like or what people are going to write.
CoC: So, what does the song writing process work like in Mastodon?
BD: It happens in the rehearsal room, and I think when we got off the
road the last time we were a bit nervous, because it felt like we
only had a couple of months to knock something out. But when we
got together, things just started happening and everything just
came together and we ended up having a lot more ideas than I
thought.
CoC: Most of the Mastodon crew are involved or were involved in
side-projects at one point. Care to discuss some of them?
BD: Well, Brian is currently doing something called West End Motel,
which is an acoustic thing with his friend Tom that sings, and I
guess it's sort of bluesy sort of stuff. Delroy doesn't have
anything and Troy has a band called Social Infestation, which is
a grindcore band. I sometimes do an Elvis Costello cover band.
But I don't really have time for anything else and nobody has any
time for anything but Mastodon. We're just trying to put together
an album that's hopefully going to change our lives.
CoC: Considering the thematic material that you deal with in your
lyrics, have you considered a concept album as a future project?
BD: Absolutely. I mean, once we have more time to write and we can
get up to a level where we can tour more comfortably and write
more comfortably, that's something that we'll definitely strive
for. Hopefully we'll be able to put out some crazy double album,
and have a movie to go along with it -- I'd love to do something
like that!
CoC: So if you could score any movie of your choice, what movie would
it be?
BD: "The Elephant Man".
CoC: When can we expect the new album to hit?
BD: Summer.
CoC: Title?
BD: _Leviathan_.
CoC: Thanks for your time, Brann. Anything else to add?
BD: Well, we'll hopefully be doing some stuff for the album in Europe
and the UK shortly. We want to try and have a pre-release party
for the record there as well, because everyone there has been
very nice us. And basically just thanks to all the Chronicles of
Chaos readers for their support, and we'll see you out on the
road soon.
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C O N T I N U O U S E V O L U T I O N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC chats with Adam Agius from Alchemist
by: Jackie Smit
In 1987 an Australian high school student by the name of Adam Agius
decided to emulate his heroes in Slayer, Metallica and Voivod and
form his own project. Dubbed Alchemist, the young band very quickly
grew weary of their thrash trappings and began to search for a
greater sense of individuality and experimentation. Sixteen years and
six albums later, the Antipodean outfit has traveled a long and
difficult evolutionary path to ultimately bring us one of the
surprise masterworks of 2003 in the shape of their Relapse Records
debut, _Austral Alien_ -- a unique musical odyssey of multiple
psychedelic, futuristic and brutal textures. Rather than sit on their
laurels and bask in the praises that the international press are
currently lavishing over them, however, Alchemist continue to look to
the future -- one which would hopefully involve a world tour very
shortly. I recently had the pleasure of conducting a brief e-mail
interview with Adam. Here's what transpired:
CoC: Why have we not seen Alchemist touring abroad any time recently?
Are there any plans to do so in the near future?
Adam Agius: Yes, we are very frustrated with not being able to go
overseas, and right now both Alchemist and Relapse
Records are working on a solution. Unfortunately, the act
is that we have no agent and we don't know of anyone that
will book shows for us. We are definitely looking for
someone to get us on tours and book shows, but so far
we've had no luck despite the excellent press we have
received for _Austral Alien_ abroad. There is also the
question of money, as it is very expensive, but obviously
we can make it happen if the opportunity arrives, and we
are hoping it will soon.
CoC: Alchemist initially started out as a thrash band and then went
through various changes until you got to the point you are
now. What influenced the change and the sound of present-day
Alchemist? Do you see the change continuing, or do you feel that
_Austral Alien_ is the definitive Alchemist record?
AA: We have heaps of influences, but what I really think shapes our
sound is purely our desire to sound like Alchemist. I think that
_Austral Alien_ is certainly the start of a new evolution for
Alchemist, and I think you will always be able to tell that you
are listening to us, because the basic vibe of the band will
always be there. But at the same time, we will continue to make
each record special and not a rehash of the last.
CoC: What themes do you deal with on _Austral Alien_? What's your
favourite song on the record and why?
AA: We deal with a lot of things in _Austral Alien_, like our
country's political situation, the suicide of loved ones. There's
songs that deal with the grim picture that seems to be painted
for future generations, alien abduction. We also talk about our
frustration with being stuck down under and away from the rest
of the music scene, and some environmental issues as well.
Everything is all tied to a loose theme of life in Alchemist and
in Australia. As for favourite song on the record, that would
have to be "Alpha Cappella Nova Vega". I think it's got great
spacey guitars and a sweet vocal melody, and everything in the
song just builds very smoothly to a heavy ending. I love it
because it has a lot of Alchemist's signature guitar parts, like
slide solos and awesome clean sounds, and I think that it
captures the atmosphere of the record perfectly.
CoC: In recollect, would you do anything different if you could re-
record _Austral Alien_?
AA: No, a record is exactly what it says: it's a record of people in
various places and at various times. As long as the production is
good it's all cool. If I absolutely had to change anything it
would be to have some of the electronics louder.
CoC: What would you regard as the primary challenges faced by a metal
band in Australia as far as getting international recognition?
AA: The simple reason is that we are so far away. There are lots of
great bands in Australia, but we are so far away only a select
few break the overseas market. There's also the fact that many
Aussie bands try to compete in an overseas market by copying
overseas styles, and with Alchemist that's not going to work. We
always just strived to be ourselves and be an original band.
CoC: So, what's the current scene like in Australia? Any bands to
recommend?
AA: The scene here is like any other country. We have some good bands
and we have some crap ones. I would recommend Blood Duster, Pod
People, Log, Deströyer 666, and Cog.
CoC: How has the domestic support been for the band, as far as radio
play or playing the "First Contact" video is concerned?
AA: Airplay on TV for both our "First Contact" and "Solarburn" clips
was great. They were aired regularly for about twelve weeks.
We're currently working on a new one for "Alpha Cappella Nova
Vega", and we also just finished one for "Speed of Life", so that
will hopefully bring us to the attention of some more people. A
national radio station called JJJ gave Alchemist high rotation
for eight weeks with "Solarburn" and "Alpha...", so everything
has gone great as far as that is concerned.
CoC: Have you begun work on a new album yet? What can we expect
Alchemist future material to sound like? When can we expect new
Alchemist output to materialize?
AA: No, we have only just started talking about what we will do. We
are still hoping to tour overseas in the next six months, so
we've decided to extend our Aussie touring by a few months into
2004 just to keep the live feel fresh. When we approach an album
we usually don't play many gigs, but just concentrate purely on
writing music. I would say 2005 for the next Alchemist album, but
who knows?
CoC: Is Alchemist something you see as possibly turning into a
career What are your plans for the band?
AA: Oh, for sure. We also run Australia's biggest metal festival,
which is called Metal for the Brain, and that keeps us very busy.
People can go to www.metalforthebrain.com and have a look, and
you can also visit our official website at www.alchemist.com.au.
CoC: Any last words?
AA: Thanks for the interview, and if anyone out there can please ask
any promoters you know in the UK area (or anywhere else for that
matter) to book Alchemist, so we can play overseas... PLEASE!
