Albums Worth Checking Out: January 2013
So after a year of writing about music on my blog, I’ve learned one important thing: nobody really cares about music reviews. It’s just a sad fact, man…if somebody wants to know if a record is good, they’ll pull it up on Spotify or iTunes and listen for themselves, they don’t need a ten paragraph review describing the essence of the album for em. With that being said, the real challenge is finding new music that’s even worth listening to on the internet. Therefore, I’ve revamped my monthly reviews column to just spotlight the best records released each month. All but two of these albums (Holy Grail and Gruesome Stuff Relish) are located on Spotify, and all albums are completely worth your time if you like heavy music.
Voivod – Target Earth
Next to Metallica, Voivod is one of the first thrash bands I ever fell in love with. Target Earth is their first album ever without original guitarist Denis “Piggy” D’Amour, as well as their first in over twenty years to feature original bassist Blacky. Despite having a new guitarist, the sound on this album is exactly what you’d expect to hear in a Voivod record. It’s got the sci-fi thrash elements from Killing Technology, as well as the groovier elements of albums like Dimension Hatross, in fact, you could really just say that it’s a perfect mixture of the many different styles of Voivod. This was definitely my most anticipated album of the year and it did not disappoint at all.
Cult Of Luna – Vertikal
I got into Cult Of Luna right around 2006 when their album Somewhere Along The Highway came out and they completely blew my mind. Here we are six or seven years later and they still have me scratching my head, shocked at how genuinely awesome they are. Vertikal continues to tread down the post metal path they helped create with Isis and Neurosis, but it also goes a lot deeper than just the standard Cult Of Neurisis riffs. The album actually has a strange, almost robotic feel to it at times. In fact, check out the eighteen minute track “Vicarious Redemption” which features a pretty massive dubstepesque breakdown in the middle that just disintegrates the mind. I fully intended on just reviewing this album after listening to it on Spotify a few times, but after hearing all the nuances in it and how deep and dark it is, I really had no choice but to buy the record and let it do with me what it wilt.
Hatebreed – The Divinity Of Purpose
If you’ve heard of Hatebreed, you obviously don’t need to read this review to find out what this record sounds like. Like almost every other Hatebreed album, Divinity Of Purpose features a punishing mixture of hardcore and thrash, but what separates it a little from past albums in their discography is the addition of catchier hooks, as well as more hardcore influence than past records. The album also features incredibly uplifting, positive lyrics that will brighten up the day of even the hardest of hardcore kids in Terror shorts.
Phil Anselmo/Warbeast – War Of The Gargantuas Split EP
I was initially psyched about hearing this split, because it features the debut of Phil Anselmo’s solo material. In hindsight, it’s kind of a bummer now because it’s gotten me even more psyched for Phil’s actual full length, but it won’t be out for a few more months. Musically, these songs seem to be very similar to what Pantera would sound like if they were able to record an album in 2013. Phil’s two songs “Conflict” and “Family, Friends are loaded with a lot of groove, but plenty of thrash as well, not to mention Phil’s signature vocal style, which is similar to his vocals on the new Down EP. If these songs are any indication of what Phil has in store for the future, the future is bright…and angry. As far as the Warbeast songs go, they are two throwaway songs featuring an old lineup, so they aren’t exactly standout tracks, but they don’t ruin the album by any means.
Blockheads – This World Is Dead
It seems that if there’s one genre in which the folks at Relapse Records never release a dud, it would be grindcore. This is Blockheads’ first album for Relapse, but these French speed-demons are veterans of the genre and they are completely deadly. If you like your grind to be angry, politically-charged and incredibly reminiscent of Nasum, this album is right up your alley.
Rotten Sound – Species At War
Most of what I said about Blockheads is also true for Rotten Sound. They are another example of the incredibly violent, technically proficient grindcore Relapse has been known to crank out over the years. Though this album only contains six songs, none of which are over two minutes, it is still heavy as hell with a nice death metal guitar tone and it absolutely crushes.
Holy Grail – Ride The Void
It seems that any band who plays heavy metal these days always gets thrown into their own little sub-genre. Holy Grail is a band who doesn’t really fall under any category but “heavy metal”. Their sound consists of straight forward, fast-paced riffs with power metalesque vocals and insanely catchy hooks. In fact, in my opinion, “Bestia Triumphans” reminds me of what Avenged Sevenfold would have ended up sounding like if they had never given up on making real heavy metal.
Newsted – Metal EP
This is the new solo project from the former bassist of such thrash icons as Metallica, Voivod and Flotsam and Jetsam, Mr. Jason Newsted. I didn’t know what to expect from an album featuring Jason doing most of the songwriting, but as it turns out, this record is pretty cool. I mean, it’s not really extreme metal or anything, but it’s got elements of thrash as well as straight up hard rock mixed that give it a very Motorheadian vibe. Though this album isn’t exactly perfect, it shows that Newsted is definitely in a good place creatively and I anticipate that the material on his forthcoming solo full length will be as good as most of these songs, if not better.
Denouncement Pyre – Almighty Arcanum
It seems that in the internet age of 2013, everyone and their mother has a black metal project. The problem is, most of those bands are kind of pretentious and lose the point of the genre. Denouncement Pyre are a band who obviously understands what the genre stands for, however, they also clearly understand that black metal is a genre that sounds best when its razor-sharp, insanely evil riffs collide head first with the brutal tone, groove and aesthetic of death metal. I’ve honestly gotten tired of quite a bit of the black metal coming out these days, but this album is one that I haven’t once had the urge to turn off before it’s over and it never actually gets boring.
Gruesome Stuff Relish – Sempiternal Death Grind
First off, I know what you’re thinking and I feel I am asking the same question…”what the hell is a Gruesome Stuff Relish?!”. Though I’m not sure what their name means, or even what the word “Sempiternal” means, I do know that these guys are a straight-up monstrous Spanish goregrind band. Their lyrics are all based on horror movies and their music is very similar to their Spanish goregrind neighbors in Haemorrhage. These guys obviously know their way around a Carcass riff or two, but they don’t really rip them off so much ass they make them incredibly brutal. This is definitely not the kind of band you put on for serious moments of reflection, it’s just wild, crazy, brutla goregrind.
Guest Post: Deftones – Koi No Yokan Review
There aren’t many bands that I like so much, that I celebrate their entire discographies. One of those bands, however, is Deftones. They are a band I’ve loved since high school, and every one of their albums is special to me for one reason or another. There is one person I know who enjoys them more than me, however, he is my friend Brandon Griffin. He is also the singer of a local Deftones cover band called White Pony, who will hopefully be having shows again soon. Please enjoy his review of the new Deftones record, and if you want to submit reviews for my site, please contact me on Facebook.
Deftones “Koi No Yokan”
Rating: 4/5
By Brandon Griffin
Deftones return after the release of 2010′s Diamond Eyes with their seventh studio album, entitled Koi No Yokan. An entry into their catalog that is a departure from their previous efforts, yet somehow familiar; redefining the band itself and the genre. It is quite evident now that this band has no intentions of stopping or looking back; only evolving and moving forward. It’s the band’s second album with fill-in bassist Sergio Vega. The album’s Japanese title is unlike the sense of “love at first sight”; rather Koi No Yokan refers to “the sense of meeting someone for the first time, and knowing that the two of you will fall in love eventually.”
That being said, right out the gate Koi kicks off with the bouncy “Swerve City” as Chino croons “She breaks her horses, with distant voices.. that travel through the air!” As Stephen hammers away with a rolling riff that has your head nodding immediately. This track is the best opener the band has presented us with since “Feiticeira” from White Pony. In the haunting track “Romantic Dreams”; we hear the band experiment with unique song structure, deep layers, and odd-time signatures. Moving all throughout the album, the band demonstrates their heavy nature with tracks such as “Poltergeist”, “Gauze”, & “Goon Squad” which are all relentlessly aggressive, and down right raw & dirty. Then songs such as “Entombed”, “Tempest”, & “Rosemary” are simply gorgeous, murky, warm, and full of emotion. These songs show the Deftones in a new light and that they are very versatile in their song writing.
Koi No Yokan is simply an evolutionary step in their ever growing sound. Sonically this album is brilliant. Frank Delgado’s synth creeps through while Stephen’s 8-string pounds away, and Chino’s vocals sound better than ever before. It’s hard to compare one Deftones album to another, they’re all unique in their own way; yet they are still Deftones. Does that make sense? This is a band that has some how, in their 24 year career, managed to stay relatively away from the mainstream; but yet consistently crank out great solid albums and keep a massively dedicated fan-base. This one is to no exception.
Dare I say Koi No Yokan may be the band’s most cohesive piece of work to date. It is lush, haunting, beautiful, angry, melodic, and heavy in all of the right places. Koi No Yokan flows gracefully from one track to the next, unrelentingly; until it all comes full circle with the soothing closer “What Happened to You?”. A beautiful tune that really smooths everything out, like a peaceful shoreline. This is Deftones’ atmospheric magnum opus. There’s definitely something for everyone on this album. I feel that Koi No Yokan will pull you in; whether you’re a new fan, old, or first time listener.
Record Reviews: New Releases from October
With all of the great albums that have come out this year, it really appears that October definitely wins the award of best month for metal. With this review column, I wanted to touch on a few of my favorite albums of the month, in fact, I can guarantee you that all of these will be on my favorite albums of the year list. Also, keep in mind, this is the 99th post I’ve made on this blog, which means the next will be number 100, something I’m very excited about. Stay tuned to find out what post number 100 has in store.
Neurosis – Honor Found In Decay
Neurosis is a band that continues to reinvent themselves more and more with each album. Honor Found In Decay is their tenth studio album, yet it sounds like no album before it. To prove this theory, I listened to their entire discography including Honor; the closest it came to any previous album were on parts of Times Of Grace, and a few tracks on Eye of Every Storm. The album features plenty of their signatures, particularly crushing riffs combined with beautiful interludes, as well as the devastating vocal duo of Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till trading apocalyptic roars. One element on the album that I think has been lacking on the past few Neurosis records, however, is a cohesiveness that keeps the album from getting boring. On past Neurosis albums, specifically on Eye Of Every Storm and Given To The Rising, there were moments where the songs wander off and get a tad boring. On Honor, however, the songs are catchier, and they have more of those signature moments that make Through Silver In Blood and Times Of Grace so legendary. Needless to say, though it sounds quite different from past records, Honor Found In Decay sounds like a Neurosis album without question and it works perfectly in the grand scheme of what they’re trying to achieve. It’s also one of the best albums you’ll hear all year.
Converge – All We Love We Leave Behind
Obviously, there of plenty of bands who keep getting better and better with age, but in my opinion, there are two bands in the metal community that are the most glowing examples of this. One of those bands is Napalm Death, but the other, in my opinion is Converge. Their 2001 masterpiece Jane Doe has been heralded as one of the best ever; however, it appears that with each new album, they improve more on its blueprint. With All We Love We Leave Behind, Converge have returned once again, and showcased just how good they really are at their craft. This album has everything you look for in a Converge album, specifically the fast, punishing rhythms courtesy of Nate Newton and Kurt Ballou, as well as the rapid fire drum cadences of Ben Koller, but in my opinion, however, it’s much angrier than their past few albums and reminds me a lot of You Fail Me. Converge are a band I’ve always admired for their D.I.Y. approach, and revered for their bonecrushing, angry, intensely heavy songs, and All We Love We Leave Behind is another awesome record for fans to add to their collection between Coliseum and Coroner.
Pig Destroyer – Book Burner
After the release of 2007’s mind-number opus Phantom Limb, it seems that Pig Destroyer’s Book Burner has been everyone’s most anticipated metal album each year since 2007. The album has finally come out and it definitely doesn’t disappoint, in fact, it may be better than Phantom Limb. Pig Destroyer’s main strength is their ability to write incredibly catchy grindcore songs, yet still make them go 120 mph. Other than Scott Hull’s never-ending supply of awesome riffs, the real aspect of this album that I enjoy is the drumming by Adam Jarvis of Misery Index. His excellence behind the kit is most on display on tracks like “Iron Drunk” and “Baltimore Strangler” which feature drum fills just as dizzying as anything heard on a Misery Index album. Other than writing a lot of fast grindcore riffs that have catchy hooks, the album also features plenty of riffs that are designed just for moshing, specifically on “Valley Of The Guysers” and “The Diplomat”. In my opinion, this really is one of the most important metal releases of the year thanks to it’s blistering speed and Scott Hull’s incredibly creative riffs that stay with you all day long and pound away at your sanity.
The Sword – Apocryphon
The Sword is a band that can only be described as vintage. Everything about their style is a throwback to a previous era; whether it be their sci-fi riff rock, or their Lovecraftian album covers, these guys showcase a love of those that came before. Apocryphon is their first album for Razor & Tie and though it demonstrates their love of all things ZZ Top, it also hints slightly at the songwriting from their first older material. This album features a lot of bad ass southern rock riffs and is perfect to listen to while drinking, or doing lines off of a loose woman while going 120 down a desert road. Many fans criticized their last album Warp Riders for being more commercial than previous material, but it appears that on Apocryphon they took the elements that made Warp Riders good, and tweaked it just a bit. One of the highlights of the album for me is the incredible synth on the song “Apocryphon” as well as its incredible chugging main riff. If you like your metal full of solos, soaked in bong water, and reminiscent of Thin Lizzy’s heyday, The Sword are definitely your new favorite band.
Enslaved – RIITIIR
Enslaved are certainly one of the more interesting black metal bands you’ll ever hear, mostly because they are a band who’s constantly changing and improving their sound. RIITIIR is their twelfth album, yet it sounds like nothing in their discography. Sure, the scathing, demonical growls from Ruun and Vertebrae are present, however, the beautiful, clean vocals that made Axioma Ethica Odini so incredible are also back. The most important aspect of this album, and any album with horrifyingly nasty growls and beautiful clean vocals, is allowing them to play perfectly off of each other. On RIITIIR, vocalist Grutle Kjellson puts on the vocal performance of his life, particularly on the track “Roots Of The Mountain”. Musically, the album has some black metal elements, but the real magic at work here is their prog influence. Though they sound like newer Opeth at times, they continue to forge a sound that’s incredibly unique in the way it meshes the violent heavy parts, and the expansive prog parts that would make the perfect soundtrack to a mountain climb. If you’re a fan of incredibly expansive black metal, or an Enslaved fan in general, I think there’s no chance this album will leave you disappointed
A Life Once Lost – Ecstatic Trance
There are very few things in life that I regret, however, there is one thing that I regret tremendously. I had tickets to the inaugural “Sounds Of The Underground” fest in 2005 featuring bands like High On Fire, Opeth, and Strapping Young Lad, but unfortunately, I arrived late and missed the opening band. That band happened to be A Life Once Lost. Since the release of their 2005 album “Hunter”, I’ve been very interested in this band, and though I was disappointed with their 2007 album Iron Gag, I feel that with Ecstatic Trance, they are back on target. The one thing that describes A Life Once Lost’s sound is groove. They have more groove than a 1,000,000 square foot record store featuring only albums by Meshuggah and Prong. On Ecstatic Trance, that groove takes the stage in the form of some very Meshuggah-esque riffing, but every time they work on the same groovy riff for a while, it’s accompanied by some incredible soloing courtesy of one of the bands two found members, Snake Sustaine. This album has its metalcore moments, but mostly it’s solid grooves accompanied by guitar solos, and though it’s not as good as Hunter, it’s definitely a good push back in the right direction.
Record Reviews: New Releases from September Pt 2
I’ve been quite busy lately, thus it’s been hard to find the time for reviews. I know it’s a little late to be posting about my other favorite albums from September, but there’s some great stuff here that’s worthy of your time. The cool thing is…as great as September was, October is going to be better!
