REVIEW: SORROWSTORM - CAVERNS OF GRIEF

 

SORROWSTORM - CAVERNS OF GRIEF (Dysmorphic Recs., 2002)

Produced by Sorrowstorm

Tracks: 1- Breed the tyrants; 2- Nocturnal Apparition, 3- Enslaver of Hateful Souls; 4- The Arduous Warpath; 5- Caverns of Grief; 6- Chanting the Last Passages

Sorrowstorm is a christian black metal band created by Phil from Encryptor. He is the main musician behind both bands and here he has the opportunity to show a more melodic sound, specially because the compositions contained here use a lot of keyboards passages and a lot of interesting melodic guitar lines. There are rotten vocals all over the recording but sometimes they use some clean vocals in the form of ethereal chants that are really well developed on this recording. They also use a more guttural voice that is closer to the one used in Encryptor. The guitar riffs are really technical in some places and they give a lot of variation to the tracks contained in "Caverns of Grief". I liked a lot this band and I hope to listen more from them very soon.

Favorite tracks: "Nocturnal Apparition"; "The Arduous Warpath" and "Chanting the Last Passages".

Contact: www.sorrowstorm.com

REVIEW: SOMBER SERENITY - SINGULAR

 

SOMBER SERENITY - SINGULAR (Medusa Prods / Dragon Design, 2002)

Recorded at Little Dream Studio

Artwork by Mike Schindler / Dragon Design

Tracks: 1- In Solitude Divine, 2- Tragedy Star, 3- Goddess of light, 4- The Severance, 5- The Sufferer, 6- Last Scion of Winter, 7- Swallow the Sun, 8- Nemesis, my Childe

How great is this album!!! It starts with a clean guitar and then all of a sudden the crushing guitars enter along with clean vocals... then other voices scream the lyrics. This band has found a great equilibrium in their music and combine perfectly melodies and atmospheres with crushing riffs and drum beats. Take some Anathema, add some Paradise Lost then some bands like Katatonia and Opeth, mix it with a little My Dying Bride and you will have only an approximation to Somber Serenity´s sound. There are heavier tracks like "Tragedy Star" (pure deathly vocals....even more guttural...and then enter some heavy metal riffs...amazing!). The main feature here are the compositions of this guys which are perfectly developed. This guys also have hooks in their songs and that is really important. This band will be a classic in the near future.

Favorite tracks: The whole Cd is amazing. A classic . A perfect blend between heaviness and darkness.

Contact: www.dragondesign666.de

REVIEW: SOLEKAHN - SUFFERING WINDS

 

SOLEKAHN - SUFFERING WINDS (Imperial Maze Recs., 2002)

Produced by Solekahn

Recorded at Labyrinth Studio

Tracks: 1- A Narrow Passage, 2- Visages, 3- Senses Labyrinth, 4- Profaned Nights, 5- Entangled, 6- In Dementia, 7- Arena, 8- Beyond the Pasts

It is weird. Solekahn has riffs that sound definitely black metal (as well as some drums patterns), but the vocals are completely death metal. Plus, the guitars have a different kind of distortion...I don´t know how to describe it. The tracks contained on this CD are short (all the CD lasts 18 minutes) and the music goes along the pattern of death / black metal with a lot of rhythm changes and good guitar riffs (specially I liked a lot the slower ones). All this elements combined create a new kind of darker than hell music (I think that Khaos voclas are harmonized in tracks like "Profaned Nights" and that makes things sound really strange...great!). They also used clean guitars in someplaces like in the beginning of "Entangled" which is a really charming track. Thuis is definetly a really dark release.

Favorite tracks: "Senses Labyrinth"; "Entangled" and "In Dementia".

Contact: imperial.maze@caramail.com

REVIEW: SLOW HORSE - SLOW HORSE II

 

SLOW HORSE - SLOW HORSE II (Berserker Recs., 2001)

Produced by Martin Bisi

Recorded at B.C. Studios, Brooklyn

Artwork by Scott Sanfratello

Tracks: 1- I´m Nothing, I´m No one, 2- The Games You Play, 3- Stay, 4- Let It Slide, 5- Coming Unhinged, 6- Nameless, 7- Untitled, 8- The Last, 9- Nº9

Slowhorse´s music is Slow and rhythmic with voclas that make melodies over the guitar riffs in a really drmatic and interesting way. The CD starts with the hypnotic "I´m nothing, I´m no one" a really depressive track with a slowpaced guitar riff and an interesting bass arrangement. I find some interesting Saint Vitus influences in the music of this band (and some The Obsessed too in some guitar riffs) but the music sounds more rhythmic than in that bands. The guitars have a seventies -like sound that fits perfectly with the rest of the music. One of the main things here and that I think that the band should exploit at its maximum level are certain vocal harmonies that they use (for example in tracks like "The Games You Play") and that gives a lot of dynamics to the music. Lovers of doom and related styles ...Slowhorse is here for you!!

Favorite tracks: "Stay"; "Let It Slide" and "The Games You Play".