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I N T O T H E G R E A T W I D E O P E N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC chats with Michael and Mircea of Mnemic
by: Jackie Smit
It's a shade after 19:00 in London's World's End Pub. As per
usual, the establishment is virtually packed to the rafters with
white-collar trendites indulging in their ritualistic sundowners,
joined this evening by a select group of music fans who have chosen
to sit down and enjoy a pint while they wait for Death Angel to take
to the stage in a next door club. Amidst this hustle and bustle,
strut the members of one of tonight's much talked-about support acts:
the Danish techno- thrash collective known as Mnemic. One listen to
their recent _Mechanical Spin Phenomena_ record should already have
made it clear enough, but for those yet to hear them, here's a
personal prediction: these guys are going to be BIG. They exude the
same sense of impending acclaim that Pantera did after _Cowboys From
Hell_ or Fear Factory upon the release of _Soul of a New Machine_.
Not that they'd believe you for a moment if you told them, mind you.
In fact, while most band members (or indeed average members of the
human race) would greet a music journo with a hearty "fuck off" if
said scribe were to interrupt their dinner, Michael and Mircea,
vocalist and guitarist with Mnemic respectively, appear to have no
qualms in answering my questions as they tuck into a well-earned
meal.
CoC: Your website doesn't provide much by way of tell us how Mnemic
got started -- care to shed a little light on the subject?
Mircea: The band basically started out with Brylle [drummer] and Rune
[guitarist] just jamming on a lot of stuff, and then myself,
the bassist [Obeast] and our first singer came in during 2000
with the idea to just do something completely different and
completely original. We wanted to combine genres like jazz
and techno, while still keeping the metal element strong.
Then we decided to get rid of our first singer and I got in
touch with Michael, and we did a demo at Antfarm Studios,
which got us signed to Nuclear Blast.
CoC: So, you sent your demo to Nuclear Blast?
Mircea: No, actually there's a guy in LA who works for Nuclear Blast
and about a week after we had done the demo, we posted some
MP3s on our website and he got in touch with us and said that
he wanted to offer us a deal. In the meantime we had received
several other offers, but theirs was the best, so we went for
it.
CoC: You are a fairly unique band on the Nuclear Blast roster -- do
you think that they're the best label to represent your kind of
music?
Michael: It's hard to say, because we don't have much to compare it
with, but at the same time they've done a fucking excellent
job. They're a European label, but even though we sound a
bit American, they have done a great job with the promotion
for _Mechanical Spin Phenomena_.
Mircea: Sounding American was never something we set out to be
though, but our market is more centred in the US.
CoC: And have you managed to tour there yet?
Michael: Unfortunately not, but hopefully we'll be doing something
there in the spring.
CoC: On the subject of promotion, Nuclear Blast is giving Mnemic a
very big push -- you've done two music videos for "Liquid" and
"Ghost" already. Which of the two clips is your favourite?
Michael: Well, that's really hard to say, because we haven't seen the
final cut for "Liquid" yet. It's done, but we haven't had
the chance to see the finished product yet, and most of it
was done on a blue- screen anyway.
CoC: So, what's going to be the concept behind "Liquid"?
Mircea: We can't say yet.
Michael: It'll have a really nice car in it though.
Mircea: Yeah, there's a really great car chase sequence.
CoC: What about adding some ladies?
Michael: Well, I begged the band to add some ladies, some lightning
and maybe some more nice cars, but the other guys wouldn't
go for it, unfortunately. <laughs>
CoC: So, what's the feedback been like for the "Ghost" video so far?
Mircea: We get a lot of e-mails from the US, because "Ghost" is
played on Headbangers Ball, and unfortunately at the moment
that's only showing in the States. But a lot of people like
it and we've been getting a very good response for the video
so far. I don't know if it has had any effect on our sales
figures, but people are definitely into it.
CoC: And are sales figures something that concern you at all?
Mircea: No, but it is exciting to see how your album is doing.
Michael: To us, it's like if you sell well, then you can have a clear
conscience toward the label and toward yourself. I mean, if
you're selling a hundred copies of your CD, then you should
be wondering whether you even deserve to be in this
position. So yeah, it's not our main concern, but it is
something that we do take interest in.
Mircea: All bands want to sell well, because I mean, we want to make
a living out of this. But at the same time, we want to do
well, but doing what we're doing right now. We're not going
to change.
CoC: Now, getting back to your experiences making videos -- have you
enjoyed making them?
Michael: Well, for "Ghost", we did all the takes in this really hot
room...
CoC: How many takes did you do?
Mircea: A million!
Michael: I'm not sure, but it lasted about eighteen hours straight.
Mircea: Imagine headbanging for eighteen hours...
Michael: Yeah, it's like playing a fucking concert for eighteen
hours, and that was really shit. With "Liquid" it was a bit
different -- we just did a lot of single shots and basically
sat around watching DVDs and playing video games in between
takes.
CoC: You worked with Patric Ulleaus for both videos, right?
Michael: Yeah, and he's fucking brilliant! I mean, he really knows
his craft; he knows what he's doing. He is into metal, but
he realizes that metal's not where the money is, which is
why he has made videos for people like Ace of Base. But he's
doing a lot more metal at the moment -- he did Within
Temptation and the new Dimmu Borgir clip. He is definitely a
cool guy and we love working with him.
CoC: And as far as the creative control on the videos were concerned,
did you leave that over to him, or did you outline the concepts
yourselves?
Mircea: Well, we actually had to leave it to him because we were on
such a tight schedule at the time. But it's very hard to say
whether we'd like to be more involved in that side of the
band in the future. We'd like to be part of every creative
aspect of the band, but we were happy leaving the concepts
for "Ghost" and "Liquid" up to him. He is a very creative
person, and he did a fantastic job.
Michael: We did give him a couple of ideas, and he used some of them,
so it's not like we were out of the loop completely.
CoC: Would either of you consider directing a Mnemic video yourself
in the future?
Mircea: I don't think we have the expertise to do that, to be honest.
Michael: You need a lot of money to do that though, because obviously
if you're going to do something like that then you're going
ito want t to look good.
Mircea: That's a typical problem in this band -- we have so many
ideas, but we don't have the budget to do it. I mean, before
we had a record deal, we were considering doing a concept
album, but as we were working on it, it ended up being cheesy
because we didn't have the budget for it.
CoC: So, as your profile increases and your budget does likewise,
where would you 'invest' in the band?
Michael: I think that firstly we'll get all our gear up to scratch,
because being in a band has turned out to be an expensive
hobby. I mean, gear breaks down and it costs a fucking lot
to replace. After that, I don't really know.
CoC: After that, it's cars and women.
Michael: <laughs> Yeah, after that it's booze, strip clubs and big
cars!
CoC: Now, as far as your live shows are concerned, do you see
yourself moving into a more production-based show the way bands
like Rammstein do, or are you pretty much a meat-and-potatoes
band?
Michael: Definitely.
Mircea: We had those ideas before, but again -- no budget. But when
we have the money, we will definitely be doing that.
Michael: We actually have a list of what we want to do, so hopefully
one day...
CoC: Being a relatively young band, these are very exciting times for
you, I'm sure. Do you feel that the big push you have received
from Nuclear Blast has put more pressure on you to perform?
Michael: Well, more than anything we're our own biggest critics, I
think. We get really fucked off and really moody when we've
played a bad show. I mean, we really want to get better and
better, and right now we feel that we're in a very
developmental time and we need to be pushing the envelope
all the time.
CoC: You mentioned on the website that you've been working on some
new material. Care to give us any indication on what direction
you're taking?
Mircea: It's much more dynamic...
Michael: Slightly faster.
Mircea: Yeah, I can't really say much about it at the moment, because
it's always changing. We're always working on it and when we
iget nto the studio, we'll probably change it again.
CoC: So, how does the songwriting process work in Mnemic?
Mircea: It all happens in the rehearsal room.
Michael: We're very old school like that.