Down – IV Part 1 – The Purple EP
Down consists of four of the greatest musicians to call the south home. Aside from their legendary members, they are also famous for making fans wait at least five years between new material. This EP is the first of four, and it’s the first with Pat Bruders of Crowbar on bass. As far as the actual songs go, there are only six on the album, but each one of them is thickly coated in their signature sludge. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that a lot of these songs remind me of material from Nola. Specifically the tracks “Levitation” and “Witchtripper” remind me a lot of Down’s early material. The neat thing about this album is a heavy infusion of the doom that these guys grew up on. You can tell they listened to a lot of Saint Vitus before recording this record, and it shows big time in the form of tracks like “This Work Is Timeless” and “Misfortune Teller”. Overall, I think this album is a great return to form for the boys. If you’re a fan of Down or sludgy, pounding riffs with booty-shaking groove, this record is definitely worth your time.
Steve Harris – British Lion
When word spread that Steve Harris, bassist of the legendary Iron Maiden, was putting out a solo album, Maiden fans rejoiced. The thing about this album is, though it’s got Steve Harris’s name on it, it’s far from metal. When the album’s opening track “This Is My God” hits, you wonder if you’re listening to the right album. As the album progresses though, you really begin to hear the influence of bands like Rush, Boston, UFO, and Thin Lizzy come roaring through. The best example of the classic rock influence I mentioned is on tracks like “Karma Killer”, “The Chosen Ones”, and “Eyes Of The Young”. Realistically, this album is much more enjoyable if you ignore what you think it’s supposed to sound like. It’s not metal, and it was never meant to be at all. What it is, however, is classic rock done with a very modern feel, and one of the greatest bassists in the universe. Granted, the production could be better, and the vocals are a bit lackluster, but for a first solo project, you have to give the man credit. If you listen to this album with an open mind, and only ask for incredible bass lines and catchy rock n’ roll, you’ll get your money’s worth and then some.
Car Bomb – w^w^^w^w
Car Bomb are a band I was first introduced to back in 2006, when they first signed to Relapse. After the release of their Relapse debut Centralia, the band seemed to fall off of the planet. I stopped hearing anything about them until a few months ago, when it was announced they were self-releasing their second album w^w^^w^w. I have no idea what w^w^^w^w means, but when you hear the insane pace of their music, it makes quite a bit of sense, really. When listening to this album, the following bands came to mind: Sikth, Dillinger Escape Plan, Converge, Meshuggah and Gojira. That should give you a good idea of what they sound like, because genre-wise it would sound stupid to call them “chaotic, technical, spazzy, progressive, math metal”. This album actually caught me by surprise when I first heard it. I was most surprised by the Meshuggah-esque bounce, mixed with the frenetic pace and technicality of Dillinger. Though Car Bomb don’t really fit in one particular genre, this album is technical and incredibly fun to headbang along to, and exactly what the extreme metal scene needs. One fun fact about the album is that it features a guest appearance from Joe Duplantier of Gojira which is quite fitting, also, the album art spins everytime I look at it through my periphery, which rules.
Castle – Blacklands
When I got the promo of this album, one thing caught my eye ABSOLUTELY immediately, it was this statement “thrash-infused doom”. The minute I read that they attempt to convey both thrash metal and doom metal, I knew these guys were worth checking out. After giving their Prosthetic debut Blacklands a few listens, I was hooked. I wouldn’t say that they channel doom or thrash directly, as much as they combine the two with an old school rock n’ roll sound. As far as the doom portion of their sound goes, you can hear that influence primarily in the lyrics and guitar tone; their thrashier side takes over in their riffs at time, particularly with the rhythms and solos. Think if The Devils Blood decided to emulate early Metallica, but did so through Electric Wizard’s amps and that gets you in the ballpark of how epic this band really is. I’m genuinely shocked at how good this album is, and I definitely think it’s top albums of the year material for sure.
Gallows – Gallows
When Gallows released their debut Orchestra Of Wolves in 2006, they were easily the most talked about band in the punk/hardcore scene for their refreshing blend of hardcore, punk, and genuine rock n’ roll. This self titled debut for Bridge Nine is their first without vocalist Frank Carter, but it still contains all of the filth and fury that built the hype machine around them six years ago. In an age where punk music has become watered down, Gallows prove that its spirit is definitely not dead, thanks to their incredibly angry, politically driven lyrics, as well the ridiculously solid groove that kicks you in the teeth from the minute it starts, and refuses to let up until blood is everywhere. Thanks to its driving punk riffs, seething hardcore aesthetic, and bruising production, this is the perfect album to jam on a long road trip, but good luck keeping the speedometer under 150.
Record Reviews: New Releases from July 2012
Ya know, it’s kind of funny that I named this site Johnny Ringo’s Reviews, and started it just so I could review albums I listen to alot and really enjoy, yet it seems I am only able to do one new release post a month due to release schedules not being consistently good as well as the other posts I’ve been putting up on the site. With July now being over, I chose my favorite albums I heard that were released and I hope you’ll check them out. Thanks so much for reading and check out my Facebook page to keep up to date with my posts.
Nile – At The Gate Of Sethu
Even if you’ve never heard Nile before, you could probably tell from the name and their artwork that founding guitarist Karl Sanders is a huge nerd for Egyptian folklore. They are one of the more unique death metal bands you’ll ever hear due to their incredibly complex/unique Egyptian theme.
Though I haven’t enjoyed an album of theirs front-to-back since 2005′s “Annihilation Of The Wicked”, I was pleasantly surprised by this album. It seems that their last two albums, particularly “Those Whom The Gods Detest” got kind of boring after awhile, but “Sethu” manages to keep me intrigued throughout the entire affair. Though the album is incredibly heavy and technical, it does feature a few strange tracks that aren’t really metal, particularly the song “Slaves of Xul” which sounds like something from an Indiana Jones movie. The songs on the album that stood out in particular to me are the album closer “The Chaining of the Iniquitous” and “The Inevitable Degradation of Flesh” because both of them feature some incredibly catchy guitar work with a very unique tone. I also love the song “Tribunal of the Dead”which features headbangable riff upon headbangable riff.
Though this album still sounds a lot like the majority of Nile’s discography, I enjoy it quite a bit because the riffs are heavy and incredibly catchy, plus the album gets better and better with repeated listens. The album is especially worth listening to if you’re a fan of the band or their drummer George Kollias.
Bonded By Blood – The Aftermath
Bonded By Blood are a thrash revivalist band from Pomona, Ca and “The Aftermath” is their third album put out by Earache Records. Though I’m not normally a fan of newer thrash bands -especially ones who directly rip off their name from a classic thrash album- I actually love this band.
Before hearing 2010′s “Exiled To Earth”, their last with founding vocalist Jose Barrales, I wrote them off as another boring thrash band, but after reading about that album’s amazing sci-fi concept, I gave them a chance and fell in love. One interesting note about “The Aftermath” is that the album features vocalist Mauro Gonzalez who joined the band right after “Exiled” was released, but this is his first album with them. Musically speaking, if you know what thrash metal sounds like, you can fairly predict how the album sounds genre-wise but I feel they do have a strong amount of musicianship and considering they only feature one guitarist now, I have to say I’m still pretty impressed with how this record turned out. As far as standout tracks go, check out the songs “Shepherds Of Rot” and “Show No Fear” as they are perfect for beer-drinkin and hellraisin.
When you compare Bonded By Blood to some of the other standout thrash revival bands nowadays like Vektor, Municipal Waste, and Havok, they definitely hold their own, and they definitely make you want to bang your head as if up from the dead, particularly because intense metal is all that you need.
Primate – Draw Back A Stump
Primate is a band from Atlanta, Ga formed by Kevin Sharp of Brutal Truth and Bill Kelliher of Mastodon. According to Kevin Sharp, the band was formed simply because he wanted to be a part of a band with all members located in Atlanta, but if you didn’t know that you would assume they were formed out of necessity one night after drinking a few too many beers and listening to too much Discharge and breaking things together.
The album actually came out a year or two ago, but it was released in a limited run by the band themselves and it’s just now getting a proper release by Relapse Records this year. Musically speaking, the album is full of scathing punk rock/d-beat fury, and it features the trademark vocal style of Kevin Sharp which is now legendary in my opinion; I’m also incredibly impressed at Bill Kelliher’s riffs and solos which are much more extreme than anything he’d do on a Mastodon album nowadays. As far as the attitude of the album goes, when you listen to songs like “Draw Back A Stump”, “Drinking And Driving”, “Wasted Youth” and “Get The Fuck Off My Lawn”, you can tell that this band’s only goal really is having fun and unleashing a pure, unadulterated, furious punk rock energy, and if you like angry, fast music that’s played well, this is the record for you.
Baroness – Yellow & Green
One thing I’d like to mention is that this review is not going to be very long because when it was released I did an extensive review of it for my friends at Sojourners Indecisive, which you can view HERE.
If you’re reading this and you’re a fan of heavy music, you’ve probably already, if not heard this record, you’ve at least read a ton of reviews of it. Just in case you haven’t heard it, all you need to know is that it’s the best album to be released this year without question. The thing that makes it so good to me is the fact that they are able to seamlessly mix their signature style of huge, epic guitar riffs with an incredibly unique, previously unexplored style that’s incredibly hard to label as anything other than beautiful rock music.
In my review for Sojourners Indecisive, I said the album is like a rollercoaster and I firmly believe that’s the best way to describe it honestly thanks to sounds like “Take My Bones Away” and “Sea Lungs” which both feature amazing upbeat rock n’ roll riffs only to have the vibe change completely with songs like “Little Things” and “Eula” which have more of an indie/psychedelic vibe to them. This album features two discs and like the songs on each that vary in style and delivery, both discs also have a different sound with Yellow being more upbeat and Green more indie influenced. The bottom line on this album is that it’s a HUGE step in a new direction for the band and I feel it’s one that’s going to change their career path from underground heroes to rock n’ roll legends, a transformation not unlike their friends and fellow Georgia natives Mastodon and Kylesa have undergone and they definitely deserve every accolade they are going to receive.
Black Cowgirl – Black Cowgirl
One cool thing about this blog is that I’m occasionally sent music to review that completely blows my mind and leaves me no choice but to write about it. This album from Black Cowgirl is definitely one of those albums. Black Cowgirl are a rock n’ roll band from Lancaster, Pa who feature a sound very similar to Clutch and as well as their instrumental side project The Company Band. This debut full length of theirs is actually two old E.P.s combined to create one full album of incredibly solid, groovy, monstrous riff after monstrous riff.
When the albums opener “Talk Of Wolves” begins, one thing becomes incredibly evident, guitarist/vocalist Ben Mcguire’s voice sounds eerily similar to Chris Cornell-not the whiny douche Cornell has morphed into today, mind you, it’s more like the Cornell of the debut Audioslave album and Soundgarden’s heyday. Once I got past the grungy vocals on the album, the other thing that struck me is the super bluesy, southern-fried, almost funky guitar riffs courtesy of Mcguire and fellow guitarist Nate Rosenzweig. In fact, if you were listening to this album without knowing anything about the band, you might assume they are from Arkansas, Alabama, or Georgia, not Pennsylvania. Another fact worth noting is that their drummer is Mark Hanna, previously of the awesome band Backwoods Payback.
The first song I heard from these guys, and undoubtedly the one that got me hooked, is “Weigh Of Oblivion” which features an awesome, guitar heroey intro that reminds me alot of bands I heavily adore like Kyuss and Fu Manchu, but you can tell that their main influence is Clutch as far as guitar tone and tone and whatnot is concerned. Aside from the obvious influences, another band they remind me of with their grungy vocals laid over a furious rock n’ roll sound, is a band called Kings Destroy who, like Clutch and Black Cowgirl, are from the north yet they proudly sport a decidedly southern sound. If you are looking for bad ass rock music with a bluesy swing, these guys are definitely worth a listen. You can check them out on Facebook HERE and you can purchase their music on itunes or listen to it HERE.
Gaza – No Absolutes In Human Suffering
I still remember the exact moment I became a fan of this band. It was at a show in Monroe, La with a band called Thumbscrew. I specifically remember being blown away by how technically proficient they were, but the thing I really remember was when their vocalist Casey Hansen said “hello Louisiana, we are Gaza from Salt Lake City, Utah and I hope you guys aren’t pissed we stole your basketball team”, the best part of that story is that I was literally the only person in the crowd who even had an idea what he was talking about.
As far as the music on the album goes, these guys started out as a chaotic “mathcore” band and have progressed mightily since their infantile stages, in fact I’d say they have added quite a bit of doom to their repertoiree because there are some riffs on this album that are absolutely preposterously heavy. If I had to pigeon-hole Gaza into a particular genre I would call them doomy mathcore sludge grind…confusing right? That’s the thing, though the album is incredibly heavy, the speed and style with which each song and riff is delivered varies quite a bit on the album, always managing to keep you on your toes wondering what they’re going to do next.
One thing about Gaza that I’ve never understood is how underrated they are, these guys are like the John Stockton and Jeff Hornacek of the metal community and hopefully with the release of their third super solid album in a row these guys will finally get some well-earned recognition.
Nachtmystium – The Silencing Machine
Man, I’ve been waiting quite a while to hear this album and I must say, it was totally worth the wait. This is Nachtmystium’s sixth full length studio album and their third for Century Media. Their last two albums for Century Media were part of a series called “Black Meddle” in which the band, who are traditionally black metal, added a heavy psychedelic Pink Floyd vibe to their music that created a deliciously unique sound. For the new record, however, the band went back to their straightforward black metal ways, however, there are certainly some awesome twists and turns.
One thing I’ve noticed about the sound of Nachtmystium aside from a heavy black metal influence, is the fact that they have many different influences and a few of them, particularly their love for post-rock and classic rock came out on this album. Though they didn’t use “Black Meddle” in the title of the album, when you listen to songs like “Decimation, Annihilation” and “Silencing Machine” you can definitely hear some weird noises courtesy of keyboardist/producer extraordinaire Sanford Parker that give you the sensation of tripping on ecstasy in a dungeon trying to avoid being tortured at all cost.
Overall, I feel like Blake Judd and company came out and produced an incredibly solid record that mixes awesome, furious black metal with some very cool sounds and styles to create one of the more unique black metal albums you’ll hear all year, and honestly, I think that just because it doesn’t have Meddle int he name, doesn’t mean it’s not super creative.
Testament – Dark Roots Of Earth
So far 2012 seems to be the year of thrash, man. So far we’ve gotten killer releases from Overkill, Kreator and Municipal Waste, as well as Bonded By Blood so with the release of Testament’s tenth album “Dark Roots Of Earth”, it appears the winning streak will continue.
Testament are one of my favorite thrash bands of all time and definitely deserve to be recognized alongside the other huge names of the genre as one of the greatest. Their newest album “Dark Roots Of Earth” is the follow up to 2008′s masterpiece “The Formation Of Damnation”. The album features all of the band’s signature elements like Chuck Billy’s legendary voice as well as the guitar work of Alex Skolnick and Eric Peterson- a duo that I consider to be one of the greatest of all time-the album also features Mean Gene Hoglan on drums for the first time in 15 years. As far as the actual songs on the album go, I wasn’t big on the song “Native Blood” when I first heard it, but after listening in the context of the album it’s an absolute monster. I also really like the song “Dark Roots Of Earth” for it’s old school “New Order” vibe, in fact, it’s not the only song on the album with an old school vibe, the song “A Day In The Death” starts out with a great bassline from original bassist Greg Christian and then proceeds to unleash an epic old school thrash attack. Aside from awesome old school thrash songs, the album features an incredible cover of Iron Maiden’s “Powerslave” where Chuck Billy puts his own touch on the vocals and creates absolute magic.
Honestly, if I had never heard of Testament and were walking through a record store and saw this album cover, I would buy it immediately based on the cover and title alone. I really shouldn’t have to convince you to buy a Testament album because it features their original lineup of Skolnick, Billy, Christian, and Peterson playing super awesome thrash with Gene Hoglan on drums and there’s not much else to say.
