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Chronicles of Chaos Issue 063
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CHRONICLES OF CHAOS e-Zine, Monday, July 4, 2003, Issue #63
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
Neophyte: Adrian Magers
Neophyte: James Montague
Neophyte: 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 #63 Contents, 7/4/2003
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* Editorial
* Chats
-- Strapping Young Lad: The World Makes Way
-- Burnt by the Sun: Innovators of the Revolution
* Albums
-- Aeternus - _A Darker Monument_
-- Arcane Wisdom - _Relics of Elder Might_
-- Arckanum / Contamino - _Kosmos wardhin dræpas om sin /
Emptiness Enthralls (...and the World Is Not Enough...)_
-- Carcariass - _Killing Process_
-- Charger - _Confessions of a Man
(Mad Enough to Live Amongst Beasts)_
-- Circle of Dead Children - _Human Harvest_
-- Con-Dom / The Grey Wolves - _Many Are Called But Few Get Up_
-- Cradle of Filth - _Damnation and a Day_
-- Cripple Bastards - _Desperately Insensitive_
-- Crowhead - _Frozen_
-- Curse of the Golden Vampire - _Mass Destruction_
-- Destinity - _Under the Smell of Chaos_
-- Enthral - _Subterranean Movement_
-- From Beyond - _Thrashin' Machine_
-- Gilla Bruja - _6 Fingered Jesus_
-- Gorgoroth - _Twilight of the Idols_
-- Graveworm - _Engraved in Black_
-- Immolation - _Unholy Cult_
-- Ingrowing - _Sunrape_
-- Intestine Baalism - _Banquet in the Darkness_
-- Iron Justice - _Post_
-- Jesters Moon - _Jesters Moon_
-- Johnny Truant - _Repercussions of a Badly Planned Suicide_
-- Kult ov Azazel - _Oculus Infernum_
-- Malevolent Creation - _The Will to Kill_
-- Malleus Maleficarum - _Taedium Vitae_
-- Marilyn Manson - _The Golden Age of Grotesque_
-- Mastodon - _Remission_
-- Metallica - _St Anger_
-- Misery's Omen - _To Worship Stone Gods_
-- Mystic Prophecy - _Regressus_
-- Napalm Death - _Order of the Leech_
-- Nebel - _Nebel_
-- Nile - _In Their Darkened Shrines_
-- Sepsism - _To Prevail in Disgust_
-- Sindrome - _Severe Damage of Reason and Equilibrium_
-- Sinister - _Savage or Grace_
-- Solefald - _In Harmonia Universali_
-- Steelglory - _Wayward Sons of the Beast_
-- Taliandorogd - _Neverplace_
-- The Haunted - _One Kill Wonder_
-- The Human Condition - _The Human Condition_
-- Tomahawk - _Mit Gas_
-- Unsanctum - _Ignite the Skies_
-- Zao - _All Else Failed_
* Demos
-- Born of Thorns - _The Encounter of Light and Dark_
-- Enormity - _Inherent Enslaver_
-- Forcefield - _Casualty_
-- Pitbulls in the Nursery - _Impact_
* Gigs
-- The World Ov Worms Descends on London
-- Marco Aro Dances for the Cat People
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I M P R O V E M E N T S A N D I N T R O D U C T I O N S
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Another one joins the fold
by: Gino Filicetti
Greetings everyone. I want to take this opportunity to fill you in on
some of things that have been going on in the CoC camp over the past
couple of months.
As I stated in my very first editorial on our new and improved
website, the transformation of CoC and our website is an ongoing
process. Although at times real life rudely intrudes in our affairs,
we've been working on bringing to light new improvements to our
website. To that end, Pedro has just completed work on a new set of
features for our website. The biggest improvement is to our search
engine. You can now search the full text of any article's contents,
with search keyword highlighting in the results. We've also enabled
searching by label name. Both of these features can be found in our
advanced search section by clicking on the "Search" menu and
selecting "Advanced Search".
Also, a minor but important improvement was made to our related
article list. This is the list that appears at the end of each
article and provides a link to articles on the same band. We've
improved the coverage of this list to include articles from ALL
sections instead of just the current section.
Although these aren't earth-shattering new features, they are great
improvements to the general usability of our site. Stay on the look
out for more improvements as we slowly work our way through our Phase
Two "to-do" list.
Finally, I'd like to introduce the newest member of the CoC clan.
Jackie Smit's debut article appeared in Chronicles of Chaos way back
on May 18, 2003 (I guess this introduction is a little overdue).
Jackie hails from South Africa but currently resides in London; a
business graduate who's currently working in the glamourous field of
market research. Jackie's been a loyal CoC reader for years and years
with multiple published Loud Letters. And I still contend that loyal
readers always make for the best writers... as evidenced by most of
our current staff.
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T H E W O R L D M A K E S W A Y
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CoC interviews Gene Hoglan of Strapping Young Lad
by: Aaron McKay
Many, many moons ago, I spent a good deal of my high school years in
downtown St. Pete at a club known as Jannis Landing. There, one hot,
sticky Florida evening, I was blessed to bear witness to a live
performance by the colossal Dark Angel on their "Leave Scars" tour.
While time has slipped like sand through my fingers, never has a
solitary moment of that show eroded from my recollection. Over the
years, I've run across Gene Hoglan every now and again as he seems to
have made it a personal quest to participate in as many practically
inventive outfits in need of drumming talent as he possibly can.
Never will you meet a more experienced, kind-hearted student of music
and human-nature to talk with, so I began our interview by probing
his ability to change drumming styles like most of us change channels
on our TVs.
CoC: From the get-go, what -really- impressed me, generally speaking,
is how Gene Hoglan sounds different with every band you play
with. For example, Old Man's Child Gene doesn't sound anything
like Strapping Young Lad Gene and that's different from Dark
Angel Gene. How do you do it?
Gene Hoglan: That's cool man! I actually try to work on that a little
bit because if I were to play Testament, it shouldn't
sound like Strapping, and that shouldn't sound like Dark
Angel, who shouldn't sound like Old Man's Child, or
Punch Drunk or anything like that. I try to do something
a little different. A lot of that is very easy to work
around whatever band you're with -- you'll work around
their style of music. You know, that helps me a lot.
When I'm doing Strapping, that calls for a lot of
chaotic double bass, and a lot of aggro stuff puttin'
out a lot of crazy two handed double bills, like Death
was. Death's music was very musician-oriented at the
time. Chuck Schuldiner would say [to me], "Hey man! Go
sick." Having an influence like Shawn from _Human_, the
pallet was wide open to paint after that. It was really
cool to use the band's own sound to help create the next
level of that band's sound.
CoC: Having followed your career, I noticed you seem to take whatever
the band was before and morph it into you, a little bit, without
detracting anything from the band's own originality. Your work
with Death is a great example, I think. And I would assume
groups would appreciated that.
GH: I think so, I think he did. Chuck always stressed, "Go sick, go
nuts. I can play over everything you're laying down." I think we
only ever changed one beat on all the songs he and I ever did
together, and that was just because the producer was like, "Dude,
I'm not feeling the riff and the beat working together." So that
was no problem. I think we did that twice: "Individual Thought
Patterns" and "Symbolic". For all the riffs that we put together
and all the other drum beats and stuff, we only ever had to
change one per album.
CoC: As far as Strapping goes, it is my impression that the interplay
between the drums and the bass play a huge part in this band.
How do you feel?
GH: Yeah, Byron has such a great style. Byron isn't a flashy bassist
at all, but the bass lines that we lay down are real solid to
augment everything. There are so many metal bands that the
bassist is just an extension of the guitarist. He's playing
basically what the guitarist is playing. With us, man, Byron is
like root note bastard; he pounds on the root note. If you gotta
play the same note for sixteen bars or whatever, that's okay,
it's -where- you place it. A lot of times, if you're doing a
polka beat, we'll boom-bat-boom-bat-boom-bat instead of laying
the bass on the 1 and the 3, we'll lay it on the 2 and the 4, you
know... bam-bam-bam- bam-bam-bam-bam, so it just sounds more
solid.
CoC: You guys work so well together, it is not like Byron's bass
playing taking a back seat in the music at all; I hear him just
as much as the guitars, drums, and vocals.
GH: Killer, that's awesome, man! He'd love to hear that. I agree,
'cause Byron is a very important part of this whole everything.
CoC: This album, _SYL_, seems to have taken Strapping to the next
level. I am extremely happy with the length of this album. In my
opinion, it is the perfect length for an album of this kind.
It's not too long and it really emphasizes what you guys want
to demonstrate in the appropriate amount of time. Was that
intentional or something Devin had in mind?
GH: No, we didn't say we have to have this album this certain length.
Even though some of the tunes seemed kinda long, like "Aftermath"
and "Bring on the Young", but I was like "ahh... fuck it!"
There's some three minute tunes on there and that's cool. Just
turned out that way -- nothing preconceived.
CoC: When you went in, I assume that some of the songs were written,
but it didn't seem like there was a strategic game plan in.
place You guys just went in and did a tremendous album .
GH: Actually, we worked on these songs about eight months before we
went in. We started writing in January and started tracking on
September 10th. We just went in a laid it down. Everybody had
their parts sowed together.
CoC: Sure seems like a well oiled machine. What do you think about
the feeling that nearly everytime I go through this release, I
pick up something new. Would you call that multi-layered?
GH: Yeah, it definitely is. It is one of the more stripped-down
records that we've all put out together. Like Death music totally
has, you listen to it once... you get the overall gist, then you
put on some headphones and get something else out of it, you get
stoned another time and start listening to that other thing you
got goin' on there. The new Strapping record is the same way. We
could have done a whole industrial side to the whole thing, and
had samples everywhere, but we were not really feeling the
samples. Everyone else is doing it to the tenth degree anyway, so
why not just make it a stripped-down metal record? A prime
example of what we think a good metal band is.
CoC: This engages the listener to a degree that is fairly rare on the
metal scene today. This is provoking, there was a lot to
communicate with SYL to the listener.
GH: I can see your point totally. Ultimately it did come down to just
trying to be the best metal band we could be. That means
thoroughly crushing. If we are the best metal band we can be,
that means all the other metal bands are gonna start feeling some
pain.
CoC: Would you say that there is some type of parallel between SYL
and a band along the lines of Hate Eternal? It devastates and
that's a lot what I get from Erik's music, too. There seems to
be a lot of commonality there.
GH: There's some Morbid Angel influence on the whole thing. That's
one of Jed's and Dev's favorite bands, too. I think we are way
more familiar with Morbid Angel than Hate Eternal, though I know
Jed loves Hate Eternal. The stuff I've heard from 'em, I think
it's totally rippin'. There's nothing wrong with standing apart.
CoC: I am -so- impressed with those clean vocals on "Force Fed" -- I
think Devin's done an incredible job with that song. What was
his thought behind having those vocal styles from clean to
out-and- out devastation with what he does on that track?
GH: Well, that's Dev, he is the all-encompassing vocalist. He can do
anything. That's the main reason Strapping is as crushing as we
are -- our vocalist is not tied down to one style or even the two
styles of the soft verse and heavy chorus. Dev's dynamics are all
over the place and I remember him saying as he was writing the
vocal line to the record, "I wanna make things that we can pull
off live. Never gonna be a problem for me to sing." We stay
within a certain range and get crazy within that range, so any
song we wanna pull out of a hat on a given night, we're like
BOOM, we're there. When we were writing the songs, Jed would come
up with a riff, we'd start honkin' on it. Five minutes into the
song when everybody's got their riff down, Dev's already laying
down vocal lines right off of that. Dev was saying, "I remember
back in the day when I used to take the songs home, listen to
them in my head, come up with these crazy vocal lines that were
great to sing in the studio, but to do them live when you've got
fourteen other songs in your set and you're hittin' this range
that is just killing you... I'm not going to do that on this
record." Any song from the record we can pull out at any time.
That's pretty cool.
CoC: I think, personally, -very- few bands are able to pull that
off...
GH: We all wrote lyrics for the record, too, you know? Dev had a few
lyrics for a few of the songs, but a -lot- of the songs were, by
God, "I gotta go record this, so let's all sit around in a group
and toss out words." [Dev]'d come up with a line and say, "I'm
kinda lookin' for somethin' along this line" and Jed'd throw out
a line and I'd throw out a line, Byron'd throw out a line... All
of us would be in there firing in a line and we'd all come up
with vocal lines for him too, and he'd be like, "Yea, cool --
let's try it!" That's the first time I've ever tried this, and
it's pretty unique and I like it.
CoC: Would you say the lyrics are as important as the music to
Strapping Young Lad?
GH: We were more going more for the function rather than the form.
The lyrics themselves weren't the important thing -- it was the
emotion behind them. It was the aggression that had to go into
them. Sometimes even the actual syllabic count of them and come
up with the lines right then and there. It works. It's cool. And
that's why I personally find it humorous when people are like "I
read all this -heavy- stuff into the lyrics." I'm like, "Man, you
know how we wrote the lyrics to this song?" <laughs>
CoC: Wouldn't you say Devin communicates the emotion of the song with
-how- he sings it?
GH: Oh, yea -- totally! Exactly. Most of this album has first-take
vocals. Everything, really. This is pretty much a first-take -
album-. I got my drum track done in five hours. Byron got his
bass track down in five hours. Jed did pretty much all the
guitars on the album, so it took him ten hours. Dev was laying
down vocals from the very first day and some of the vocals Dev
laid down even before we laid down the bass or guitars we kept
'cause they were so amazing. There's this one line in "Devoured"
that's like, "Oh God help me with these dreams of 100 million
souls washed away" -- that was one take! We got that on film,
too. Dev was kinda sitting around in the corner to himself and
he's like, "I'm going to go try this thing really quick." We had
the cameras rollin' for everything. We filmed like 24 hours of
footage from the recording of the album for future DVD use or
whatever. Dev screams out this line. Chills are goin' up
everybody's spine and he comes back and he's like, "That was
okay. Lemme try that again." Everyone was, like, "NO!!" So much
on this record was like that.
CoC: With all your experience in all these bands, have you ever come
across anybody who's able to do that?
GH: Naw, that's Dev. There's so many things inside this man that
other people cannot do. That's why every member of this band is
totally important and we all feel like we're on a roll -- to a
'T' -- totally.
CoC: You guys have stuck with Century Media straight through. Would
you say Strapping has a pretty good working relationship with
the label?