Mircea: The drummer takes over and then I take over -- sometimes we
end up jamming on the same riff for like four hours, until we
look at each other and say: "Yeah, this is working."
Michael: And then I go: "Please fucking stop playing." <laughs>
Mircea: We're always working on a really tight schedule and for
instance when we finish this tour, we have to go and write a
lot more and start preparing for the next album.
CoC: Can we expect to see it on the shelves by next year?
Mircea: Definitely. Probably after summer sometime.
CoC: So, finally -- a lot of reviewers and a lot of your detractors
label you as nu metal, when obviously if one gives _Mechanical
Spin Phenomena_ a proper listen, that's not the case. What's
your reaction to this?
Mircea: Well, it sucks, because basically we see ourselves as a
thrash band that just enjoys incorporating influences from
many other genres of music. We're fans of bands like
Frontline Assembly as well as stuff like Suffocation, and
when we make music we use a lot of this, but we also want to
go out on our own. I guess it's hard for people who always
want to label things to accept that.
CoC: Thank you very much, gentlemen. Any last words for Chronicles of
Chaos?
Michael: Not much, man -- we're just thankful to all the people who
have bought the album so far. We're looking forward to
playing a lot more and to hopefully introduce a lot more
people to our music.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
_, _, __, _,_ _, _ _,
/ \ | |_) | | |\/| (_
|~| | , |_) | | | | , )
~ ~ ~~~ ~ `~' ~ ~ ~
Scoring: 10 out of 10 -- A masterpiece indeed
9 out of 10 -- Highly recommended
7 out of 10 -- Has some redeeming qualities
5 out of 10 -- You are treading in dangerous waters
3 out of 10 -- Nothing here worth looking into
0 out of 10 -- An atrocious album, avoid at all costs!
Anata - _Under a Stone With No Inscription_
by: Jackie Smit (8 out of 10) (Earache / Wicked World, 2003)
For a genre accused of stagnation at the frequency that death metal
is, it's almost amusing to see these belligerent epithets fall
flat in the face of recent innovative efforts by the likes of
luminary acts such as Zyklon and Akercocke. Anata, the latest
signings to Earache's ever-expanding Wicked World imprint, are an
equally adventurous lot, owing as much to jazz fusion and noisecore
dissonance as they to the detuned barbarism of Decapitated and
Suffocation. Consequently _Under a Stone With No Inscription_ turns
out to be an invigorating, exciting listen -- technically masterful
and as brutal as a pitbull on acid. "Entropy Within" introduces the
listener to some of the most effective and dizzying fretwork
witnessed for some time, while "Leaving the Spirit Behind" puts
guitar wizardry to one side and goes about the business of melting
eardrums in a style not unlike recent Krisiun output. The downside is
that the production, while crystal clear, does not always pack the
punch that it should. There are also times when Anata seem to be
overreaching in their quest for fresh ideas. For the most part
however, _Under a Stone With No Inscription_ is a daring and engaging
release by a band who we'll no doubt be hearing a plenty of in the
future.
Armagedda - _Only True Believers_ (Agonia Records, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll (8 out of 10)
Armagedda's debut _The Final War Approaching_ made a minor splash in
the black metal scene, but I never really got what was so special
about them. In my opinion the record was enjoyable but generally
bland and uninspired, and Armagedda seemed to be just another
Darkthrone inspired Johnny-come-lately with no identity or qualities
to lift them above the mass of similar bands. Things have changed
massively with _Only True Believers_, however. All of a sudden the
band has found their own distinguishable style, combining massive
doses of old-school with a sometimes driving and grooving approach
not too far away from what Carpathian Forest did on _Black Shining
Leather_ while staying perfectly clear of any black 'n' roll tags.
_OTB_ features hateful, powerful vocals, dynamic drumming, a very
strong but raw production, and cool riffs -- a couple of which are
somewhat unusual in the true black metal context, downtuned and
almost early '90s death metal style. Without ever coming across like
a clone, this mixture sounds like the material Darkthrone should have
written instead of _Ravishing Grimness_ and subsequent albums.
Finnish bands like Clandestine Blaze or Warloghe succeed in their
unholy crusade to refine and focus the ideals behind masterpieces
like _Transylvanian Hunger_. They develop black metal in a retrograde
direction by carving out the essence of this style as sharp and clear
as possible. Swedish bands like Craft and Armagedda seem to be among
the very few bands that can pull off a forward looking yet
conservative, slightly modernized version of black metal without
throwing the ideals and grimness overboard. A direction acts like the
misguided Satyricon or burnt-out Darkthrone should have taken but
either don't want to or can't.
Belphegor - _Lucifer Incestus_ (Napalm Records, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll (8 out of 10)
_Lucifer Incestus_ finds Austria's Belphegor moving into much more
Swedish sounding territory than ever before. This album is a blast-
fest almost all the way through, with a multitude of guitar layers,
way more textures than ever before, occasional keyboards accentuating
some of the very few slower sections, and vocals which alternate
between death metal bellowing and a black metallish rasp. While
Belphegor are certainly among the few bands that can pull this
hybrid style off with outstanding skill, breathtaking speed and the
brutality level permanently at 11, I miss some of the raw old-school
death metal vibe of _Necrodaemon Terrorsathan_. I also bemoan that
the Austrians, who were always beyond fast in the first place, have
sacrificed a part of their identity to the gods of hyperblast to be
able to accelerate even further. The problem with this breakneck
speed approach is that the faster you go the more difficult it gets
to write really memorable riffs instead of just successions of
semi-melodic bursts. At this extremity level it seems unavoidable
that _Lucifer Incestus_ will be one of those albums that lose some of
their momentum after the first three tracks and start to appear a bit
samey during the second half. As always you find me complaining way
too much however, and I have to avoid a tendency to make this review
sound as if _Lucifer Incestus_ is a bad album. Quite the contrary:
this material blows away the last two Marduk albums and the laughable
posers from Dark Funeral with ease, crushes newer bands like The
Legion without effort and sounds much better and heavier to my ears
than what I've heard from almost every other blasting blackdeath
outfit this year. In addition to this, the production is outstanding
and once again doesn't sound clinical or compressed, and "Diaboli
Virtus in Lubar Est" is the best song Belphegor have written so
far. So, despite my complaints, which are probably the result of
unrealistic expectations, there are plenty of reasons why _Lucifer
Incestus_ should have a slot very close to the top of the list of
records you must purchase in 2003.
Diamanda Galas - _La Serpenta Canta_ (Mute, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (10 out of 10)
Those of you who know Diamanda Galas will probably know that she is
one of the most extreme musicians of our timeaaron. If you think
Deicide, Broken Hope and Burzum are evil and extreme, do yourself a
favour and pick up a copy of Galas' _Litanies of Satan_. She has been
adorned by artists ranging from Marilyn Manson to Nick Cave and
continues to influence many songwriters. Her voice is unique;
alternating dark low growls with ear-piercing shrieks, yet with such
splendor and expertise, her voice is her main instrument with the
piano only providing the background to her twisted and insane tales.
_La Serpenta Canta_, Diamanda Galas' thirteenth album, is a live
recording of one of her finest tours. On this double album, you'll
find renditions of Ornette Coleman's "Lonely Woman", Hank Williams
"I'm So Lonely I Could Cry", Screaming Jay Hawkins's "I Put a Spell
on You", John Lee Hooker's "Burning Hell" and many, many more.