Record Reviews: New Releases from June 2012
I’ve found that with great albums not coming out as often in the last few months, that it’s easier to do new release posts in one big lump sum at the end of the month. With today marking the final Tuesday of June, that it’s time to post my new releases for the month. This weekend i’ll be posting a “favorite albums of 2012 so far” list, so get ready for that, also, check out my Facebook page for other goodies, and as always, thanks for reading and I hope you listen to and enjoy some of these records.
Candlemass – Psalms For The Dead
Ya know, it’s kind of fitting that this record is titled “Psalms for the Dead” as it’s been touted as “the last Candlemass studio album”. If it’s true and this really is Candlemass’ last album, these guys totally went out in style. Musically, there’s not alot of surprises here, you’ve got huge doom riffs with a very heavy production, incredibly dramatic vocals, and lyrics about death and other depressing subject matter. The album begins with the song “Prophet” which is an absolute banger and it’s got an incredibly heavy main riff that i’m a huge fan of, it’s also got a huge doom breakdown riff. Other highlights on the album include “Dancing in the Temple (Of The Mad Queen Bee)” which has their signature doom style, but because of the subject matter of the lyrics and Robert Lowe’s incredibly dramatic delivery, it reminds me more of a power metal song. Another of my favorite songs on the album is “Killing Of The Sun” which definitely sounds like something Black Sabbath would record if they were to do an album in 2012 with good production. In fact, because of the production value on this record, it really reminds me alot of Heaven and Hell, the band featuring Dio, Tony Iommi, and Geezer Butler. All in all, this is a solid record and it’s especially cool if you love doom metal and it’s worth purchasing if you’re a fan of the band.
Grand Magus – The Hunt
To be honest with you, until this album was released, I had never given much attention to Grand Magus, and now I feel like a dick for not jumping on their bandwagon years ago. Grand Magus are from Sweden and are classified as a “heavy metal” band which for me is usually a sign that they suck, but the songs on this album really are impossible to pigeon hole as anything but heavy ass metal. If you’re a major genre nerd and need to fit them into a particular genre, you could call them NWOBHM, or specifically viking metal thanks to their powerful, fast-paced riffs, and their lyrics about norse mythology. The whole album is hella solid, but the best songs and the ones that get stuck in my head the most are “Sword Of The Ocean”, and “The Hunt” which have incredibly catchy verses and choruses. Another song I like on the album is “Valhalla Rising” which has lyrics full of norse mythology and it contains the lyrics “valhalla rising/i’m taking flight/let falcons guide me to my destiny” which rules. By far though, the best song on this album is the album opener “Starlight Slaughter” which has a pretty catchy chorus, but the main riff in the chorus is a Judas Priestian stomper with a little extra chug added to drive it over the top. This album is a perfect beer-drinking record and one that is better experienced on vinyl. If you want something with a rock n’ roll attitude and bone-crushing riffs, go buy this bad boy and get ready to rock.
Kreator – Phantom Antichrist
Kreator are a German thrash metal band and a part of “the big three” of German thrash which also features Sodom and Destruction. If you are a casual reader of my site and don’t know about Kreator, please rectify this immediately. This is Kreator’s 13th album and considering it’s a thrash metal album through and through with no industrial parts mixed in, i’d say it’s a lucky 13 for sure. There aren’t alot of surprises on this record though, just alot of fast, catchy thrash riffs and lyrics expressing general disdain for human kind. There are a few songs on this album that stand out to me, the first is “Death To The World” which features a classic, old school thrash riff that makes you bang your head like it’s 1986 all over again. Another stand out track on the album is “United In Hate” which starts out with an acoustic intro and then fires off a barrage of pulverizing thrash riffs and sounds like a catchier version of something you’d hear on “Pleasure To Kill”. Another song on the album worth spotlighting is “Victory Will Come” which features a triumphant chorus and a more melodic approach to the riffing but it, like most of the songs on this album, is incredibly catchy and fun to headbang to. If you like thrash metal, chances are you’ve already bought this album, but if you haven’t, at least listen to “Pleasure To Kill” super loud and headbang til you puke.
Dying Fetus – Reign Supreme
My first introduction to Dying Fetus came when I was in high school. I remember sitting in the hall one day while some guys were talking about music and one of the guys said “so dude, I was looking for some metal and I came across this band called Dying Fetus and I thought “that’s the most disgusting name i’ve ever heard of!”" and a friend of his said “did you listen to it?” to which he replied “dude, hell no! I was afraid if I did my computer would get possessed by the devil”. Upon hearing that I immediately wrote the name down and looked them up as soon as I got home that day and have been a fan ever since.
It’s hard to believe that this band has been kicking around for at least 14 or 15 years now, also, “Reign Supreme” is their seventh full length. Even though guitarist/vocalist John Gallagher is the only remaining member from their essential lineup of the early 2000′s which also featured Jason Netherton of Misery Index and Kevin Talley of Misery Index, Chimaira, Daath, and Six Feet Under, these guys are still just as brutal as ever, if not moreso. If you’re familiar with Dying Fetus at all, then you no doubt know exactly what to expect from one of their albums, but the thing I like about “Reign Supreme” more than their last few albums is that it maintains a massive groove throughout. Songs like “Dissidence”, “From Womb To Waste”, and “In The Trenches” make a huge statement about their sound with buzzsaw riffs, bonecrushing groove, and 100% unabashed anger, Gallagher also throws in some rather creative sweeps for good measure. I have a massive amount of respect for these guys because of their old school approach and if you see their live show, they manage to leave many of their younger contemporaries in the dust, if you don’t believe me, check out the video for “From Womb To Waste” which was filmed at Maryland Deathfest X and was part of one of the most brutal sets i’ve ever seen.
Burning Love – Rotten Thing To Say
Burning Love is the newest, and main project of Chris Colohan, singer of the now defunct band Cursed (R.I.P.). This album is the band’s debut for Southern Lord Records and it is an absolute barn-burner. I’ve always been a huge fan of Cursed and I was more than pleased to check out Colohan’s new project when the band’s first lp “Songs For Burning Loves” was first released. The cool thing about Burning Love is that the band plays hardcore music by definition, but their approach is much more based in dangerous, amps-cranked-to-11, rock n’ expletive roll. The approach to this album is a pretty no-fail formula which combines the speed and anger of hardcore music with the groove and catchiness that rock n’ roll was founded on with Chris Colohan’s excellent, dark, brooding vocals. The best song on this album is “Karla” which is about Karla Homolka, the famous Canadian serial killer who is rumored to have dated the star of “one lunatic, one icepick”, Luca Magnotta. The album also features songs that would fit perfectly on a Cursed album like “Pig City II”, and “12:31″, i’ve always been a fan of hardcore bands like Burning Love that mix in some rock n’ roll riffs but still manage to kick you in the teeth and that’s exactly what this album does. It’s also got a pretty original style that is sure to make this album a strong contender for album of the year.
Ihsahn – Eremita
Former Emperor frontman/guitarist Ihsahn is back with his fourth studio album and there’s one thing you should know about it right off the bat, this album absolutely one of the most impressive releases you’ll hear all year. In his previous band Emperor, you could tell that there was a ton of talent there as they were and still are one of the most creative bands in black metal and you can tell that his talent and creative vision are alive and at work severely in his solo project. When I tried to find a genre to put this album under, the first thought was black metal, for obvious reasons, but alongside it’s black metal influence it also features elements of doom, prog, classical, and jazz with some of the catchiest riffs and verses i’ve ever heard. The two tracks on this album that make the hair stand up on my arm are “The Paranoid” which features a chorus that is stunningly beautiful, depressing, and catchy all at once as well as a huge, epic outro; the other major track on this album is the incredibly epic “The Eagle And The Snake” which starts out with a super weird chugging guitar with a saxophone peppering it to taste and then leads way to a massive barrage of jazzy black metal with classical undertones leading up to the 5:30 point which features one of the sweetest moments i’ve heard in any heavy metal song this year. This album is a wildly technical, progressive masterpiece and it’s absolutely gorgeous, man. Ihsahn’s vocals constantly revolve between beautiful singing and violent growling. This album caught me by complete surprise and I didn’t expect it to be as amazing as it is. It’s no “In The Nightside Eclipse”, but it’s definitely the next best thing, this record is ABSOLUTELY album of the year material, and certainly worth your time if you like good music.
Gojira – L’Enfant Sauvage
Gojira are a band who seem to be kind of the “it” band of the moment thanks to alot of promotion by Randy Blythe, and their signing to Roadrunner Records who seem to know more about laying off employees than putting out sweet records as of late, however, there’s one more element that has made them so popular….they absolutely rule! When I got this album, I was very skeptical that their signing to Roadrunner was going to make them soft and turn into another soulless corporate sellout like Trivium and Opeth and some of the other bands on that label. The riffs and rhythms on this album are incredibly strong and also incredibly off-time which is one of their main secrets. When you hear songs like the title track “L’Enfant Sauvage”, you can tell that the main focus on this album was using the larger production budget to put out the heaviest album possible and it’s paid off, this song reminds me alot of something you’d hear on 2008′s “The Way Of All Flesh”. All of the songs on this album all have the same vibe featuring super heavy, off-time, technical as hell riffs with maximum headbangage as their only goal. Also, check out the Voivodian riffs and vocal effects on the song “Liquid Fire” and whatever the hell kind of guitar sound they utilize on the song “The Wild Healer”. All in all, i’m very proud of Gojira for sticking to their guns and putting out a super heavy album that’s very memorable and very worthy of their illustrious discography.
Old Man Gloom – NO
This album is my last review of the night, and coincidentally it’s also the strangest one. Old Man Gloom, which will be shortened for this review to OMG because it makes me chuckle, are a supergroup with the finest pedigree possible with Aaron Turner of Isis on vocals and guitar, Nate Newton of Converge and Doomriders on guitar, and Caleb Scofield from Cave In and Zozobra on bass with Santos Montano from Zozobra rounding out the lineup on drums. OMG are a band that is incredibly hard to classify as their sound features elements of black, sludge, doom, noise, and post metal. The album rollercoasters through different styles, but when it’s at it’s peak, Aaron Turner is churning out some of the angriest vocals i’ve come from him in years and it’s so good to hear his wonderful voice again. Some of the heaviest songs on the album are tracks like “Common Species” and “The Forking Path” which feature Aaron Turner’s signature roar alongside some incredibly heavy riffs. The album also has songs like “Shuddering Earth” which is full of noise for noise-sake. All in all this album is pretty awesome, but i’m a little disappointed that it doesn’t feature more straight forward sludge/doom songs, but considering it’s their first album in 8 years and the first time i’ve heard Aaron Turner’s voice on a metal album in three years, i’ll totally take it.
Record Reviews: New Releases from May 2012
In my quest to get caught up on my reviews, i’ve decided to review my favorite releases from the month of May. I didn’t realize this until now, but there weren’t alot of big releases in the month of May at all, however, the albums that were released that i’m spotlighting today are all incredible and worth your time. Check them out, also, don’t forget to check out my Facebook page.
Cattle Decapitation – Monolith of Inhumanity
This album is Cattle Decap’s seventh studio album, and their fifth released by Metal Blade Records. Usually deathgrind bands get horribly stale after two or three albums and they never make it near as long as Cattle Decap has. After listening to this album, I can tell you that not only are these guys not stale, they are actually at the peak of their career and this is the best album they’ve ever released. The album contains plenty of songs full of your standard grind with brutal death metal vocals, particularly tracks like “Forced Gender Reassignment”, and “Gristle Licker”, but the area where this album really earns it’s keep are Travis Ryan’s newfound “melodic” vocals. To understand what I mean by melodic, I mean disturbing and completely horrifying. You really have to hear these songs for yourself to get what I mean, the ones that stand out the most are “A Living, Breathing Piece Of Defecating Meat”, and “Your Disposal”, and “Dead Set On Suicide”, when you couple the “melodic” parts with the creative, non-generic riffing, you have an album that, in my opinion, is a serious contender for metal album of the year. How Travis Ryan and the boys managed to release such a devastating album this late in their career is both refreshing, and a little baffling.
Horseback – Half Blood
Horseback are a band from North Carolina, led by a genius named Jenks Miller, they are signed to Relapse Records so naturally you’d think they would be a death metal band of some sort, however, they are the farthest thing from metal you can get. When you listen to Horseback’s first new album for Relapse, you can’t help but notice that this is one of the more unique albums you’ll hear all year. The record has seven tracks, 3 of them, “Mithras”, “Ahriman”, and “Arjuna”, have an upbeat 70′s psychedelic rock vibe to them, however, the vocals are more growled in a black metal type tone, kind of like The Moody Blues fronted by Varg Vikernes. The other 4 songs on the album are more just instrumental weirdness, particularly on the track “Inheritance (The Changeling)” which features a wide array of droning noises and various instruments and sounds. The last 3 songs on the album are all part of a trilogy called “Hallucigenia”, they are all instrumental and when listened to together could work as the soundtrack to a nature documentary about a lizard being born, and then being eaten by it’s mother hours after being hatched. To say this album is weird is an understatement, but thanks to a few hints of black metal with some noise and old school psychadelic rock vibes thrown in for flavor, this album just gets better with each listen.
Tenacious D – Rize Of The Fenix
When the third album by Tenacious D, the acoustic rock band formed by Jack Black and Kyle Gass, it starts with the lyrics “When the pick of destiny was released, it was a bomb and all the critics said that The D was done”. Though I personally LOVE “The Pick Of Destiny”, pretty much everyone that reviewed it hated it, therefore with their third album, The D set out to rebuild their reputation as the greatest rock n roll band in the world. Though there are a few songs on this album that are specifically meant to show that The D aren’t dead, there are also plenty of songs on this album that continue their legacy of goofy, snarky, vulgar rock n’ roll anthems. Some of the themes covered on the album are easy women/food (Low Hangin Fruit), the environment/living in a Death Star in space (Deth Starr), the life of a roadie (Roadie), and the death of rock n’ roll (Rock Is Dead). Though every song and skit on this album are pretty epic/humorous, there are two songs on this album that stick out the most to me, particularly the incredibly epic “The Ballad of Hollywood Jack and the Rage Kage” which tells a humorous tale about the band, the other is “39″ which is easily the most humorous thing Jack Black has done in years. Simply put, if you like The D but aren’t sure if this album is good, just know that “the fiery heart of a champion cannot be quelched”.
Mutilation Rites – Empyrean
Mutilation Rites are a fairly new band to the us black metal scene, releasing their first demo around 2010. I listened to this album based on all the hype surrounding these guys after quite a few demo’s released last year, but one thing I can say for sure is that, though their style is frequently imitated, these guys aren’t just a johnny-come-lately black metal band, you can feel a genuine sense of anger in these songs. The minute this album starts it’s full of vile, crusty, euro black metal and it very rarely stops to breathe, and when it does, even those breaths are vile and full of toxic fumes. As someone who likes to write about music, i’ve always found black metal a little more difficult to write about than most genre’s because it all, for the most part, sounds the same and this album is no different. I will say, however, that you can tell a difference between european black metal and american black metal, and most of the time it is found in the production value which is pretty raw and crusty, but solid enough to bring out every nuance of every instrument. This album is incredibly angry, not very catchy, and you can tell these guys listen to plenty of Black Flag and Cro-Mags along with their Darkthrone and Bathory records. I would say that this is one of the more enjoyable black metal albums i’ve heard all year and certainly worth giving a listen to.