GH: Up and down there for awhile. Right now it's on the up. Century
Media's doing a great job! Everybody there's working hard and the
record is selling great and everybody is really happy. We're
all working well together and [the band] has a good working
relationship with 'em. I think it is totally killer. The things
bands need -- we get and we try to be accommodating as well. We
try to keep our requests reasonable and they understand that. We
renegotiated the contract before this record and it's all killer;
it's a good working relationship and hopefully we can keep it
rockin'.
CoC: With Strapping Young Lad, it seems to me that you are able to
flex your drumming muscle that you are known for. Would you say
that to be the case?
GH: I guess I'd say that I flex the amount I choose. No one is
telling me you gotta do more -- that bums me out. No one is
telling me you gotta do less -- it's like, "Dude, you're the
drummer, you come up with the part." Also, I love it when others
come up with the parts, too. One of the greatest things that I've
done is when someone else comes up with it on a drum machine or
tying to get a pattern across to me, I'd be like, "Hey, cool -- I
wasn't even thinking about that. Let's try that!" I get to flex
what I want. With this record, I push myself, but there is no
song that I dread playing. I remember, my favorite tune from
Strapping is "Oh My Fucking God" and I dreaded playing that one
every night until I got really comfy with it. That was the first
song that Dev and I wrote together. We wrote it in five minutes
in our very first jam together, and I was so excited I was doing
this crazy stuff, but I dreaded playing it every night. I'm to
the point where I don't anymore -- I love playing it live. On the
new record, there's nothing I dread. I'm like, "Fuck it! Let's
play all of it."
CoC: Do you know that chunky, fat, heavy, thick part of "Aftermath"?
GH: The fast part?
CoC: Yea!
GH: Oh yea -- totally!
CoC: That is the track I keep coming back to on the album. If I had
to point to a spot on the new album, that is where you're able
to flex the muscle you're know for...
GH: Excellent! That's killer, man. I remember when we wrote that. We
had the slow part of the tune together for a couple of months and
we knew we had to take that song somewhere. We even came back to
the intro and we pinched it down a half-step and were going
through it and we got to the spot where it kicks into the polka
beat and it breaks down. One day, we played through it and kept
chuckin' on the main riff and then that part [you were talking
about] came up and it wrote itself. I went into full-on hullin'
double bass and Jed went into that triplet riff there; Byron was
poundin' -- we all got chills! We were all like, "We got this
song now."
CoC: Well, Mr. Hoglan, thank you for all your time and agreeing to do
this interview while you are on tour. If there is anything at
this point that you'd like to communicate to the Chronicles of
Chaos readership, I'd be very happy to include it here.
GH: I guess if everybody buys a copy of the Strapping Young Lad
album, nobody's gonna be disappointed. That could always help.
Buy a shirt, too! <laughs>
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I N N O V A T O R S O F T H E R E V O L U T I O N
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CoC chats with Burnt by the Sun's vocalist Mike Olender
by: Jackie Smit
There are very few acts that can lay claim to having produced such a
devastating debut as New Jersey's Burnt by the Sun. _Soundtrack to a
Personal Revolution_ was one of the undoubted highlights of 2002 -- a
perfectly executed, uber-violent assault on both the mainstream and
the underground, proving that there are still a few bands who can
manage to avoid metal's clichés with suitable aplomb while retaining
the unhinged viciousness of a thousand rabid Rottweilers. With their
forthcoming _The Perfect Is the Enemy of the Good_ effort looming on
the horizon, who better to discuss the band's past, present, future
and quite a bit in between, than their intelligent and affable
frontman Mike Olender?
CoC: _Soundtrack to a Personal Revolution_ was surrounded by a lot of
hype, received outstanding reviews, and quite a few zines and
magazines referred to BbtS as "the future of metal". How has
that impacted on the band?
Mike Olender: To be honest, most of that stuff just passes over us. I
mean, obviously we're happy to be well-received, and we
hope that people will get enjoyment out of what we do,
but it's not something that myself or any of the guys
in the band ever really think about too much. I
personally don't read too many reviews, and to be
honest I don't really know what a phrase like "future
of metal" means, so I never pay things like that too
much mind.
CoC: For _Soundtrack to a Personal Revolution_ you used Matt Bayles
(Pearl Jam, etc.) to produce the record and you've chosen to
work with him again on _The Perfect Is the Enemy of the
Good_. What was the reasoning behind choosing an arguably more
commercial producer to work on what is some pretty extreme
stuff?
MO: We recorded the new album in May and basically the thinking was
that we appreciate his talent and his taste and we want to sound
different to other bands, and certainly want that to come through
on the record as well. There's so many metal records out right
now that halfway into a song, you can immediately tell who
produced it, and that's creating a lot of really tired sounds in
the scene. At the same time, a lot of those records are really
good, but in choosing Matt Bayles we just felt like he would help
us take things a step up, which we definitely feel he did.
CoC: The lyrics to _Soundtrack..._ seem to maintain a balance between
extremely personal and well-informed socio-political topics, yet
the song titles all seem as though they'd be more suited to a
Dead Milkmen album. What was the reason for doing this?
MO: I wouldn't really call them political as such, but they're
definitely very personal and very serious -- and probably a lot
more so than the majority of bands out there right now. By giving
the songs more humorous names like "Shooter McGavin" and "Dracula
With Glasses", we felt like we'd be able to balance things out a
bit. And obviously, like everyone we appreciate and enjoy things
like films and other elements of popular culture and we wanted to
show that. When you think about it, a lot of those song titles
still are relevant in a way to the song, like for instance "Dow
Jones & the Temple Doom".
CoC: With the political content of your music in mind, would BbtS
ever get involved in something like Serj's (System of a Down)
Axis of Justice movement?
MO: Well, despite the political stuff that's contained in our music,
I still see us as more of a personal project, and the political
topics in our music were more a reflection on things that I had
been dealing with at the time that the first album was recorded.
I was working with four different social justice organizations
and that's actually still my job -- I'm a public speaker for a
social justice organization. So, in that sense there is some
activity, but we don't want to limit ourselves to one certain
thing and say "this is what we're about -- deal with that". We
didn't want people to put us into a mould and say things like
"there's a war going on, what does BbtS think about that". We
just wanted to offer people lyrics that made them think about
things, but we didn't want to tell people what to think or say
that this is wrong or this is wrong. If you look at the lyrics to
_Soundtrack..._ carefully, they're all kind of turning around and
looking inside and seeing things that bother you in terms of
yourself and for instance your relationship and attitude toward
materialism. So, of course, there's a message to it which is
personal, but there's a bit more to it than that.
CoC: Okay, so in light of that, how would you define the concept of
having a "personal revolution"?
MO: I think that a "personal revolution" is something that people
should go through sometime in their life, and obviously there are
moments in life where we go through big changes or make important
decisions for ourselves, whether it be about religion or whether
it be about life or getting married or starting a family or
getting off drugs -- it could be any number of things. It's
actually something that you do throughout your life, and it can
be any number of things, but change and progress is certainly a
part of life. And in that sense, I really liked _Soundtrack..._,
because I thought that it really made things kind of more open in
way. I actually gave a copy of the album to my brother, who is a
very, very devout born-again Christian, and is somewhat of a
scholar and actually studied at Oxford and Yale. And he really
listened to the album and looked into it, and I'm not sure if he
got anything out of it musically, but certainly he said that it
had gotten him to think about things, which was really the point
of the record -- to not be something that's limited to a certain
age group or whatever. I mean, he generally doesn't even like
this type of music, but he admitted that he would certainly be
open to other things after that.
CoC: You mentioned your brother being a Christian and I saw in the
_Soundtrack..._ booklet that John Adubato (guitars) thanks
Jesus. Obviously not in reference to your music, but are the
band members personally very religious at all?
MO: No, no, not really. I mean John isn't what you'd call a
born-again Christian, although he does have some deep-seeded
beliefs. I myself have actually last year grown a lot due to the
certain experiences that I have had, but it's certainly not a
band issue or anything like that. John has his own personal
feelings about certain things, but it's definitely something that
he keeps very quiet about and would only talk to you about it if
you actually asked him.
CoC: Metallica and Sepultura have both made returned to the fray this
year and by all accounts nu-metal is on the way out, so what do
you think of the state of metal and extreme music in 2003?
MO: Well, I definitely see certain bands becoming a lot bigger and
getting more accessible and appealing to a wider variety of
people. Thinking purely of acts on Relapse -- I definitely see a
band like Dillinger Escape Plan getting even bigger than they
already are, branching off into an even wider audience. And the
same with Mastadon -- I can definitely see them moving on to
bigger and better things. We've known them since the late
eighties and they're great guys, great musicians and a great
band. And then of course there's other, not necessarily metal,
but more hardcore bands -- I know Hatebreed is just getting
bigger and bigger. One of my best friends works at Ferret Records
and he gave me a bunch of stuff that's very good, and with all
the touring their bands are going to be doing I can definitely
see them becoming big names soon. A lot of bands aim to do what
they do for a living, as opposed to just playing on the
weekends, and they're definitely being accepted more easily by
the mainstream. You know, probably within the next three years,
we'll be seeing more extreme music getting a higher profile and
pretty soon the kids who listen to stuff like Korn and think it's
dangerous will all of a sudden not be so rebellious anymore. And
it's a good thing, I think, except if it gets watered down and
commercialised -- but I don't see that happening with the really
good bands.
CoC: You're about to get married, and you've mentioned that you have
a job -- how do you juggle your domestic life, career and band
successfully?
MO: Well, it keeps things very busy. I mean, my fiancé and I lived
together for quite a long time and I supported her financially
for some time as well, so I don't see us getting married as
really changing things the way they are right now all that much.
Certainly if we were to have a kid, then that would be a problem.
Our guitar player, John, is actually married and his kid is going
on two years, and our bass player, Dave, he's married and his
wife is expecting in September. So, I think that after that,
things will definitely have to be reassessed a little bit, but
even now, we aren't able to tour nearly as much as we would like
or probably need to.
CoC: Your forthcoming record _The Perfect Is the Enemy of the Good_
is probably on a lot of people's most-wanted lists for 2003, so
what can we expect from the album?
MO: Well, that record I will say is definitely going to be a lot
different from what a lot of people are going to be expecting.
And we think that in a good way, because it's reflective of how
we allowed things to develop. The _Soundtrack..._ record was
recorded as a five- piece, and on this one we had to adapt to
doing things as a four- piece. But we're actually very pleased
with how it came out. The production -- how it came out is much
better than _Soundtrack..._. It's tighter and it has a lot more
flow than the last album. On _Soundtrack..._ we tended to change
things too quickly, whereas on this one we let things breathe a
little more and let the different parts ride out more. Lyrically,
it's also definitely very different. This time round, we all sat
down and we decided to make the lyrics reflect on various
discussions that we had had while we were on the road, and it
deals with a lot of stuff that people don't ever really talk
about that much. _Soundtrack..._ was more about looking inside
oneself, whereas this is more about looking around at what's
going on outside and thinking about what's happening around you.
I think that people may get the wrong idea and say that BbtS is
now a 100% political band, because this is a very harsh record.
However, at the same time I would argue that the album is
actually very A-political, because what we believe is that what
we see on the news, and the people we see who supposedly control
the economy or determine various world affairs is actually a far
cry from the truth and so all this stuff we see and argue about
actually means nothing. I mean, why does the Mayan calendar end
on 2012? Why do the majority of religions point to this time
right now as being sort of the final chapter in human history?
It's things like that and we're sure it'll intrigue a lot of
people and certainly it's quite a lyrical departure for us as
well, to the extent that we've changed our logo to have a pyramid
behind the name instead of a star and the album artwork is
actually a 2000-year old blueprint for a flying saucer.
CoC: So, it isn't your standard "my parents hate me, life is awful, I
want to die" crap then?
MO: <laughs> No, it's ten songs and then people are going to be hit
by a shitload of stuff at the end and we think that they're going
to be really intrigued by what we have to offer. We hope so,
anyway.
CoC: Where would you like to ultimately see BbtS go?
MO: I have no idea. There was a time, when we started out, where we
felt that if we pushed a little harder, got the right tours or
whatever, that we could get somewhere in terms of market
recognition; but really that doesn't matter. One has to be
realistic as well, because in our present situations we can't
really afford to go touring every other week or every other month
and we can't let BbtS become our sole source of income, if I
can put it that way. We have to keep turning down touring
opportunities constantly, because our private lives simply don't
allow us the time to do it that often. At the same time, we
certainly hope that the new record is going to open some doors
for us and generally I just feel that if the band stays creative
and keeps making good records, then that would be good enough for
me and that would be something I'd be comfortable with.
CoC: Any last words, then?
MO: Look out for the new record -- it should hit the stores at around
September. We're really happy with it and so is the label, so we
hope that you guys are going to enjoy it. And, while we can't
promise anything, we will try our best to maybe do a couple of
shows in areas where we haven't been, so keep checking the
website (www.burntbythesun.com) and we hope to see you guys soon.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
_, _, __, _,_ _, _ _,
/ \ | |_) | | |\/| (_
|~| | , |_) | | | | , )
~ ~ ~~~ ~ `~' ~ ~ ~
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!
Aeternus - _A Darker Monument_ (Nocturnal Art Productions, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (7.5 out of 10)
Back again with their fifth full-length album, the Norwegian
black/doom band that turned death metal has severed ties with long
time label Hammerheart Records and joined forces with Nocturnal Art
Productions. With _A Darker Monument_ Aeternus have another go at
topping their brilliant _Shadows of Old_, which they had failed to do
with their last album _Ascension of Terror_. A fresh approach was
mandatory, but unfortunately, while Aeternus have come out with
something slightly better than _Ascension of Terror_, their approach
still suffers from virtually the same shortcomings as last time. _A
Darker Monument_ starts off quite well, with the mid to fast-paced
"Sword of the Earth", which seems to announce that Aeternus have
decided to shed most of their recent American death metal leanings.
