REVIEW: EXTREME NOISE TERROR - BEING AND NOTHING

 

EXTREME NOISE TERROR - BEING AND NOTHING (Candlelight Recs. - 2001): This is a legendary band formed in the middle eighties during the grindcore explosion in England, when names such as Napalm Death, Carcass or Godflesh appeared. Fifteen years later, this band brings us a record (obviously much more tidy than their first offerings) that keeps alive their primitive strength and energy and the vocals that charachterized the band since its beginnings. The CD opens with a hyperspeed track typical from this band, the one that gives title to this recording. A great achievement of this band is having managed to keep all the instruments audible despite the speed that the drumming and the guitar riffs have. (see as an example "Through Mayhem"). This is a recording with no mercy for the listeners, a record with total aggression and really guttural vocals. This lineup of Extreme Noise Terror has all the thumbs up, they are extremely skilled with their instruments, specially new drummer Zac O´Neil that is a nightmare with his double bass drumming (look what this guy does for example in "When Gods Burn"). Favorite tracks: "Through Mayhem", the hyperspeed "Damage Limitation" and "No Longer as Slaves". Contact: www.candlelightrecords.co.uk

REVIEW: ESICASTIC - ATMAN

 

ESICASTIC - ATMAN (Independent - 2001): Having interviewd this band I had an idea of what the music of this italian guys was about but they surprised me the same. It´s an extremely technical death metal, with a lot of melodies and a lot of jazz!!. Make yourself an idea of amix betweene Cynic, Atheist and Pestilence to have a clue of what this people do. Spectacular sound and spectacular playing from this band that must rehearse a lot to achieve this results. This MCD has three songs and "Atman" opens the fire with a bass line very complex, followed by the guitars and synthesized guitars everywhere (in the tradition of what Paul Masvidal and Jason Gobel did in that phenomenal record "Focus"). The long tracks allow them to experiment a lot (I would like to see them live because they must be fantastic) taking the rhythm changes, breaks and melodies to unsuspected boundaries. It is really good to see how Nicola uses the fretless bass, an instrument less than common in this style (Steve Di Giorgio (Death, Sadus, Testament) is one of the few musicians that uses it) in "Self Omnipotence" and it is really inspiring to listen guitar solos of this quality. I recommend this CD to all those who love originality and have a really open mind. Favorite tracks: The three. Contact: esicastic@libero.it or http://go.to/esicastic

REVIEW: ENTHRONED - ARMOURED BESTIAL HELL

 

ENTHRONED - ARMOURED BESTIAL HELL (Blackend Recs. - 2001): Yes, people ! Here we have a new record of raw black/war metal. This band was formed in 1993 from the ashes of Morbid Death and Blaspherion and this is their fourth record.Their style is black metal without mercy and without subtle elements. Having survived to multiple lineup changes and the suicide of one of its original members (Cernunnos), the band has solidified their style making their best album up to date (the other ones are "Prophecies of Pagan Fire", "Towrds the Skullthrone of Satan" y "The Apocalypse Manifesto"). I would like them to give more space to certain original parts that are more elaborated like the one in "Enslavement Revealed" (2:06) with that double bass drumming sound over the slow guitar parts. The shrieking vocals cover every hole that the instruments left empty and are what gives the music its main characther of black metal . this is a band that fans of black/death metal will surely adore. Favorite tracks: "Armoured Bestial Hell", "Enslavement Revealed" and "Spheres of Damnation". Contacts: www.blackendrecords.com

REVIEW: ENTHRALLMENT - BURNING FIELDS

 

ENTHRALLMENT - BURNING FIELDS (Butchery Music - 2001): A scene that has surprised me for its magnitude and recent develope is the death/black metal scene from Bulgary (and all Eastern Europe). Really guttural vocals are the ones by Plamen Bakardjiev and I have to take my hat off with the colossal guitar riffs from Hristo Hristov. This four song MCD has a really professional sound that is very raw at the same time and allows us to see Enthrallment´s full potential. If I can give an advice: use more riffs like the ones in "Fast Explosion…" (1:06)(2:55)(3:14), "Burning Fields" (3:45) and "Massacre" (1:56). This CD, was recorded in the Max Sound Studios between December 4th and 5th of 2000 and mastered on December 6th This CD lets us admire a band than in the future will make people in the european death metal scene talk a lot about them. Contacts: www.butcherymusic.dir.bg or butcherymusic@yahoo.com or www.enthrallment.dir.bg or enthrallment@yahoo.com

REVIEW: EJECUCION - OBSERVATION

 

EJECUCION - OBSERVATION (Furias Records - 1998): This is a band from Argentina that maybe not much people know and that deserve to be on the first places of popularity in the scene (I think that they have split up, a pity) because they make an original black/doom metal full of keyboards and exotic instrumentation (listen to the introduction with flute and guitar "Dialogo sopra la musica" and the first track "Observation" to see what I am telling you). The bands which I can relate to this guys are Crypt of Kerberos and Orphanage, bands with a "european sound" (to distinguish it from bands with less subtle sound). What I think is excellent is that they have included some medieval-like pieces as "Lamento di Tristano", "Dialogo sopra l´Amore" or "Saltarello Nro. 1" to get more variety and breath in their music (there is even a piece by John Dowland and one by Nicolaus Ammerbach). I am really surprised with this CD that is on the level of any release that could come from Europe and it comes with a deluxe digipack edition. I hope that more bands like this one will arise from the argentinean underground, they are necessary. Favorite tracks: "Tools of death", "In Endless Fall" and "Darkness". Contact: Furias records: : furias@ssdnet.com.ar 