Contact: www.berserkerrecords.com

REVIEW: SKYMNING - ARTIFICIAL SUPERNOVA

 

SKYMNING - ARTIFICIAL SUPERNOVA (Candlelight Recs., 2002)

Recorded at Studio Mega

Tracks: 1- Synthetic Visions, 2- Shadowed / Astral Silver, 3- Shatter the World / Artificial Supernova, 4- Axoskeletal / X.T.C., 5- Suicidal Dominion, 6- Inner Cosmic Experience / Inject the Spirit, 7- Solitude, 8- Esperandote, 9- Elite

This is a really strange kind of metal....it has some elements from death metal, some from modern metal and a certain industrial sound. But this mix gives us the sound of Skymning´s music. There is a heavy work of guitars here and a really mechanichal drummer who makes things feel heavier than hell. There are really original riffs like the ones in "Shadowed / Astral Silver". The great thing in Skymning is that despite the heaviness of their music they always find some place for interesting melodies. And this melodies are the ones that you remember later and that give the tracks a lot of identity. A really great release with an original sound and a lot of interesting ideas.

Favorite tracks: "Axoskeletal/X.T.C."; "Suicidal Dominion" and " Esperandote".

Contact: www.candlelightrecords.co.uk or www.blackendrecords.com

REVIEW: SKEPTICISM - THE PROCESS OF FARMAKON - EMANATING DARKNESS

 

SKEPTICISM - THE PROCESS OF FARMAKON - EMANATING DARKNESS (Red Stream Recs., 2002)

Produced by Skepticism

Artwork by Tuomas Laitihen

Tracks: 1- Backward Funeral and the Raven, 2- The Process of Farmakon

This is a two track MCD from this extremely doom metal band !!!! This are two long tracks that allows the band to develop in a very creative way their songs (in fact one song is over seven minutes long and the other is over 10 minutes). The main aspect here is the dense atmosphere and feelings that Skepticism music creates for the listener: the music is very very very dark and slow as hell, with multiple clean guitar passages that help the music to be darker through its melodies. It seems to me that this guy knows how to create a very dense track adding a feeling of oppression and loneliness to their songs. The guitar riffs are great with some Trouble and Saint Vitus influences that contrast with the vocals that are definitely very guttural. Fans of doom will love this !!!

Favorite tracks: Both tracks are really good.

Contact: www.redstream.org

REVIEW: SERPENTS KISS - DISTANT SHORES

 

SERPENTS KISS - DISTANT SHORES (Independent, 2002)

Produced by Will

Recorded at Butterhook Studios

Artwork by Wayne and Will

Tracks: 1- Black Wizard, 2- Face the Slayer, 3- Strider, 4- Kingdom, 5- Gojira, 6- Serpents Kiss, 7- Victory, 8- Distant Shores

This is heavy metal with a lot of european sound. The riffs, the sound the drumbeats, all here is pure metal and the vocals. In fact I liked a lot the vocals because they use a lot of middle range instead of high pitched screams (there are influences of Mark Boals and Mats Leven here but only on the middle range of this singers). Also in the middle part of "Face the Slayer" there are some screams that reminded me of Exodus Paul Baloff. I like the songs because they have an interesting structure and they are well developed with great hooks in the choruses and in some of the guitar riffs. This guys deserve a better sound for their next recording and it would be great if they can find a drummer that can give a new dimension to Serpent´s Kiss music. It is always great to listen good heavy metal.

Favorite tracks: "Black Wizard"; "Kingdom" and "Victory".

Contact: william.philpot@ntlworld.com

REVIEW: SERCA - SINGULARITY

 

SERCA - SINGULARITY (Independent, 2001)

Produced by Serca

Artwork by Serca

Tracks: 1- Upload, 2- Back To Nature, 3- Morphological Freedom; 4- Side Affects, 5- Reinvention, 6- Somewhere to Fall

Do you want industrial music? Do you want weird music? Do you want experimental music? Do you want really climatic music? Then Serca is a good option for you because they mix all this elements and more. From moments extremely industrial to calm parts that are almost ambient. With influence from Nine Incha Nails to Foetus and everything in between this band makes a great job in creating this extreme kind of music. What I find really weird are the vocals that most of the time sing xtrange melodies that are not common in the style....great, because this gives a lot of originality to the music. Another thing that I liked a lot is the combination of dirty industrial guitars with clean ones. Fans of the heavy, of the strange, of the original will surely like Serca.

Favorite tracks: "Upload"; "Morphological Freedom" and "Side Affects".

Contact: www.serca.net

REVIEW: SENTENCED - CRIMSON

 

SENTENCED - CRIMSON (Century Media, 2000)

Produced by Hiilesmaa

Recorded at Tico Tico Studios

Artwork by Niklas Sundin

Tracks: 1- Bleed in My Arms, 2- Home in Despair, 3- Fragile, 4- No More Beating as One, 5- Broken, 6- Killing Me, Killing You, 7- Dead Moon Rising, 8- The River, 9- One More Day, 10- With Bitterness and Joy, 11- My Slowing Heart

I have been following this guys career since their "North from Here"album. And I liked the twist that their music got after "Amok". This latest album shows us the more melodic side of the band (eventhough they had shown it in "Frozen" and "Down"). This time the songs have more catchy choruses (die hard fans would hate this) with hooks (in the way that Paradise Lost has developed in their latest albums) and a lot of clean guitars. I liked the contrast between this melodies and Ville Laihiala´s vocals which are really powerful. This is one step forward in the career of this band that should have finished to record their new album by now.