Second track "Slavestate" dispels this notion, however, and it
becomes clear we are in for another mixed bag from Aeternus. Overall
I find more engaging passages on _A Darker Monument_ than I did on
_Ascension of Terror_, but the answer to whether Aeternus have
created an album that can challenge the mighty _Shadows of Old_ is
clearly negative. Tracks like "Litany of Ra" and "Seen Through
Abhorrent Eyes" make sure _A Darker Monument_ remains a worthy
effort, but with all the quality death metal coming out lately
(Immolation, Vital Remains, Behemoth), Aeternus fail to make a huge
impression. Much like what happened on _Ascension of Terror_, there
is simply too much unremarkable mid-paced riffage going on. _A Darker
Monument_ is still a very competent album and marginally better than
its predecessor, but it has neither as much atmosphere as _Beyond the
Wandering Moon_ and _...And So the Night Became_ nor as much
intensity as _Shadows of Old_. In case you are wondering why my
rating is actually lower than last time even though I find this new
album slightly better than the previous, the answer is simple: I
wouldn't give _Ascension of Terror_ an 8 today, and _A Darker
Monument_ is still not good enough coming from Aeternus. Considering
all that this band has done in the past, one continues to get the
feeling that Aeternus are underachieving, and so another album has
gone by in competent but relatively unremarkable fashion.
Contact: http://www.aeternus.ch
Arcane Wisdom - _Relics of Elder Might_ (Independent, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
Heed not the history-oriented band name and album title: the music on
offer here is a blend of avantgarde black metal akin to some of what
Borknagar and Arcturus have done recently -- epic-sounding but not
looking to capture the ancient forest feel of a band like Summoning.
While this kind of avantgarde tendencies may be a sign of over-
ambitious musicians in the early stages of their careers trying to
bite a piece they won't be able to chew, in this case Arcane Wisdom
actually pull it off very well. The reason for that lies partly
in the fact that they are able to retain enough uniqueness in
their sound to avoid coming across as second-rate clones of the
aforementioned bands. Furthermore, in spite of being an unsigned act,
Arcane Wisdom are actually very good at what they do -- in other
words, _Relics of Elder Might_ is not a half-baked attempt at
creating grandiose, epic blackened metal. There is plenty of talent
and ideas to be found on this disc, which is remarkably well rounded
considering the band's relative lack of experience. Blackened vocals
alternate with well- suited clean ones, with a complex sonic
background of guitar and drum work as well as synths and a variety of
other instruments. Borknagar's superb _Empiricism_ is the album that
comes to my mind most often during opener "Misanthropic Horror
Magnified", while "Maelstroms of Majestic Night" adopts a more
aggressive stance during its first half before becoming more melodic
afterwards. "Symphonia Chaos" loses some of the momentum by exploring
arrangements that sound more avantgarde but are generally less
interesting, but the more melancholic "Theatre Unfolds" raises the
level again. In addition to these four tracks (each of them seven to
eight minutes long), one can also find two instrumentals -- one a
very good acoustic song, the other more synthetic. The quality of the
instrumental work, songwriting and production throughout _Relics of
Elder Might_ is made all the more impressive by the fact that this is
an independent release, but I suspect Arcane Wisdom won't stay
unsigned for much longer.
Contact: http://www.arcanewisdom.pt.vu
Arckanum / Contamino - _Kosmos wardhin dræpas om sin /
Emptiness Enthralls (...and the World Is Not Enough...)_
by: James Montague (6.5 out of 10) (Carnal Records, 2003)
Split 7" EPs are a great idea -- they're cheap, they often pair up
little-known bands with bigger names, and they're often quite well
presented as the two bands face each other off on the vinyl
battlefield.
In this case, the established band is Arckanum, who have plenty of
full-length releases behind them (or him, as it's a one-man project)
and a strong reputation in the black metal world. The one track on
offer here is straight-up Arckanum -- this means classic riffs in the
early '90s Scandinavian black metal style, with a touch of thrash and
an epic, ancient vibe. The continuing habit of writing all lyrics and
liner notes in Swedish and in an almost illegible old script
reinforces this feel. To be honest, this isn't the best material I've
heard from the band, but it is another strong composition by one of
Sweden's finest black metal exponents.
The unknown quantity (at least to yours truly) is Contamino, who play
raw, old school death metal. Opening with some amplifier fuzz, just
to remind the listener of the demo recording conditions, the band
launches into some fairly unoriginal but very catchy death hymns. The
vocalist is like a cross between a standard death metal growler and a
grim, unfeeling croaker like Inquisition's Dagon, providing an
interesting focal point for the band. Contamino also provides the
bulk of the content on this 7" EP, giving two full songs and a nice
instrumental coda for good measure.
As is so often the case, a split EP has seen the lesser light take
the honours. Now if only Sabbat would be upstaged on their next
shared effort, that would truly be something...
Contact: http://arckanum.cjb.net
Carcariass - _Killing Process_ (Adipocere Records, 2002)
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10)
How someone can actually choose to keep a name such as Carcariass
when a certain band with a similar name is such a legend in the metal
world is beyond me, but in any case the third album by this French
band is worth looking into. There is some rather technical melodic
death metal going on here, with four out of the nine tracks on offer
remaining instrumental. The album opens with a solo bass line, and
soon enough the first Death-like dissonant riff with an odd time
signature comes along, as does the first guitar solo. Even though
there is a lot of emphasis on the technical side of things, the music
still remains listenable -- not exactly a barrel of metallic fun or
an onslaught of raw energy, but still enjoyable in its own way. The
production is clear and gives every instrument some room. While not
exactly brimming with intensity and nowhere near an album like
Death's _The Sound of Perseverance_, _Killing Process_ is still a
commendable effort that should be of interest for fans of technical
death metal.
Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr
Charger - _Confessions of a Man (Mad Enough to Live Amongst Beasts)_
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10) (Peaceville, 2003)
It is undeniable that a smart title and suggestive cover art go a
considerable way to increasing one's appetite for perusing the CD
inside, and while Charger have little of the latter, they do have a
significant bit of the former. _Confessions of a Man (Mad Enough to
Live Amongst Beasts)_ may not be as musically complex and thought-
provoking as its title seems to indicate, but the man's confessions
certainly come out hard as nails and black as tar. Recorded in Wales
by Billy Anderson (Eyehategod, Neurosis, Sleep), Charger's punkish
sludge sounds every bit as heavy as those names indicate. And if you
want more name-dropping, this band from Stoke on Trent will be
touring Europe in support of Today Is the Day this year. Back to
_CoaM(MEtLAB) _, you will find a live feeling mainly coming up in
between songs that may not be to everyone's liking, but the massive
sound should make up for that. The delivery remains varied, which in
a way detracts from my enjoyment of the album. From the doom of "A
Ventilation System for Cooling Poultry" to the punk of "God Made Us
in the Image of His Ass" (they do have a bit of a knack for song
titles, don't they?), Charger keep their sludge ugly and very heavy.
What they fail to do is keep my interest level stable throughout. The
slower, painful doom sections might get repetitive after some time in
the absence of some contrast, but I would still definitely rather
have more of those and less of the mid-paced punk-laced material.
Nevertheless, Charger remain a band to look out for in case you are a
fan of the genre; _CoaM(MEtLAB)_ is at least an intriguing album with
several interesting sequences and a devastating sound.
Contact: http://www.peaceville.com
Circle of Dead Children - _Human Harvest_ (Displeased, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (8 out of 10)
Circle of Dead Children from Pennsylvania have been around for quite
a bunch of albums now -- to be exact, _Human Harvest_ is their fourth
outing. Currently operating without a bass player, this three-piece
is hell-bent on achieving only one thing: sonic terror, or as they
put it, "creating aural decimation". Well, _Human Harvest_ comes
dangerously close to just that, with its hybrid of Brutal Truth-ish
grindcore, Agoraphobic-style hyperfast drumming and Mortician-like
grumbling. While never being as good as any of these bands, _HH_ does
feature nineteen pretty solid slaps-in-the-face that'll have even the
tamest grind-freak banging his head into the walls for the sheer fun
of it. Most intriguing are the lyrics, which more than often read
like sinister, introspective poetry; rarely does one find such well-
written, intelligent lyrics in grind. Production and packaging are
sufficient, making _HH_ a good addition to your grind collection.
Contact: http://www.circleofdeadchildren.net
Con-Dom / The Grey Wolves - _Many Are Called But Few Get Up_
by: Alvin Wee (7 out of 10) (LOKI - Power and Steel, 2002)
Con-Dom opens up Side A of this split 12" with more restraint than
we're accustomed to, stitching muffled samples of declamatory voices
(largely unintelligible, contributing more atmosphere than message)
into a rippling fabric of crackling and sonorous cosmic dronings. The
subsequent "Hate Crime" takes us back to familiar tongue-in-cheek
Con- Dom territory with a direct song sample clearly recalling the
artist's obsession with black/white race wars, segueing into a
blizzard of derogatory ranting with another droning backdrop, more
industrial/mechanical than before but quite surprisingly avoiding
their trademark power electronics violence throughout. Highly
atmospheric and stimulating, setting the stage nicely for The Grey
Wolves' more direct assault on Side B.
"Goin' home" seems to consist of one long sample (from some movie?)
set to a curtain of typically high-pitched electronic squealings
and subtle mid-range waves; taken out of context it lacks the
orchestrated conviction of Con-Dom's material (although remaining an
excellent track). Something which is taken up rather nicely by the
caustic title track, an angry voice spitting out the words of the
title to a seething mass of mid-range analogue distortion, building
up to an inexorable, blood-boiling climax of the words "my eyes are
burning". Bringing together two of the most (in)famous names in the
power electronics is bound to conjure up high expectations -- which
are well met by this lamentably short offering.
Contact: http://www.loki-found.de
Cradle of Filth - _Damnation and a Day_ (Sony Music, 2003)
by: Adam Lineker (6.5 out of 10)
An essential part of the black metal scene, cross-genre innovators,
the world's most unholy boy-band, the worst thing to ever come out of
Ipswich -- whatever be your opinion of Cradle of Filth, it is
difficult to ignore them. Personally, I have eagerly anticipated this
record since 2001's _Bitter Suites to Succubi_ EP (of sorts) began a
deluge of stop-gap fan bait. Couple this tedium with their recent
major label signing, and the stakes are high over Dani's head.
So, to the good parts of _Damnation and a Day_ first: it sounds
awesome. Guilty in the past of swamping their more metal elements in
ambience, the band have evidently taken special care to preserve
their bite. The guitars sound more powerful and polished on this work
than any other previous CoF release, synching those heavy riffs into
place beautifully. Yet all this glossy riffola would be nothing
without Adrian Erlandsson, whose drumming sounds simply magnificent
on _Damnation..._. Not only does he display tight technique and
essential rhythmic control, the production on his kit lends him a
more powerful attack than ever before, making his fills and blasts
a real pleasure. Unfortunately Robin Graves' nocturnal pulse is
woefully missing from the rhythm section. With no disrespect to Dave
Pybus, who provides some very effective melodic bass lines, the
instrument mostly blends into the mix and lacks the presence of past
CoF releases. Dani also sounds more subdued on this album; it is a
relief to hear his voice a little less intrusive than usual, but
after a career peak on 2000's _Midian_ opus, it is a little
disappointing to find him below par.
One big question hanging over this album prior to release was the
decision to use the Hungarian Film Orchestra and a real choir
instead of synthesized instruments. The good news is that these new
components sound great, often subtly working in and out of counter
melodies and accompaniment. Yet, even though it bewilders me from a
musician's point of view, one could argue that the rich analogue
sounds of Martin Foul's Kurzweill Keyboard served the music as well
as, if not better than the real instruments(!). The inclusion of
the orchestra and choir has also lead to two rather unsettling
developments. Firstly, dispossessed 'boardsman Martin has had to
arrange things other than his traditional surges of ambience to keep
him busy, resulting in a mixed bag of effects that dabble in
electronica. Occasionally it works, more often than not it provokes a
raised eyebrow; the sampled fireworks in "Better to Reign in
Hell" are a fine example of this awkward frippery. Secondly,
although sounding fine behind the prominent metalwork, someone gave
into temptation and decided to compose a multitude of classical
instrumentals. Cradle of Filth have been known to undertake such
musical excursions in the past, but allowing the orchestra four
opportunities to explore dark and epic moods does nothing more than
dilute the album. To make matters worse, the resultant music is
distractingly cringeworthy; rather than arouse my taste for classical
music, they do more to convince me that Cradle of Filth are planning
to write a soundtrack for Conan 3.
Musically _Damnation and a Day_ is similar to the work on _Midian_,
but with a far greater scope and a wider incorporation of sonic
elements. Make no mistake, this record is huge in execution and
concept. Yet almost inevitably, one is left feeling that Cradle have
over-egged the pudding. The songs are lengthy without exception,
exploring multiple motifs, but the quality has been stretched out to
breaking point . Whereas _Midian_ offered us glossy slabs of great
atmospheric metal, _Damnation..._ serves up overblown constructions
that only capture your interest in sporadic bursts. There is very
little of Sarah Jezebel Deva on this record, and there is also a
pitiful amount of lead guitar melody -- the guitar solos have
completely disappeared from Cradle's sonic palette. For all the grand
elements brought to this album, so much of it washes over you.
There are moments of classic metal brilliance, but these are
countered by excessive, meandering dirge. There are some innovative
melodic passages, but mostly they sound forced and confused. Dani's
lyrical creations on this record are equally convoluted, muddying a
familiar concept (Milton's Paradise Lost and then some more) with
unnecessarily vague word play.
It is a real shame that Cradle's mainstream label debut should sound
this misguided; one can painfully hear the effort that has been put
into making _Damnation and a Day_ a reality. What will sadden most
CoF devotees is the reality that the insidious atmosphere that
suffused _The Principle of Evil Made Flesh_ through to _Dusk... and
Her Embrace_ has all but disappeared; this opus doesn't even have the
dark metal glory that gave _Midian_ its magic. I can't bring myself
to deem this record a totally bad one, but it is far from the
crowning musical achievement that the band needed. Cradle of Filth
haven't lost an inch of their musicianship, nor do they seem devoid
of creative ideas, but with _Damnation and a Day_ they have lost more
than they have gained.
Cripple Bastards - _Desperately Insensitive_
by: Xander Hoose (9 out of 10) (Necropolis / Deathvomit, 2003)
One of my highly anticipated albums for this year comes from
the Cripple Bastards. Having had the pleasure of reviewing their
_Misantropo a Senso Unico_ album and seeing them play live, they've
rapidly become one of my favourite hardcore/grind bands in the
scene. Upon first listen, _Desperately Insensitive_ was a bit of a
disappointment, but after tweaking the bass and treble a bit and
increasing the volume, my faith was restored. In true Cripple Bastard
way, _Desperately Insensitive_ includes more than a handful of songs
(nineteen this time around) and there's a great stylistic diversity,
especially in the vocal approach. Guilio manages to alternate his
growling death metal style with a Kevin Sharp (Brutal Truth) screech,
then turns to hardcore shouting, and ends up mixing it all together.