Never have such famous songs sounded so barren, so desolate, so
emotion-laden; _La Serpenta Canta_ is highly addictive. Once you've
been mesmerized by Diamanda's vocals, it's impossible to let go and
step out. If you're a fan of Diamanda Galas, there's no question you
should be buying _La Serpenta Canta_ rightaway. For those of you who
are still unaware of what good music is really about, give this album
a try. You might find yourself just as hooked as I am.
Contact: http://www.diamandagalas.com
Dimension Zero - _This Is Hell_ (Regain Records, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
With Dimension Zero's first full-length scorcher _Silent Night Fever_
still ringing in my ears from the countless times I've spun it, the
prospect of a new album that might retain the sheer metallic energy,
driving riffs and pummeling rhythms of its predecessor was simply
mouth-watering. And this is it: _This Is Hell_. Unfortunately
however, while _Silent Night Fever_ got about as close to Swedish
melodic death metal perfection as anyone has come since At the Gates'
_Slaughter of the Soul_, this new effort is a bit lacking in the
inspiration department. This is essentially more of the same (which
in this case is not a bad thing), with perhaps a little more mid-era
In Flames thrown in here and there. The energy hasn't gone stale in
the least, and you can still find some great cuts, but alas the
incredible memorability and repeatability of _Silent Night Fever_ has
not been matched this time. On its own, _This Is Hell_ would probably
have earned an even higher rating, but compared to its predecessor it
has to be called a bit of a disappointment. _Silent Night Fever_ is a
fundamental album, while _This Is Hell_ is just part two: it provides
lots of fun, abundant energy, good riffs and cool melodies, but it
will stay in the shadow of its predecessor.
Contact: http://www.dimensionzero.org
Dwelling - _Humana_ (Equilibrium Music, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8.5 out of 10)
Lush acoustic strings and a silky, full-bodied female voice: this is
the starting point for a voyage into neoclassical music courtesy of
Portugal's Dwelling. The ensemble is influenced by Portuguese Fado,
something that remains in the background but still lends the music a
more unique character. Those of you already familiar with vastly
successful Portuguese exports Madredeus may find some similarities,
though Dwelling tend to have more melancholy in their music, less
folk influences and more of a neoclassical feeling. The engaging but
often melancholic melodies, carried through by the crystalline
vocals and the highly accomplished acoustic violin, guitar and bass
arrangements, are a true pleasure to listen to; furthermore, the
pleasantly sombre shade that surrounds most of the music adds yet
another layer of interest. No effort seems to be made to sound dark
or depressive, which the music really isn't; but there remains a
sense of tranquil elegance and subdued melancholy throughout. While
the album's main strengths lie in the pleasantness of the overall
sound and some brilliant violin passages, its main weakness stems
from a certain lack of variation. Apart from the last track (which
features a rather out of place upbeat section but also one of the
best violin lines in the entire album), each song follows the
other very pleasantly, but with little novelty. The listener is
kept interested by each successive melody and arrangement, but
may eventually wish to hear more elements in the music rather
than variations on the same theme. Having said this, _Humana_
is simultaneously soothing and musically interesting despite its
relative sameness, and should provide some excellent late night
music.
Contact: http://www.equilibriummusic.com
Emancer - _The Human eXperiment_ (Black Owl Records, 2002)
by: Aaron McKay (7.5 out of 10)
The date on this release is a bit out of sync with my objective to
keep ahead of the material that flows in monthly, but this one was
different. In all fairness, I haven't had this effort from Black Owl,
a newer metal label out of Edison, New Jersey, for long. This debut
was offered for public consumption a year ago this month (December).
Upon listening to the material found within _The Human eXperiment_, I
uncovered a pure orgy of Norwegian brutality. Not altogether without
an experimental edge, Mithrin and Gorbag, collectively known as
Emancer, evolve a wicked style of brash death, intense black metal
and a sculptured understanding of mood. Riffs are not uncommon on
this debut. "Prison Tellus", "The Greatest of Pains" and "Dead End"
supply a flurry of catchy guitar chops that amazingly enhance the
power of Emancer's sound. These guys could bolster their footing as
they forge ahead by developing their musical strategy to encourage
more of an expansion into the rifer atmosphere they touch upon in
this introductory effort. Absent of blame on any front, it took me a
year to explore Emancer's genuinely driven style; don't let that be
the case with you.
Contact: http://www.emanceronline.com
Feral Horde - _Progressive Downfall_ (Independent, 2003)
by: Alvin Wee (6.5 out of 10)
This Toronto-based horde has apparently been getting some attention
locally, and for good reason too. _Progressive Downfall_ is a step up
from the patchiness of their previous demo, with an infectious
blackened spirit permeating all nine of the black metal blizzards on
disc. The first song impresses right away with the dark brilliance of
its melody and unrelenting pace recalling the early Swedish scene, or
perhaps some of the newer underground European acts. The band flaunt
their prowess with a full black metal instrumental track -- not one
of those insipid acoustic interludes -- but not too far along,
tell-tale signs of weak arrangement and a general lack of tightness
begin to creep into the recording. I'd put it down to a simple
lack of recording budget and time, but the recurrence of awkward
transitions in later tracks like "Vagabond" and "Tool of Damnation"
hint at the band's inexperience in song-writing and studio work.
Nevertheless, the sheer passion and energy of the music shine through
clearly throughout the album, and the chainsaw riffing assumes a
certain authority when coupled with the vocalist's manic howling.
Most of the tunes are downright hummable, and this ease of melody
throughout the forty-plus minutes of music make this one helluva ride
for any maniac missing the early days of Thy Primordial and the like.
With that said, there's still plenty of room for improvement, and a
good portion of the material on each track would end up on the
cutting-room floor of a more experienced band. Nevertheless it's a
worthwhile listen; such budding talent is hard to ignore.
Contact: http://www.geocities.com/feralhorde/
Fortid - _Voluspa Part I / Thor's Anger_ (No Colours Records, 2003)
by: Aaron McKay (3 out of 10)
This is a solo effort by Eldur from Potentiam fame. Structured to be
the first in a three-part chronicle, _Voluspa Part I / Thor's Anger_
is bent on developing a soundtrack to the very essence of stripped-
down Viking conquests. Fervently underground, Eldur uses Fortid as a
vehicle to rub whatever shine might glissen off the face of black
metal today. What is unfortunate is other than track five, "Birth of
Men", most of the nearly forty-five minutes on this offering fail to
garner any of the wild imagery of self-indulgent cruelty so wickedly
sought after on this effort. "Birth of Men" develops a kind of
Summoning feel which explains my gravitation to that cut from
_Voluspa..._. Vocals, especially on "Thor's Anger", represent a
strong connection to Grimm on Ancient's _Trolltaar_ disc and,
ultimately, takes my number two choice on the "best of" from
_Voluspa..._. No Colours has some intrepid bands on its roster. If
you're unfamiliar with No Colours, start with some of their other
acts before confronting this effort by Fortid. It is the definition
of "acquired taste".
Contact: http://www.no-colours-records.de
Graveland - _Blood of Heroes_ (Vinland Winds, 2002)
by: James Montague (7 out of 10)
"Free Hendrik Möbus! He served his sentence for murder, but now his
right to free speech makes him an international criminal."
Ah, good old retarded Nazi logic. It just melts my heart to see my
old buddy Darken signing up with the most superior people of Vinland
Winds, who released the _Blood of Heroes_ 7" EP in 1488 copies as a
sign of reverence to He Who Shall Not Be Named, then insulted the
memory of the mustachioed tyrant by exalting man's right to... free
speech?