Favorite tracks: "Fragile"; "The River" and "With Bitterness and Joy".

Contact: www.centurymedia.com

REVIEW: SATANARCHY - DISGRACEFUL WORLD

 

SATANARCHY - DISGRACEFUL WORLD (Primitive Art Recs., 2002)

Produced by Satanarchy and Putzweck

Recorded at Dog Pound Studio

Artwork by Joakim Knutsson

Tracks: 1- Disgraceful World, 2- Raw Dog /Rawnatas, 3- This Ain´t!, 4- Behold the Dragons of the Revolution, 5- Taste of God, 6- Fast Eddie Clark, 7- Face the Demon, 8- Armed and Organized, 9- The Noble Art of Stealing a Nation, 10- Jesus City posh Punks

It´s been a lot of time since I have not listeend to a band of this style. The most clear influences here come from: Venom, Motorhead and Discharge (they have this raw metal attitude with simple and catchy riffs at full speed). The music here is raw and powerful like the bands I mentioned before (the Venom influence is the most clear) and their guitar riffs are catchy enough to make you bang your head without control in the fastest parts.Also there is some thrash metal influences in certain parts that gives a different side of Satanarchy´s personality to the listener. It is fundamental here the rocking twist that this band gives to their music (specially on the drumbeats and the guitar riffs). This helps a lot to the songs because they show a lot of charachteristics that make the songs more interesting. The solos are fast and frantic as in bands like Slayer or Morbid Angel. A great option for people that is looking for this style !!!!

Favorite tracks: "Disgraceful World"; " Taste of God" and "Armed and Organized".

Contact: www.primitiveartrecords.com

REVIEW: REBELLION - A TRAGEDY IN STEEL: SHAKESPEARE´S MACBETH

 

REBELLION - A TRAGEDY IN STEEL: SHAKESPEARE´S MACBETH (Drakkar Recs., 2002)

Produced by Uwe Lulis and Tomi Göttlich.

Recorded at Black Solaris Studios.

Artwork by James Woodward.

Tracks: 1- Introduction, 2- Disdaining Fortune, 3- The Prophecy, 4- Husband in Heaven, 5- The Dead Arise, 6- Evil Speaks, 7- Letters of Blood, 8- Revenge, 9- Claws of Madness, 10- Demons Rising, 11- Die With Harness on Your Back

This is a German metal band with a lot of eighties influences (power/heavy metal and some thrash metal too ) in their music. The first thing that strikes you is the good sound that this release have (I liked specially the drums that are killer.....killer double bass). Another thing that I liked is that they don´t have the kind of riffs that bands like Helloween or Rhapsody and their million clones have. In fact Rebellion prefers to use more modern riffs and a lot of interesting clean guitar arpeggios (in the vein of more proggressive bands like Dream Theater). Also it is really good tat the singer does not abuse of the high pitched screams. The story of this CD spins around Shakespeare´s Macbeth and this tragedy is really well recreated. But the main thing here is the music and Rebellion shows us how you can still do metal without copying the main bands of the style. Pure metal !!

Favorite tracks: "Revenge"; "Claws of Madness" and "Demons Rising".

Contact: www.drakkar.de

REVIEW: REBAELLIUN - ANNIHILATION

 

REBAELLIUN - ANNIHILATION (Hammerheart Recs., 2001)

Produced by Andy Classen and Rebaelliun

Recorded by Andy Classen

Artwork by Jacek Wisniewski

Tracks: 1- Annihilation, 2- Rebellious Vengeance , 3- Steel Siege, 4- Red Spikes, 5- Unleash the Fire, 6- Unborn Consecration, 7- God of a Burned Land, 8- Bringer of War, 9- Defying the Plague

A calm thirty second introduction sends us directly into Rebaelliun´s bestial death metal realm. One thing that struck me in the first listening is the amazingly clear and brutal sound that this guys have achieved (with Andy Classen´s help, he is a killer producer and a top choice for any death and black metal band who wants a great sound). The music here is brutal at the maximum level but also has a lot of arrangements (great solos, many changes and breaks). Check as an example the melodies and solos at the end of "Annihilation" to know what I am talking about. They are killer and they add a new dimension to the track making it more original. This guys are becoming better with each recording and now they have released this killer CD that will make them one of the top death metal acts (this guys come from Brazil and they are well known in the European underground). Death metal lovers, buy this.

Favorite tracks: "Annihilation"; "Steel Siege" and "God of a Burned Land".