Nice! With songs rarely clocking over two minutes, _Desperately
Insensitive_ is a good album for those with attention deficit -- but
a total running time of 28 minutes is still a bit on the short side
for me. Lyrics are in English, Italian and -- correct me if I'm
mistaken -- Czech ("Rak Ne Prestaje"), and the artwork looks
excellent. If you're into hardcore/grind, then do yourself a favor
and pick this album up.
Contact: http://www.cripplebastards.com
Crowhead - _Frozen_ (My Kingdom Music, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (5.5 out of 10)
It seems to be a very popular thing nowadays: mixing gothic with
poppy danceable elements, creating something commercially safe for
the young impressionable goth-heads, EBMers and new wavers. Some
bands are easily forgiven for it: Funker Vogt have made it their
trademark, Peter Tagtgren's Pain does it with such style and grace
that it's a pleasure to listen to, and Misery Loves Co's swansong
_Your Vision Was Never Mine to Share_ never received the credit it
deserved. Crowhead, on the other side, lack the genius and instead
present us with cheesy song structures, horribly sentimental vocals
and cliché keyboards. Only at the end of _Frozen_ do we see some guts
with the usage of harsher electronics and a sinister atmosphere, but
by then it's too late to save the album from going under. True
gothic/electro lovers will be much better off with Apoptygma Berzerk,
Pain or VNV Nation. A word of consolation for Crowhead: my goth
girlfriend does seem to like this album. Figures...
Contact: http://www.crowhead.com
Curse of the Golden Vampire - _Mass Destruction_ (IPECAC, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (9 out of 10)
Those of you unfamiliar with Curse of the Golden Vampire cannot be
blamed, because this collaboration between Alec Empire (Atari Teenage
Riot), Kevin Martin (Techno Animal) and Justin Broadwick (ex-
Godflesh) has never received the proper attention it deserved. The
first collaboration album was released in 1998 on Alec's label
DHR and featured aggressive techno breaks with a strong hint of
industrial. The album wasn't a big success, even though it explored
some new territories for all parties involved. _Mass Destruction_,
the new Curse of the Golden Vampire album, is a second attempt at
bringing new and refreshed music to the masses, strangely without the
help of founder Alec Empire. Mixing the aggression and vocals of
Godflesh with the heavily distorted beats of Techno Animal turns
_Mass Destruction_ into something far more lethal than what we're
used to from either artist -- think of a bass-driven hardcore/noise
version of Phantomsmasher and you might be on the right track. Don't
be mistaken, the material on this album might be a
little bit too
inaccessible for Godflesh fans who think that guitars are a vital
part of music, while the aggro-vocals might turn away the more
hardcore electronics crowd. Still, _Mass Destruction_ is definitely
worth a try for fans of Atomsmasher, Atari Teenage Riot and the Fear
Factory remixes. IPECAC did a good job on signing CotGV and I can
only express my hopes that we will see more material in the future
because the 36 minutes on this album went by a little too quickly for
my taste.
Destinity - _Under the Smell of Chaos_ (Adipocere Records, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (4 out of 10)
From the onset this disc invites reviewers to sharpen their critical
teeth on it: amateurish front cover, terribly cliché band photos, a
dubious band name, and (last but not least) the kind of album title
that is likely to have you shaking your head in disbelief. Get past
all that though, and what you have is essentially a Cradle of Filth
derivative. Many moons ago, back in 1996, a band called Hecate
Enthroned was heavily criticized for sounding too much like CoF; yet
anno 2003, what Destinity have come up with is just another second
rate imitation of Cradle of Filth, in this case with some touches of
Limbonic Art in the keyboard department. Much like another band I
recently reviewed, Illnath, Destinity seem to have made no effort
whatsoever to avoid such an obvious trap on this, their -third- disc.
I can excuse a debuting band to some extent for trying to emulate
their idols a bit too much, but when you've been around for a few
albums this lack of originality is bound to seriously weigh you down.
The album is competently carried out for the most part and even
features some good passages, as Destinity seem to have improved
somewhat since their last offering (at least judging by the rating it
was awarded). Nevertheless, this band still has a long way to go both
in terms of musical relevance and of course originality.
Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr
Enthral - _Subterranean Movement_ (Displeased, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (7.5 out of 10)
Norwegian black metal band Enthral might not ring a bell with
everyone, but in the past they've shared members with Dimmu Borgir
and The Flesh and their resumé includes two full-lengths. Having been
around since 1996, they've had some style changes -- from a more
classical sound with cello and soprano vocals, they moved towards a
style reminiscent of earlier Covenant and Satyricon. The main problem
with Enthral and their _Subterranean Movement_ album is that they
have to compete in a league where bands with a cult status get all
the attention, while smaller bands have to be really innovative or
extremely good in order to reach a target audience. Enthral is
neither: innovation is not what Enthral is aiming at with their rock-
solid textbook black songwriting; and while Enthral are good, they
are not extremely good. If they're good enough to make it to the next
level remains to be seen, but those who give this album a try might
be pleasantly surprised. _Subterranean Movement_ won't do you any
wrong, that's for sure.
Contact: http://www.enthral.org
From Beyond - _Thrashin' Machine_ (Painkiller, 2003)
by: Alvin Wee (6 out of 10)
No prizes for guessing where this Belgian duo draw their influences:
this mini-album continues the German mid-'80s legacy with twenty
minutes of non-stop Kreator worship by ex-members of "cult Black
Metal act" Moribund (according to the press-sheet). Impressively
tight, the band rips through four energetic and well-structured
thrashers replete with melodic solos and neck-breaking riffs, albeit
without breaking any new ground or sounding particularly exciting.
This is one of those albums you can't really fault for being poor in
any department, but somehow lacks the requisite punch of great retro
albums like Swordmaster's _Deathraider_ or Nifelheim's early work on
most tracks. Which is a sad thing, as these headbangers sometimes
manage to get the '80s feeling down pat, especially on the wild
thrasher "Nightmare" where Slayer-esque leads duel with pounding
riffs and maniacal drumming to create a masterpiece worthy of any
Destruction or Sodom record. I'd recommend waiting for a full-length
to see these maniacs' true power, but then again '80s fanatics might
already be drooling at this. [Note: Last I heard, Painkiller was not
responding to e-mails. Try their snail-mail address on the website.]
Contact: http://www.painkiller-records.com
Gilla Bruja - _6 Fingered Jesus_ (Retribute Records, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (8 out of 10)
Retribute Records has rapidly become the home of some very promising
extreme bands, and with the second Gilla Bruja album they show
they're still on the right track. This four-piece from England is
mixing plenty of good riffin' with dirty growls and chilled-out
grooves; think of Brutal Truth jamming with Buzz:oven trying to cover
Iron Monkey -- you'll get the idea. I can't say I haven't heard this
style of music before, but it's being done expertly here, and if you
add a perfect production to that you get an album that can't do much
wrong. Songs like "Where Low Life Grows" and "The Door" will have you
bouncing round the house in mere seconds, while some of the dual
vocal parts ("All for Blame", "A Season to Wither") show a different
side of the band. For the restless ones among us, there are the
obligatory up- tempo songs as well ("Harvest"). A minor drawback is
that even a short album like this gets quite repetitive after a while
-- something I see happening with many bands in this genre. Still,
Gilla Bruja has done their best to satisfy us all with _6 Fingered
Jesus_, which I can only qualify as sludge in its finest form, and
hopefully we'll see them touring around soon.
Contact: http://www.gillabruja.com
Gorgoroth - _Twilight of the Idols_ (Nuclear Blast, 2003)
by: Jackie Smit (8 out of 10)
I last encountered Gorgoroth on their crushing 1997 _Destroyer_
effort -- the title track of which I once convinced a radio DJ for an
adult- contemporary station to play at 11:00 am. Six years and thirty
phoned- in complaints later, it would appear, judging by the sound of
opening track "Procreating Satan", that not much has changed at Camp
'Roth, and I'd happily wager that the band's influence on the recent
spate of necro black metal has been somewhat overlooked by critics
and fans alike. However, it is on the following number, "Proclaiming
Mercy" that I'm quite surprised to hear a rather dramatic drop in
pace. Perhaps this is the "more mature and refined" approach that
their bio alludes to? Either way, they incorporate the more subtle
tempo very effectively, and despite the slowdown, the music still
bristles with malevolence and anger. Their darker, more haunting side
is brought to the fore even more vividly on "Exit Through Carved
Stones" and "Teethgrinding" -- without a doubt two of the best black
metal songs to grace these ears so far in 2003. Warp nine blasts
aren't completely cast aside however, and purists may breathe a sigh
of unholy relief when "Of Ice & Movement" launches into its raw,
frostbitten dirge. Unfortunately though, this is the last proper
track on the album -- a mere 25 minutes into proceedings. Considering
that this is supposed to be the full-length follow-up to _Incipit
Satan_, I would have expected the band to at least attempt to come up
with something a little longer and more substantial than your average
MCD. _Twilight of the Idols_ is without a doubt a top notch, if not
excellent release, but (and I feel in this case that it's more than
reasonable to direct this as a criticism) the experience is over far
too soon to truly justify its existence.
Graveworm - _Engraved in Black_ (Nuclear Blast, 2003)
by: Jackie Smit (6.5 out of 10)
Listening to Graveworm's latest effort, you'd be forgiven for
thinking that you'd fallen asleep and awoke back in 1996. Certainly,
if Graveworm had their way, then that would surely have been the
case, as the music on offer on their Nuclear Blast debut doesn't
sound at all unlike Cradle of Filth's _Dusk... and Her Embrace_ and
Dimmu Borgir's _Enthrone Darkness Triumphant_. It should also then
come as no surprise to learn that Sarah Jezebel Deva herself at one
point collaborated with the band -- though unfortunately her efforts
weren't captured on this, their fourth full-length record. To be
honest, Andy Classen's outstanding production job probably makes this
band sound a notch better than they really are, but it's hard to deny
the instant appeal of songs like "Legions Unleashed" or "Abhorence".
Likewise, the overall feel of the record is captured well by the
group's tight and corrosive performance. The problem is that we've
seen this all done before -- and executed with greater flair -- by a
fair amount of other acts, who have mostly now moved on to greater
heights. That said however, Graveworm's latest attempt sounds a hell
of a lot more convincing than the new Cradle of Filth, so if that's
your musical tipple, then you might be well served to give these guys
a look.
Immolation - _Unholy Cult_ (Listenable, 2002)
by: Paul Schwarz (9 out of 10)
It has been a long road for Immolation; and still, in the ever unjust
"scene", these New Jersey natives are not widely recognised. It's a
pity really; not only have Immolation "got back on the horse" ---
having released three albums in the last four years, compared to
their two in the preceding seven -- they've successively bettered
themselves ever since Dee Snider / Riot producer Paul Orofino got
behind the desk for _Failures for Gods_ (and stayed there). Each new
Immolation album has given the band a better-suited and more
encapsulating sound, and with each album, Immolation sharpened their
skills as twisted, technical death metal songwriters. Unlike so many
"good" death metal bands around today, Immolation aren't only for the
nostalgia freaks: they aren't struggling to catch up with anyone.
Instead, they play their own game. Of course, there is much about
Immolation which is - rooted- in the American death metal "tradition"
of which they are a part; but these roots are not rules -- or if they
are, then Immolation have certainly gone beyond bending them: _Unholy
Cult_ moves to its own twisted, lurching and yet ever arresting beat.
If you're familiar with any of Immolation's last three albums, you'll
recognise them as the authors of the eight songs here presented after
hearing a mere few seconds of any track. Yet when you've given more
time to _UC_ -- a full listen to any single track will do --
you'll notice just how far Immolation have come; even since 2000's
classy _Close to a World Below_. Though thoroughly brutal and
uncompromising, Immolation's fifth album is expertly nuanced, and
blessed with a sound that beautifully articulates its tortured
malevolence. A sinister amalgamation of magnificent riffs, incredible
rhythms, sterling solos and arresting arrangements -- to name but a
few of its qualities -- _UC_'s main body is a near-masterpiece of
modern death metal.
Unfortunately, there are "buts". Firstly, there's the album's cover.
Depicting the crucifixial shadow cast from the top of a foreground
church with an evil face -- apparently lupine -- dwelling in its
darkness, the image only serves to reinforce scene stereotypes, and
will doubtless put off many who would relish the music it encloses.
Put simply, _UC_ looks like your average, boring, by-the-numbers
death metal album -- though it is actually something much more
special. _UC_'s opening minute is also disappointing; a droning
three-note progression creates a dynamic which the crushing kick-off
of "Of Martyrs and Men" capitalises on; but it's old news. It's a
tactic Immolation have used more than once -- on their last two
albums, in fact: they would have done well to do something different
this time, or at least not repeat themselves in such a bland style.
But the most frustrating part of _Unholy Cult_ is its close. As
"Bring Them Down" builds toward a final climax, expectations are
running high: but instead of delivering a majestic final stroke -- or
bringing proceedings to a close by gradually fading out on a riff as
ominously portentous as the one which capped off "The Devil I Know"
on 1999's _Failures for Gods_ -- Immolation fade out on a bland
repeated progression, leaving you feeling cheated and frustrated.
It's unfortunate that these low points cannot be satisfactorily
edited out -- as duff tracks could be. Yet, despite their crucial
placings, they don't spoil _UC_ but simply mar its near-perfection.
Immolation would do well to re-evaluate -- or at least vary --
aspects of their image and overall album structuring in the future;
but if they continue to write music as compelling, crushing and
differentiated from the norm as they have with _Unholy Cult_, I must
admit that I'll keep listening even if they don't vary their more
formulaic elements.