Royal Thunder – CVI
First of all, i’m going to just let you know one thing about this album in advance, it is most certainly one of the best albums to be released in 2012. Royal Thunder are another band from Savannah, Ga, a town which has singlehandedly given birth to some of the biggest names in the hard rock/metal scene currently. This is their first full length album for Relapse and it, alongside Christian Mistress, and Horseback, is going to be marketed to heavy metal fans, but it’s much much much more than just a metal record. The foundation of this album is laid firmly on classic sounding hard rock, but it also features a heavy dose of the blues, psychedelia, and the kind of grooves that make you wanna fire up a doobie, crank up your camaro, and cruise 90-to-nothing through the desert. The album has a few songs which are slower and more psychedelic in nature like “Blue” and “Drown”, but the songs where you really get your money’s worth are tracks like the foot-stomping banger “Whispering World”. The other songs on this album that will make you want to drink some whiskey and make bad decisions are the bluesy “Shake And Shift”, and the slow-building “South Of Somewhere”. This album is, in my opinion, the quintessential rock n roll album of 2012 and should be getting heavy play on rock radio across the country, but they’ll have to settle for being on pretty much every best of 2012 list you can find at the end of the year instead.
Saint Vitus – Lillie: F-65
Listen, man, chances are if you’re reading this review, you already know that this album rules, or you at least know what Saint Vitus sounds like and know that they’re awesome, therefore, instead of wasting your time trying to convince you to check this album out, i’m going to celebrate how awesome it is. Finally Saint Vitus have returned with their long awaited eighth studio album, which is kind of funny because they’ve been around for over 30 years, even more amazing is the fact that this is their first album with Wino on vocals in 22 years. The album only features 7 songs, and one of the tracks (Vertigo) is an acoustic interlude while another (Withdrawal), is just a feedback-laden guitar solo of sorts, however, the five actual songs on this album are serious slabs of traditional doom aided by the powerful drumming of new recruit Henry Vazquez, as well as Wino’s epic vocals and Dave Chandler’s revolutionary guitar playing. When you break this album down track by track, you’ll realize when you come across songs like “Let Them Fall” and “Blessed Night” that these are some of the best songs this band has ever recorded. In fact, when you listen to the riff that kicks in at the 4:20 mark of “The Bleeding Ground”, you realize that not only are Saint Vitus back with an incredibly solid return album, but they are actually still one of the best doom bands going today and this album further cements that legacy. Do yourself a favor and listen to this album super loud under the influence and headbang like it’s 1986.
Record Reviews April 17th and 24th New Releases
I know you’re wondering why i’m reviewing albums from the last two weeks of April in mid June, but the thing is, I got incredibly behind and am just now beginning to catch up on my reviews in time to do a “best of 2012 so far” list next week, so this post is what I consider the first step towards progress. Be sure and check out these albums if you haven’t already, and stay tuned for reviews from the entire month of May later this week.
Dragonforce – The Power Within
Chances are, if you aren’t a fan of Dragonforce’s music, you have at least played their song “Through the Fire and Flames” on Guitar Hero III and had a moderate amount of fun. With the release of “The Power Within”, Dragonforce are back to make every person who’s ever picked up a guitar feel hopeless again, and whether or not you’re a fan, you have to admit that these guys shred. When I first put this album on, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, but when I heard songs like “Die By The Sword”, “Fallen World”, and “Cry Thunder”, I knew that not only had Dragonforce released a solid record, but it’s actually one of the best albums in their discography. Gone are former vocalist Zp Theart’s overly dramatic vocals, and in their place, new singer Marc Hudson actually sounds like a real power metal vocalist and gives the album a ton of credibility. I’m very glad to see that Dragonforce were able to regroup after Theart’s departure and put together a solid album. The rhythms and solo’s on this album are just as fast as ever, but there is alot more substance to these songs, and if you are a fan of Dragonforce, or power metal in general, this album is most certainly worth your time.
16 – Deep Cuts From Dark Clouds
If you aren’t familiar with the band 16, all you really need to know is that these guys are what it would sound like if you mixed the musicianship and anger of bands like Unsane and Helmet, combined them with what it would sound like to overdose on meth, and add on ten pounds of toxic sludge. The first thing you’ll notice that all the songs on this album have in common is that the riffs are all very catchy and incredibly heavy, and their lyrics are incredibly deperessing. You can tell all of the songs on this album are taken from personal experiences, specifically drug overdoses and possibly domestic violence due to song titles like “Theme From ‘Pilpopper’”, “Her Little “Accident”", and “Ants In My Bloodstream”. This album definitely isn’t a feel good hit of the summer, but if you’re looking for something super heavy and incredibly entertaining, “Deep Cuts From Dark Clouds” is definitely worth a shot.
Bereft – Leichenhaus
Bereft are a supergroup of sorts featuring Sacha Dunable of Intronaut/Graviton, Charles Elliott of Abysmal Dawn, Derek Rydquist of The Faceless/The Taste Of Blood, and Derek Donley of National Sunday Law/Graviton. When I first heard about this band, I was very excited, but unsure what genre they were going to gravitate towards…as it turns out, they turned towards the heaviest, sludgiest, most depressing style possible. This album is very short, however, it is certainly full of some of the heaviest riffs you’ll hear all year, specifically on songs like “The Coldest Orchestra” and “Withered Efflorescence”. There are many qualities about this album that make it a fantastic listen, but I would say one of it’s strongest weapons are the death metal-twinged vocals of Charles Elliott bellowed over riffs that are just as heavy and crushing as his vocals. If you are a fan of doom metal, this album is ESSENTIAL listening and will be widely considered one of the best albums of the year when it’s all said and done.
Paradise Lost – Tragic Idol
Paradise Lost are a legendary gothic/doom metal band and though they’ve been more gothic than doom lately, with the release of their 13th studio album “Tragic Idol”, they have revisited some old tricks and shown they are just as relevant as ever. The thing about this album that I noticed immediately is that the sound is much doomier than they’ve sounded in quite a while. You can tell that Gregor Mackintosh’s time with Vallenfyre helped ignite his fire for playing super heavy riffs because they are all over this album. Thanks to songs like “Fear Of Impending Hell”, “Honesty In Death” and “In This We Dwell”, Paradise Lost have managed to craft an incredibly heavy, yet super catchy slab of doom that works perfectly along the other albums in their discography. Also, if you’ve never heard Paradise Lost before, this album is definitely worth checking out for it’s huge, doomy riffs, and it’s creative songwriting, but you’d still be better off listening to “Gothic” first.
Prong – Carved Into Stone
Prong are one of the few bands who managed to be relevant in both the thrash metal scene of the 80′s as well as the grunge rock scene of the 90′s. Thanks to the excellent guitar playing of Tommy victor, Prong has always had a very unique sound that has heavily featured bonecrushing groove and transceneded both genres, and managed to perfectly mix them together. With the release of “Carved Into Stone”, Prong have unleashed a bloodthirsty slab of thrashy, groove-oriented songs, in fact, songs like “Eternal Heat”, and “Revenge Best Served Cold” are two of the best songs of the bands career, particularly “Revenge” which is the catchiest song i’ve heard all year and would fit perfectly on “Cleansing” right after “Whose Fist Is This Anyway?”. This album is very cool and it’s not one that you merely put on one time and then never listen to again because it’s incredibly heavy like a good hard rock album should be, but it’s also completely infectious, and impossible to stop listening to with songs that stay stuck in your head for days.
Torche – Harmonicraft
Torche are one of those bands that come along every once in a while who are able to constantly change styles and evolve with each new album, yet never ever issue a letdown. With the release of “Harmonicraft”, their first album for Volcom, Torche have once again approached their craft from a new angle and managed to knock it out of the park again. Like their last full length album, “Meanderthal”, this album is full of incredibly fuzzy guitars and a style that has been called “thunder pop” for it’s fast-paced speed and incredibly fuzzed out guitar sound, specifically on the song “Kicking”. One cool thing about this album is that it’s also incredibly adventurous and daring, specifically on tracks with pop punk swagger like “Walk It Off” and “Letting Go”, as well as the southern rock boogie of “Reverse Inverted” and whatever the hell genre you’d consider “Snakes Are Charmed” to fall under. One of the band’s real secret weapons is their new lead guitarist Andrew Elstner whose influence really shines on songs like “Snakes Are Charmed”, “Sky Trials”, and “Harmonicraft”, all of which feature breathtaking guitar acrobatics. I really think “Harmonicraft” is one of the best albums to be released this year, and honestly, it sets a great example for other bands that you can branch out from your comfort zone without selling out and making awful music.
Woods Of Ypres – Woods 5: Grey Skies & Electric Light
Man, this album is the winner for eeriest album of the year, seriously. With the release of the 5th Woods Of Ypres album, founding member David Gold managed to craft an epic monster of an album that leans less on black metal and more on genre’s like viking and doom metal as well as a bit of progressive metal thrown in for good measure. The album also features many songs with lyrics that focus on death, specifically tracks like “Keeper Of The Ledger”, and “Kiss My Ashes (Goodbye)”. The thing that makes this album so eerie is the fact that David Gold died in a car wreck in Canada four or five months before the release of this album. Though it’s incredibly sad that David Gold died right before releasing his best album, I feel that he left behind a wonderful musical legacy, and the lyrical theme of this album makes it hit home much harder than many other albums that deal with the same topics. If you’re at all interested in hearing someone who’s passed away singing about death over incredibly heavy, doomy riffs, this album is definitely worth checking out and it’s very unique to say the least.
Guest Post: New Release Reviews by Duane Berry
This week i’ve been very busy and haven’t had time to work on any new release reviews, however, my good friend Duane Berry was able to come up with a couple of reviews of great albums that are certainly worth checking out.
Jack White – Blunderbuss
Prepare for the onslaught. The publicity onslaught that is. The release of the solo Jack White recording is going to generate a ton of press, and deservedly so. This record is good. Way good. It’s not a put all the albums/cds/tapes you own in a pile and napalm them cause you won’t be needing them anymore kind of good, but it is very, very good. And electric. It’s good enough that it should land in anybody’s top 5 list of best releases of the year. Feast your ears on this and you will find yourself ready to elect Jack White President, Dictator and King of the new groove.
Some recordings have to grow on you, maybe after 3 or 4 listens you have bought into them. Not this one. First listens are like first impressions, they mean a lot. And this one delivers a great first impression. Without being encumbered by Ex Wife Meg, who could never keep up with him on the drums, or Alison Mosshart of Dead Weather trying to steal the spotlight, Jack White comes into clear view as the most imaginative rock star to come along in quite a while.
The discipline that gets you to such lofty status shows in massive chunks here. This is actually closer to ” Get Behind Me satan ” White Stripes, than anything he has released since. It is full of electric rock, country, blues, some honkytonk and even some Beatles-y moments of psychedelic distortion that has become a staple in the new experimental Nashville rock sound pioneered by White. The White Stripes had a certain atmosphere that was way out in the stratosphere of cool. That is not here. What is here is a driven sound that comes from great songs that are sometimes out of place in this slickly produced iphone world. This alone propels White to a new level of cool.
” Sixteen Saltines ” will be a track that gets a lot of attention. ” She doesn’t know but when she’s gone, I’m gonna sit and drink a few. I know she’s drinking too but I’m wondering for what and who”. The song ends with ” Who’s jealous, who’s jealous, who’s jealous, who’s jealous of who ?”. On ” Love Interruption ” It opens with the lines ” I want love to roll me over slowly, stick a knife inside me and twist it all around “. Then closes with ” I want love to change my friends to enemies, change my friends to enemies and show me how it’s all my fault “. Some real deep seeded painful thoughts that most people are too ashamed or scared to express. Not Jack White. It is motivation like that from deep within that keeps him moving way ahead of the pack, and music fans coming back for more.
Dr.John – Locked Down
His music is the embodiment of the bayou. Dr.John, real name Malcolm John Michael Creaux ” Mac ” Rebennack. Ok, Dr.John for short. His career was formed in LA by LA musicians. Funny thing is, it was in 1965 in Los Angeles and not in his home state, Louisiana.What he is best known for is that New Orleans drawl, funky rhythms, catchy piano melodies and gumbo ya ya lyrics, but those are not his strong suit. Srsly.
He is the energizer bunny of music. I saw him at Jazzfest jammin with the Neville Brothers and banners of 3 other locations he would be playing at that same week. The fact that I saw him come onstage with Widespread Panic and leave to as much noise as Panic fans could muster, and that’s a lot, says something about his mass appeal and longevity. Face it, the man is 71 years old, and getting better. How is that possible, is it some sort of mysterious reverse voodoo thing or what ??. More like he keeps reinventing himself like he has done on his latest release.
Going down this path with him is one of the best production, songwriting talents in music today. Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys. And this time, recorded in Nashville, not New Orleans. Such shifts are a guarantee of better things to come. Especially with the new rock groove happening in studios all over the Music City these days. This recording has a modern, earthy sound that in no way reminds you of the influences of Professor Longhair or Fats Domino or other Big Easy legends. This is the sound of tricknology children. Coming up behind you, fading no more. And tricknology is HEAVY.
The creative structure of Auerbach spared no creative avenues to bring forth the sound on this disc. The interesting thing is, no Patrick Carney, Keys drummer. What they did do was bring in some fresh sounds from Max Weissenfeldt, Leon Michels, Nick Movshon, Brian Olive and the McCrary Sisters. All are accomplished in their own right, but not overdone burnt out studio professionals that are heard on every other record coming down the pike. There goes that fresh energetic thing again.
There are some epic instrumental breakdowns on this disc. The sax on ” Big Shot ” is like being hit with a big burst of joy. ” Ain’t never was, never gonna be, Another Big Shot like me, I’m the Big Shot, layin in the cut for you to see “. That’s the tricknology re-invented Doctors swag. And it’s personal.
On the title cut, it opens with ” Lived reckless for so long, justice system bust me wrong. Future stretched out like a rubber check. Dealin from the bottom of the deck, might make it home to the projects “. We hear the good side on My Children, My Angels. “Love ya’ll, aint nothin you can do about that. One is too many, billions ain’t never enough. Don’t take the easy road, there’s no shortcuts”.
And finally on God’s Sure Good, ” He showed me how to live and let live, And I’m so thankful, the breath of life He gives me, A better way, a better day. God knows I’m OK, God’s sure good. “
Maybe there is something to this tricknology thing, I sure hope to find out more as Auerbach and the good Doctor lead us down this path
Record Reviews: April 10th New Releases
This week was super busy for new metal releases, but most of them were mediocre mainstream bands like Demon Hunter, Job For A Cowboy, and Emmure. I decided to spotlight the main three new releases of the week that are actually worth your time. Also, don’t forget that you can stay updated with new release reviews and posts by checking out my Facebook page.
Municipal Waste – The Fatal Feast
Municipal Waste are a band that I believe to be a rare breed, due to them being a fairly young thrash/crossover band that doesn’t reek at all of the boring thrash revival bands that are huge these days. Their new album “The Fatal Feast” is their sixth lp and first for Nuclear Blast records, but instead of landing on a major label like Nuclear Blast and releasing a medicore album like alot of bands, they have released one of their best albums, and one that will certainly rank high in their discography.
The cool thing about this album is that, though the album cover and sub-title “Waste In Space” hint that there is an outer space theme to the record, it is more of a collection of sixteen songs and one intro that really tell their own story. The album begins with the intro “Waste In Space” which features a brilliant sci-fi soundscape crafted by Zombi mastermind Steve Moore. After the otherwordly intro, the album kicks out song after song of crossover thrash madness with themes like political corruption, zombies, drinking too much, and a guy with a vomit problem. The album eventually kicks back into the space theme with it’s finest track “The Fatal Feast”. The song begins with more sci-fi weirdness from Steve Moore that’s similar to the intro, and then bassist Phil Hall comes in with a menacing bassline that leads into a story about traveling through space and cannibalism in a very unique manner by lead singer and comedic genius Tony Foresta, the song also features guest vocals by Nuclear Assault vocalist John Connelly which rules. The thing about “The Fatal Feast” an awesome album is the fact that the album has a very raw, punk rock production to it, which means it isn’t very heavy, but there’s just something about a thrash album with Dave witte on drums that bangs the heat that doesn’t bang, and when you add on the creative riffs of guitarist Ryan Waste, and the genius story-telling of Tony Foresta, they combine to create absolute magic.