Contact: www.hammerheart.com or www.rebaelliun.com

REVIEW: PSYCHOTOGEN - PERVERSE AND UNNATURAL PRACTICES

 

PSYCHOTOGEN - PERVERSE AND UNNATURAL PRACTICES (Independent, 2001)

Produced by Ron Vento and Psychotogen

Recorded at IQ Studios

Artwork by Chris Donovan

Tracks: 1- Venom in the Voice, 2- Chaingod, 3- Cathexis, 4- In the Dust of your Own Nothingness, 5- Tear at the Flesh, 6- Follow me (into hell), 7- Psychotogen, 8- Death of the Old Ways

Psychotogen´s music is devastating! This is a death metal band of extreme brutality with a killer guitarist that makes original riffs and interesting solos (some sweep picking here and there and a lot of shredding techniques that are not common in the death metal realm). One of the main things here is that despite being ultra fast in some placesw, Psychotogen´s riffs are more original than the ones used in most of the death metal bands. And also Psychotogen´s music has more changes , breaks and different parts, from an ultra technical riff to a clean guitar interlude, from a fast run of notes to powerful chords. Ron Vento´s production helps a lot making the instruments sound really in the front, specially the guitars which are fundamental for this music (specially in Psychotogen´s with a guitarist of this great quality). A bestial and original release.

Favorite tracks: "Chaingod"; "Tear at the Flesh" and "Follow me (into hell)".

Contact: www.psychotogen.com

REVIEW: PESSIMIST - SLAUGHTERING THE FAITHFUL

 

PESSIMIST - SLAUGHTERING THE FAITHFUL (Lost Disciple Recs., 2002)

Produced by Erik Rutan

Tracks: 1- Requiem, 2- Baptized in Blasphemy, 3- Summoned to Suffer, 4- Embodiment of Impurity; 5- Slaughtering the Faithful, 6- Infernal Abyss, 7- Metampsychosis, 8- Resurrected Torment, 9- Stripped of Immortality

This must be one of the most expected underground releases of 2002. Pessimist is one of the most brutal death metal bands ever seen. Their crushing riffs and drum beats (with a lot of blast beats) that are a trademark of this band and that were all over "Cult of the Initiated " and "Blood for the Gods" are present on this release too but multiplied. One thing that has helped a lot has been the production of the great Erik Rutan (Morbid Angel, Hate Eternal) who has made the guitars even more bestial and the drums clearer achieving this brutal recording !! I liked a lot the sound that the lead guitar has in the solos which is not typical of death metal bands . It is more clear and it helps to make better solos than a rawer sound that would ruin the faster ones. All the tracks contained here are designed for the mosh pit and gives you the feeling of banging your head to a wall of sound !! Amazing brutality on this release!

Favorite tracks: "Baptized in Blasphemy"; "Summoned to Suffer" and "Slaughtering the Faithful".

Contact: www.lostdisciple.com or www.pessimist.com

REVIEW: PENANCE - ALPHA & OMEGA

 

PENANCE - ALPHA & OMEGA (Martyr Music Group, 2002)

Produced by Maria Abril

Recorded at Stoney´s Polar Bear Lair

Artwork by Mike Smail

Tracks: 1- Wizards of Mind, 2- New Machine, 3- See the Light, 4- Eden Fallen, 5- Reraching, 6- Love Dies, 7- Cold, 8- Drown Me in a Sea of Empty, 9-Misery Song

Penance is a classic band that mixes doom, heavy rock and metal into their own style, making albums like this one that are destined to be classics of the style like Trouble´s "The Skull" or "Psalm 69". It is no surprise that Penance´s drummer played in Cathedral´s great "Forest of Equilibrium" album (in fact Penance released their debut album on Lee Dorrian´s label). Now, 10 years later here arrives "Alpha and Omega" with the addition to the lineup of Mary Bielich (November´s Doom, Em Sinfonia) and Matt Tuite (Wickerman, Mustache). The sound is great with a lot of rocking riffs and interesting ideas that make each of the songs clearly original and unique. The great thing about Penance is that they know how to do each track different from the other adding new ideas, melodies and riffs. The guitars have that seventies sound that is a charachteristic of this band and of those mentioned above, really well mixed (along with Mary´s killer bass and the rocking drums). A must for fans of the style.

Favorite tracks: All this CD is really crushing. It leaves you asking for more Penance!!

Contact: www.martyrmusicgroup.com or www.penancemusic.com

REVIEW: PAWNSHOP - CRUISE´MATIC

 

PAWNSHOP - CRUISE´MATIC (Beard of Stars Recs., 2002)

Produced by Pawnshop and Øyvind Grødem

Recorded at Mansion Studios, Stavanger

Artwork by Sindre Kristoffersen

Tracks: 1- Blissed Out, 2- Mean Machine, 3- las Vegas, 4- Space Cadillacs, 5- Coma Cluster, 6- Thailand, 7- baby Bitch, 8- Cruise´o´matic; 9- Year of Pleasure, 10- Living Zombie

A really rocking band full of songs with great choruses and powerful guitars. The guitars are distorted and have that seventies sound charachteristic of this style of music and they are hypnotic in tracks like "Las Vegas". The drumming si really heavy with a lot of interesting patterns that make the result even more rhythmic (the bass player sounds really good playing simple and effective lines along the drums). We have here a versatile singer with a lot of seventies influences. The result here is rock (or desert rock as some people call it) in its purest form with many guitar solos (I like the way the bass does the foundation of the song when the guitar player makes the solos). This is a really tight band that seems very well rehearsed. If you like the style I really recommend this one.