[Jackie Smit: ""Of Martyrs and Men" leads Immolation's latest
assault; a sublime guitar piece begins the song, hinting at the
approach of something unspeakably sinister, before all hell breaks
loose. With the force of a nuclear hurricane, the beast that is
Immolation roars to life. Make no mistake -- this is as good as
death metal gets. Ross Dolan's vocals are immense, powerful,
threatening -- an essential cog in the bleak, violently melodic
Immolation framework. "Sinful Nature" follows, annihilating any
doubt one may have had about Immolation's dominance. Elsewhere, the
sprawling, eight-minute title track lends a progressive edge to the
proceedings, while "A Kingdom Divided" shows off the band at
their most crushingly effective -- almost murderously determined,
blending seamlessly through more tempo and riff changes than most
so-called "math-metal" bands could ever dream of. _Unholy Cult_ then
culminates in "Bring Them Down", the sound of the beast obliterating
the final drabs of resistance. If _Close to a World Below_ was
Immolation's ascension to the veritable 'next level', then _Unholy
Cult_ is the ultimate consolidation of all their strengths and the
final expulsion of every single thing that could possibly hold them
back."]
Contact: http://www.immolationdirect.com
Ingrowing - _Sunrape_ (Obscene Productions, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (6.5 out of 10)
Ingrowing's debut album _Suicide Binary Reflections_ didn't do much
for me, and its logical follow-up _Sunrape_ fails to change my
opinion about the band. This Czech four-piece plays grindcore
the heads-on, unsubtle, straightforward way. Aggressive riffs and
growling vocals make up the lion's share of the sound, but
unfortunately they are not dense enough to cover up the tinny drum
sound. The production is reasonable; nothing cutting-edge here, so
with most songs sounding very much alike -- and also very much like
those on the last album -- I can hardly recommend _Sunrape_ unless
you're a die-hard grind fan. Apparently though, these guys are worth
checking out live, so if they're playing close by give them a try.
Contact: http://www.obscene.cz
Intestine Baalism - _Banquet in the Darkness_ (Blackend, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8 out of 10)
Six years ago, Intestine Baalism released their debut album _An
Anatomy of the Beast_, which so far remained their only outing. Back
then it really weaved its way nicely into my CD player, evolving from
what initially appeared to be an average death metal release into a
truly addictive disc full of leads and hooks that wouldn't let go. It
took this Japanese band a damn long time, but they're finally back
with _Banquet in the Darkness_, and I'm pleased to report that the
musical elements essential to the success of their debut are still
present. Furthermore, _Banquet in the Darkness_ has managed to repeat
anno 2003 the kind of addictiveness its predecessor showed six years
ago -- relatively speaking, since the competition has been very tough
in the death metal field lately. _Banquet in the Darkness_ is one of
those rare albums that sounds old-school without coming across as
outdated, just bringing back fond memories while remaining worthwhile
in its own right. Though Japanese geographically, Intestine Baalism
remain mostly Swedish musically, ranging from reasonably brutal
Swedish riffs to downright crystalline lead guitar comparable to Arch
Enemy. While Intestine Baalism do not sound like a band aiming to
outshine everyone else's technicality or shame their brutality, they
still rank sufficiently high on both aspects; and more importantly,
they have a remarkable knack for keeping it all entertaining and
memorable. _Banquet in the Darkness_ is unlikely to change anyone's
perception of death metal or make it into many end-of-year charts,
but it remains a very competent and unpretentiously enjoyable album.
Contact: http://www.intestinebaalism.com
Iron Justice - _Post_ (L.S.D.O., 2002)
by: Alvin Wee (9 out of 10)
This long-delayed material was once thought lost forever when
Jonathan Kan of L.S.D.O. apparently went MIA in 2001; the double 7"
set now rightfully sees the light of day with the label's revival
this year. And what a reappearance: _Post_ showcases Iron Justice at
their vitriolic best, finally delivering the high standards I've
always felt this duo were capable of. Spewing deliciously venomous
vocals and harsh industrial percussion, opener "Defeated" hammers
home the project's new-found rhythmic side, showing a distinct sense
of structure and focus as the track shifts and pans into varied
levels of metallic harshness. The three remaining tracks continue in
a vicious, rhythmic vein, a tad surprising to those expecting the
classic Whitehouse / G.O. power electronics drift on their previous
Cold Meat offerings. A fair bit of analogue synth abuse (put to good
use on the delicious Haus Arafna-esque final track) coupled with tons
of cleaner high-end noise, and no lack of machine-gun metallic
bangings, whipping up an overwhelming cacophony when coupled with the
insane hate-filled rantings. Reminiscent of the old industrial
masters in terms of structure, but injecting a modern sense of
aggression and dynamism to the old-school aesthetic which few pure
power electronics acts seem capable of (aside from Tarmvred and the
like). Packaging is taken down more than a notch from the elaborate
box-set promised long ago, but still in slick L.S.D.O. fashion with a
black and a white disc and the obligatory postcards. Another feather
in this excellent label's cap, and surely one of the highlights in
recent times.
Contact: http://www.lsdo.us
Jesters Moon - _Jesters Moon_ (Independent, 2002)
by: Aaron McKay (8 out of 10)
This tight, experienced four man outfit from America's Northeast
scene have a rough 'n' tumble sound that's very provoking even to
someone as wrapped in the complexities of other styles of metal as I
am. Back in the day, a band known as Blackkout stalked the Florida
metal scene. In a lot of ways, Blackkout's flexibility of sound lives
on in Portland, Oregon's Jesters Moon. Punchy and straightforward,
this four-piece seem to know exactly what kind of music they want to
put out and accomplish it rather brilliantly with this self-titled
effort. While their scope is mostly limited, their power and
expertise is never drawn into question on this ten track offering.
Starting off with some mood-laced ambience on "The Battle", Jesters
Moon pulls the listener in almost immediately with their hard-hitting
approach. Change-ups pepper the CD and provide a not-so-delicate
method to capture attention from its very first notes. Understandable
vocals take center stage as Bryce Van Patten undertakes guitar and
keyboard duties in addition to serving as JM's man behind the mic.
Bryce has moments in his throaty technique like one might expect from
a Dio or Udo. Fantastically distinctive instrumentation litters this
effort without ever detracting even a single iota from the full metal
rampage created by Jesters Moon; the sixth cut, "Amnesia", speaks
volumes to this point. Imagine a revved-up Queensryche doused in '80s
Accept meets Jake E. Lee's Badlands. Check out the evolution of this
band into the group now referred to as Jesters Moon and all the
experience evident on this disc. Fans of effective guitar work
without the over- the-top, showy solos have soul-mates in Bryce as
well as second guitarist, Vido Sinn. Preston Hatch on drums and
bassist Alvin complete JM's line-up -- all very proficient at their
respective crafts and display it rather well on this album. There is
a lot to enjoy on this nearly 55 minute release. Snap to it, folks,
and belly up to the bar for Jesters Moon's brew of nostalgia; you'll
even thank me the next day.
Contact: http://maninblackmusic.com
Johnny Truant - _Repercussions of a Badly Planned Suicide_
by: Xander Hoose (8 out of 10) (Undergroove, 2003)
I'm always sceptical when the press announce a band to be 'the next
big thing'. Well, in the noisecore scene, Johnny Truant has been
called so by more than one magazine, so I was anxious to find out if
_Repercussions of a Badly Planned Suicide_ would live up to my
expectations. The album contains a mere seven songs, but clocking
around 50 minutes altogether they can hardly be blamed for writing
simple songs -- au contraire. _RoaBPS_ is very multi-layered, dense,
and manages to portray a great diversity within the individual songs
while still sounding spacious. Not for a moment do the individual
instruments blend together; they're all carved out sharply in the
mix. Excellent. Musically I'm very much reminded of noisecore mates
Coalesce, Converge and Knut. Which is where I'll have to make a
strong point against Johnny Truant: even though they're very skilled
and professional players, there is not really anything on _RoaBPS_
that I haven't heard before by their competition. For instance,
incorporating clean vocals is nice, but done before by Drowningman;
the superb incorporation of breaks into the music is something
Dillinger Escape Plan is renowned for... I could go on citing
references but the point is clear: Johnny Truant is an excellent band
that has brought us an excellent album, but they're not the next big
thing. For now, my money is set on the next Dillinger Escape Plan
album with their new vocalist, but those who cannot wait for that
have a very good temporary alternative with _Repercussions of a Badly
Planned Suicide_.
Contact: http://www.johnnytruant.co.uk
Kult ov Azazel - _Oculus Infernum_ (Arctic Music, 2003)
by: Adrian Magers (6.5 out of 10)
In a word: fierce. The calculated chaos that is Kult Ov Azazel has
ushered forth its second full length (their other album _Triumph of
Fire_, and initial offering _Order of the Fly_ have both sold out in
CD format) and it's a monster. Poised at the forefront of raw
American black metal, this four-piece subscribes to a no-frills
ideology. No keyboard, no melodic breakdowns, no clean vocals, and
strategically roughened production. Luckily, Kult Ov Azazel are a
good enough band to not pigeon hole themselves. They write some damn
catchy riffs (though only conventional to ears conditioned to
harshness), and coupled with the excellent drumming of Goss "The
Hammer", _Oculus Infernum_ becomes a lesson in brutality. However,
the ongoing unrelenting hatred may become tiresome after a few tracks
to some listeners, and the vocals could use a little more variety.
Despite a few drawbacks, I found this album to be enjoyable in small
to medium doses, despite the fact that I generally prefer this style
of metal sprinkled with gothic moments and guitar harmonies. So kudos
to KOA for representing America to the rest of the black metal world.
On a side note: _Oculus Infernum_ hasn't been released in the States
as of this review, but one can order the CD directly from the band
from their website.
Contact: http://www.kultovazazel.com
Malevolent Creation - _The Will to Kill_ (Nuclear Blast, 2002)
by: Jackie Smit (8.5 out of 10)
Let's face it: there aren't too many people out there who would have
lost much sleep over the idea of Malevolent Creation calling it a day
after 1994's _Eternal_. Following up four strong releases with an
equal amount of mediocre hogwash, struggling to clutch on to the
slightest semblance of an original idea, Phil Fasciana and Co
nearly had us forget all about the mammoth potential and class
that this band had once exuded. Seemingly determined to confound
our expectations of their Nuclear Blast debut however, Malevolent
Creation have returned to the fray with one of the most powerful and
wholly surprising comebacks possibly ever pulled off in the death
metal genre. A key factor in this turnaround is the presence of Hate
Plow vocalist Kyle Simmons, replacing Brett Hoffman. He may look like
a member of Bad Religion, but he can shred a larynx with the best of
them, and infuses tracks like "All That Remain" and "The Will to
Kill" with a bristling, almost frantic energy that dropkicks the
listener into submission. Notwithstanding the instrumental effort
though -- for a band fifteen years into their career, Malevolent
Creation look to have discovered riffs and grooves I doubt they even
thought they had in them. The bulldozer chug of "Reborn" or the
Tyson-uppercut of "Divide and Conquer" not only sound more exciting
and dangerous than anything MC have attempted in many a moon, but
also seethe with the kind of energy and violence you'd expect from a
band in their prime. Yet, impressive as it may be, _The Will to Kill_
doesn't always hit the mark quite so effectively. "Assassin Squad" is
dull and cliché; the kind of throwback death metal snore I'd have
expected the band to produce five years ago. Thankfully, however,
this is no longer the standard, but rather the exception. And not a
moment too soon.
[Matthias Noll: "Is it possible to be in the death metal business
for twelve years, release your nine albums, and still have no
trademarks? The new vocalist sounds a bit like Gorefest's Jan Chris,
which is not a bad thing, but how can I explain what the band behind
him sounds like? Well, much like Arnie's opponent in "Terminator 2",
who was able to shift shape and look like the floor, the band that
once released the brilliant _Retribution_ seems to have managed to
cleanse their music from everything that would have made it possible
to identify them as Malevolent Creation in a blind test. And
unfortunately, with the exception of the killer title track, I hear
nothing but faceless mediocrity on this album."]
Contact: http://malevolentcreation.cjb.net
Malleus Maleficarum - _Taedium Vitae_
by: Pedro Azevedo (9 out of 10) (Oaken Shield / Adipocere, 2002)
_Taedium Vitae_ may sound pretty raw and dirty, but it is remarkably
engaging right from the first scream, riff and drum barrage on
opening track "Bleeding Runes". The rough production is nonetheless
powerful and drives Malleus Maleficarum's black/thrash home very
efficiently. Desperate, searing vocals; harsh, inspired riffs;
intense, varied drumming: these are the ingredients that Malleus
Maleficarum have combined to turn _Taedium Vitae_ into a just over
half hour long veritable black/thrash feast. While the vocals and
guitar work are top notch for this genre, the quality of the drumming
(which is well highlighted by the production) has to be emphasized:
S. Nergal dazzles with the sheer speed of his drumming, but what's
more unusual, also for the way the various elements of the drum kit
are explored to keep the drum work interesting. Truly a powerful
beast, in some ways akin to Svartsyn's excellent _...His Majesty_,
_Taedium Vitae_ sees Malleus Maleficarum grow from unknown newcomers
to top of their barrel in my books. Shame about the apparent
production level problems during the otherwise great "Ancient Blood",
but this is definitely one of those special records that can be
thrown on for a half hour rush of sheer energy and metallic
inspiration.
Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr
Marilyn Manson - _The Golden Age of Grotesque_
by: Xander Hoose (9 out of 10) (Nothing / Interscope, 2003)
Marilyn Manson's star rose quick in the mid-nineties; _Antichrist
Superstar_ became the ultimate album for frustrated alternative teens
who felt that most electro/industrial bands on one side were too dull
or traditional, and alternative music on the other side being just
too damn nice. Marilyn Manson provoked, shocked, amazed, horrified
millions of parents and thus became an instant icon. Regarded as a
modern-day incarnation of the devil by some and a cheap musician
cashing in on Trent Reznor's popularity by others, there's no doubt
that any artist in the late nineties has provoked so much discussion
and sold so many albums because of it than Marilyn Manson. But
instead of milking his image further, he chose a different path and
reinvented himself as Omega, a modern Ziggy Stardust. _Mechanical
Animals_, artistically and musically his greatest achievement, was
too big a leap from the aggressive _Antichrist Superstar_ for many of
his fans. As a result, the press started looking for a new black
sheep (and briefly found one in Eminem) and the hype subdued a
little. With _Holy Wood_, Manson tried desperately to reclaim his
former throne by rehashing _Antichrist Superstar_ elements -- without
much success. The album was in many ways a big disappointment.