“Fatal Feast” is the waste’s first album in a few years, and I have to say, it’s worth the wait for sure and will rank next to the new Overkill as one of the best thrash albums of the year. When you put on a Municipal Waste album, you kind of already know what you are getting yourself into, and though this album won’t gain the band a gaggle of new followers, it’s definitely going to put a smile on the faces of their diehard fans for sure. “The Fatal Feast” is the perfect album to listen to on road trips, or when you’re slamming back brews with your friends, contemplating how you’ll survive the zombie apocalypse.
Pelican – Ataraxia Taraxis
Since signing with Southern Lord Records in 2009 and putting out an ep and full length, Pelican have been relatively quiet in the last few years. Fortunately, the intrumental giants are back with a new ep and it sees the band virtually at the height of their creativity.
Upon turning on the new Pelican ep, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I am pleasantly surprised with the this album. One of the main curveballs on this album is the opener “Ataraxia” which has an overt sci-fi theme and actually reminds me a bit of Zombi, but with acoustic guitars mixed in. After the intro, however, the album begins to pick up with a more brisk pace thanks to the energetic song, and my favorite on the album, “Lathe Biosas” which features a guitar-style i’ve never really heard from Pelican before, which has a cool guitar-driven indie rock sound a la Built To Spill, but clearly has the signature Pelican stamp on it. The third song on the album “Parasite Colony” features more of the traditional Pelican post-metal sound and reminds me alot of their earlier material on albums like “The Fire In Our Throat Will Beckon The Thaw” and “City Of Echoes”. The final song on the album “Taraxis” begins with a soft, upbeat acoustic riff and continues with that pace for quite awhile before they unleash more heaviness. I know it’s lame to breakdown each track of this album, but the thing is, these guys have worked very hard to craft a sound that’s difficult to pin down to one specific genre, and this album is a perfect example of that as it mixes together quite a few styles that give it both a familar sound to longtime fans of the band, but it also seems to be a welcome mat to people who have never heard them before.
Overall, this album is definitely one of the better instrumental albums you’ll hear all year, in fact, my only complaint about it is, like the Inverloch album above, it’s entirely too short. Also like the Inverloch album, i’m really hoping that the release of this ep will give way to a proper full length from these guys, because I think an entire album of this mixture of styles they have put forth on “Ataraxia” would certainly be album of the year material.
Inverloch – Dusk…Subside
Inverloch are a band formed from the ashes of legendary funeral doom band dISEMBOWELMENT. Dusk…Subside is their debut album from Relapse Records, and though it’s only three songs long and lasts about 23 minutes, this album is as devastating a mixture of doom and death as you’ll find all year.
If you’ve never heard dISEMBOWELMENT, then this review may not mean anything to you, but if you have heard them, then you’ll understand why this album is so awesome. There aren’t many bands out there that go from playing atmospheric, sludgy, doom to blistering, brutal death metal so effortlessly. The album opener “Within Frozen Beauty” starts out very slowly with a two minute build up, and then goes completely apeshit for about 2 minutes before a pause, then launches into a style of death metal more atmospheric and reminiscent of Ulcerate. From the time the crazy death metal riffs stop on “Frozen Beauty”, the album takes on a much slower, atmospheric, doomy pace that lasts all through track number two “The Menin Road”. When track three “Shadows Of The Flame” begins slowly, you kind of wonder if the death metal portion was only reserved for the first track, when all of a sudden it appears again like a wild zubat, from there the album goes back into a slower, doomier sound that will definitely wreck your neck.
It’s not very often I review albums that are so short that I can go over every track’s nuances without going on for five paragraphs. Though the record is incredibly short, don’t let it fool you; it’s full of mindnumbingly technical death metal riffs coupled with huge, towering doom riffs, with a little bit of atmosphere thrown in for flavor. I’m really into this album and I hope that they release a full length album soon, preferably this year, because the brutal mixture of death and doom on this album hearken back to their dISEMBOWELMENT days and it has definitely whetted my appetite for more.
Record Reviews: April 3rd New Releases
There weren’t many albums that came out this week, however, the two in particular I chose to review today are both devastatingly crushing. Also, on a side note, the Conan album came out on April 2nd. Please check out both of these albums because they rule.
High On Fire – De Vermis Mysteriis 7/10
High On Fire are easily one of the most important bands to heavy music these days. They mix elements of thrash, punk, sludge, and stoner rock into a blender with vocals similar to Lemmy and out comes one of the heaviest records you’ll hear all year. This is their sixth album, and it’s their first to be produced by legendary Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou, which means it’s got the heaviest tone this band has ever seen.
The first and only thing you really need to know about this album is that it is heavier than a woman who’s eaten nothing but cheesy potatoes for thirty years, and meaner than said woman when you call her a fatty and take her cheesy potatoes away. With that said, the album also features a few different elements that only started creeping their way into the HOF sound on 2010′s “Snakes For The Divine”, particularly on songs like “Samsara”, which is a bass-heavy instrumental track, as well as the super sludgy, title track “De Vermis Mysteriis”, also, the final track “Warhorn” which features a huge sludgy riff and one of Matt Pike’s best vocals performances ever. My personal favorite song on the album is “King Of Days” in which Pike absolutely lays down the law and shows why he’s one of the best guitarists in metal today. “De Vermis Mysteriis” also features your standard throwback Matt Pike riff-fests like “Serums Of Liao”, “Blood Knuckle”, “De Vermis Mysteriis”, and “Fertile Green” which begins with a very hypnotic tribal drum pattern courtesy of Des Kensel. All the tracks I just mentioned were thrown in to show you how divided the sounds on the album are, but the most important song is, for sure, the track “Madness Of An Architect”. This song is the first time i’ve heard a High On Fire album, where it’s evident Matt Pike toked up, and decided he wanted to crank out a riff that would make Sleep fans choke on their bong-water thanks to it’s huge, brooding, droney intro that leads up to one of Pike’s heaviest riffs ever, in fact, I want to go see them live just to see how they are able to recreate that preposterously violent riff that comes crashing in at the 1:51 mark…seriously…it’s absolutely deadly.
I have to be honest for a moment, the first few times I heard this album it just didn’t register with me for some reason, and didn’t hit quite the way the last few did upon first impact. But, like one of those paintings you have to stare at for an hour to see the hidden image in it, I finally started to get it, especially the song “Madness Of An Architect”, did I mention how heavy the riffs are on that song? If you’re a fan of High On Fire, or if you enjoy firing up a doobie and smashing your head into things, this album would be a perfect addition to your collection.
Conan – Monnos 9/10
So I found out about this band by complete accident while reading a review of their album because it had a cool cover, and upon listening, I was instantly brought back to the days when I could discover bands and immediately fall wrecklessly in love with them. I’m not even going to act like I know anything about this band other than the band members’ names and what record label they are on, also, I believe they are from the UK, but I know this…upon first listen, this became one of my five favorite albums of the year…not even joking.
When I hear a band described as “crushing stoner/doom/drone”, I usually envision Electric Wizard soundalike tunes played by dudes with freshly purchased Neurosis and Isis shirts. The thing that separates this album from the usual Crowbar and Electric Wizard worship bands is that their music is played with a tone ten times heavier than those bands, and a groove unlike anything i’ve ever heard before. I know it sounds like i’m gushing about this album, and I totally am, because it totally kicks a ton of ass. The riffs on this album have a huge weight to them unlike anything i’ve ever heard before, and most bands with tone this heavy usually play at one speed, but the thing that makes this album cool is that it goes from slow and plodding, to a rumbling tank full of nuclear weapons, particularly on the song “Battle In The Swamp”, which also features a sweet southern boogie. The whole album really is full of these huge, devastating, tone-heavy riffs that bounce along perfectly with the spectacular drumming of Paul O’neil(not the yankees outfielder). Also, on the track “Headless Hunter” they show off their ability to craft a huge doom sound and, unlike the previous tracks on the album, it doesn’t bounce, it just kind of slowly simmers before erupting lava everywhere, it also features vocals that are much like a gregorian chant of destruction. Also, in the middle of the album, they feature the track “Golden Axe”, which has a riff that reminds me alot of Pelican, that moves slowly and would make the perfect soundtrack to a movie where someone is wandering alone in a post-apocalyptic landscape.
This really is one of those albums that you have to hear, to believe how incredibly good it is. There aren’t very many bands i’ve heard that remind me simultaneously of Down, Crowbar, Electric Wizard, Goatsnake, Yob, and Floor/Torche all in one band that doesn’t manage to rip any of them off blatantly. “Monnos” is a one-stop-shop for incredible doom riffs and it’s an absolute MUST HAVE if you listen to any type of heavy music. It doesn’t appear that the album will be released in the US until July 31st via Gravedancer records, but thanks to it’s release in the UK you can listen to it HERE.
Record Reviews: March 27th New Releases
I’ve been incredibly busy lately and it’s been hard to keep up a steady writing pace, but i’m really excited about this weeks crop of albums because all four of them are absolutely fantastic. Hopefully soon things will get back to normal and I will be able to finish my thrash bracket this weekend. Stay tuned, and please check out these awesome albums mentioned in this post.
Meshuggah – Koloss – 9/10
Meshuggah are a band who doesn’t leave room for alot of grey area, it seems. People either absolutely adore them, completely despise them, or (like everyone i’ve played them for) just don’t get it. With the release of their seventh album “Koloss”, they are faced with their biggest challenge to date; their last album “obZen” came out in 2008 and completely spawned it’s own genre, and I don’t need to tell you that when you release an album that creates an entirely new genre, it’s difficult to follow that up.
Musically, Koloss is just as technical and complicated as previous Meshuggah albums, but the thing that sets it apart the most for me, is it’s incredibly simplistic approach. I’m not saying that they toned down the robotic technical prowess they displayed on previous albums like “obZen”, and “Nothing”, and even “Chaosphere”, but I can definitely tell they have gone with a less robotic approach to their music. There are no songs on this album like “Bleed” that just pound through with the same riff being played over and over for sure. The album features a few different approaches, specifically when you hear a song like “Behind The Sun” which features a super heavy riff played at a much slower pace than these titanic swedes are used to, then they launch into a song like “The Hurt That Finds You First” which is one of the faster songs they’ve written in years. There are a couple of songs on the album that have the same type of vibe as “obZen” however, namely “Swarm” and “The Demon’s Name Is Surveillance” which features an intro that reminds me of “Bleed” a little, but the album also throws back to “Chaosphere” a bit with songs like “The Hurt That Finds You First” which is insanely fast, but it also features a rogue snare drum which seems to chase you down a dark alley with a long machete in hand. In my opinion, the stand out track on this album is definitely “Break Those Bones Whose Sinews Gave It Motion, which got it’s name from a poem about revenge. There are no words for me to describe the main riff of this song except maybe that it sounds like having your head smashed repeatedly by an aluminum trash can, but honestly, you have to listen to it with headphones on to even understand what I mean by that.
Overall, I have to applaud Meshuggah for looking back on their previous accomplishments and instead of resting on their laurels, deciding to move forward with one of their most forward-thinking albums yet. Admittedly, i’m a HUGE fan of Meshuggah, so i’m kind of biased with my review, but if you are somebody who can listen to Meshuggah and enjoy them and what they do, this album is definitely worth your time.
Overkill – The Electric Age 9/10
Here’s the deal, man, as much as I want to write a super long, descriptive review of the new Overkill album, it doesn’t really need to have that much said about it. Simply put, this album is an absolute beast of a thrash album.
There’s been a huge thrash resurgence in the last few years, but not just with the big four; bands like Exodus, Testament, Mortal Sin, and Forbidden have all put out great releases in recent years, yet somehow Overkill has managed to keep up with all of them, especially the latest album by Anthrax which kind of blew, and lacked many important elements of their classic sound. Though “Electric Age” is Overkill’s sixteenth album, it contains every single bit of fury they’ve had on the fifteen albums before it, if not moreso, in fact, they seem to be on a huge winning streak lately, because their last album “Ironbound” was also fantastic. As far as standout tracks on this album go, there’s not one particular song on here that’s better than the others, but my favorites are definitely “Old Wounds,New Scars”, “Black Daze”, and “Electric Rattlesnake”. Each song on the album stands up nicely in the Overkill discography because they all feature Bobby Blitz’s legendary barking vocal style and D.D. Verni’s signature style of thrash with alot of groove and a bonecrushing pace, but, like Megadeth, they are able to keep a razor sharp edge thanks to their lineup, which is rounded out by the hotshot guitar duo of Dave Linsk, and Derek Tailer on guitar, and Ron Lipnicki on drums
I didn’t know what to expect from this album because I figured Overkill had kind of reached their peak and couldn’t outdo themselves anymore…boy was I wrong. It’s always nice to hear a legendary thrash band able to put out legit, relevant music these days, and Overkill have done just that with their new album, in fact, I can guarantee you this album will be on my top albums of the year list because it’s a bonecrusher from beginning to end and I just can’t get enough of it.
Black Breath – Sentenced To Life 8/10
Black Breath are a band that’s been active in the underground metal scene for a few years now and they made a pretty big name for themselves with the release of their 2010 debut album “Heavy Breathing” on Southern Lord Records. Honestly, I wasn’t that impressed with “Heavy Breathing”, but I decided to give their new album “Sentenced To Life” a chance despite it’s cheesy album cover, and i’m incredibly glad I did.
The thing about this album is that Black Breath play a very heavy style of hardcore/punk in the vein of Converge, but they play with the same type of pedal made famous by bands like Entombed and Dismember, so what would normally sound like a rip off of Converge, or The Hope Conspiracy ends up sounding like Dismember if they had an album produced by Kurt Ballou. The attack on this album is very straight forward, and the album isn’t very long, but something about that Entombed guitar sound just really gives me a huge boner for this album. The best song on this album, and the main reason I love it, is the track “Sentenced To Life” which has that Entombed guitar sound, but it’s got a fury you might find on a hardcore album and the “chorus” makes me pump my fist every time. My other favorite track on this album is “Home Of The Grave” which is more of a death metal oriented song, but it’s still got that Converge/Trap Them type fury and that killer guitar tone.
Overall this album has a million awesome riffs on it, and each one of them would normally not impress me, but the tone that their guitars have is really the difference between it being meh and completely amazing. I know it sounds weird to only love an album because of the guitar tone, specifically when it’s a direct ripoff of other bands, but the way they creatively used that tone to play violent, angry, hardcore music really makes this album one of my favorites of the year.
Angel Witch – As Above, So Below 7/10
When word got out that Angel Witch was going to have Bill Steer of Napalm Death and Carcass joining Kevin Heybourne on guitar, I got incredibly excited that a new album would be coming out. Two years later, thanks to Metal Blade Records, Angel Witch’s fourth studio album “As Above, So Below” has arrived and it is an absolute marvel considering this band should have been dead 30 years ago.
If you’ve ever heard Angel Witch’s 1980 self titled album, or if you at least played the game “Brutal Legend”, then you should be singing “you’re an angel witch, YOURRREEE AN ANGEL WITCH!” right now, because it’s one of the catchiest songs ever written. Though Angel Witch are a legendary NWOBHM band, one thing that’s ever present on this album that’s different from their contemporaries is the fact that the music absolutely rules, in fact, it’s 100% relevant which is something Raven and Saxon can’t say for themselves these days. The album has alot of familiar elements of Angel Witch’s classic 1980′s sound, but it has been updated thanks to technology, and it’s taken on kind of a strange doomy sounding guitar tone despite the upbeat boogie of the riffs on the album. One of the best tracks on this album is the upbeat “Gebura” which reminds me alot of “Atlantis”, other stand out tracks on the album are the doomy “Dead Sea Scrolls” and “Into The Dark” which features some incredibly groovy guitar work and very infectious vocal melodies. Despite adding the legendary Bill Steer to the lineup for this record, all of the praise for this album has to go to the band’s founder, and only original member Kevin Heybourne, whose determination to make Angel Witch relevant again has paid major dividends, and his epic vocal style and fantastic guitar playing make this album an absolute monster.