As long as you don't mind buying from idiot labels, and as long as
you already have all the Graveland full-lengths, then there is
something to be gained from this pair of new songs, released hot on
the heels of 2002's _Memory and Destiny_. Side A features "I Am What
They Fear", which combines the moody melodicism of the full-length
album with the persistent hi-hat rhythms of _Creed of Iron_. The
title track on side B is a little bit rawer but still quite
nostalgic, feeling like a throwaway from the _Memory and Destiny_
sessions.
Essentially, this 7" EP does little more than provide an overview of
Graveland circa 1999-2002, but without ever quite reaching the
heights of the LPs released during the period. For fans only.
Contact: http://www.vinlandwinds.com/graveland/
Imperial Empire - _The Second Coming_ (Independent, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
Death metal stalwarts like Napalm Death and Morbid Angel have
influenced countless bands out there, but every once in a while you
find a band that can wear those influences all over again and still
come out with something interesting in the end. Imperial Empire are
one such case, and _The Second Coming_ is a veritable feast of cool
hooks and wicked riffs, dynamic mid-paced crunching goodness and
outbursts of hyperblast. This is made all the more remarkable by the
fact that the band consists of only one person: Lee Wollenschlaeger,
who lives in Bloemfontein, South Africa. Not having been able to find
suitable members for the band yet, he's done great work on his own
with just the help of a rather unobtrusive drum machine. While not
exactly a very original album, the death metal competence shown on
_The Second Coming_ is of such calibre that surely Imperial Empire
will be on a label sometime soon -- especially if Wollenschlaeger can
enlist some worthy band members. Well produced and impeccably
delivered, _The Second Coming_ is an unpretentiously enjoyable death
metal disc that should not fail to please any death metal addicts out
there.
Contact: leewollenschlaeger@yahoo.com
Impiety - _Kaos Kommand 696_ (Osmose, 2002)
by: Quentin Kalis (7.5 out of 10)
Despite being together for a decade, Impiety have not lost their
affection for their idiosyncratic, and to be honest puerile, song
titles. (Though they do seem to be slightly less OTT than before.)
But musically, they have come a long way. All traces of their early,
straightforward black metal approach have been erased; the thrash
frills of previous CD (the awesome _Skullfucking Armageddon_) have
been retained, and a strong death metal influence has been added to
the mix. The production is vastly superior to that on any previous
album, and this has resulted in a noticeably more focused and intense
release, showcasing an unexpected complexity. In short, Impiety has
grown up. But once the initial surprise has worn off, this album is
fairly disappointing. _KK696_ is not nearly as catchy nor as
engrossing as _SA_. Even after repeated listens, _KK696_ simply fails
to make an impression. This album could almost be seen as a practice
run or as a stepping stone, as it showcases a dramatic growth yet
fails to impress. If Impiety follows on what they have started with
this album, the next may very well be their masterpiece; for now I'll
stick with _SA_.
Intorment Black - _The Fallen Shroud_ (Independent, 2003)
by: Quentin Kalis (7.5 out of 10)
This black metal five piece from Down Under specialise in performing
black metal, albeit not of the primitive kind but rather of the
slightly more accessible kind that emerged in the wake of Cradle of
Filth and Dimmu Borgir. Considering this is an independent release,
the production is damn good -- and sounds all the better in a world
of Ildjarns and Darkthrones! As with the less necro bands, the
production has been cleaned up and they utilise a similar sound, but
unlike the others keyboards are scarce and merely one of several
techniques (which include arpeggiated sections and utilisation
of typically doom metal riffs) to create a largely melancholic
atmosphere -- Intorment Black are obviously not interested in being
confined to the limiting borders of the genre! There are several dips
--particularly the (rare) use of clean vocals which sound as if the
vocalist is imitating Mikael Akerfeldt's vox. However, it remains a
worthy addition to the black metal world and a strong show of force
by an as yet unsigned band.
Contact: http://www.intormentblack.cjb.net
Kalmah - _Swampsong_ (Century Media, 2003)
by: Quentin Kalis (8 out of 10)
Kalmah, along with Children of Bodom, are the Finnish cousins of the
melodic death bands that originated in neighbouring Sweden, but
differing in that they utilise a more mainstream and melodic approach
with a stronger focus on the heavy metal component of the mix.
Although not the most original of bands (they are frequently and
justifiably compared with Children of Bodom), this is overshadowed by
the exemplary execution and sheer catchiness of the music. Those who
have heard Kalmah's two previous offerings will not be disappointed
by _Swampsong_, as it retains the features that made previous albums
so memorable: duelling guitars overlaid upbeat keyboards overlaid
by the accompaniment of snarling, black metal-esque vocals. (The
converse is also true -- if you hated Kalmah's previous albums, then
you will hate this as well.) The guitars occasionally erupt into
their trademark ultra fast bursts of melodious speed, less frequently
than in the past but no less intense. The riffs are again extremely
catchy and guaranteed to rebound inside your head for days. An
enjoyable album, though their style risks becoming stale should it
carry on without significant alterations.
Meatjack - _Days of Fire_ (At a Loss, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (9 out of 10)
Halfway through the album, I suddenly realized I had seen Meatjack
play twice. It's a long while back (2000) when they were touring with
Damad, but they left quite an impact on me back then. Not having
heard a single thing from them ever since I didn't give them much
thought, but with _Days of Fire_ on the shelves I can't resist
writing a few words. Meatjack play a style of music that can best be
described with the term "vile Neurosis". On _Days of Fire_, you'll
find the same densely layered sounds that Neurosis and their
offspring (Today Is the Day and Unsane) have adopted quite a while
back. However, density does not mean that the instruments blend into
another. On the contrary, the well-adjusted mix clearly brings out
the best of the individual artists. The haunting vocals especially
are of a high level, outraking Steve Austin on his latest Today Is
the Day album. Excellent rhythms ("Face Down") only add to the sludgy
flow of the album, making _Days of Fire_ feel a hell of a lot longer
than the 41 minutes it really is.
Contact: http://www.atalossrecordings.com
Nargaroth - _Geliebte des Regens_ (No Colours, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll (7 out of 10)
My initial reaction to this record was to immediately visit eGay to
determine if I could sell it for the amount of money I spent on it.
The music on _Geliebte des Regens_ seemed to fulfill all promises
made by some of the worst cover artwork I've seen in recent years.
Dig the lightning flashes! Who came up with this idea, Beavis,
Butthead or the skinny idiot from HammerFall? The musical content of
_GdR_ is easy to desribe. Compared to previous Nargaroth material
this sounds like an even slower _Raluska Part II_, with the same
excellent and suffocating sound but fewer riffs and songs that that
have thrice the length but hardly any dynamics. The questions every
potential buyer of this record should be able to answer with a
straightforward "Yes" are: Are you absolutely sure you're going to
dig three plodding and very similar tracks each between eleven and
seventeen minutes with at maximum three or four fast strummed riffs?
Are you positive you can even enjoy one of the main songs played once
again in a supposedly different version (no, I haven't yet discovered
what the differences are)? Can you deal with a Nargaroth record which
has almost nothing in common with _Herbstleyd_ or _Black Metal ist
Krieg_? Even then _GdR_ remains a difficult affair. I do believe it's
possible to force yourself to like it but not without some effort.
Listen to it on a miserable, rainy day, three or four times in a row
(the equivalent of four to five hours) and you might get to a point
where it starts to make sense, sink in deeper than before and stay
there. Nevertheless I bet there are only a few people out there who
will wholeheartedly call this an excellent album. Kanwulf himself has
supposedly been so moved by his material that he cried while playing.