Manson disappeared from the spotlights, and most remarkably replaced
bassplayer Twiggy Ramirez with electrowizard Tim Skold (KMFDM). The
result is _The Golden Age of Grotesque_, an album unlike any other
Manson album. Where most of Manson's albums had a very strong
identity, identity is something completely lacking on _The Golden Age
of Grotesque_. Most of the songs are heavily influenced by Skold and
are especially similar to material on the KMFDM album if you
disregard the vocals. Another over-obvious influence is Ministry, in
riffing and drumming. But _The Golden Age of Grotesque_ shares most
with another group from the eighties: My Life With the Thrill Kill
Kult. The lyrical silliness and inanity (songtitles: "Doll-Dagga
Buzz-Buzz Ziggety-Zag", "Ka-Boom Ka-Boom", "Use Your Fist and Not
Your Mouth") breathe the same Kult atmosphere, and the female
background choir of "mOBSCENE" is more than a wink at the Kult's _Hit
& Run Holiday_ album. So what does this all make _The Golden Age of
Grotesque_? Marilyn Manson succeeded well in creating a soundtrack to
the decadence of the '30s. In not taking his songs and lyrics too
seriously, Marilyn Manson created a two-headed monster: _The Golden
Age of Grotesque_ doesn't sound much like a Manson album, but it
might very well be one of his best.
Contact: http://www.marilynmanson.com
Mastodon - _Remission_ (Relapse Records, 2002)
by: Jackie Smit (9.5 out of 10)
Every once in a while, those of us who have been listening to metal
for longer than the duration of yesterday's craze can't help but get
a little bored. Sure, there are a lot of good bands and some
excellent albums doing the rounds, but sometimes one craves the
overwhelmingly jubilant exuberance experienced when you heard that
first Slayer or Morbid Angel record. With thrash -- a tasty, albeit
far from new, prospect -- set to seemingly make a comeback, this
could well have been a relatively slow period for metal with regards
to true innovation, but for the outstanding efforts of bands
like Mastodon. If your jaw hasn't nestled itself in comfortably
next to your feet at the sound of the aptly titled opening
track "Crusher Destroyer", then you probably don't like heavy
music. A flurry of dramatic drum-rolls, accompanied by one of the
nastiest riffs this side of _Hell Awaits_ and augmented with near
off-the-scale aggressive vocals mounts the first attack, before
Mastodon suddenly throw an almost stoner-like curveball on "March of
the Fire Ants" and then mainline a ferocious, dense wall of sound
back into the listener's veins. Mastodon's magic lies in their
ability to remain constantly unique on their second album, and
to constantly surprise and challenge the listener. Thick, sludgy
guitar-led stampedes are followed seamlessly by lengthy jazz- like
soundscapes -- every element polarised from the other, yet remaining
thoroughly appropriate at all times. They defy categorization and
just when one thinks you have them figured out, a track like
"Trilobite" leaps out and replaces the curious question- mark
above your head. Along with the equally excellent Burnt by the
Sun, Mastodon are possibly one of the freshest, most thrillingly
entertaining and captivating bands to be unleashed in aeons. And if
ever you needed your faith replaced in the beautifully diverse
monster that is metal, then Mastodon is sure to have you back on your
knees in no time -- in a strictly non-sexual sense, that is.
Metallica - _St Anger_ (Vertigo, 2003)
by: Jackie Smit (7 out of 10)
Before even attempting to listen to Metallica's much-hyped and talked
about "return to form", one needs to clarify for oneself the extent
to which you're willing to overlook their past indiscretions. It's
probably a fair assumption to say that for most people reading this
review, Metallica more or less lost the plot after _...And Justice
for All_. Their infamous self-titled follow-up, while an adequate
record by most fair standards, already failed to come within sniffing
distance of its predecessors, and by the time _Load_ and _Reload_
came into being, Metallica had become everyone's favourite band to
hate. Of course, musical reasons were not the only motivation behind
particularly older fans' growing disdain of the fallen thrash heroes.
The widely publicised legal spat with file-sharing pioneers Napster
was not only regarded as an attack on their fans, but as a clearly
money-hungry behemoth grubbing for yet more of the almighty dollar.
So, enter _St Anger_ -- touted by the mainstream press as a return to
the band's roots, the rediscovery of the _Ride the Lightning_ sound
and a million other promising PR slogans. In the meantime, Lars
Ulrich has stated somewhat suspiciously that he "no longer wants to
be a control freak" and James Hetfield is fresh out of rehab and
clearly more together than ever before. So, are we to believe that
_St Anger_ is indeed any good? Well, the proof is in the listening
and the answer is both yes and no. The reason for my earlier
reference to the listener's capacity for forgiveness is because
however much _St Anger_ kicks dirt in the face of Metallica's
preceding three records, the cynical ex-fan could quite easily find
fault with the album, despite its heavier and faster approach. For
one, the lyrics on the album at times appear to be almost absurdly
immature -- more like a bunch of has-beens attempting to recapture
former glories than a veteran act with a new lease on life. Likewise,
the music, while certainly the heaviest the band has produced since
_...And Justice for All_, at times fails to sound natural and
spontaneous -- a particular symptom of opening track "Frantic".
Despite these complaints however, _St Anger_ is a good, if not great
record. Truly this should have been the sequel to _...And Justice for
All_. As promised, the band have succeeded in taking much of what
made them great in the eighties, given it a contemporary edge and
distilled these elements into a proper heavy metal album. While this
is sure to confound and probably upset a great chunk of their
mainstream-weaned audience, those among us who have longed for them
to show the Linkin Parks and Papa Roaches of this world how it's done
may well have a reason to rejoice.
Misery's Omen - _To Worship Stone Gods_ (Hellflame Productions, 2003)
by: James Montague (9 out of 10)
Here's one for the books -- a killer Australian band that -doesn't-
play in the old-school black/thrash or war metal vein. Misery's Omen
is an ambitious trio from South Australia that plays black metal with
a twist (they call it "Abysmal Dark Progressive Black Metal", and the
music lives up to the self-inflicted hype). Sometimes it will rip
along mercilessly, with the versatile vocalist screaming, growling
and shrieking in falsetto. Other times it will slow down with some
psychedelic melodies and excellent clean bass lines that twist and
cycle, writhing over one another in a way reminiscent of the finest
Greek metal acts like Necromantia, or the Italian gods Mortuary
Drape. Another band that comes to mind is Bethlehem, simply because
of the reckless, wrist-slashing nightmare that this music conjures
up.
_To Worship Stone Gods_ is a 7" EP featuring two 5-6 minute
long pieces, "Antarctic Ice Chasms" and "To Worship Stone
Gods". The former track is closest to pure black metal with
its speed and agression, while the latter is a slower, more
brooding epic with haunting bass melodies. Both songs come with
the highest recommendations, and although this vinyl release was
limited to 500 copies and is now sold out, they also appear
on the band's debut CD, just released on Bindrune Recordings
(http://crionicmind.org/bindrune/). You should definitely seek out
this CD -- it's rare you'll find a new metal band with such a
fine combination of instrumental ability, songwriting nous and
originality.
Contact: http://www.miserysomen.com
Mystic Prophecy - _Regressus_ (Nuclear Blast, 2003)
by: Jackie Smit (6 out of 10)
Aaaah, power metal -- a sub genre as equally easy to poke fun at, as
it is to enjoy in a popcorn-movie sort of way. Quite what made Mystic
Prophecy special enough to capture the attention of the powers that
be at Nuclear Blast is anyone's guess, but whichever way you look at
it, the opening riff to "Eternal Flame" is killer and almost manages
to silence the deafening laughter which is sure to accompany their
many lyrical references to hell, demons, wizards, and "having no time
for regrets". Elsewhere on the record, "Lords of Pain" unleashes an
almost Nevermore-esque guitar cluster-bomb, before dissipating into a
dire mess of predictability. Of course, "The Traveller" (the album's
halfway mark) couldn't ever have been anything but the 'reflective'
acoustic interlude, while the solo on "Forgotten Soul" proves, if
anything, that Mystic Prophecy can at least play their instruments
with greater flair than your average leather-clad gorilla. The
haunting "Regressus - Lost in Time" meanwhile actually manages
to transcend to some extent the trappings of their power metal
prison. The point, however, is that their music is so unashamedly
by-the- numbers that if your tastes veer even slightly toward the
challenging, then _Regressus_ will have you nodding off after
five minutes. They may appeal to fans of testosterone-addled,
fist-in-the-air, (most importantly) overtly masculine metal, but
there's simply not enough successful experimentation and innovation
on offer here to give them an edgeways over the many other power
metal acts vying for your hard- earned right now.
Napalm Death - _Order of the Leech_
by: Jackie Smit (9 out of 10) (Snapper Music / Feto Records, 2002)
Love or hate them, but few can refute the fact that Napalm Death are
one of the most persistent and hard-working death metal bands in the
scene today -- a point hammered home quite bluntly on 2000's
outstanding _Enemy of the Music Business_. _Order of the Leech_ is
the logical sequel to said album: faster, heavier and even more
aggressive, showcasing a band who come across as commendably more
vibrant and alive than probably ever before in their career. Layering
the kind of intelligent socio-political lyrics that would make Jello
Biafra proud over their frenetic deathgrind maelstrom, Napalm ignite
proceedings with "The On-Going War on Stupidity" -- a brilliantly
bludgeoning statement of intent. "Forced to Fear" proves that Napalm
can easily hold their own next to math-metallers like The Dillinger
Escape Plan, and "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" stands out easily as one
of the most aggressive tunes you are likely to hear (possibly) in
your life. Unlike _Enemy of the Music Business_ however, the disc
does have its weaker moments. "Lower Yourself" for instance, while
aiming its assault at a highly deserving British monarchy, is
musically not much more than a semi-coherent mesh of ideas that never
quite manage to gel. Ultimately though, _Order of the Leech_ is
another great album -- a reliably Napalm Death album -- and one which
any fan of the band is bound to lap up.
[Matthias Noll: "If there ever was an extreme metal band that managed
to rise from the dead after several disastrous albums, it has to be
Napalm Death with their amazing _Enemy of the Music Business_.
Fortunately, there are no signs on _Order of the Leech_ that Napalm
Death will ever return to the mosh-core borefests of albums like
_Inside the Torn Apart_. Barney and Co. grind on in a fashion which
is similar to _EotMB_ but sometimes more dissonant and a good deal
crustier and more like late '80s UK hardcore. Comparatively I
find the songwriting on _EotMB_ a lot more interesting, and the
artificial drum sound this time around tends to get on my nerves,
but it's certainly good to see Napalm Death coming forward with an
album that manages to crush a lot of the competition even if it's
just good and not excellent."]
Contact: http://www.enemyofthemusicbusiness.com
Nebel - _Nebel_ (Oaken Shield / Adipocere, 2002)
by: Pedro Azevedo (4 out of 10)
It seems that for every Malleus Maleficarum there has to be a Nebel
-- or rather a bunch of them, unfortunately. This apparently
self-titled release (unless the words "Hymns of Destruction" that
make up the entirety of their booklet are to be taken as the album
title) suffers from a shortcoming of virtually every aspect that
makes Malleus Maleficarum's _Taedium Vitae_ so damn good. The
production is flat, the vocals are unimpressive, the riffs are mostly
uninspired, and the drumming remains monotonous throughout. The below
average production might still have resulted in a cavernous, sinister
sound with some potential, but ultimately the material is too
straightforward, unoriginal and repetitive. Furthermore, the ending
of every song seems to have been lazily chopped off, which is quite
annoying. The band apparently split up after this debut album,
something that is unlikely to be noticed by too many people. Nebel's
35 minute blackened effort isn't utterly terrible, but it pales so
much in comparison to albums such as their labelmates Malleus
Maleficarum's _Taedium Vitae_ that it has to be discarded as just
another unremarkable disc.
Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr
Nile - _In Their Darkened Shrines_ (Relapse Records, 2002)
by: Jackie Smit (9 out of 10)
Nile have become somewhat of an anomaly of late -- a band which by
all rights is too devastatingly brutal to ever be in danger of mass-
acceptance, yet somehow seems to be getting a harder push in the
media than a lot of nu metal acts these days. Perhaps publications
like Kerrang! are trying to mask their bias against death metal by
including a comparatively safe act like Nile in their weekly
regurgitation, but either way, it could well lead to a boom in the
genre of nigh on late eighties proportions, particularly when the
uninitiated realise the genius of _In Their Darkened Shrines_. Where
_Black Seeds of Vengeance_ often eluded perfection by straying into
less than coherent sub-progressive rambling, _In Their Darkened
Shrines_ instantly captures the listener with a more mature and
focused approach, while at the same time blending in several elements
new to the Nile formulae. Of particular note is the swirling overture
of "Unas Slayer of the Gods" -- a lengthy, diverse and powerful
track, which ultimately stands out as the centre-point and highlight
of the recording. Similarly "Sarcophagus", with its slow-thudding
tempo and chugging riff, adds a new dynamic to the album, which
previous Nile releases have lacked up to this point. Far from being
polished and toned-down however, Nile's brutality appears to be in
overdrive on album opener "The Blessed Dead". And while Nile
thrash away mercilessly on their instruments, the Egyptian theme is
ever-present in the form of sampled sounds and epic synths which
complete the band's beautifully grotesque, alluring soundscape. While
I would not go as far as to call _In Their Darkened Shrines_ the
death metal highlight of 2002, it is undoubtedly a worthy purchase --
an album which reveals more of itself with every listen, and stands
as testament to the tremendous amount of talent alive in extreme
music today.
Contact: http://www.nile-catacombs.net
Sepsism - _To Prevail in Disgust_ (Displeased, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (5 out of 10)
I usually do my best to try and find positive aspects about albums,
but some bands make it very hard for me. Sepsism is such a case; I've
tried to listen to _To Prevail in Disgust_ a couple of times now, but
the songs are so uninspiring my attention is drawn to basically
anything happening around me except the music itself. Through a
sloppy and gruff production, we're fed ten songs that have nothing to
add to our death metal catalogues. Except for some interesting song
structures (like in "Soiled With Corruption" and "Advanced Mental
Collapse") the guitar work is standard, drumming is only average and
the vocals aren't worth mentioning. And instead of using original
movie samples we're treated to the same average sound cuts we can
find on any other death/grind album. Instead of _TPiD_ I'd rather
recommend you Cannibal Corpse, The Ravenous or Dying Fetus.
