REVIEW: LOCKWELD - INDUSTRIAL REQUIEM

 

LOCKWELD - INDUSTRIAL REQUIEM (Dragon Flight Recordings, 2001):

Technical Data:

Recorded at 20 Studios.

Artwork: Stephen Hasner

Track List: 1-Black resin, 2-Blue Collar Noose, 3-I know how long your legs are, 4-We Are all Sheep, 5-They are Lost, 6-Bleed through the Scriptures, 7-At the End of a Gun, At the Edge of a Knife, 8-Holy, 9-Industrial Requiem, 10-Stainless Steel, 11-A reading, a teaching and a Jihad, 12-It´s not me, 13-Feast of the Assumption, 14-4:44, 15-Dissipated Existence

Ambient/noise/industrial would be the apropriate term to describe the sound of Lockweld. A recording full of noises, sound textures and strange climates with some electronic vocals but whose main goal seem to be to explore waves of sounds that can be  obtained through electronics. Do not ask for melodies or heavy rhythms or guitars and conventional instruments. The fifteen tracks contained here are very similar and very different at the same time: they all have a similar structure that is developed through the whole track but each track explores a different aspect of the noise/ambient spectre. Only for fans of this kind of music. Contact: www.holyterror.com/lockweld or www.dragonflightrec.org

REVIEW: LILITU - THE EARTH GODS

 

LILITU - THE EARTH GODS (Vortex Motions Recs. , 2000):

Technical Data:

Recorded and Mixed by Adam Chandler in Athens, GA

Mastering by Blakk.

Track list: 1-Introduction/The Seventh Aeon, 2-Firmament, 3-To Burn Before the Sun, 4-Dead yesterday, 5-Rise and Fall, 6-The Earth We Shall Inherit, 7-The Earth Gods

How sublime and beautiful can be the arrangements that some bands make in their music !! Lilitu is one of this bands that apart from their great musicianship show great ideas and they can translate them to music with extreme quality. The Earth Gods is a record to listen time after time without getting tired of it...the perfect mix between black and gothic metal, full of keyboards, screaming vocals and deep vocals all over the songs. Here we have extensive songs where the band can get deep into your soul with their blackened melodies, with their dark arpeggios, with their obscured guitar phrases, with their black atmospheres and anguished vocals. Some influences of Amorphis, Anathema, Paradise Lost or early Katatonia can be heard here but all mixed down to get Lilitu´s personality. The overall sound of the recording is good, bu there are like three sound qualities: one is the keyboard and vocals sound that are really good, another one are the guitars that are maybe a little thin for my taste, and the last one is the drum sound that is really opaque, specially on the snare drum. I think this guys would have shown better their great ideas with a bigger budget that would have allowed them to get a better mix. Apart from this I find this to be like the missing link between gothic metal and death/black metal. Favorite tracks: "Firmament", "To Burn Before the Sun" and "The Earth we Shall Inherit". Contact: www.emerald-factory.com or www.vortexmotions.com

REVIEW: JON BUTCHER WITH DEREK BAILEY AND RHODRI DAVIES - VORTICES AND ANGELS

 

JON BUTCHER WITH DEREK BAILEY AND RHODRI DAVIES - VORTICES AND ANGELS (Emanem Disc , 2001):

Technical Data:

Recorded at: 1-2 The Vortex by Martin Davidson March 23rd, 2000

3-5 St. Michael and All Angel Church by Tim Fletcher May 24th , 2000

Editing, Mastering and Design by Martin Davidson

Track List: 1 -Low Vortex, 2-High Vortex, 3- Rhagymadrodd, 4-Pregeth, 5-Diweddglo