Favorite tracks: "Year of Pleasure"; "Space Cadillacs" and "Baby Bitch.

Contact: www.vinylmagic3.it

REVIEW: PAUL DIANNO - THE BEAST LIVE

 

PAUL DIANNO - THE BEAST LIVE (Spitfire Recs., 2001)

Produced by Lea Hart and Paul DiAnno

Artwork by Cürt Evans

Tracks: 1- Wrathchild, 2- Killers, 3- Prowler, 4- Murders in the Rue Morgue, 5- Women In Uniform, 6- Remember Tomorrow, 7- Sanctuary, 8- Running Free, 9- Phantom of the opera, 10- Iron Maiden

It is always good to listen Paul Di Anno sing Iron Maiden´s older songs, since this tracks were created originally with his vocals in mind. On this CD that was recorded live, he concentrates on Iron Maiden tracks from the first albums and singles. It is funny because his voice has changed with time becoming somewhat rawer and even singing the old songs he sounds different (and that makes this interesting). Anthems like "Remember Tomorrow", "Phantom of the opera" or "Sanctury" sound great and here he has a really good band backing him up (specially the guitar player who is killer). I would like him to release another live album with his more recent material in order to have both sides of the specter.

Favorite tracks: "Wrathchild"; "Phantom of the opera" and "Murders in the Rue Morgue".

Contact: www.spitfirerecords.com

REVIEW: OJM - HEAVY

 

OJM - HEAVY (Beard of Stars Recs., 2002)

Produced by Paul Chain

Recorded at Red House Recording Studios

Tracks: 1- The Sleeper, 2- Revelations, 3- You Come, 4- Tv Eye; 5- Mix-up!, 6- As I Know, 7- Strange Dreams, 8- Follow My Leader, 9- Theorem

Powerful stoner rock in the vein of Queens of the Stone Age but with a lot of identity. In fact I must say that I like mor OJM than the band mentioned before. OJM are more powerful and their songs are not repetitive. In fact one thing that I liked a lot are the guitar riffs which are really rocking and give that seventies feeling that this music must have. The guitar player of the band has very good taste and I like the way in which he places the notes in ths short solos. Also I like the drummer who hits a lot the cymbals and makes the songs more powerful while keeping the time and creating the main rhythm. The singer is really good using a lot of middle range and creating good melodies that contrast with the music. A great album from this band

Favorite tracks: "The Sleeper"; "Mix-up!" and "Strange Dreams".

Contact: www.vinylmagic3.it

REVIEW: OBBROBRIO / JAN AG SPLIT

 

OBBROBRIO / JAN AG SPLIT (La Fiera Dell´Odio Recs., 200)

Artwork by Obbrobrio

Tracks: The Obbrobbrio side has 29 tracks. The Jan Ag one has 18

How can I define Obbrobrio´s music.....in some places it is grind at ultrafast speed; then it goes in something like industrial....then they start using a cello....then they use electronics and a drum machine...and then they use a female vocal with clean guitars. A really weird band. I don´t know how many different parts they play through all the tracks contained here. The main thing here is the madness that this band knows really well how to do (maybe I would like them to do longer tracks in order to develope their ideas a little bit more). Then Comes Jan Ag which is a band that is pure grind with chaotic guitars and drumming and extremely guttural vocals. The tracks on this side are really short two and some of them have some interesting and rhythmic riffs that depart a little bit from the style. For grind maniacs and people who like strange music.

Favorite tracks: "Devil´s Grip - The Iron Fist"; "Extreme Shitting on the Monument" and " Vitu Addicted".

Contact: lafieradellodio@libero.it

REVIEW: NASTY HABITS LIVE ON 88.9 WERS

 

NASTY HABITS LIVE ON 88.9 WERS (Corrosive Recordings, 2002)

Produced by Eric Fernald and Matt O´Dette

Recorded Live at Wers, Boston

Bands: 1-Haste, 2- Origins, 3- Eighteen Visions, 4- Shadows Fall, 5- Knut, 6- Cephalic Carnage, 7- Unearth, 8- God Forbid, 9- Poison the Well, 10- All that Remains, 11- Candiria, 12- Killswitch Engage, 13- The Dillinger Escape Plan

This is a must for every fan or collector of the bands mentioned above: here there are tracks that were recorded live at 88.9 WERS studios in Boston. This thirteen tracks were recorded live and they show us the energy that this bands are capable of developing on a live situation. In fact all the songs here sound more powerful than in their respective studio versions. Here you have thirteen great bands from the heaviest styles in the world. My absolute favorite here is Candiria because I like the many changes that their music have and the technical skills that this guys have. Also I loved the God Forbid track where they show their powerful modern death metal in an extremely raw way. Bands like Knut, Cephalic Carnage or Unearth will cruysh your brain with their powerful music. I hope the guys from WERS will continue releasing this compilations of the bands that play in their Studios because they are essential for any metal fan

Favorite tracks: Candiria - "Mathematics"; God Forbid "Amendment" and Eighteen Visions "She´s a Movie produced masterpiece".