REVIEW: DREAMSFEAR - PRELUDE TO DESTINY

 

DREAMSFEAR - PRELUDE TO DESTINY (Independent - 1998): This is an irish quartet with a style that is a cross between power, heavy and thrash metal. The riffs are those that yopu could expect from a band of this style (the guitars have a fat sound that brings us to mind thrash metal) but the vocals are different since they are a little more growling and they made me remind some eighties thrash metal band. (Listen for example to "Ruins" (3:46) to know what I am talking about). This MCD has four songs, which have a duration that allows a lot of variations to happen within a same song (the shortest song is "Bleak Horizons" with 5 minutes 54 secs.) There are riffs in the vein of Metallica ´s "Ride The Lightning" or "Master of Puppets" and a lot of use of twin guitars (it has been a long time since I last heard this, IT IS REALLY COOL!!!!). The only point agains this CD is the sound that is a litle bit confusing in some parts, but that can be solved with a good sound engineer and a good studio (it is just a matter of money). I hope to listen something more from this guys in the future (that will be out at the end of this year). They deserve an applause for playing a style that is not commercial and for the effort that they make. Favorite tracks: "Bleak Horizons" and "Burning Bridges". Contact: dreamsfear@hotmail.com or http://members.tripod.com/~dreamsfear/index.html

REVIEW: DREAMCHILD - LA FEE VERTE

 DREAMCHILD - LA FÉE VERTE (Independent - 2000): An a capella female voice opens this record with a short song called "The Stolen Child" that takes us to the spectacular "La Fée Vertewith Cheryl Wanner´s voice getting into each space of your soul, thanks to her power of expression. Dreamchild is a duo formed by Cheryl on vocals, harp, bass and kalimba and, Frank Gerace on guitars. The result is an introspective work with a permanent search for climatic textures. Through all the songs we can see the combination of instrumentation and the diferent states of mind that the songs transmit, ("Capacochea" for example transmits to me something like desolation, while "Nimueis a more dynamic song with some percussive touches). Dreamchild is a really creative outfit with a music that we can describe as céltic/experimental/ambient…something original!!! The distinctive element are Cheryl´s vocals full of inflexions (to give you an idea is like a mix between Lisa Gerrard (Dead Can Dance), Björk and Francesca Nicoli (Ataraxia). I hope to listen more from this duo in the future because they caught my atention from the beginning to the end of this CD. This is for those who search originality (they also include a Beatles, "Cry baby Cry"). Favorite tracks: All, Contact: www.dreamchildmusic.com or seahorse@us1.channel1.com  .

REVIEW: DISARRAY - A LESSON IN RESPECT

 

DISARRAY - A LESSON IN RESPECT (Eclipse Recs. - 1999): This is Disarray´s third recording, the first two are "Widespread Human Disaster" and "Bleed" (they also have a live single from 1997 "Spreading the Death Plague"). Their music, which they like to call, aggro-metal, can be described as death/hardcore metal with a modern guitar sound. It can be felt in all the recording that this guys are looking to do an impact through the power and setrength that the tracks have. So, in songs like "Piss" they unleash all their anger, even if this is not one of the fastest tracks in the CD. In moments they look like old Sepultura or Crowbar, but this guys have some hardcore touches that this other bands don´t have: you can see that in "Mindless", "Loss of Tolerance" or "Black Truth". For the lovers of rare things, this CD has a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd´s classic "Free Bird" done Disarray-style, that means with a completely different feeling, really good. Contact: www.eclipserecords.com.

REVIEW: DEMENCIA - THE LAST TRIP

 

DEMENCIA - THE LAST TRIP (Independent - 2000): This guys from San Nicolás, Buenos Aires, Argentina present us their new opus "The Last Trip" which has an intro and seven songs, five of them in studio and two live ones. Recorded in a four track portastudio, the tape has a fairly good sound (a lot of bands get a worse sound in professional studios). Dementia´s music is a kind of black metal style (eventhough their lyrics are not about satanism or paganism) with a lot of technical skills. So, in tracks like "When God Cried" we have melodies, breaks, tempo changes, and speed riffs. I thinkl that they also have some influences of good old tharsh metal, as I can see in the guitar riffs of Guillermo Tinarelli and Juan Pablo Gaitan. The live tracks are "The Last Trip" and "Lost in Indifference" (we have also their studio versions here) and sound stronger live than in studio (eventhough the sound quality is poor here), showing that the band shows its most energetic side to their audience. Favorite tracks: "When God cried", "The Last Trip" and "Lost in Indifference". Contact: demenciademencia@hotmail.com

REVIEW: DEFILED - UGLINESS REVEALED

 

DEFILED - UGLINESS REVEALED (Deathvomit Recs./Baphomet Recs. - 2001): Defiled is a band that comes from japan and this is their second recording, and the first one for Deathvomit/Baphomet. A strange introduction with guttural sounds takes us to the first, "Lies for a Lie", and we find a great band of death metal with riffs that aim more to power and potency than to speed, like the last four or five Morbid Angel albums (it is really interesting the work of the bass player in this CD, and we can hear him perfectly because of the great mix). One thing that call my attention was the number of intros that this CD has (seven to be precise) one before each of the first seven songs. The sound is really good and I think that this guys have to use a lot their technique to do complex riffs. It seems that this band is very wellknown in Japan and it has supported bands such as Vader and Impaled Nazarene. The most interesting thing about this band is their quest for originality (specially in the guitar riffs). Contact: Deathvomit Recs: www.deathvomit.com