John Butcher, a musician dedicated to take new sounds and phrases from his saxophones (here he uses tenor and soprano saxophones), has joined this time experimental guitar master Derek Bailey (whose collaboration with the Vertrek Ensemble we reviewed some issues back) and harpist Rhodri Davies to make a travel into the weirdest world of sonic improvisation. "Low Vortex" kicks the ball and starts this CD with interesting dialogues between the three instruments, specially is interesting to see an extremely unconventional instrument like the harp being played in such an unconventional manner here. This track is almost twentyeight minutes long and it shows the chemistry between the three musicians (don´t expect classical pieces here because this is something completely different). Those who love experimental music would love this but other people who are not so accustomed could hate it. Favorite tracks: "Low Vortex", "Rhagymadrodd" and "Pregeth". Contact: www.emanemdisc.com or emanemdisc@aol.com

REVIEW: JAMES BYRD - FLYING BEYOND THE 9

 

JAMES BYRD - FLYING BEYOND THE 9 (Lion Music, 2001):

Technical Data:

Recorded at Brian Hutchinson Studios, Strange Practical Productions.

Produced by James Byrd

Engineered by Brian Hutchinson

Cover Art: Photo: Robert Whitworth , Concept and illustration: James Byrd

Track List: 1-Flying Beyond the 9; 2-Dark heart; 3-W.T.O. (We Took Over); 4- Nevermore; 5- Everything to Me; 6-Unity (While You Were Sleeping); 7-Paradise Tonight; 8-All of Me (An Allegory); 9- Avianti suite Op.1, Nº63

 Guitar God James Byrd has been shredding people´s mind with his amazing guitar playing skills since the eighties when he was the main guitarist in Fifth Angel. After Fifth Angel´s disolution he started a solo career with acclaimed albums like "Atlantis Rising" or "Octoglomerate". Now it is time for James to return to action with "Flying Beyond the 9" and this is not an instrumental album it is something in a hard rock vein like for examples Tony Macalpine´s album "Eyes of The World" but heavier. "Flying beyond the 9", the first song is full of vocal ahrmonies and the shredding of Byrd. Michael Flatters is a good vocalist for James Byrd´s music, he canbe commercial when he wants and stronger when the song need it. For those who don´t know Byrd´s guitar shredding, here are the elements that made him famous: fast scales, arpeggios, sweep picking, neoclassical runs and the use of harmonic minor scales and phrygian modes. There is a certain influence of seventies progressive rock in this album, specially on the vocals parts (some Yes in parts of "Nevermore" but drker) and certain Yngwie Malmsteen shades in Byrd´s playing too. There is in this recording also a beautiful instrumental called "Avianti Suite Op. 1 Nº63 with synthesized strings and Byrd´s tastefully playing along. My favorite tracks: "W.T.O. (We Took Over)", "Unity (While You Were Sleeping) and "Paradise Tonight". Contact: www.lionmusic.com or www.jamesbyrd.com

REVIEW: ISKRA 1903 - FRANKFURT 1991

 

ISKRA 1903 - FRANKFURT 1991 (Emanem Disc , 2001):

Technical Data:

Recorded at: Portikus in Frankfurt am Main - October 1st , 1991.

Analoguie concert recording by: Rüdiger Carl.

Editing, Mastering and Design by Martin Davidson.

Track List: 1-Frankfurter Memories, 2-After the Interval, 3-Wachsmann Am Main - Solo; 4-Rutherford Am Main - Solo; 5-Guy Am Main - Solo; 6-To the End of the Tape

Iskra 1903 is a trio formed by Paul Rutherford on trombone, Philipp Wachsmann on amplified violins and electronics and the amazing Barry Guy (whom I interviewed a couple of issues ago) on amplified double bass. This recording was made in Frankfurt Am Main on October 1st 1991 and it shows the trio at its best. I think the whole concept of the album spins around "Frankfurter Memories", a track that is thirty three minutes long and it shows Rutherford, Wachsmann and Guy constructing melodies and improvisations against the foundations that each musician provides while the others are improvising. There are no holes in here, no spaces to fill, when one musician stops playing, the others start their games of superimpositions and complementations. I can call this CD a Course in Improvisation or maybe a PHD on improvisational skills. As you can hear in pieces like "Frankfurter memories" or the three solo pieces that are presented here, the skill of this people are above average and they know what they want to achieve. Open your mind and listen. Contact: www.emanemdisc.com or emanemdisc@aol.com