Contact: http://www.sepsism.net
Sindrome - _Severe Damage of Reason and Equilibrium_
by: Pedro Azevedo (7 out of 10) (Independent, 2003)
Newcomers Sindrome clearly take their music very seriously, at
least judging by this EP: complex structures and arrangements form
the basis of their musical creations, although from a technical
perspective things never get really flashy. Sindrome's subtle
complexity stems from an apparent yearning to create music that has
plenty to offer beyond the first few listens, and that is something
they have already achieved to a considerable extent on this debut EP.
Indeed, Sindrome sit pretty high on the evolutionary ladder already,
with a sense of musical layering that is not initially obvious.
Sindrome's closest musical reference is possibly Tool, a band I am
not overly familiar with; either way, the sprawling, atmospheric
compositions are certainly far from being chorus-based or very
metallic. The song structures remain mostly interesting, but the
music tends to feel like it could use some more intensity. The
glowing exception is provided by the instrumental closing track: a
superb, tranquil piano dirge with some vague background noise that
requires no intensity whatsoever. The vocals are generally very
melodic, often effect-laden to the point of coming across as vaguely
synthetic (a couple of times even slightly reminiscent of Cynic),
and merge very well with the guitar work. _Severe Damage of
Reason and Equilibrium_ is certainly an interesting debut EP which,
though somewhat lacking in intensity, shows plenty of potential for
Sindrome.
Contact: http://www.spiralsektor.com
Sinister - _Savage or Grace_ (Nuclear Blast, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (7 out of 10)
Sinister has a long record of getting rated 7 out of 10 by my
colleagues at CoC, with the exception of a 7.5 for their last album.
Although I tend to hold Sinister's _Hate_ album in a somewhat higher
esteem than that, I more or less agree with the conclusion that can
be drawn from this trend: they're definitely not bad, it's just that
they're not that good. With _Savage or Grace_, Sinister continue
nicely along this path. Some of the songs show a slight increase in
technical skill compared to some of the previous albums, but the
(female) vocals tend to blend in with the wall of sound. Almost on
purpose I would say, as if they realize that Rachel isn't the best of
death metal vocalists, but having a female singer is a big asset when
it comes to live performances. Ah well, having seen them live more
than once I can't really blame them for it. _Savage or Grace_ (in its
meager thirty minute glory) is an album that won't conquer any new
souls and remains faithful to the old ones. A safe pick, but
definitely no recommendation.
Contact: http://www.sinistercentral.cjb.net
Solefald - _In Harmonia Universali_ (Century Media, 2003)
by: Pedro Azevedo (8.5 out of 10)
Having released a superb debut album (_The Linear Scaffold_) and a
virtually indigestible follow-up (_Neonism_), Solefald recovered to a
large extent from that faux pas with 2001's relatively simple but
effective _Pills Against the Ageless Ills_. This time we are no
longer treated to the yarns of Pornographer Cain and Philosopher
Fuck (the two characters from _PAtAI_), but you can rest assured
Solefald's creativity is as vibrant and unbridled as ever. Contrary
to what happened in the past, _In Harmonia Universali_ sounds much
like an amalgam of Solefald's previous albums -- with yet more
elements thrown in, of course.
The seven minute long masterful album opener "Nutrisco et Extinguo"
shows that there's often more to describe in a single Solefald song
than in many a band's entire album: starting with Ulver-like
acoustics and whispered Norwegian words that bode well for what's to
come, it also includes brilliantly integrated saxophone segues and an
outstanding doomy section with slow piano, as well as a variety of
riffs, keyboard work and vocal approaches -- and it all makes sense
together. An amazing track, and although this level of consecutive
brilliance is never quite repeated, the first half of the album
remains on a superb quality level most of the time. "Mont Blanc
Providence Crow" harks back to the more rocking _Pills Against the
Ageless Ills_ in fine form; "Christiania (E. Munch Commemoration)"
contributes three different languages (English, French and German)
and some innovative choirs and synths; "Epictetus & Irreversibility"
speaks of dichotomy with its blackening and softening; and "Dionysify
This Night of Spring" contains another catchy chorus and a masterful
mid-section crescendo.
Indeed, _IHU_ moves along extremely well until just over its
midpoint, when track six (the inventive instrumental "Red Music
Diabolos") finishes. At this stage the listener has already been
bombarded with a huge array of musical twists and turns, four
languages, and a multitude of styles and feelings -- only a mere
sample of which is described above. From this instrumental track
onwards, however, the last four tracks (especially "Buy My Sperm")
seem a bit lacklustre compared to the superb first six and end up
dragging the overall rating down a notch. Still, not everything is a
waste on these tracks, with good moments on "Fraternité de la Grande
Lumière" (the doomy mid- section) and "The Liberation of Destiny"
(the occasional fast bits).
As ever before, the listener is likely to often feel teased, and
sometimes even mocked, by the music of this remarkably (over)educated
Norwegian duo. Most of the time the listener will almost certainly
believe he is eating a highly delectable meat roll that Solefald have
carefully prepared, but every now and again he will be forced to
wonder whether what he is eating isn't actually his own brain, finely
chopped and palatably seasoned by the grinning Cornelius and Lazare.
Whichever the case, this is a dish that demands patience and
attention to detail in order to reveal all its hidden flavours,
ultimately offering up some fine rewards to those who persevere.
Solefald remain one of the most unique bands around, and when, in
spite of some inconsistency, they really get it right, they can
achieve great things.
Contact: http://www.solefald.org
Steelglory - _Wayward Sons of the Beast_ (Independent, 2003)
by: Alvin Wee (8 out of 10)
A very welcome surprise from these Singaporean lads still holding the
torch of true metal high; a piece of trad-metal from a country
favouring the extreme black and death styles is always a special
thing. The opening track wastes no time in starting the headbanging:
rooted firmly in the early Metal Blade camp, this anthem bristles
with raw yet melodic riffs, epic singing and blazing leads. Things
continue pretty much in the same vein with uplifting and catchy
choruses, setting feet stomping and fists pounding in a charmingly
unpolished way reminiscent of early Skullview or Gothic Knights.
Great stuff to set any true metaller's blood boiling, marred only by
the occasional wailing of what appears to be the session vocalist,
who manages to carry all the tunes with great effort, but fails
lamentably on the difficult high passages. Still, these boys aren't
afraid to rock out with hummable melodies a la Stormwitch like on
"Lucifer's Path", but in a considerably more American vein ( the '80s
Cleveland / Auburn Records sound comes to mind), and even epic
_Fear of the Dark_-era Maiden references abound on "Apparition
(Spirits Within)". With a little experience and a stronger vocalist,
these warriors should have no problems standing alongside all the
Metalucifers and October 31s of the scene; meanwhile this $6 slab of
steel is highly recommended for all those still loyally keeping the
faith.
Contact: hauntedmelody@hotmail.com
Taliandorogd - _Neverplace_ (Adipocere Records, 2002)
by: Pedro Azevedo (6 out of 10)
This six song, half hour long disc belongs to the ever-growing
class of releases that are not bad at all, but fail to bring
much that is new to the world. Think polished, melodic black
metal; think a somewhat softer Dimmu Borgir with more heavy metal
leanings and guitar solos, and you won't be far off the mark. The
oddly-named Taliandorogd fortunately avoid the more-evil-than-thou
imagery trappings, and stick to creating well played and well
produced melodic black metal. They are unlikely to cause much
impression with this competent if rather indifferent and unoriginal
debut, but nevertheless it does leave the lingering impression that
better things may well come from this band in the future. For the
time being, however, they just about barely escape dismissal as a
Dimmu Borgir clone; they should therefore build on their strengths
and distinctive elements, and work on finding an identity that is
more their own in the future -- so that the follow-up to the
reasonably promising material on _Neverplace_ won't end up in the
second-rate-clones bin like their labelmates Destinity.
Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr
The Haunted - _One Kill Wonder_ (Earache, 2003)
by: Adam Lineker (8.5 out of 10)
Ambient snarls of distorted metal drill into your psyche before the
introductory bludgeon of "Privation of Faith Inc." erupts from the
speakers, confirming your suspicion that The Haunted have become just
that little bit darker. The first track proper "Godpuppet" is a
chaotic and violent mining of the traditional thrash vein, with some
of the most blistering riffs the band have recorded since "Undead".
_One Kill Wonder_ is also the heaviest record that The Haunted have
released so far. Aside from the production, the major perpetrator of
this new found brutality is vocalist Marco Aro, who delivers a far
more assured performance than his debut on 2000's _The Haunted Made
Me Do It_ opus. The frontman's voice has become thicker and more
powerful since he first joined The Haunted and he dominates this
record, asserting merciless authority over the deep and aggressive
music.
"Shadow World" is one of the best tracks The Haunted have ever put
their name to: a melodic and infectious work that has potential for
'classic' status track. "Everlasting" is a more thrash orientated
piece of violence, burning with choice riffwork and malevolence,
before the second peak of the album arrives to the sound of marching
feet. "DOA" recalls the ending motif from "Forensick" (_The Haunted_,
1998) and is a masterpiece of musical intensity; it also is another
reminder of how Marco Aro has transformed from Pete Dolving-
worshipping hopeful into one of extreme metal's finest singers. With
an irresistible chorus and an excellent development section, the
piece ends in a cataclysm of duelling lead tremolos that merge into
the wail of an air raid siren, leaving a disturbing pause before
"Demon Eyes" kicks in. The first moment of respite from the
onslaught, the instrumental is a rather average affair. With little
virtuosity to impress us, this is something of an interval before the
carnage continues.
Although the tracks are solid and the musicianship high, the thrash
engine loses a little steam (going into downward spiral) for a couple
of tracks until the opening riff of "Shithead" bites in and pulls
things back up again. "Bloodletting" is a change of pace, an
insidious barrage of grooving riffage held together by Per Moller
Jensen's drumming. As the music surges in and out, we are treated to
the lead interplay of Anders Bjorler and guest Michael Amott (Arch
Enemy, Spiritual Beggars, formerly of Carcass). The album closes with
the title track providing an exciting but all too brief full stop.
_One Kill Wonder_ is a strong work, displaying all the talent of one
of metal's finest bands. As a devout fan, I feel that a couple of
tracks are a little bit Haunted-by-numbers; although a few more
wouldn't have gone a miss. Yet this is still one of the best records
I have heard all year; I am deeply sorry to break the straight run of
nines awarded by CoC in the past -- don't let it put you off!
The Human Condition - _The Human Condition_ (Independent, 2003)
by: Adrian Magers (5 out of 10)
Former Sacred Reich guitarist Wiley Arnett has resurfaced in the
metal world with The Human Condition, a kind of bare-bones,
four-piece, rock metal band. Chances are, some Sacred Reich fans
might be into this, but THC isn't quite as aggressive as Arnett's
former band. Rather, on their debut offering (in the form of a short
four-song EP) they exhibit a slightly more "bar band" quality.
Unfortunately this tends to dull the songs a bit, and little stands
out. The solos are excellent, but always seem to come at predictable
times. Overall, though executed with a lot of passion, The Human
Condition lacks a strong identity. With Arnett's technical prowess
and skill, and the ambition that these four obviously exhibit, it
won't take too much for them to put out a hell of a full length when
the time comes. However, until then, there's definitely room for
improvement.
Contact: http://www.thehumancondition.us
Tomahawk - _Mit Gas_ (IPECAC, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (6.5 out of 10
)
Being a big fan of Tomahawk's self-titled debut album, my
anticipation rose higher and higher the closer this follow-up came to
its release date. Now, after a dozen listens, I have to admit I'm a
bit disappointed. Well, quite a bit disappointed, really. It's hard
to point out where it all goes wrong for me, but I can't shake off
the impression that Mike Patton's vision is becoming blurred trying
to divide his attention between all the different projects he's
involved with. I'm not claiming there are bad songs on _Mit Gas_:
"Rape This Day" is a happy twisted punk-tale, "You Can't Win" a
Zappa-esque surfish song, "Rotgut" and "When the Stars Begin to Fall"
could've been left-overs of the debut, while "Captain Midnight" is
turned into an electro-ballad, "Desastre Natural" a Mexican waltz...
On paper, it's the ideal Tomahawk album mixing fucked up ingredients
into fucked up songs. But somewhere along the way Mike Patton has
lost his track of the red line that's supposed to run through the
album, connecting it all together. Without it, _Mit Gas_ sounds like
a bunch of blanks shot by someone who doesn't know what he's aiming
at. Memorable songs that stick in your head after the album has been
played are sparse, which is a shame because all the Tomahawk members
are top-quality musicians. Anyway, _Mit Gas_ will find its way to the
fans. Undoubtedly, many will not feel the same mixed emotions I do,
but in all honesty, I'm hoping a third Tomahawk album will be able to
truly surprise me once more.
Contact: http://www.ipecac.com
Unsanctum - _Ignite the Skies_ (Cacophonous / Visible Noise, 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (6.5 out of 10)
UK's Unsanctum is a relatively fresh and young band (with an average
age of around 17), having existed for a mere two years and with one
demo to their name. They did however manage to get picked up by
Cacophonous, who gave the band the opportunity to record _Ignite The
Skies_ at Necrodeath studios. A crusade against pop music, _ItS_
features a mix between death metal, black metal and some hardcore
elements -- they call it deathcore. For eleven tracks we're exposed
to average guitar and bass playing and interesting drumming. It's a
shame, however, that the vocals have such a bland sound in the mix. I
can't honestly say that I'm a big fan of Unsanctum's screeching vocal
style, but on _ItS_ the vocals seem to be detached from the rest of
the music, creating a vocal layer with very limited use of the
frequencies. Halfway through the album you either manage to block out
the vocals and enjoy the music, or the vocals start annoying you too
much to keep listening to the album. A shame, and hopefully their
next attempt will be better than this.
Zao - _All Else Failed_ (Solid State (re-release), 2003)
by: Xander Hoose (7 out of 10)
Not having heard the original _All Else Failed_ record, it's hard for
me to delve very deep in the differences between the original and
this re-recording of their 1995 album. Why a band would completely
re- record one of their own albums is still a big question to me, but
nonetheless Zao did it and this is the result. Objectively, _All Else
Failed_ is a very good mix between metalcore and black metal
influences. Songs are atmospheric, tight, catchy and it's obvious all
the musicians are very skilled. However, there's too much midtempo
riffing on the album, making some of the songs drag on towards their
end, which is a shame. A little more variation wouldn't have hurt
here, and a good example of a band who operates in this exact same
style while keeping a better eye on diversity is Shogun (now
defunct, unfortunately). Even through Zao is obviously more skilled
technically than Shogun, the latter manage to keep their songs more
interesting; if it wasn't for Zao's excellent closing song "All Else
Failed" I doubt many people would remember how the album ended.