Although I've come to enjoy _GdR_ a lot more since I got it, I still
can't help wondering if he was in tears because he was strumming for
fifteen minutes already and forgot how to stop. Of course repetition
and monotony are core ingredients of black metal to put listeners
into a hypnotic trance but seventeen minutes with hardly anything
going on can be close to eternity. As strong, sincere and deeply
melancholic the emotions that led to _Geliebte des Regens_ might have
been, the attempt to adequately express them through music has not
been 100% successful.
Nordisches Blut - _Our Banners Will Rise_ (Undercover Records, 2003)
by: Matthias Noll (7 out of 10)
Nordisches Blut is Vargsang (Vargsang / ex-Graven) doing a heavily
Graveland or Viking-era Bathory inspired record. Of course this means
mostly slow to mid-tempo songs with very ra
w guitars, anthemic yet
minimalist keyboards, booming war-drums and raspy vocals all the way
through. As with his main band, Vargsang (who goes by the name of Von
List here) still is no innovator, but offers a mixture that borrows
elements here and there, enriches them with his own ideas and
combines them in a way that achieves surprisingly convincing results.
The sound is fairly necro and totally unpolished, and could be
considered a somewhat rawer version of earlier Graveland days, circa
_Thousand Swords_. Fortunately the major part of the album avoids
folkish themes, which greatly helps to stylistically separate this
German project from the Poles to a certain extent. Those familiar
with either Graven or Vargsang will also be able to easily recognize
the vocals, as well as some of the guitar work. For an album in this
specific genre it's quite refreshing that all the songs remain at a
length which is still easy to digest and does not drag on forevermore
to appear more epic. Together with the fairly diverse and memorable
song material, _Our Banners Will Rise_ is a truly enjoyable album,
which, no matter how much Nordisches Blut owe to the sound pioneered
by Darken and Capricornus, makes this album far more enjoyable for me
than the viscous _The Fire of Awakening_.
Contact: http://www.undercover-records.de
Pest - _Desecration_ (No Colours Records, 2003)
by: Aaron McKay (2 out of 10)
Maybe it is because the name is spread so thin, as the moniker Pest
seems to be so readily prevalent in the genre (by my count there are
- three-: one from Germany, one from Sweden and one from Finland),
this Swedish pair have little left to work with which hasn't yet been
covered in the realm of back metal. Beginning with a demo in
1998, Pest (currently comprised of Necro and Equimanthorn) is on
their sixth offering; sort of like one track from _Desecration_
representing every effort from Pest's collection without covering
their previously incorporated works. The harsh and raw approach
carries an outfit only so far, then one looks discerningly for "just
a little more". What separates this Pest from the others (or any
other stripped-down black metal group for that matter)? Simply and
purely aggressive, Pest takes an obviously less polished -- dare I
say unclean -- approach to the six tracks comprising _Desecration_.
Evidently aiming for a sort of "Burzum meets Darkthrone" objective,
Pest falls short of their intended mark on this undertaking. This
effort's production wants for a primordial feel in the same way
Metallica currently longs for an inspiration infusion. _Desecration_
seems to purposefully fly in the face of simplicity and hinges on the
precipice of near total outrageousness. Pure black metal -- sure, but
unfortunately the darkness Pest created with _Desecration_ evidently
prevented them from seeing when to -stop-!
Contact: http://www.no-colours-records.de
Swallow the Sun - _The Morning Never Came_ (Firebox, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8.5 out of 10)
Finland's Firebox Records continue to release consistently good
albums at a surprising rate for such a young label, and this latest
one, Swallow the Sun's debut _The Morning Never Came_, is possibly
the best so far. Swallow the Sun can be summed up thus: Finnish
melodic doom/death with vast growls and occasional clean vocals, well
placed keyboard enhancements, and enough variety and dynamics to ward
off any form of boredom. Their melodies can just as easily evoke My
Dying Bride or Amorphis circa _Tales From the Thousand Lakes_ as they
can bring Rapture to mind, which helps ensure that the music flows
nicely throughout. _The Morning Never Came_ is an uncomplicated album
-- not in the sense that it is simplistic or dull, but rather because
it remains unpretentious and accomplished throughout. The songwriting
is good; the riffs range from doomy to energetic with apparent ease;
the melodies mostly vary between good and excellent; the playing is
tight and the production top notch. _The Morning Never Came_ does
owe some ideas to the aforementioned bands, but even in terms
of originality, the end result is acceptable. Not every single
passage in the album is remarkable, and some bits could have been
trimmed, but Swallow the Sun manage to remain sufficiently consistent
throughout the record to come out with a very impressive debut.
Rarely is a doom-tinged album as downright enjoyable as _The Morning
Never Came_ whilst keeping so much of its atmospheric quality, and
the fact that this is only Swallow the Sun's first effort makes the
future seem even brighter for them.
Contact: http://www.firebox.fi
Widow - _Midnight Strikes_ (Tribunal Records, 2003)
by: Adrian Magers (7 out of 10)
Widow are definitely a band that lets its influences show. Inspired
by the greats, including but not limited to Maiden, Priest, and King
Diamond. Unfortunately this makes Widow sound pretty much like a
retro band. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it somewhat puts
a ceiling over the band. Due to a lack of originality Widow probably
won't become legends of their genre. Other than a few modern touches
here and there, Widow sound more or less like a generic tribute band
to '80s metal. However, the playing is excellent and passion is
definitely there, making the four-piece a good band to listen to in
small spurts. The songs are very well-constructed, sound quality is
impeccable and the fact that a lot of effort and labor went into this
project is evident. Aside from a dated sound, my sole complaint are
weak lead vocals. In my opinion it would behoove Widow to either
focus more on the backing aggressive voice, and/or add more power to
strengthen the more melodic vocals. Bottom line, if you're looking
for some very well-done, hook-filled '80s Euro-metal; Widow is your
band.
Contact: http://www.burning-village.com
Wigrid - _Hoffnungstod_ (No Colours, 2002)
by: Quentin Kalis (7 out of 10)
On the one hand, I can accept that many bands, especially those in
the process of discovering their true sound, may sound a bit too much
like their influences. But Wigrid take this concept to the extreme in
their extensive emulation of Burzum. Their simplistic motifs, droning
riffs and minimalist drumming style is clearly adopted from Burzum's
first four releases -- even the intro, "Leere", sounds suspiciously
reminiscent of the intro to _Det Som Engang Var_. But most annoying
of all are the vocals. Next to Garm's (of Ulver fame) clean vox, Varg
Vikernes has possibly the most distinct vocals in all of black metal.
Yet this does not stop Wigrid's vocalist from doing his best to sound
like Vikernes. But, on the other hand and despite all of the above,
this is actually a fairly enjoyable album, and as great as the
temptation is, it is hard to simply dismiss _Hoffnungstod_ as
mere slavish hero worship. Burzum-esque riffs are hardly Malmsteen
inspired bursts of technical supremacy and are fairly easy to
perform. However, some skill and talent is still needed to create
songs that generate the same sense of imminent menace as Burzum's. It
is strongly recommended that this album is listened to before
purchase.