REVIEW: IMMUNOAFFINITY - SLAVES OF DNA

 

IMMUNOAFFINITY - SLAVES OF DNA (Prion Recs. , 2001):

Technical Data:

Recorded at Fast Forward Studios - (September 10-14, 2000)

Produced by André Luiz, Leonardo Pagani and Mauricio Meloni.

Cover Art / Design : Andrei Müller

Track list: 1-Slaves of DNA; 2-Industrial Death; 3-Empty, 4-Sucubus; 5-Prion; 6-Involution; 7-Necrophagica; 8-Spiritual Disease; 9-R.Song

Brazilian death metal: brutal, extreme, full of riffs, speed and subtle things to make them unique. This and more is what you will find here. Interesting clean guitars with clever drumming can be find in songs like "R.Song" with a direct main riff and guttural vocals (keep on doing songs like this guys !!!) interesting change at  2:09 of this track with a rocking guitar riff and a really good bass twist. I think this band has a lot to offer, specially on the guitar department like in the riffs of "Necrophagica" or "Sucubus". Another thing that I liked a lot are the clean guitar/bass parts that start "Prion" (reminiscent of Johann Sebastian Bach´s most famous Bourreé) before getting into the heavier parts, also the rhythmic riff in the middle of that song is interesting as a point to get inspiration for other tracks. The vocals are combined with a voice speaking about disease and this along with the riffs give an interesting feeling of "old school" death metal to this particular track. Favorite tracks: "R.Song", "Necrophagica". Contact: www.immunoaffinity.cjb.net or prionrecords@hotmail.com

REVIEW: GRASS - CIUDADANO X

 

GRASS - CIUDADANO X (Locomotive Music , 2000):

Technical Data:

Recorded in Kirios Studios, Madrid, Spain.

Produced by Jesús Arispont

Cover Art / Design:

Track List: 1-Intro, 2-Animal Irracional, 3-Conversión, 4-Código Violento, 5-No hay Color, 6-Skankan, 7-Inocentes, 8-Ahora qué, 9-Mr. Hyde, 10-Tortura Temporal, 11- Yesterday

 One of the most powerful bands from Spain, Grass mixes metal, rap, grunge and rock and roll getting one of the strongest sounds in modern metal. Talk about hooks? Listen to the chorus of "Conversión" (this song has a Machine Head like guitar riff) or to the riffs of "Animal Irracional" or the electronic elements and guitar rhythms on "Código Violento" to have just a small sample of what this guys can do. An excelent vocalist called Pekas gives a new dimension to the band (good vocalists that don´t abuse of high pitched vocals are really difficult to find). For those who love curiosities, this CD has an extremely heavy, Motorheadesque version of The Beatles "Yesterday" (full speed one, except on the chorus which sound quite funky with wah wah and stuff like that). If I had to describe this band with one word that would be original. Favorite tracks: "Conversión", "Inocentes", "Mr. Hyde". Contact: : www.locomotivemusic.com

REVIEW: GB ARTS - THE LAKE

 

GB ARTS - THE LAKE (Pavement Music, 2001):

Technical Data:

Produced by Victor Smolski

Engineered and Mixed at VPS Studio, Hamm

Mastered at Pauler Acoustics, Nordheim

Track List: 1-A Voice, 2-The Surface, 3-Silver Rain, 4-Break Free, 5-My new World, 6-The Chosen One, 7-I Can´t Remember, 8-Shadows of faces, 9-Old Warriors, 10-The Darkest is Over