Contact: www.wers.org

REVIEW: NARGAROTH - RASLUKA PART II

 

NARGAROTH - RASLUKA PART II (No Colours Recs., 2002)

Tracks: 1- Introduction...IN Stillem Gedenken; 2- Und Ich Sahe die Sonn nimmer heben; 3- Abschiedsbrief des Prometheus; 4- ...Vom Freien Willen eines Schwarzen Einhorns

Extremely raw black metal (because of the guitar sound that is really distorted, almost industrial) but yet melodic (incredible riffs with a lot of melodies). The main thing here are the atmospheres created by the guitars that contrast a lot with the screaming vocals that are typical of black metal bands. The sound is a little bit muddy but I think that this can be a little better by mixing everything a little bit louder. The fierst track is an intro that creates a dark environment in which the other three tracks are developed. There are some interesting rhythm changes, for example in the third track....in which the change is not abrupt but a progression from the original rhythm accelerated a little bit. This band is great for lovers of raw black metal with melodies.

Favorite tracks: "Und Ich Sahe die Sonn Nimmer Heben"; "Abschiedsbrief des Prometheus".

Contact: www.no-colours-records.de

REVIEW: MYTILE VEY LORTH - MYTILE VEY LORTH

 

MYTILE VEY LORTH - MYTILE VEY LORTH (Independent, 2002)

Produced by Mytile Vey Lorth

Recorded by Living Rhythym Studios

Artwork by Sharron

Tracks: 1- Visions, 2- Journey of the Demon, 3- Emotional Suicide, 4- Betrayed and Taken, 5- Beyond the Bitter Mists, 6- Burnt Waters

What a good album !!! Mytile Vey Lorth´s music goes from death to black metal to orchestral to doom all within the same track and that makes this band extremely interesting to listen to. Particularly I liked the heavy parts with Lily Davis melodic vocals because they were unexpected (usually the female singer of a black/death band sings only in the calm parts). It is really interesting that despite having many changes in the tracks the band manages to create a really coherent structure going from fast to calm, from raw to orchestrated within a few seconds. I would use a little bit more the bottom end range of the guitars and would have mixed a little bit louder the bass to have a more devastating sound (but this have the problem that some frequencies cancel one with each other so it can be very difficult to achieve). An essential band from Australia. This guys deserve to be in the top of death/black metal scene.

Favorite tracks: the five contained here, but I want more!!!!!

Contact: www.mytileveylorth.com

REVIEW: MISTWEAVER - DREAM´S DOMAIN

 

MISTWEAVER - DREAM´S DOMAIN (Medusa Prods./Dragon Design, 2001)

Produced by Mistweaver, Angel Redondo and Xavi Varela

Recorded at Talastudios

Artwork by Mike Schindler of Dragon Design

Tracks: 1- Intro, 2- ...And A child Shall Lead Them; 3- A Withered Rose For the Dead in Sin; 4- the Call, 5- Ritual of Death, 6- The Night is My Guide, 7- Dream´s Domain, 8- The End is Near; 9- Into the Lake of the Burning Sulphur

Amazing band from Spain in the melodic death metal style ( some influences of early Tiamat) with extremely heavy riffs and arrangements combined with keyboards. This guys have excellent guitar riffs (they are somewhat twisted combined with the drums and the keyboards changing the structure of some of the tracks). The guitarists know how to develope excellent guitar melodies to make things more complex and interesting. The guttural vocals are a really great contrast to the more melodic background (there is plenty of keyboards for those like me who love the sound of keys clashing against heavier than hell guitars). A great surprise is the track "The Call" which is an acoustic, almost medieval piece with keyboards and flute over an acoustic guitar and the female vocals of guest musician Begoña. This track gives a little rest before getting back in full shape with the great "Ritual of Death". Killer release.

Favorite tracks: "..:And a Child Shall Lead Them"; "The Call" and "Ritual of Death".

Contact: www.dragondesign666.de

REVIEW: MALKAVIAN - DEMO 2002

 

MALKAVIAN - DEMO 2002 (Independent, 2002)

Produced by Malkavian

Recorded by Malkavian

Artwork by Sbodoz and Kura

Tracks: 1- Sunburnt, 2- Grabbed By the Neck, 3- Ira, 4- Vampires, 5- Epilogue/ Alba, 6- U, 7- The Human Basher

Malkavian is a brutal grind/death band !! Through the seven tracks contained here you will find extreme speed and brutality, guttural vocals, hyper fast blast beats and everything that you can call extreme !!! The sound , even a bit muddy, is surprisingly good (the recording was done in a four track portastudio) . Tracks like "Grabbed by the Neck" have parts that are not so extremely fast and that I feel are one of the best things in Malkavian´s music. Check for example the rhythm at 0:24 of "Ira" that goes immediately to a slower more crushing style riff until the end of the track to see the variations in speed that this band can do. The seven tracks contained here are short and the whole CD lasts fifteen minutes. If you like extreme grind with many interesting ideas, then check Malkavian.

Favorite tracks: "Vampires", "Ira" and "The Human Basher".