Record Reviews: March 20th New Releases
This week there weren’t many big releases at all, in fact, Unsane was the only major band to release an album this week, and the Flying Humanoids album actually came out on Sunday and not on Tuesday, but it’s still a great record and worth checking out, which is why i’ve included it on here. This week is just the calm before the storm because next week is going to be full of some huge albums.
Unsane – Wreck – 8/10
With the release of their new album “Wreck”, Unsane have once again managed to deliver a hate-filled punch in the gut. “Wreck” is their seventh album, yet the band sounds as hungry as ever, and unlike bands from their era like Helmet, they have managed to continue to stay relevant and super heavy. If you’re used to Unsane’s noisy, hardcore side however, you might be in for a surprise.
The first time I listened to “Wreck”, I honestly didn’t get it, but after listening to it while in a very angry mood a couple of times, I totally get it. The thing that blows my mind about this band is the fact that Unsane are a three-piece, yet somehow they’ve managed to come up with the fullest, heaviest sound ever. One of the reasons the album is so heavy is the grating vocals of singer/guitarist Chris Spencer. Spencer’s voice is full of rage and it’s incredibly harsh, almost as harsh as his piercing guitar riffs which manage to work perfectly with the incredibly huge bass sound of Dave Curran. My favorite songs on this album are “No Chance” and “Pigeon” with both feature a bluesier, twangier guitar tone, in fact, in the intro to “No Chance” a harmonica comes in and adds a southern kick to Spencer’s bluesy riff. On “Don’t” it also features Spencer’s bluesy guitar work in perfect syncopation with Curran’s huge bass sound and the solid drumming of Vinnie Signorelli.In fact, though the three tracks i’ve mentioned so far all feature a sound more like sludge or southern rock than the bands signature noise rock/hardcore punk sound, the whole album is full of fantastic, southern, bluesy guitar riffs, also, there is a wonderful cover of Flipper’s “Ha Ha Ha” at the end of the album that ends it perfectly.
Though this album is kind of a grower, once you give it a chance to glue itself to your brain and you start to enjoy it, you’ll get addicted to it’s huge bass sound and incredibly bluesy guitar work. If you’re a fan of this band at all, then you probably already to know what to expect from this album, but even if you’ve never heard em before, if you want something heavy, bluesy, and noisy, this album is worth checking out. Also, as I stated before, it’s a fantastic album to listen to when you’re in a bad mood because all it makes you wanna do is smash a brick over someone’s head.
The Flying Humanoids – Arrival 7/10
The members of The Flying Humanoids have been involved in the music scene in Monroe, LA for quite a few years, featuring members of bands such as Twelve Gauge Valentine, This Blessed Mourning, The Avaricia, and Zebrawolf. With the release of their debut album “Arrival” they have crafted a rock solid slab of songs that will certainly put them on the map as one of the best and more unique rock n’ roll bands this town has to offer.
The album begins with the song “Party Animal” which has a swing and fury as well as a lyrical approach similar to something you’d hear on a record by Every Time I Die or The Bronx. When listening to songs like “Pink Heat”, “Chant Of The Dead”, and “Monarch” you can detect a very heavy Baroness influence with the guitar tone and style of riffing, but they are by no means just another hipster rock band aping Baroness or Mastodon. One unique aspect of the album is the vocals which are done by the duo of guitarists Kyle Snellenberger and Chris Esswein who trade off quite frequently, but another aspect that gives the band their own unique sound is the drumming of John Reed Loflin who shows off his Dave Lombardo influence perfectly at the beginning of “Chant Of The Dead” and album closer “The Thing” reminds me a little of The Melvins with it’s sludgy guitar sound and the stomping pace of the drums. My favorite moment on “Arrival” is the song “Velvet Trap” which features a rhythmic bassline by Jimmy Hale that is perfectly augmented by a stomping drum beat that eventually slows down and flows perfectly into the beginning of “Monarch” which features a huge, avalanche of an opening riff. Overall, the album has a very heavy, biting, unique tone and sound and one of the main contributing factors to it is the production of John Michael Caldwell of Airsick Sounds, in fact, you’d be hard pressed to find a debut album from an unsigned band sound better than this, especially on a low budget.
It seems that these days, most rock bands are attempting to sound like Nickelback or Saving Abel, which is why it’s so impressive to hear an album like “Arrival” which features a sound that’s very heavy, but not specifically pinned down to ripping off any particular bands. These guys have alot of different influences and they all come out on this album and mesh together perfectly and showcase just how good they really are as musicians, and with a debut album this impressive, the sky is certainly the limit for this band. If you are a fan of rock music, but want something gritty that sounds like a night of drinking whiskey and inhaling hip hop cigarettes, this is an album worth checking out.
Record Reviews: March 13th New Releases
There were quite a few albums that came out this week, but i’ve been busy and only got to write about two in particular, but they are both doozies for sure. I didn’t want to leave out the other releases this week so i included bite-sized reviews of them below. If the release schedules continue like I think they will, it’s going to get rather busy soon and I can’t wait!
Cannibal Corpse – Torture 8/10
Cannibal Corpse are one of those bands whose name and reputation are so iconic, that even people who wouldn’t know Obituary from Nickelback have heard of them. They are infamous for their incredibly violent song titles, manical lyrics, and some of the most technically proficient death metal ever crafted. You’d think that after having released 11 albums and sold millions of records, that these guys would just rest on their laurels, but instead they managed to release one of the best sounding metal albums of 2012 so far.
Torture is Cannibal Corpse’s twelfth full length, but it seems that they have been on an incredible hot streak ever since 2006′s “Kill”. Before 2006, Cannibal Corpse were looked at merely as a legendary death metal band whose name was used in jest by people who know nothing about metal, but it seems that once Rob Barrett joined the band again and they began recording with Erik Rutan of Hate Eternal/Morbid Angel at his studio in Florida, they evolved into an incredibly relevant,
devastatingly sharp, machine of death. The overall tone of this album is incredibly sick; I know that word is used alot to describe heavy music nowadays, but that’s the best way for me to describe their incredibly heavy, yet violently raw guitar sound that is heavier than 99% of the bands these days that call themselves death metal. Musically, the album features plenty of songs that fit perfectly in the Corpse discography like “Scourge Of Iron” which features a brutal groove, and plenty of fast parts that give it the classic CC sound. The album also has songs like “As Deep As The Knife Will Go” which a more standard headbanger, but it’s also got that signature groove. The thing that really seperates Cannibal Corpse from other death metal bands, in my opinion, is the fact that, even though they are incredibly fast and pummeling, you can tell that they are also incredibly proficient at their instruments, especially drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz whose frantic drumming gives each song an atmosphere that feels like you’re being chased down a dark alley by a butcher knife-wielding maniac with no pants on.
Simply put, the new Cannibal Corpse album sounds very similar to “Kill” and “Evisceration Plague”, but the tone and songwriting on this record are absolutely fantastic and help separate them from their competition once again. I think alot of the credit for the album’s sound will be going to Erik Rutan, but they also spent some time at Sonic Ranch Studios in Texas which has recorded artists such as: Hanson, Mudvayne, At The Drive-In, Tesla, and Explosions In The Sky…that would certainly explain the little extra “mmmbop” their sound has on this album. “Torture”, like their last album “Evisceration Plague”, has managed to bite, scratch, claw, and stab it’s way into major album of the year consideration and is certainly worth your time if you like death metal, and if you don’t like death metal, it’s still fun to play to aggravate your neighbors when they are loudly getting their freak on
Spawn Of Possession – Incurso 7/10
Spawn Of Possession are a Swedish technical death metal monolith, and “Incurso” is their first album released by Relapse records, and their third in nine years. I’ve always had a soft spot for technical death metal bands like SoP, in fact, when I first heard their 2003 album “Cabinet” I was completely awestruck. Through the years they’ve gone though numerous member changes and, in fact, this is their first album in six years, but this album will finally gain them the attention they deserve.
Technical death metal is a genre that’s immensely over-populated by guitar geeks with too much time on their hands, but every once in a while a band comes along and washes the wannabes away in a tide of blood. With the release of their Relapse debut, Spawn Of Possession have a newly beefed up lineup, which includes Erlend Caspersen of Blood Red Throne, and Deeds Of Flesh on bass, and Christian Muenzner of Defeated Sanity, Necrophagist, and Obscura on lead guitar. The inclusion of these two technical monsters has solidified the lineup and this album is easily their strongest to date, featuring blisteringly fast, and incredibly proficient drumming from Henrik Schönstrom and a dizzying and neverending array of riffs from Muenzner, Caspersen, and founding member Jonas Bryssling on guitars. The thing that separates this album from their last album, apart from the incredible veteran musicians they acquired is the return of Dennis Rondum to vocals, his incredibly deep vocals are a lot more interesting than those of previous vocalist Jonas Renvaktar. The main reason I like this album so much is it’s ever-changing pace and atmosphere, which goes from blistering death metal riffs, to jazzy soloing, to a very creepy piano which comes in occasionally to give the album an unsettling “serial killer in the fog” kind of vibe. The album is full of break-neck riffing and incredibly shreddy solo’s but the songs that exemplify this the best are “Bodiless Sleeper”, and the very creepy-yet-brutal album closer “Apparition”.
It’s very hard for me to listen to technical death metal albums more than once, but something about this record just grabs me and forces itself to be heard numerous times, and the best part is you’ll always hear something new you hadn’t heard before. Alot of it’s standout moments are thanks to the incredibly vertiginous guitar work of Christian Muenzner and Jonas Bryssling and their ability to never ride a particular riff or rhythm for too long, and the overall teamwork of the band creates some genuinely creative, and enjoyable songs. If you are a fan of bands like Gorguts, Obscura, or Necrophagist, or if you just want just a generally brutal death metal record, this album is certainly worth your time.
Wizard Rifle – Speak Loud, Say Nothing 7/10
This album is a fantastic mixture of stoner doom/sludge mixed with math rock. They remind me alot of Big Business, but they also mix in an influence that slightly reminds me of bands like Don Caballero. There is also a decidedly heavy Melvins influence on this album. This record is a very weird amalgamation of genre’s but it’s definitely worth checking out.
Sigh – In Somniphobia 6/10
Okay, so i’m a big fan of black metal, and i’ve enjoyed Sigh’s music in the past, but i’m going to admit…I don’t really get this album. I mean, it’s got some interesting songs like “Transfiguration Of Fear” which have a very epic, semi-power metal vibe to them, but alot of the songs on here are more classical music than black metal. The vocals on this album are also very strange and the sound quality is horrid. I wouldn’t call this album horrible, or even bad, it’s just very weird and i don’t really get it.
Drudkh – Eternal Turn Of The Wheel 6.5/10
I kind of anticipated this album to be a little more atmospheric, and actually have some unique things going on, but it kind of let me down. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s got some cool stuff on it, but for the most part it’s just a subpar black metal album. At times it reminds me of Agalloch’s “Marrow Of The Spirit”, only it’s riffs aren’t near as catchy and the production isn’t as good. My favorite part about this album, honestly, is the fact that the bass drum at times sounds like his pedals are hitting raw meat instead of a drum…it’s the most distracting drum sound i’ve ever heard.
Record Reviews: March 6th New Release
The first week of March, like the last two months, has been incredibly slow for new releases, in fact, this weeks review of the new Every Time I Die album Ex Lives, is the only major heavy album to come out this week. Since ETID are one of my favorite bands, this review was incredibly fun to come up with, next week will be busy, however, with at least 4 big metal albums dropping. Also, if you’d like to submit any of your favorite ETID lyrics that I may have missed, please post them in a comment. D0n’t forget to check out my page on Facebook also.
Every Time I Die – Ex Lives 7/10
Every Time I Die is a band i’ve always had a soft spot for. When I was in high school, a friend burned me two ETID albums “Hot Damn!” and “Last Night In Town” and my jaw dropped because i’d never heard music like it before at that point. Those two albums completely changed my attitude of what heavy music could sound like with their riffs that are a mixture of metalcore/hardcore/punk/southern rock, and Keith Buckley’s unmistakable howl and fantastically preposterous lyrics. Every year ETID has released an album since then has been reason to celebrate, granted, some of their recent output has been better than others, however, with the release of Ex Lives, their sixth studio album, and second for Epitaph, they have proved they are still the reigning champions of whatever genre you classify them under.
Honestly, you don’t need me to tell you how this record sounds if you’re an actual fan of the band; it has all the trappings of a great ETID album like clever song titles such as “Underwater Bimbo’s From Outer Space” and “Drag King”, it also features a heavy dose of their signature style of riffs played with a punk rock fury, and a southern guitar tone, and of course, there are also also a heavy dose of breakdowns once found so often on “Last Night” and “Hot Damn!”. Though the sound is familiar, Ex Lives isn’t without it’s unique elements like the intro to “Partying Is Such Sweet Sorrow” which features duelling banjos/guitars and vocals that wouldn’t be out of place on a Damned Things song, Keith’s time in The Damned Things also rears it’s head on “Revival Mode”, which also features a strange, bluesy riff and a unique atmosphere they’ve never explored before. All in all however, this album is very heavy, and it’s also very short, which gives it the feel of a more mature version of “Hot Damn!”.
Even though Ex Lives exhibits a more mature songwriting style than their last few albums, there is one element of their songwriting that’s been around since the beginning…Keith Buckley’s absurd lyrical style. Keith Buckley has uttered many gems in his career as frontman for ETID, and this album is no exception, specifically on “I Suck (Blood)” where he utters such phrases as: “i would rather be a jealous man, than an off-duty cop”, and “i’ll take what i can get, even if it’s restraining orders”. Those phrases, and his many other random quips on the album got me thinking about my favorite ETID quotes, so if you’ll allow me to go off the path for a minute, here are my ten favorite Keith Buckley quotes from the ETID discography.
1. hey there! girls! i’m a cunt!(Bored Stiff)
2. if you don’t…wake up…i’ll have to stop…kissing you! (Jimmy Tango’s Method)
3. this is a rock and roll takeover!(Ebolarama)
4. the greatest lovers were murderers first! (She’s My Rushmore)
5. The warrior with the deadliest weapon is the one without an instruction manual for his gun. (Hit Of The Search Party)
6. I know the strippers’ real name!(Kill The Music)
7. Here’s to cheap sex and codeine in a hospital bed. (Romeo A Go-Go)
8. fuck yeah, we’re gonna party tonight!(Guitared and Feathered)
9. you don’t live til you’re ready to die (We’rewolf)
10. just because you’re afraid of the dark, doesn’t mean it’s afraid of you (Organ Grinder)
Every Time I Die are still one of the funnest bands on the planet, and, as I said earlier, if you’re a fan of the band, you’ll love this record. Ex Lives is definitely not going to gain the band a whole lot of new fans, however, it does hearken back towards older albums like “Hot Damn!” more than the last few records. Even though there’s no songs as quotable as “Ebolarama”, they have clearly taken their older sound and given it a beard and a few shots of whiskey and turned it into a man.
Record Reviews: February 28th New Releases
I have been looking forward to this week ALL year! At least four albums that came out today will be in my top albums of the year list, and every one of them (except Death) was on my most anticipated albums of the year. Check out these albums if you get a chance, because they are all awesome, and worth a listen.
Napalm Death – Utilitarian 10/10
The founding fathers of grind are back with their fifteenth studio album, and are just as pissed as ever. Napalm Death have always been one of my favorite metal bands and it seems like every album they’ve put out since 2000′s “Enemy Of The Music Business” has been A: basically flawless, and B: better than the one before it.