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Scoring: 5 out of 5 -- A flawless demo
4 out of 5 -- Great piece of work
3 out of 5 -- Good effort
2 out of 5 -- A major overhaul is in order
1 out of 5 -- A career change is advisable
Artificium Sanguis - _Ye Olde Demo Taype_
by: Adrian Magers (4 out of 5)
Just looking at the cover piece, the song titles and the logo itself
one assumes this to be modern, raw, "true" old school-styled black
metal. While Artificium Sanguis do build from a base of the first
wave of the Norwegian sound, their best moments are when they're
allowing the venomous edge of black metal they employ to mingle with
parts which share a great deal in common with early American death
and late thrash. The three songs featured on _Ye Olde Demo Taype_ are
all well done, but in my opinion, I think the band should go more out
on a limb; according to their website, the members of Artificium
Sanguis listen to a lot more than just black metal, and I think that
by incorporating even more elements from around the musical realm
into their sound they could put out a very solid full-length release
when the time comes. However, this is not to take away from the
talent that is already evident, just a suggestion from myself. Those
strict on sound quality would do well to avoid this recording, as
it's intentionally been given a very rough production job (in the
liner notes, it specifically states "not produced"), but those into
grim BM exhibiting open minds may find a few things they like about
Artificium Sanguis. I know I did.
Contact: http://www.artificiumsanguis.com
Failure of Usual Reasoning - _Failure of Usual Reasoning_
by: Jackie Smit (3 out of 5)
Hailing from the bowels of London, Failure of Usual Reasoning is a
band with much to applaud and unfortunately a fair bit working
against them. Whilst the tinny production and cringingly poor drum
sound could be to blame for the effort's lack of gumption, the
over-use of Maiden- esque melodies on tracks like "Beer Angel" and
"Buried" detracts heavily from the impact of Wes Haulip's uber-brutal
vocals -- a deep- throated roar that could easily go toe to toe with
Frank Mullen or John Gallagher. Where FoUR come into their own
is when they dabble in the type of twisted stop-go polyrhythms
that would elicit a sadistic grin from any Dillinger Escape Plan
worshipper. By increasing their focus on these aforementioned strong
points, and upping the overall heaviness of their music just a tad,
FoUR could well be a name worth remembering.
HFM - _A Virtual Theory_
by: Jackie Smit (5 out of 5)
Sweet fuck -- I am shocked! Not only am I in awe of how good this
demo is, but also at how HFM have somehow managed to slip by me
unnoticed. True they have only been in existence since March
2001, but with songs as jaw-droppingly brilliant as "Unsubliminal",
"Spineless" and "Mine", these guys should conceivably be plastered
on the covers of every heavy music magazine in existence.
Ultra-technical, crushingly heavy, and at times almost barbarically
unhinged, HFM's closest musical contemporaries could be regarded as
Converge, Beecher and Dillinger Escape Plan. But the fact is that
with a live show to match, this Bournemouth-based band could easily
run circles around the aforementioned acts. Yes, they are that good.
This is a message to any record label exec with even the slightest
shred of common sense: sign this band now!
Contact: http://hfmhfm.com
Lupara - _Advance Rough-Mix Demo_
by: Jackie Smit (4 out of 5)
The Broken Hope back catalogue occupies a place of honour in the
hearts of many extreme music fans, myself included. From the
merciless onslaught of _Bowels of Repugnance_ to the dizzying
groove-oriented dynamics of _Loathing_ and _Grotesque Blessings_, for
the duration of their career, Broken Hope always seemed to revel in
confounding their detractors by continually producing unique music,
whilst staying firmly rooted within the confines of their chosen
genre. Now, with former members Shaun Glass and Brian Griffin
whittling away in Soil, those who were contemplating the whereabouts
of Jeremy Wagner (the other half of Broken Hope's guitar salvo)
finally have an answer in the form of Lupara. Christened after a
sawed-off Sicilian shotgun said to be used by mafia soldiers in the
golden era of the gangster, Lupara have more in common sonically with
bands like Lamb of God and Chimaira than with Cannibal Corpse and
Deicide, but interestingly still maintain Wagner's trademark riffing
style. Three songs are offered on this advance demo, and of these,
opener "Light Up the Pigs" stands out as the highlight. A catchy,
adrenalized introduction to the band, it has everything a good metal
song should have: a lead riff that could effortlessly slice off a
dozen heads, uber-angry vocals (supplied by a very able Craig Gross)
and a driving drum groove that repeatedly pummels the listener into
submission. This initial outburst of fury is counterbalanced by the
atmospheric, Twin Peaks-esque clean guitar of "The Rage", while
"Rejection" is slightly weaker, in particular its opening thirty
seconds, sounding far too convoluted and unpolished to compare to the
preceding numbers. Ultimately though, despite only three songs being
offered, Lupara provide ample evidence to suggest that they are an
act with a tremendous amount of potential, and judging by what
they've done here, I'd highly recommend keeping an eye out for their
name in the future.
Contact: http://www.lupara1.com
Vornoff - _Forledt_
by: Quentin Kalis (4 out of 5)
Vornoff is another worthy entrant into the world of dark ambient.
Their specialty is in creating minimalist soundscapes accompanied by
some piano tinklings, producing an atmosphere that is paradoxically
soothing and at the same time sends chills up your spine. Comparisons
can be made with Vinterriket (with whom Vornoff has released a split
EP) insofar as they both evoke similar emotions, but Vornoff's
sparse instrumentation is a far cry from the comparatively busy
Vinterriket ambient works. The music is predictably simplistic, but
this is essential to the creation of such a forlorn atmosphere. For
an ambient release the songs are surprisingly short, potentially
hampering the build up of atmosphere; but if listened to in its
totality in one sitting this shouldn't be a problem, as the tracks do
build upon and complement each other quite effectively. Definitely
one of the better demos I've heard for a while.
Contact: soulwail@yahoo.com
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A N D O U T C A M E T H E G O T H S
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Paradise Lost and Deathstars at the London Astoria, 18 November 2003
by: Jackie Smit
The three-quarter capacity crowd lining the floor of the London
Astoria this evening makes it almost too easy to forget about the
zenith from which Paradise Lost have fallen. Touted by many as a band
to potentially ascend to a Metallica-like stratosphere of commercial
acceptance, the album intended to propel them to these lofty heights,
_One Second_, proved to be their undoing. Not accessible enough for
the mainstream, and a frustration for hardened fans, it ultimately
relegated them to the second tier of heavy music, where they have
languished ever since, despite their gradual return to form on recent
releases. Regardless of your opinion on the UK's erstwhile premier
misery mongers, however, it has to be said that when pooled together,
their back catalogue does make for a potentially entertaining
evening.
First to strut the stage this evening, however, are Deathstars -- the
sole opening act, after the departure of Finnish folk-metallers
Amorphis from the tour. Playing a selection of numbers culled from
their _Synthetic Generation_ debut, their delivery is tight and for
the most part quite entertaining. Unfortunately their efforts are
lost on a sizeable part of the audience, as yelps of "Fuck off, you
Swedish cunts" echo through the building when vocalist Whiplash
announces the last song. A real shame too, since the Rammstein meets
Sisters of Mercy hybrid of "Semi-Automatic" and "Little Angel" turn
out to be rather enjoyable.
Paradise Lost, by the looks of things, can seemingly do no wrong
though. While the ovation greeting their arrival on stage is not
quite the decibel-shattering response I was expecting, they are
instantly mesmerizing, kicking off proceedings with the dual salvo of
"Primal" and the crowd-pleaser "Widow". The union of Nick Holmes'
tormented croon and Greg Mackintosh's wispy guitaring floods every
crevice of the venue, sounding particularly colossal and impressive
on moments like "So Much Is Lost", "Mercy" and the evening's
highlight, "Prey Nightfall". Unsurprisingly, the band opt to focus
their performance primarily on their latest _Symbol of Life_ opus,
but thankfully still manage to churn out a few old favourites,
including their now anthemic "As I Die". For the duration of the
evening, crowd interaction is kept to a minimum, while on-stage
activity is unlikely to put the likes of Hatebreed to shame anytime
soon. It matters little, however, in the face of the tremendous
on-stage charisma which the band bring to the plate, and the inherent
showmanship in their performance indicates that they may still have
the ability to reach great heights in the future. Whichever way you
care to look at it, Paradise Lost prove tonight that at the very
least they are a live act well worth catching when next they roll
into your town.