Contact: www.malkaviangrind.cjb.net

REVIEW: MAGGIE NICOLS / CAROLINE KRAABEL / CHARLOTTE HUG - TRANSITIONS

 

MAGGIE NICOLS / CAROLINE KRAABEL / CHARLOTTE HUG - TRANSITIONS (Emanem Disc, 2002)

Produced by Martin Davidson

Recorded by Martin Davidson - London June 4, 2001

Artwork by Martin Davidson, Charlotte Hug and Caroline Kraabel

Tracks: 1- Undercurrents (For Paddy Ben Pan), 2- Lullaby For Clement; 3- Broken Bridges, 4- No Now, 5- Hymn Indoors, 6- Coming Out, 7- Up To Earth

This is a trio consisting in Maggie Niccols in voice (who also tap dances in the live presentations), Caroline Kraabel on alto saxophone and voice and Charlotte Hug on viola. The music here is completely experimental and improvisational with complete open mind by this great trio of musicians. The main thing here is the contrast that the three instruments (voice, sax and viola) create in the listener ears. It is easy to identify who is playing each part and how well the three interact. Nicols, Kraabel and Hug doesn´t use any conventional structure to create their music, I think that the music flows free from their imagination, going from the more melodic to the chaotic in the same track. If you are capable of listening music with a completely open mind for something that is innovative then you can check this one.

Favorite tracks: "Lullaby for Clement"; "Hymn Indoors" and "Up To Earth".

Contact: www.emanemdisc.com

REVIEW: MACHETAZO - TRONO DE HUESOS

 

MACHETAZO - TRONO DE HUESOS (Razorback Recs., 2002)

Produced by Machetazo and Paco Liaño

Recorded at Estudio Treboada

Artwork by Nor Prego, Venagruesa Prods.

Tracks: 1- Banquete Funerario, 2- Garrote Vil, 3- Enterradas en el jardin, 4- Un vestido de Pellejo Humano, 5- Purificación a Través del Dolor; 6- La Flema; 7- Engendro, 8- Trono de huesos; 9- Bolsas con Sangre, 10- Yo Fui un Canibal Adolescente; 11- Lepra; 12- Ataque Simio, 13- Ace of Spades; 14- Los Cuentos del muñón Gangrenoso III

Here is the latest album from this cult death/grind band directly from Spain. The music is extremely brutal but despite this brutality we can feel some thrash influences (check for example the first track "Banquete Funerario" to listen some of the riffs and drum beats). The guitar riffs are always fast as hell and in some places they are more rhythmic (usually when the drums start playing a slower rhythm) There are a lot of blast beats and guttural vocals making this one of the most brutal releases of the year. The sound of the recording is really good one, specially concerning the drums that are recorded clearly and loud (as it should be). Also, the vocals are guttural but at the same time clearly (I mean that you can discern what the lyrics are about, specially if you speak spanish). As I said before....one of the most brutal releases of the year !!!

Favorite tracks: "Enterradas en el Jardin"; "Purificación a Través del Dolor" y "Trono de Huesos".

Contact: www.razorbackrecords.com

REVIEW: LUNATIC GODS - THE WILDERNESS

 

LUNATIC GODS - THE WILDERNESS (Shindy Prods, 2001)

Produced by Hirax and Lunatic Gods

Recorded in Studio Exponent, Sulekovo

Artwork by Milan Hrabovsky

Tracks: 1- Curse, 2- Tormenting World; 3- Fallen Beauty; 4- Doomsday; 5- Battlefield of Life; 6- Dance of Salome; 7- Stone; 8- Mystic Way; 9- Bemidbar I; 10- The Wilderness; 11- Bemidbar II

In one of the first issues of Music Extreme I reviewed both previous Lunatic Gods releases. Since then I was waiting their new release. Now, after some lineup changes here they are again. Their complex style is here again (this time even with more arrangements on the songs), and they have two improvements: one, the sound which is much better (the keyboards sound bigger and so do the drums and the guitars) and the second ones is that they have complemented their technical skills with a more aggressive approach which I like a lot. The vocals are great Horar and Emil are like day and night vocally speaking and they complement very well one with the other (there are interesting contrasts between the more guttural vocals and the more melodic ones). There are a lot of clean guitars parts that work really well with the keyboard progressions and melodies in ordeer to create new sides to lunatic Gods music. This is one step forward from this amazingly great band.

Favorite tracks: "Tormenting World"; "Battlefield of Life" and "Mystic Way".

Contact: www.shindy.cz or www.lunaticgods.sk

REVIEW: LORD WIND - RITES OF THE VALKYRIES

 

LORD WIND - RITES OF THE VALKYRIES (No Colours Recs., 2002)

Produced by Darkens

Tracks: 1- Winged Helmets; 2- the Ancient Beginnings; 3- Prophecy of the Norns; 4- Father of Wisdom; 5-Atlantean Monument; 6- Rhinemaidens Lamentation; 7- Dance of War; 8- Horn of Summoning

Lord Wins id a project of Darkens from the almighty black metal band Graveland. But the music here is completely different from this band. In fact here we have climatic orchestral pieces with big influence from nordic music. In fact listening to this CD is like walking in an ancient dark forest full of pagan myths and beings. The compositions have a great feeling with those chants that can be listened almost through all the CD and the combination of ancient sounds with this keyboard melodies. There is a lot of use of minor tonalities in the tracks and that makes the feeling of the music contained here darker or more sad. This is great music to listen with your eyes wide shut and I think it would be a great soundtrack for some ancient-times movie. One of the recordings of the month.