There are alot of things that help make this album absolutely fantastic. You’ve got Danny Herrera’s blistering drums, Barney Greenway’s incredibly violent, angry howl, and pissed off lyrics, and of course, the trademark riffs of bassist Shane Embury, and guitarist Mitch Harris. Even though there are all of the signature Napalm tricks on this album, there are also some elements you don’t hear on a normal Napalm Death album. The best example of them shaking things up, and going for a more unique sound are the ever increasing use of Mitch Harris’s angry punk rock howling, which appears most notably on the song “The Wolf I Feed” which features him screaming like a maniac and complimenting Barney one minute, to singing like Burton C Bell of Fear Factory the next. Mitch’s backup vocals appear throughout the album and really add an awesome punk rock element to the songs and make them even more enjoyable.
You’d think that after creating the grindcore genre, and putting out fourteen albums, that Napalm Death would be out of unique ideas. After listening to “Utilitarian”, I actually think Napalm Death have created their best album in twelve years. If you are a fan of Napalm Death, bad ass grind, or good music in general, do yourself a huge favor and buy this album.
Christian Mistress – Possession 10/10
I first read about Christian Mistress in a magazine who had their last album “Agony & Opium” on their top albums of the year list. After giving that album a few listens, I became obsessed with this band. When I saw they signed to Relapse and planned to put out a new album this year, this became my most anticipated album of the year. The thing I love about this band is their old school approach, which is as heavily influenced by bands like Thin Lizzy and Deep Purple, as it is Slayer and Darkthrone.
Christian Mistress seem to be a 70′s rock band caught in the body of a NWOBHM band. On their debut album for Relapse, Christian Mistress are now able to introduce the mainstream to their unique brand of old school heavy metal played through a classic rock filter with fast, almost punk rock like rhythms, mixed with incredible solo’s and Christine Davis’s whiskey-soaked, Marlboro-drenched vocals. Every song on this album features incredibly catchy guitar solo’s/riffs and vocals, but the title track “Possession” has the finest of them all, with a chorus that’ll stay in your head for days, it’s also eerily reminiscent to a line in the Thin Lizzy song “S&M”. The other stand out track on this album is “Black To Gold”, which features excellent basslines, an incredible chorus, and some fantastic guitar work.
I can’t say enough to stress how awesome this album really is, man. It’s got traditional classic rock riffs that you’d hear on a Deep Purple album, mixed with the NWOBHM attitude that you’d hear on an early Motorhead album and they make for a deadly combo. This album is a perfect drinking album, but it’s also good for listening to while driving, and of course it’d make a hell of a soundtrack, should you choose to mix the two.
Corrosion Of Conformity – Corrosion Of Conformity 9/10
The new self titled album by Corrosion Of Conformity is definitely a milestone for the band. It’s their first album since 2005′s “In The Arms Of God”, and it’s the first album with Reed Mullin on drums since 2000′s “America’s Volume Dealer”. More importantly, however, is the fact that this album marks the first time Woody Weatherman, Reed Mullin, and Mike Dean have been a three piece since 1985′s crossover hall of fame album “Animosity”. Granted, this album sounds nothing like their old hardcore punk/thrash days, but it is still a great mixture of the two era’s of the band.
One unique thing about COC is the fact that they have, over the years, developed two distinctly different sounds, but both era’s have fans who only like a few particular albums. Some people are only drawn to the more doomy, southern rock albums like “Deliverance”, “Wiseblood”, and “In The Arms Of God”; others are only drawn to their more hardcore punk albums like “Animosity” and “Technocracy”. The neat thing about their self titled, eighth studio album is that it mixes both era’s perfectly. There really is something for fans of both styles on this album. Songs like “The Doom”, and “Psychic Vampire” have mixtures of the Black Sabbath style tone with some more punk rock sounding drums. Then there are other songs like “Leeches”, and “Your Tomorrow” that have a more consistent, fast paced punk vibe throughout, and songs like “River Of Stone”, and “Weaving Spiders Come Not Here” which would have fit in perfectly on “Arms Of God”. At one point on the track “Come Not Here”, they sound like what Black Label Society would sound like if they got rid of Zakk Wylde’s horrible vocals, and over-squealy guitar style.
The most important thing about this album isn’t the two different styles being demonstrated, it’s how perfectly they are able to pull them off. The best example of this is the one-two punch of “Your Tomorrow”‘s more punk vibe, leading into “The Doom” which has a fantastic mixture of Black Sabbath and older COC. I’m very impressed that these guys were able to come together as a three piece for the first time since I was one or two years old, and put out an absolutely solid record. It doesn’t matter what era you prefer more, if you’re a fan of Corrosion Of Conformity, this album is most certainly worth checking out.
Asphyx – Deathhammer 8/10
Asphyx have always been one of the more intriguing stories in death metal. Few bands are able to succcessfuly mix brutal, up-tempo death metal with slow, down-tempo doom metal quite like these guys, the fact that they have legendary vocalist Martin Van Drunen, makes them even more interesting. Their last album “Death…The Brutal Way” caught quite a few people by surprise due to it being their first new material in almost 10 years, and the fact that it blew away their last decades worth of albums. Strangely, they have managed to blow that album completely away with their ninth studio album “Deathhammer”.
The first thing you should know about this album is, as Martin Van Drunen states at the beginning of the title track, “this is real death metal, you bastards!”. The second thing to note about this record is, it’s heavy as hell. The riffs on this album are seriously ridiculous, there are songs like the title track “Deathammer” which features incrediby brutal riffs that put most modern bands to shame; then there are songs like the doomier “Minefield” which moves at a slower pace and doesn’t lose an ounce of heaviness. But the real gold on this record are the songs that mix both the brutal death metal riffs, and the slower paced riffs that sound like a tank driving over a field of dead bodies, specifically on tracks like “Der Landser”, and “We Doom You To Death”. The other obvious stand out on this album is Martin Van Drunen’s vocals which, at times, sound like a demonic werewolf, hungry for blood and vengeance, howling at the top of his lungs.
This album is definitely one of the best death metal albums you’ll hear all year. The riffs on “Deathhammer” are very similar to what you’d hear from later Bolt Thrower, except with a doomier influence that decimate the competition completely. I absolutely love this album and think it’s perfect for anybody wanting something to listen to while they smash their enemies skull with a sledgehammer, or just somebody who wants some brutal jams.
Autopsy – All Tomorrows Funerals 7/10
Last year, Autopsy released “Macabre Eternal”, which was their first studio album in 16 years, and they proved they were back with a vengeance. Hot on the heels of a hellacious comeback album, they have now released “All Tomorrows Funerals”, which is a re-working of all of their previous Ep’s, which is a genius way to keep building momentum.
If you’ve ever heard Autopsy, then you have a pretty good idea what this album sounds like, especially if you’ve heard any of these Ep’s before. The thing that makes this collection so cool is because there are, not only four incredibly violent new songs, but because all of the songs on here have the same violent, murderous production and feel that made “Macabre Eternal” so awesome.
I think this album is a great way to keep the Autopsy name in the spotlight while they work on a new record, which will be out next year. This album is certainly worth checking out if you’re a fan of Autospy, or if you enjoy hearing death metal done right because, as Chris Reifert stated so elegantly “There will be no compromise and no holding back. If you want 100% pure death metal brutality, you will certainly get it.”.
Death – Vivus! 7/10
Death is one of the most influential bands in all of heavy metal, in fact, the genre was basically named after them. Vivus! is a package of the now-defunct death metal legends’ last two live albums “Live In Eindhoven”, and “Live In La”, and it’s a perfect reminder of just how good these guys really were.
Due to Chuck Schuldiner’s untimely passing in 2001, there are plenty of people like myself who never got to see these guys live. This album gives you a perfect glimpse at what it would have been like to see the band at their peak. Even though the sound isn’t perfect, it’s nice to hear classics like “Flesh And the Power It Holds”, “Sound Of Perseverance”, “Lack Of Comprehension”, and “Zombie Ritual” played by one of the strongest lineups the band ever had.
The only downside to this collection is that neither of these recordings are newly released, and contain several duplicate songs, but any chance you get to hear Chuck shred is a good thing. I think the Relapse reissues of the Death discography is a wonderful thing, and this definitely fits perfectly along side the others in your collection. I’m just hoping they’ll finally release the 2nd Control Denied album this year.
Record Reviews: February 21 New Releases
So here’s the deal, this week had basically no good new releases. The only one really was Pallbearer, however, I threw the Pilgrim review into this one because I didn’t get Pilgrim until after I printed my reviews from the 14th. Both of these albums are crushing doom records worthy of your time, and both have potential to be high on my albums of the year list. Next week i’m going to be reviewing at least six albums, plus new interviews to post, so stay tuned.
Pallbearer – Sorrow & Extinction 9/10
There’s just something about doom bands from Little Rock, Arkansas, they just seem to get it, man. For the second year in a row, a band from Little Rock has released one of the most intriguing doom albums of the year. This album is Pallbearer’s debut full length and it’s being released by Profound Lore who have been killing it lately with some huge releases. Like Rwake, the other band from Little Rock to make shockwaves in the metal scene, these guys have managed to craft a truly unique record.
This album starts out with the song “Foreigner”, which i’d say is my favorite song on this album. It begins with a somber acoustic intro that gives way to an amazing combo of crushing atmosphere and melodic riffing. The song also features an amazing vocal performance from vocalist Brett Campbell, which reminds me alot of Candlemass at times, which is a good thing of course. In fact, i’d say one of my favorite features on this album are the vocals. They are full of life and emotion, but also very melancholy and wistful. As far as the actual riffs go, every song on this album seems to be heavier than the one before. At certain points the album goes the funeral doom route with a slow, creeping devastation. I love the way they are able to perfectly mix a somber, depressingly heavy atmosphere, with some of the more creative riffs you’ll hear in this genre thanks to a fantastic rhythm section and an abundant love of all things Black Sabbath.
This album was a bit of a challenge to write about without sounding a bit redundant. Each song on the album features phenomenally heavy riffs and very passionate vocals that fit the atmosphere perfectly. It’s an album that plays heavily on emotions, this is an album that relies more on the way doom should feel, rather than the way it sounds, which means you feel all of the emotion the singer portrays, whether they leave you wanting to hug a loved one, or climb a mountain only to get eaten by wolves. If you enjoy doom metal that really reaches to your soul and spirit, and makes you really feel something, whether it be positive or negative, you need to check this album out. Sorrow & Extinction will, without a doubt, be one of my favorite albums to come back to time and time again throughout the year.
Pilgrim – Misery Wizard 7/10
Pilgrim are a three piece doom band from Rhode Island. Their debut lp is called Misery Wizard, which is the perfect name for this album due to it’s heavy Electric Wizard influence, and the fact that it makes you feel absolutely miserable. This album is not pretty by any means, it’s dirty, depressing, and heavy as hell.
If Pilgrim were a football team, they would play violent, brutal defense, and they’d run the ball 50 times a game. That’s the best way for me to describe this album, seriously. They take a formula that works, and they absolutely shove it down your throat, and beat you to death with it for about an hour. The riffs on this album are very slow, methodical, and mercilessly heavy. Most of these riffs are your typical Black Sabbath-influenced doom riffs, but they are so slow and heavy and rarely pick up the pace, and it totally works.
In the above review for Pallbearer, I mentioned that doom metal is more about feelings and emotions than the way it sounds. This album actually sounds like traditional doom, but more importantly, you feel every ounce of misery in every riff on this album. The thing about this album is, even though the riffs are slow and pummeling, and they aren’t breaking any real ground here…if you are a fan of the genre, you will absolutely love Pilgrim because they totally do it perfect. This is a perfect album for listening to at a boring desk job, or even while having a few beers with friends, but it will totally bum you out no matter the setting and this is why I love it.
Record Reviews: February 14th New Releases
It’s been a busy week full of awesome new releases, interviews with awesome bands, and trying to promote the site and the facebook page I just created for it. Somehow, as busy as i’ve been, I was able to listen to some awesome new albums that came out this week and write my thoughts on them. Next week is going to be a short one because i’ll only have one review, but there will be another interview, so stay tuned and enjoy!
Goatwhore – Blood For The Master 8/10
Goatwhore are from New Orleans and of all of the New Orleans bands they seem to be getting the most recognition nowadays and it’s definitely well deserved. The one thing that I like the most about this band, aside from them having current and former members of bands like Soilent Green, Acid Bath, Crowbar, and Down, is the fact that ever since signing to Metal Blade Records and enduring a hectic touring schedule, they have not stopped putting out the most crushing music you could possibly find.
This is their fifth full length and third for Metal Blade, yet somehow they seem to keep it fresh with each album, in fact, they have expanded their horizons more on this album than the previous two without lacking an ounce of brutality. The last two albums were more pummeling without any reprieve, but “Blood For The Master” has alot more solo’s than the last two albums and on “Embodiment of This Bitter Chaos” there is an actual intro with acoustic guitars and some wonderful soloing like only Sammy Duet can do, in fact all of the solo’s on this album are pulled off with absolute perfection. The common thread between this album and pretty much every other album by these guys is Sammy’s razor sharp riffing, the dude doesn’t seem to ever stop coming up with the thrashiest riffs ever, but the decidedly black metal vibe adds another level of depth most bands can’t pull off.There aren’t alot of bands or guitarist nowadays who can create a style so unique that when you hear it, you know exactly who it is, but Sammy has once again unleashed riffs that are more than worthy of his signature.
The production on Master seems to be alot rawer than their last album, in fact, it’s very similar to the production of their Metal Blade debut “A Haunting Curse”, which is not a bad thing, specifically the way the drums sound. The lyrics on this album and the overall theme are very dark, as is per usual by these guys if you can’t tell by the name, but if you’re a fan of awesome blackened thrash metal or Ben Falgoust’s fierce vocal delivery then you kind of know what to expect. I’m impressed that these guys have gone from an underground New Orleans band, to one of the more well known names in the scene these days and they have done our state very proud. If you are a fan of any of Goatwhore’s previous albums, or if you’re just looking for something angry that you can crank up to ten and rock out to, this album is worth purchasing, it’s also good for blaring in neighborhoods full of children and the elderly.
Earth – Angels of Darkness, Demons of Light II 7/10
I’ve never been huge on drone metal, but i’ve always found Earth to be one of the easier bands in the genre to get into. Earth’s first album consists of 3 songs full of nothing but full on drone, but as the years have gone by it seems this project has evolved into something a little more ambitious. The album is instrumental and it’s not really the kind of album you can just hear, you have to actually listen to it, and allow your mind to wrap around it to really get it.
This album is the 2nd part of the “Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light” project and it was recorded at the same time, so naturally it’s got the same kind of vibe as the last album, but it also reminds me alot of “The Bees Made Honey in the Lion’s Skull” which came out in 2008 and has a very western twinge to it. The cool thing about this album is, while listening to it, it kind of makes you come up with a movie in your head, and it fits perfectly as the soundtrack to that movie, whether it be a slow, plodding, horror film, or a fun, yet depressing road trip through the desert.
This album is kind of hard to write about because it moves very slowly and is just kind of…there, ya know? This album is perfect background music for alot of situations such as staying up late at night, drinking coffee, or while your working at a boring job waiting for the clock to strike 5:00. I really enjoyed this album, but it’s not something I could just listen to at random due to the fact that it takes a special mindset to enjoy it, but if you enjoy instrumental music, especially dramatic, droney music, this album is perfect for you.
Beneath The Massacre – Incongruous 7/10
Beneath The Massacre are a brutal as hell death metal band from Monreal, Quebec, Canada. I’ve never been a fan of your a-typical generic death metal bands like Job For A Cowboy and the tens of thousands of bands that spawned from them, but i’ve always had a soft spot for Beneath The Massacre. Part of the reason i’ve always liked this song is because of the song “Never More” from their absolutely wonderful 2008 album “Dystopia”, mostly because the breakdown in that song is what i’d want to hear if i went on a killing spree of some sort. Due to the fact that BTM are from Canada and, I assume, are hockey fans, and also because it’s hard to not sound boring talking about death metal, i’m going to use some hockey lingo in this review, so lace em up.