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R E D E M P T I O N A T T H E P A L A C E
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Deicide, Destruction, Nile, Akercocke, Dew-Scented,
Graveworm and Misery Index
The London Xmas Fest, 7 December 2003 @ The Camden Palace, London
by: Jackie Smit
One can only marvel at the incompetence behind the organization of
this year's Xmas Fest. For starters, the lengthy queue outside the
Camden Palace only started shuffling into the venue a full forty
minutes over the advertised opening time. This, combined with the
security guards being somewhat overzealous in fulfilling their given
task of ensuring our "safety", resulted in there being a decidedly
sparse audience (some thirty odd revellers) clustering at the foot of
the stage for Misery Index's opening set. This is just as well, since
it appears that the Baltimore death metal outfit are not afforded the
luxury of a proper soundcheck, causing their outstanding brand of
extremity to dissipate into a reverberating, muddied mess. Half
the set, consisting primarily out of cuts from their excellent
_Retaliate_ opus, sees Jason Netherton's vocals buried entirely
beneath the wall of guitar noise, and it is only when they air
"Demand the Impossible" that good things look set to start happening.
The collective look of frustration and malice on their faces say it
all when they exit the stage though, and the greatest irony of it all
is that their merchandise is entirely sold out an hour afterwards --
which, in my mind, constitutes a fair number of disappointed fans.
The audience may have expanded almost exponentially by the time
Italian Cradle of Filth clones Graveworm take to the stage, but the
sound problems remain. With their synths barely audible, songs like
"Legions Unleashed" sound even weaker than their album counterparts,
and ultimately Graveworm's stint does not amount to much more than a
second consecutive reason why the individual(s) responsible for
today's audio production should shortly be claiming unemployment.
By comparison, Dew-Scented's half hour bathing in the stage lights is
wholly more enjoyable. Possibly because on the surface their music is
less complex than their two forerunners, the likes of "Inwards",
"Bitter Conflict", "Acts of Rage" and "Flesh Reborn" hit hard and
satisfyingly heavy. While the entire band are clearly highly skilled
musicians, it is the consummate showmanship of vocalist Leif Jensen
that clearly drives this band's performance, and his exuberance for
the material makes one want to enjoy them even more.
I unfortunately miss Amon Amarth's 17:15 slot, but return to the
floor just in time to see five tall, lanky gentlemen dressed to the
hilt in some very debonair-looking suits pick up their instruments
and prepare to unleash Hades. This, of course, could only mean the
arrival of Akercocke, a band I greet with mixed feelings. True, their
latest _Choronzon_ effort was a highly enjoyable slice of brutality,
but I also recall seeing them perform in support of Cradle of Filth
earlier this year and delivering a decidedly drab and fallacious
spectacle. Still, I'm more than willing to give them the benefit of
the doubt, and as it turns out, they are a markedly improved
live act. While the sound gremlins remain a constant, even the
most hellacious audio problems cannot hide the sinister genius of
songs like "Becoming the Adversary", "A Skin for Dancing In" and
"Enraptured by Evil". The true highlight of Akercocke's set, however,
is drummer David Gray, whose almost insanely technical style is as
bewildering as it is jaw- dropping.
Things are set to get even more lively, as Nile hit the stage with
their now-familiar Egyptian intro music providing the backdrop to
vocalist/bassist Jon Vesano's welcoming war-cry. Like a general
leading his troops into battle, he demands response and receives it
en masse, clearly establishing who the crowd favourites are. Kicking
off the ritual with "Chapter for Transforming Into a Snake" and
"Barra Edinazu", Nile are almost scarily intense and conjure up an
atmosphere of such primitive brutality that the Camden Palace feels
shaken to its foundations. As usual, the band do not skip a beat as
they blast through "The Blessed Dead", "Sarcophagus", "Churning the
Maelstrom" and "Masturbating the War God", before finally concluding
with "The Black Seeds of Vengeance" -- definitely the hands-down
winner of loudest audience response of the evening. It's been said
many time before, but it begs repetition: Nile are, as tonight
proves, one of the most exciting, vibrant and challenging death metal
outfits of our present point in time, and without a shadow of a
doubt, one of extreme music's most important assets.
With the anticipation of tonight's headliners almost reaching fever
pitch, a number of punters get a tad overzealous and begin the
Deicide-chant early; not the most welcoming of scenario for Germany's
Destruction. While some of the audience are seemingly exhilarated by
the band's forty five minute sojourn, I find them monotonous to the
extreme. Where fellow thrashers Death Angel blew my head off and left
my jaw stuck to the floor when they played London a few months ago,
my experience of Destruction is very similar to having molten lava
poured down my boxer shorts. They play old songs ("Incriminated",
"Bestial Invasion"), they play new songs ("Metal Discharge", "The
Butcher Strikes Back") -- it all sucks.
When Destruction head for the exit after what feels like an eternity,
the time finally arrives for Deicide. A lot can be said for the
remarkably poor quality of the Floridian outfit's recent releases;
much in the same way as one can yawn at the tedium of Glen Benton's
anti-Christian, anti-Roadrunner, anti-music press rants. Yet, for all
the clichés and all the wallowing in mediocrity, one undeniable fact
remains, and that is that Deicide's first three efforts were
phenomenally powerful and still to this day can hold up to anything
released since. As was the case with Deicide's trip to the Mean
Fiddler in October last year, Glen is in good spirits as he makes his
way to the stage, and declares his undying love for the UK.
For the next hour, the band proceed to batter our senses with
"Children of the Underworld", "Bastards of Christ", "Bible Basher",
"Lunatic of God's Creation", "Sacrificial Suicide", "Serpents of the
Light", "Once Upon a Cross", "Mephistopheles", "Dead but Dreaming",
"Deicide", "When Satan Rules This World", and "Dead by Dawn".
Unfortunately we get nothing off the band's forthcoming _Scars of the
Crucifix_ supposed return-to-form, save for Glen's claim that it
sounds like _Legion_, but it doesn't matter. Tonight's show is
fantastic. The crowd lap it up. The Deicide boys genuinely seem to be
enjoying themselves on stage. And ultimately, if _Scars of the
Crucifix_ can harness even half the passion and enthusiasm displayed
here tonight, it may well live up to the substantial hype that's
currently trumpeting its arrival.
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Web Site: http://www.ChroniclesOfChaos.com
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DESCRIPTION
~~~~~~~~~~~
Chronicles of Chaos is a FREE monthly magazine electronically
distributed worldwide via the Internet. Seemingly endless interviews,
album reviews and concert reviews encompass the pages of Chronicles
of Chaos. Chronicles of Chaos stringently emphasizes all varieties of
chaotic music ranging from black and death metal to electronic/noise
to dark, doom and ambient forms. Chronicles of Chaos is dedicated
to the underground and as such we feature demo reviews from all indie
bands who send us material, as well as interviews with a select
number of independent acts.
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End Chronicles of Chaos, Issue #69
All contents copyright (c) 1995-2003 by individual creators of
included work. All rights reserved.
All opinions expressed herein are those of the individuals
expressing them, and do not necessarily reflect the views of anyone
else.