Favorite tracks: The whole CD. I liked a lot the compositions. This music and orchestration showcases the skills that Darkens has .

Contact: www.no-colours-records.de

REVIEW: LOL COXHILL - SPECTRAL SOPRANO

 

LOL COXHILL - SPECTRAL SOPRANO (Emanem Disc, 2002)

Produced by Steve Beresford

Mastered by Dave hunt

Artwork by Monkey Design

Tracks: CDI : 1-Autumn in New York; 2- bad Boy; 3- Strictly legal; 4- Vermilion Sands; 5- Not the North; 6- Three go To letchworth; 7- Embraceable You/Quasimodo; 8- Union Dues; 9- Turned Out Nice Again; 10- Happy Birthday Bob Cobbins; 11- I Thought About You; 12- Aquaslide; 13- Experiments With temperature; 14- Two Out of Three; 15- Messin With the Man;

CD 2: 1- Abrief Introduction To Sax; 2- Magic Buffalo; 3- Uptown Top Ranking; 4- Perdido; 5- Out of Nowhere; 6- Brits Abroad; 7- Tourism in Crisis; 8- Verstehen und Sprechen; 9- Murder In The Air; 10- Sweet Hawaiian Kisses; 11- Victory Walk; 12- C.A.K.; 13- Resonance; 14- Introduction to the Orchestra

Here is Lol Coxhill´s latest offer. This is a compilation of Impriovisations that this great musician did with his sax (his main instrument) and other musical instruments like piano. The music here goes from jazz, to ambient , to sponteneous, to electronic. It is interesting too to see the big quantity of musicians that have worked with Coxhill through all the years helping him to develope differnt sides of his musical personality. The music contained on this two CDs is of esentiall listning for every musician who wants to know something about improvisation. Coxhill can do from hyper fast sax lines to sustained notes, to shrieaking sounds in order to develope the idea that he has in his mind. It is great to see that this superb musician has always a new desire to explore and break boundaries. A must.

Favorite tracks: All. This two CDs show us why this superb musician is a master of experimental and improvisational music.

Contact: www.emanemdisc.com

REVIEW: LAPIDATED - IMPLANTING THE FECAL SHOWER

 

LAPIDATED - IMPLANTING THE FECAL SHOWER (Independent, 2001)

Produced by Javier Gil

Recorded in Madrid

Artwork by Oscar

Tracks: 1- Entrails Cake; 2- Homemade Traqueotomy; 3- Verminous Anal Suppuration; 4- Fecal Shower

Lapidated´s music is fast as hell. Their grind/ death metal is terribly fast and devastating. With fast and bestial riffs (played with a fat sound) and a lot of blast beats on the drums (this guy, Javier, is killer on the drumkit....sometimes he plays blast beats so fast and precise that he seems to be a machine). The compositions spin around fast parts but they have some rhythms that make the songs interesting. The vocals are extremely guttural as the style demands and there are guitar solos played hyper fast and with a strange sound like the one in "Fecal Shower". The tracks are not short...in fact the four tracks contained here make a total duration of the CD of more than 14 minutes. I would like to listen more material from tis band because I liked a lot their attitude and brutalityw ith no limits.

Favorite tracks: "Entrails Cake"; "Fecal Shower".

Contact: www.lapidated.cjb.net

REVIEW: KING DIAMOND AND BLACK ROSE - 20 YEARS AGO. A NIGHT OF REHEARSAL

 

KING DIAMOND AND BLACK ROSE - 20 YEARS AGO. A NIGHT OF REHEARSAL (Metal Blade Recs., 2000)

Mastered at Nomad Recording Studio

Mastered by king Diamond, Kol Marshall and Gary Long

Tracks: 1- Locked Up In the Snow; 2- Holy Mountain Lights; 3- Crazy Tonight; 4- Virgin; 5- Kill for Fun; 6- The End, 7- Road Life; 8- Soul Overture; 9- Doctor Cranium; 10- Disgrace; 11- I Need Blood; 12- Radar love

This is King Diamond´s band previous to the creation of Mercyful Fate. Don´t expect heavy metal in the vein of that band or in the vein of King Diamond´s solo band. Here the music is closer to seventies hard rock with a lot of Hammond organ sound and rocking riffs. The two main influences here can be Deep Purple (this is the strongest influence that I can feel in Black Rose´s music) and Kansas or some seventies prog rock band (here they include a cover of Golden Earring´s "Radar Love"). This CD was recorded in a night of rehearsal and you can listen all the mistakes and all the spontaneity ofthe band. It is really funny to listen. A good document of what King was doing well before Mercyful Fate.

Favorite tracks: "Doctor Cranium", "Holy Mountain Lights" and "Kill for Fun".

Contact: www.metalblade.com