Another curious fact is the omission of two tracks that were present
on the original _All Else Failed_ album, "In These Times of Silence"
and "Simple Reminder", making this not just a re-recording but an
incomplete re- recording. Strange. Still, this album is a good pick
for both Zao fans and metalcore fans in general if you see through
the flaws.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
__, __, _, _ _, _,
| \ |_ |\/| / \ (_
|_/ | | | \ / , )
~ ~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~
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
Born of Thorns - _The Encounter of Light and Dark_
by: Adrian Magers (4.5 out of 5)
Symphonic black metallers Born of Thorns have slowly been carving
their mark deeper and deeper into Finland over the last few years,
and also appeared on the recent Cradle of Filth tribute _Covered in
Filth_, on which they contributed the standout track -- a faithful
rendition of "To Eve the Art of Witchcraft". However, once one
introduces himself to Born of Thorns' other material he soon realizes
the band's full talents. They compose metal that is beautiful,
melodic, dramatic, and is put together in a very grandiose manner.
Their biggest strength lies in their transitions; the songs are
structured perfectly. The one complaint I can think of is length, as
there are only three songs ("The Encounter", "Of Light", "And Dark")
on this demo EP totaling under 20 minutes of material. But the CD
serves its purpose, as I'm definitely craving more Born of Thorns.
_The Encounter of Light and Dark_ was recently picked up and re-
distributed by Oak Knoll Productions, so think of this as a second
chance to pick up some top-notch melodic black metal.
Contact: http://www.bornofthorns.com
Enormity - _Inherent Enslaver_
by: Adrian Magers (3.5 out of 5)
_Inherent Enslaver_ wastes no time getting started. Enormity put on
display some great riffs in the opening track "Better Without
Reserve" and stay consistent throughout the four tracks on a quite
impressive demo. If I were to play devil's advocate I could nitpick
that the band's treading on familiar territory, but it's hard to
argue with the deadly guitar lines on this CD. Enormity dabbles in a
few different areas in the realm of melodic death/black, leaning
mainly towards the death side, and taking heavy influence from the
older Gothenburg artists. There are a few blackened moments -- most
notably Jani Nistaken's vocals, which most closely resemble those of
Shagrath, but overall are recognizable in their own regard. The songs
are to the point, all around just over three minutes. Enormity
utilize a formula that, when done right, can keep a listener
interested in songs twice that length, but apparently they've decided
to take a less predictable route, thus sharpening their songs to
bite-size pieces of crushing melodies and lead-inspired twin guitar
interplay that beg to be played over and over.
Contact: http://www.enormityband.cjb.net
Forcefield - _Casualty_
by: Jackie Smit (1.5 out of 5)
The first Forcefield effort to be brought to my attention may have a
far superior sound to most of the many demos I had under scrutiny
during the past few years, but did a three year-old come up with the
main riff to "Afterlife", the disc's opening track? Two (count 'em)
notes repeated in what makes Korn sound like Dillinger Escape Plan,
and just when things seem ready to kick into gear, the band pour
sulphuric acid on their thrash/death attempt with one of the worst
attempts at funk/rapping I have ever heard in my life. While this may
still have been somewhat understandable coming from a group of
overzealous third world youths, Forcefield's bio leads me to believe
that they have been active in music since the early nineties. No
surprise then that they have yet to be paid attention by any labels
of note. The title track fares a bit better than its predecessor, but
the band still persist on incorporating the most ludicrous of nu
metal clichés at the most inopportune times -- never mind the fact
that their primary style is actually quite old school. "Morning
Booze" rounds out the three song collection and its dire subject
matter pretty much suits the quality of the song. I'd hate to sound
nasty, but this is one of those times where my only advice to
Forcefield would be to get back to the drawing board in a hurry.
Contact: http://www.forcefield.tmfweb.nl
Pitbulls in the Nursery - _Impact_
by: Pedro Azevedo (3.5 out of 5)
Armed with the kind of name that will spark curiousity in some people
as to their sound, Pitbulls in the Nursery aim for the throat with
their first demo CD. However, _Impact_ doesn't quite make the kind of
damage one might imagine from their name -- at least in the sense
that the onslaught here is a lot less frantic. Pitbulls in the
Nursery are essentially a groovy death metal band with a Chris Barnes
doppelganger on vocals; rather than an all-out hyperblast death
metal machine set to unleash bloody chaos. Their sound does have
considerable "impact" though, with a production that emphasizes
the low-end frequencies nicely and comes across as very adequate
considering this is just a demo. PitN's approach is based on
percussive riffs and rhythmic hooks rather than melodic leads,
resulting in a very American-sounding concoction. Again as their name
might suggest, the music is hardly very cerebral, but it does remain
tight, reasonably involved and entertaining despite its lack of
originality. Overall, apart from the unusual band name, _Impact_ is a
very competent, albeit not extraordinary, death metal demo.
Contact: http://pitn.free.fr
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THE WORLD OV WORMS DESCENDS ON LONDON
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zyklon, Myrkskog, Reign of Erebus and Void
@ London Camden Underworld, 6 June 2003
by: Jackie Smit
Before I begin this review, I feel that I should clarify an important
point from my perspective. Living in the British capital has afforded
me the opportunity to see several live acts, and with greater
frequency, I find myself agreeing with Mr Kerry King's opinion that
there's more to a stage performance than simply playing your band's
music. Regardless of how good a band might sound on disc, or how
technically proficient songs are rendered to the audience, the keys
to the success of the group's set lie in the outfit's ability to
communicate with and to the audience, the band's conviction, attitude
and enthusiasm for their work. Having attended upwards of thirty gigs
in the past twelve months, I find that in this sense the Americans
seem to generally have the edge over their European counterparts in a
big way. Where Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Nile and Immolation simply
resonate with visceral on-stage intensity and consistently create an
atmosphere of excitement throughout their shows, the same can not be
said of bands like Samael, Sinister or unfortunately in tonight's
case Zyklon and Myrkskog.
Opening acts are pretty much always set for a rough ride,
particularly when they are the lead-in for two bands as eagerly
anticipated by an audience as tonight's main attractions. However at
the same time an opening slot of this profile can provide an
excellent platform for a band to win over many new fans. Too bad
then, that nobody seems to have told this to industrial black
metallers Void -- the first act to take to the Underworld stage this
evening. With beats and samples provided by a very nonchalant looking
character standing behind a fully set up PC, the band already lack
the dynamic of a live drummer and don't seem motivated to launch a
plausible attempt to compensate for this. While both the guitarist
and bassist at times indulge the audience with the odd bout of
headbanging, it is the vocalist who pours acid all over the band's
performance. Either drunk or stoned and utterly disinterested, he
treats the audience with a veritable sense of contempt. Never once
even thanking the few members of the crowd who do applaud, he flays
himself around in a distinctly patronizing fashion in between vocal
sections and storms off stage halfway through the final song. The
reason for this is quite unapparent, because even though Void suffer
from the odd sound gremlin it certainly isn't comparable to some of
the acoustic disasters the Camden Underworld has been host to in the
past. Now were their actual music any good, this unprofessional and
frankly disgusting display would not have bothered me so much; but
for the most part every song just sounds like an incoherent,
pretentious mess. I have seen some shoddy opening acts in my time,
but Void are possibly the biggest pile of shit to ever darken a bill
with their presence.
With both their _Superior Massacre_ and _Deathmachine_ records being
current favourites of mine, things look set to get much, much better
when Norway's Myrkskog hit the stage. While playing as a three piece
diminishes their stage presence somewhat, they do a great job of
recreating their hellish noise on stage. The problem is that in
between songs, both front man and bassist retire to the rear area of
the stage and spend easily thirty seconds to a minute talking to each
other and taking swigs of water. Now, I certainly don't begrudge them
a bit of liquid refreshment (Lord knows, they probably need it), but
when this happens after every song, it starts to feel more like
you're watching a rehearsal as opposed to an actual performance, and
ironically -- seeing as how Myrkskog drummer Secthdamon fronts them
-- the same problem will hamper Zyklon's set later on. On the bright
side, "Domain of the Superior" and "Bleeding Wrists" sound fantastic,
and although Myrkskog's constant 1000 BPM sometimes makes them sound
a bit one dimensional, they at least seem excited to actually be on
stage.
I'm not sure why I was initially a bit sceptic about Reign of Erebus,
but they turn out to be the highlight of the evening. Not being
particularly familiar with any of the their material, their furious,
aggressive and raw black metal assault is made all the more enjoyable
by the fact that the band seem literally overjoyed to have been
included on the evening's bill. For the duration of their thirty
minute set, they give their absolute all -- to the extent that I find
myself genuinely sorry for the vocalist when his microphone cuts out
during a storming rendition of what I'm led to believe is a new
track. In fine style (and unlike Void before them) their sheer
determination simply bulldozes through this proverbial roadblock.
It's almost a shame to hear them announce their last song for the
evening, but one thing is for sure -- Immortal, Marduk and others of
their ilk had better start looking over their shoulders.
With their forthcoming sophomore opus, _Aeon_, looming on the
horizon, tonight is the perfect opportunity for Zyklon to not only
show off their new front man, Secthdamon, to a rabid English
audience, but also stir up some valuable word of mouth for their
upcoming record. They succeed admirably in both respects, but like
Myrkskog they have yet to master the art of connecting properly with
an audience. On the bright side, Secthdamon's vastly superior vocal
range adds a whole new dynamic to Zyklon's already impressive veneer
and new tracks like "Psyklon Aeon" and "Core Solution" sound
fantastic. Ex-Emperor man Zamoth towers over the left of the stage,
leering at the audience and overseeing the chaos spewed forth by
his new proteges, his previous highly-acclaimed musical endeavours
clearly awarding him a level of charisma far above that of his
bandmates. But despite excellent performances of "Chaos Deathkult",
"Transcendental War" and a rapturously received rendition of "I Am
the Black Wizards", it still feels like Zyklon should have offered
more. And when they conclude their set after just forty five minutes,
one can't help but feel even more saddened at the thought of
Emperor's demise.
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MARCO ARO DANCES FOR THE CAT PEOPLE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Haunted, Stampin' Ground and December
at the Glasgow Cathouse, February 28th 2003
by: Adam Lineker
Sometimes a journalist really appreciates his privileges. Upon
arrival at the Cathouse I am greeted with one of the larger queues of
metallers I have ever seen. At the door one learns that this
multitude of blackened, spiky figures waits in line for the eight
remaining tickets. It would seem that word has spread about the
majesty of The Haunted and most of the Glasgow scene want to know
what all of the fuss is about. Once through the doors, I don't look
back.
With the venue jammed to the rafters, December are welcomed by an
expectant and buzzing audience. One of the more un-uniform bands I
have witnessed, December perform adequately. The band would seem to
have quite a 'no-frills' approach to slamming out their death metal
and this strikes a chord with the audience, who remain attentive
throughout. When not casually addressing the throng in an American
drawl, the bespectacled vocalist lurches between deep guttural roars
and dog-bothering screeches, never failing to cut through the noise
and grate on your brain. The rest of the band perform tightly and
efficiently, and although somewhat linear in style, December are
blessed with a strong sound and good form. Their presence on this
bill seems appropriate.
With the foundations firmly laid, Stampin' Ground are left to take
the evening to the next level, which they do in style. Delivering an
inspired and energetic performance, one could be forgiven for
believing they are the headliners; in their own words, "for the next
forty minutes, this is Stampin' Ground's time". Sinewy vocalist Adam
Frakes-Sime is truly at ease in the heated and claustrophobic
environment, taking great delight in exchanging banter with a mock-
patriotic Scottish audience. Spending as much time in or on the crowd
as on stage (as per usual), the frontman's efforts provoke one of the
most joyous and chaotic moshes I've ever had to escape from. With the
bouncing riffs and thumping hardcore grooves matched by the pogo-ing
guitarists, the band seem almost synchronised with the beat. Special
mention must go to bassist Ian Glasper, who commands a zen-like
presence through his musical and physical performance. Incorporating
much of their most effective material and stylistic trademarks,
Stampin' Ground are truly awesome. As the show climaxes with Frakes-
Sime splitting the crowd in two and smashing them together, one is
left wondering how The Haunted can possibly top the evening. If
anything, this proves exactly how caught up in the moment I was.
As a devout fan of the headliners, I should have known that tonight's
performance was going to be no less than excellent. Yet, in truth, it
is far from merely excellent; it is a phenomenal, almost revelatory
experience. From the moment guitarist Jensen strolls onstage to the
furious ending rendition of Hate Song, The Haunted maintain a
crescendo that begins with awe and ends in euphoria. Blending the
strongest material from new opus _One Kill Wonder_ with an abundance
of older favourites, The Haunted seem nothing short of titanic as
they thrash out songs like "Chasm", "D.O.A." and the anthemic "In
Vein". Oft regarded as the modern Slayer, the band show exactly why
they possess such a title with a display of musicianship and
solidarity that defies belief. Marco Aro seems to take particular
(and peculiar) satisfaction from the fact that he is playing at The
Cathouse, meowing at the girls in the audience before "Hollow Ground"
and inexplicably skanking like Michael Jackson, but aside from these
bizarre moments of japery he holds an unquestionable presence on the
stage, delivering his vocals with confident power and ferocity. The
intricate lead interplay between Jensen and Anders Bjorler is
flawless and thankfully well supported by the sound; one should
expect so as producer Frederik Nordstrom is seen lurking behind the
onstage equipment. Underneath the axemanship of these two virtuosos
thumps the rhythm section of Jonas Bjorler and Per Moller Jensen, who
efficiently keep the reigns taught and still find space to pull off
blinding fills. As the band close their set it seems believable that
they are able to put the ghost of At the Gates to rest; in response
to shouted requests, Marco Aro distractedly replies with "C'mon Guys,
that band aren't around anymore". One can only commend them for
this; tonight is theirs and they know it. Grinning appreciatively
throughout and lovingly praising the ecstatic audience, The Haunted
remind everyone present just why they fell in love with metal in the
first place. As the lights come up, there is a triumphant smile on
every face in the building -- including the Bjorler twins.
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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 #63
All contents copyright (c) 1995-2003 by individual creators of
included work. All rights reserved.
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