As soon as the puck drops on “Incongruous”, and the massive sweeps and blast beats come in sharper than a Gretzky to Robitaille one-timer, you can tell these guys arent messing around, and certainly aren’t trying to make your run-of-the-mill, generic, boring deathcore. The main elements that make BTM more enjoyable than most deathcore bands are the drums that pound furiously throughout the entire album and hit harder than a Chris Pronger cross-check, and also the sweeping/solo’s peppered throughout that break up the monotony and shred faster than a Zdeno Chara slap shot. I think these guys compare favorably to bands like Suffocation, only with a more modern touch, and some incredibly slick production, plus, like Suffocation, they are able to use creative drumming and soloing to keep each song fresh, and leaving you feeling like you just got run over and taunted by P.K. Subban.
Though this album isn’t the most creative death metal album you’ll ever hear, it’s brutal as hell and sounds amazing blasting at 10 while cruising down the road. If you’re a fan of bands like The Faceless or Decapitated, this album is definiely worth checking out, and there are no signs of deathcore or djent in it at all, which should help you choose this over Born Of Osiris or other such garbage.
Orange Goblin – Eulogy For The Damned 7/10
Orange Goblin are a stoner metal/hard rock band from the Uk and on their first full length in almost four years, they are still killing it after all these years. They have been around since around 1997 and have put out a split with Electric Wizard, as well as five releases on Rise Above Records, who are one of my favorite labels. Before you even read this review, you need to listen to the first song on this album “Red Tide Rising“, otherwise, none of this will really sound that interesting.
I’ve always been a fan of rock music that makes you want to crack open a beer, bang your head furiously, and stomp your foot like a madman, this album happens to entice you to do all of those things. There aren’t as many stoner metal elements to this album as their previous efforts, but the riffs are full of maximum rock n’ roll volume. All of the songs on here are raucous affairs with plenty of solo’s, heavy as hell riffs, and some creative vocals from Ben Ward who, at times, seriously reminds me of Dave Grohl. Seriously though, there are parts of this album that remind me of the time I put a Foo Fighters record on 33 1/3 instead of 45 rpm; the riffs are fast but toned low and heavy and the vocals are deep and gruff and very angry sounding despite the higher pitched at times tone.
Alot of the songs on this album remind me of desert rock bands like Fu Manchu, and Eagles Of Death Metal, as well as bands like Revolution Mother, Valient Thorr and Motorhead. This album gets slightly old after it drags on for a while, but regardless, it’s still got interesting enough subject matter and fast enough guitars to not overstay it’s welcome. Eulogy For The Damned is certainly the kind of album you would put on while on a long road trip, or during a long night of partying and hell raising, or driving through the desert with no pants on while wearing a Motorhead shirt and smoking Lucky Strikes.
Record Reviews: February 7th New Releases
Van Halen – A Different Kind Of Truth 7/10
When I heard Van Halen were getting back together with David Lee Roth I was excited at the possibilities, but also realized that it could be a complete failure also. After hearing the first new material with David Lee Roth on vocals since 1984, I have to say, i’m quite impressed at how good it actually turned out to be.
Musically, this record features everything you could ever want from a Van Halen album, including: face-melting solo’s on songs like “China Town”, “As Is”, and “Big River”, there are also alot of EVH’s signature heavy, upbeat riffs that make you wanna pump your fist in triumph like “Bullethead”, “Honeybabysweetiedoll”, “She’s The Woman”, and “Blood And Fire”. Another cool aspect of this album is the fact that the bass duties are being handled by Eddie Van Halen’s twenty year old son Wolfgang and he rips!
If you’re a fan of Van Halen, you’ll love this album because it has plenty of memorable riffs, plus, it’s a great album to listen to while driving due to it being full of upbeat songs with an almost punk rock fury at times. There are only two songs on this album that I don’t like, the first single “Tattoo”, and the bluesy “Stay Frosty” mostly due to Diamond Dave’s horribly cheesy lyrics, but considering how long DLR and EVH have been apart, a reunion record with two bad songs on it is a victory in my book.
Psycroptic – The Inherited Repression 5/10
I was a huge fan of Psycroptic’s 2003 album “The Scepter Of The Ancients”, however, they got rid of the vocalist from that album and haven’t seemed to recover properly since then. I really did expect this album to be a technical masterpiece, and though most of the songs on here are very fast, and very technical, they just don’t have any qualities that really grab you by the balls.
It seems that this album’s major fault is that it is way over-produced and robotic sounding as opposed to the looser nature of their previous albums which gave them a rawer, less generic feel. Don’t get me wrong, I love technical death metal as much as the next guy, but when all the songs on an album sound the same to a point where you can’t tell when one song ends and the next begins, there’s a problem.
If you are a fan of their last two albums then this album is still worth checking out. My main problem with this record is that, aside from the robotic production, it sounds just like the last two decapitated albums, as well as other bands like Job For A Cowboy who also play lifeless, boring death metal, if you want really awesome death metal, check out Exhumed, or Disma.
Mark Lanegan – Blues Funeral 7/10
This album is Mark Lanegan’s first studio album in 8 years and it’s a doozy. This record was produced by Alain Johannes who was a member of Queens Of The Stone Age when Lanegan was in the band; Johannes was also in the band Them Crooked Vultures as well as playing plenty of instruments on this album. Johannes wasn’t the only guest on this album, however, it also features guys like Dave Catching, Chris Goss, and Josh Homme who are all desert rock royalty.
The funny thing about this album is, even though it has a very slow, bluesy style at times, as well as fast upbeat rock songs, and even a song with a disco-esque vibe, every single song features a nice electronic feel to it courtesy of Johannes and though it’s hard to grasp at first, it works pretty well in the grand scheme of things.
Clearly Mark Lanegan has forgotten all about his roots in the grunge band “Screaming Trees”, because there aren’t many elements of that style on this record, but his days in Queens Of The Stone Age are much more visible on this album. If you are a fan of Mark Lanegan’s voice, which sounds like he gargles with dirt from a graveyard, or if you’re a fan of the current, more electronics based style of desert rock Josh Homme and Alain Johannes have been putting out lately, then this album is absolutely worth checking out.
Bolt Thrower – Those Once Loyal (Vinyl Reissue)
Fortunately, Metal Blade records has reissued this album on vinyl as well as two other Bolt Thrower albums. This record is probably the last album Bolt Thrower will ever put out, and honestly, it’s my favorite Bolt Thrower album by far due to the crushing production and some of the greatest riffs they’ve ever recorded.
The actual record sounds phenomenal and sounds like it came from the original master tapes and not just a digital copy like some labels do nowadays. The packaging is a gatefold packaging with lyrics and some cool artwork, the album also comes with a bonus track that sounds just as good as any of the other songs on this album.
This album is actually one of my favorite metal albums of all time, honestly. It has massive, crushing riffs that are so catchy they’ll stay in your head for days, it’s got a blistering pace with a huge amount of bass in the mix that makes it impossible to not headbang to. I’ve had alot of good memories listening to this album and headbanging like an idiot to some of the heaviest riffs i’ve ever heard, and i’m very glad to finally own it on wax, I just hope my neighbor enjoys listenign to it as much as I do.
Guest Post: New Release Review by Duane Berry
February is always an exciting month for new releases, due to the fact that it’s when new stuff finally starts rolling out. I’m always glad to feature guest reviews and tonight comes from my good friend Duane Berry regarding the new Paul Mccartney album “Kisses On The Bottom”.
Paul McCartney “Kisses On The Bottom”
What an interesting name for a release, “Kisses On The Bottom”, I know I have had some co-workers do that in the past with some degree of success. But I digress. Actually, the name comes from a line in the first song, “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter”. The line goes on to say “I’m Gonna Leave Kisses On The Bottom”. Glad we cleared that up.
If this recording were to ever be made into a movie, the trailer would surely look something like this: Young Paul sitting at the kitchen table eating fish & chips, watching the Everton Football Club play soccer on the telly while listening to dad James play some of his favorite songs on the family piano. These days, it would be more like watching dad in his boxers sitting around eating Cheetos and listening to the Beatles White Album and singing “Ob-la-Di Ob-La-Da” and “Little Piggies”. But I digress, again, Doh.
This is the 35th post Beatles recording released by McCartney and it is totally different than anything he has ever done before. This harkens back to the songs his dad really did sing while playing his family piano. Classics one and all. The concept for this type of release has been around for a while. The first one I heard was a collection of standards done by Willie Nelson on his “Stardust” album that went on to become multi million seller. Not sure if this one is up to those lofty standards, but when you have had 188 charted songs and 33 of them #1 hits, including 60 gold records and 100 million singles sold in Britain alone, you can go old school on em and never look back.
Think Cole Porter, Nat King Cole, Irving Berlin and you get the idea behind the songs here. Only 2 written by McCartney. This disc is full of lushy orchestral maneuvers in the dark, with plenty of small, and not so small, stringed instruments and keyboards. You can just imagine the musicians sitting around in the studio recording this record wearing their “Old Guys Rule” shirts with a lot of Ensure cans all around.
Guiness says Sir McCartney is the most successful musician and writer in pop music history and with that kind of background, much is expected from any release, and this one delivers, in it’s own way. This is not the kind of disc that you will just pop into the player and jam to rolling down the highway, this is a real mood centric recording. Laid back with some excellent vocal work. Veteran musicians like Diana Krall, Robert Hurst, John Pizarelli and arrangements by Eddie Karam and Johnny Mandel make it hard to ignore what is here.
“Home (When Shadows Fall)”, and others feature the London Symphony Orchestra, “It’s Only A Paper Moon” is highlighted by the best string variety on any song while “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate The Positive” shows the still strong vocal work McCartney is known for. “My Valentine” and “Only Our Hearts” are the 2 McCartney compositions included. Eric Clapton is a featured guitarist on “Get Yourself Another Fool” and Stevie Wonder guests on harmonica on “Only Our Hearts”.My favorite is “Bye Bye Blackbird” the song that John Coltrane won a posthumous Grammy for in 1982. A song reportedly about a prostitute leaving the business and returning home to her mother. I like this version even more than the Etta James or Miles Davis versions.
I’ve always heard that when people the caliber of Paul McCartney go into a recording studio it should be their goal to make timeless music. This time, it was the timeless music that brought them together in the studio. For a guy that was mostly inspired by american R & B music growing up, McCartney hit a walk off home run with this disc.
Record Reviews: January 31st 2012 New Releases
I know that it’s a couple of days too late to review the best albums that came out this week, however, they are three solid releases and are worth checking out. Unfortunately January 2012 was a horrible month for music, but in February we’ll have new releases by Psycroptic, Goatwhore, Asphyx, Napalm Death, and a few other awesome bands to look forward to.
Liberteer – Better to Die on Your Feet Than Live on Your Knees 10/10
Liberteer is a one man grind project of Matt Widener of Cretin, Exhumed, The County Medical Examiners, and various other projects, and it is, needless to say, a complete monster. The record starts out with the sound of a match being lit and this leads into banjos and horns and a very epic build up that sounds like something you’d hear in an old Civil War movie, and then all hell breaks loose.
This album is mostly made of incredibly fast, intense, grind that would make Napalm Death blush, but unlike Napalm Death, they use a guitar tone more akin to the Swedish style of Entombed or Dismember, which rules. The other thing that really sets this album apart from all of it’s peers in the grind community, is the occasional smattering of horns, banjo’s, strings, and other instruments that you wouldnt normally hear on a grind record, but they are done so tastefully that they provide a reprieve from the brutality, but they elude that the battle is far from over and create an amazing vibe. The lyrical theme on this album is based on anarchy and they are just another layer onto this 7 layer dip of violence. My favorite part of this album is by far, the song “Sweat For Blood” which sounds like the perfect song to play during the credits of an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie where at least one character was impaled by a flag from an opposing country, but the best part is, that riff builds and builds and then eventually explodes into a full fledged Swedish attack on the song “Barbarians At The Gate”. Let us not also forget to mention that the main riff in “It Is The Secret Curse Of Power That It Becomes Fatal” sounds, at least to me, very similar to the song “Yankee Doodle Dandy”, i’m not sayin…just sayin.
I can pretty much guarantee that this album will be on my top albums of the year list when the year is over. Liberteer has everything you could want from a grind album, in fact, if I had to choose one thing I don’t like about this record, the only thing would have to be the fact that it’s too short. If you like grind with the occasional horn or banjo mixed in for cinematic effect, then you really should check this album out because it kills.
Metallica – Beyond Magnetic EP 6/10
First of all, i’d like to say ahead of time that, in case you can’t tell from the picture above of my Metallica tapes…Metallica is my favorite band of all time. Anyways, Beyond Magnetic consists of the 4 extra songs written during the Death Magnetic sessions that didn’t make it onto the record, it’s been available digital since December, but you can now buy it on cd.
I’ve always been pretty whatever about b-sides albums, and this one is no exception, however, there are some pretty awesome moments on here that leave you wondering why these songs were left off of Death Magnetic and stinkers like “Unforgiven III” were allowed to stay. The best song on this album, in fact, one of the best songs to come from that time period is the song “Hate Train”, it’s got awesome, thrashy, creative riffs and some fantastic solo’s. Aside from that song, the rest of the songs on this album really are worthy of being thrown away, but the thing is, even though the songs aren’t very good as a whole , this album shows that the boys still know how to write some awesome riffs. I really enjoyed Death Magnetic and all of the awesome riffs pieced together throughout and you can tell that these guys still have the potential to write another perfect record, but they’ve hit the point now, where i’m fairly certain that window has been long closed.
Alot of people give Metallica crap for being “medicore” nowadays, and I won’t defend them, because I agree, but if i’ve taken away anything from the listening of this record, it would have to be the fact that my favorite band still knows how to kick ass occasionally and that’s all that I really need to help me sleep at night. This album really isn’t worth your time unless you are a Metallica completist, or a fan of Death Magnetic.
Ram – Death 7/10
Ram are a traditional heavy metal band from Sweden and “Death” is their third full length and first album for Metal Blade records. Usually when I see a band only referred to as “Heavy Metal” I assume they won’t sound very good, but you can tell that Ram have a very unique take on the genre almost immediately when the album’s first track “Death” starts, and sets the mood with a weird sci-fi/psychadelic vibe, from there this record takes off like a jet.
When the first real song on the album “Comes From The Mouth Beyond” begins, you can tell that Ram have a mix of two distinct styles of rock n’ roll, the first style is the revved up classic rock riffing, and awesome solo’s influenced by bands like The Scorpions, Judas Priest and Ufo; they also remind me alot of the newer breed of bands trying to play with a more throwback style, like Priestess, Kylesa, Mastodon, and Christian Mistress, which is certainly not a bad thing. The vocals on this album are very similar to Judas Priest, in fact, their vocalist Oscar Carlquist reminds me of both Rob Halford AND Ripper Owens at times, with some Bruce Dickinson thrown in for good measure. Musically, Ram really don’t cover any new ground, they sound like a mixture of “Painkiller”-era Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden from “Brave New World” til “The Final Frontier”, which isn’t a bad thing, ya know, they also have a song called “Frozen” which has a main riff that sounds very similar to “Sign Of The Southern Cross” from Dio-era Black Sabbath, so clearly these guys have good influences.
Critics might give Ram flack for not having a completely original sound, however, they are kind of like a good zombie movie in that, you know the dead have come back to life and are wreaking havoc, and there’s lots of blood and gore, yet it’s still enjoyable due to the fact that it’s based on a super solid, and enjoyable formula. This album would be perfect for long road trips thanks to it’s killer riffing, fast pace, and deadly attitude.