What we have here? A band from Germany playing classical/progressive metal in the vein of bands like Yngwie Malmsteen, Dream Theater, Stratovarius and even Fates Warning (Perfect Symmetry/Parallels era) with a terrible quantity and quality of keyboard/piano and guitars (excellent work of Andreas Beckmann and Andre Rasfeld). This album features also the participation of reknown guest musicians like Peavey Wagner (Rage) on vocals on a couple of tracks, Mike Terrana (Metalium, Yngwie Malmsteen, etc.) doing some narrations, Victor Smolski doing solos on two tracks and second guitar on two others. The sound is really good but I would have mixed the guitar higher and with a fatter sound to give still more power to the songs. What I found really original on this release are the vocal harmonies that are not like the ones used on the above-mentioned bands or in bands of the style (they sound more like harmonies from bands from the seventies, if you know what I mean). Favorite tracks: "Break Free" (some Kashmir-like keyboard parts), "I Can´t Remember" and "Old Warriors" (the most original song of the whole album with different vocals and guitars). Contact: www.pavementmusic.com and pvmnt@aol.com

REVIEW: EVANESCE - SOWER OF SEDITION

 

EVANESCE - SOWER OF SEDITION (Retribute Recs. , 2000):

Technical Data:

Recorded at Philias Studios.

Cover Artwork: Emma Stuart, Steve Holland

Track List: 1-Inertia, 2-Sower of Sedition, 3-Pathogenia, 4-Autumnal Death, 5-Forever In Shadows, 6-Altars Burn, 7-Winters Sun 8-Second City of Empire, 9-On Wings We Tread, 10-Internal Decadence

A really heavy and strong album !!!! After the intro "Inertia", the title track with its Death-like music surprises us with its great riffs and screaming vocals (thumbs up also for the drumming, specially the parts where he uses the ride cymbal, that are very original. A reference for me here is Death in the Spiritual Healing era or Carcass in ther acclaimed record Heartwork (specially on the vocals) and some melodies, that is fast, melodic, heavy and technical, focusing on the track as a song instead of just throwing a bunch of riffs together. There are also faster numbers like "Pathogenia" with a great melody in the middle (0:40). I think that this guys have a lot of imagination and they can play very tight, just listen to the faster parts with blast beats. Also thumbs up for the great sound, specially on the drums that are really clear and can be appreciated in all their magnitude as in the beginning of "Autumnal Death" or the beginning of "Forever in Shadows (with cleaner guitars playing enchanted and somber arpeggios. A must have. Favorite tracks: "Autumnal Death", "Altars Burn" and "Winters Sun". Contact: Retribute@aol.com or www.evanesce.co.uk

REVIEW: ETERNAL GRAVE - DEMO (15/8/99)

 

ETERNAL GRAVE - DEMO 15/8/99 (Independent , 1999):

Technical Data:

Recorded in rehearsals on August 15th , 1999.

Produced by Eternal Grave

Track List: 1-Las reglas de la Cordura, 2-Cardiofagia, 3-Nazareno; 4-La Evolución del dolor; 5-Sádico placer; 6-Síndrome de Reinfield

I must say that this Demo is not representative of the bands music anymore, because even if they are playing some of the songs presented here and the style is the same, the lineup that recorded this effort is not the same, having changed the vocalist and the bassist since then. And they have evolved a lot in their way of composing their music. The music contained here is death metal in the vein of Cannibal Corpse or Malevolent Creation, with emphasis on the technical side of the songs (listen to the killer drumming through all this release (and I must say that having witnessed this guy in rehearsal he has improved a lot). Interesting tempo and rhythm changes can be heard for example on "Cardiofagia" or in the beginning of "Nazareno". The two guitars are really tight, specially in the more rhythmic parts ("Nazareno" (0:57) (2:17)). The overall sound is pretty good for being the recording of a rehearsal two years ago. I am waiting for their new material that they told me they will record in August, with better sound and with all the evolution that this band has suffered in this time. Favorite tracks: "Nazareno", " La evolución del dolor" and "Síndrome de Reinfield". Contact: http://eternalgrave.com.ar