REVIEW: SPIRIT CORPSE - LOVE IS A GRAVE

SPIRIT CORPSE - LOVE IS A GRAVE (STF Records, 2002)

Produced by Spirit Corpse

Recorded at DocMaKlang Studios

Cover Art by Sorsha Fauré

Tracks: 1- Intro, 2- The Prophet, 3- Black Angel, 4- Funke der Lüge, 5- Inferno, 6- Alice, 7- Love is a grave, 8- Herrscher der Lüfte, 9- Spirit Corpse, 10- Outro

This guys are really weird....after a long introduction with keyboards and orchestration comes the first track "The Prophet". I expected a straightforwar death metal band and I was wrong because they start with sort of a heavy rock riff and start a rocking song. Then comes the next song which is a great mix of death metal vocals and heavy metal (check the epic chorus !!!) with keybaords parts !!. They call their style Zombie metal!!! The great thing about Spirit Corpse is that you never know what to expect from them. They change easily from song to song....going from melancholic tracks like "Funke der Lüge" (in this track they play a clean guitar solo over a heavy guitar riff that sounds amazing) to more brutal ones like "Inferno". If you like bands that mix a lot of styles with originality always witha lot of power then you should check Spirit Corpse.

Favorite tracks: "Black Angel", "Alice" and "Spirit Corpse"

Contact: www.spirit-corpse.de or www.stf-records.de

REVIEW: SOLAR DAWN - EQUINOCTIUM

 

SOLAR DAWN - EQUINOCTIUM (Mighty Music, 2002)

Produced by Tommy Tägtgren

Recorded at Abyss Studios

Tracks: 1- Deicidal Beliefs, 2- Punished By Silence, 3- Spellbinder, 4- Deep in Mourning, 5- Artistic Blasphemy, 6- Vulturous Need, 7- Broken-winged, 8- Autumns.

This is one of the best CDs I have listened in a while. The perfect mix of melody and brutality (all of this multiplied by the great production by the amazing Tommy Tägtgren). I read that Solar Dawn make a well balanced mixture of death, thrash and heavy metal and I think this is the best way to describe their music. The vocals of death metal, along with some of the furious and fast riffs of the style, then some guitar riffs and breaks in the thrash metal style and then they add a lot fo guitar melodies and clean vocals in a more heavy metal vein ( a great combination of brutal and clean vocals are essential in Solar Dawn´s music). The guitar sound is extremely brutal and along with the excellent drummer they achieve this great recording that every metal fan should listen.

Favorite tracks: All the CD....perfect combination of aggressive and melodic side

Contact: www.mightymusic.dk

REVIEW: SMIRNOFF - INHUMAN TORTURE

SMIRNOFF - INHUMAN TORTURE (Independent, 2001)

Produced by Smirnoff

Cover Art by Smirnoff

Tracks: 1- Inhuman Torture, 2- Lionels Passion (Braindead Part II), 3- Airplane Accidents, 4- If you Survive, 5- The Agony of Dying, 6- Warriors of Metal

The guys in Smirnoff have achieved a lot of brutality on this recording. Full speed and brutal riffs are all over this recording. This guys have made one of the top underground brutal releases of the year. Labels who release brutal bands music check this guys !! Thir music is simply devastating and I lie a lot the riffs in the style of "Airplane Accident" (0:58) really rhythmic and brutal at the same time followed by a frantic guitar solo. The vocals are really guttural as this style demands and they make a lot of screaming and brutal shouts in certain parts like on rhythm changes adding a lot of heaviness to the tracks here. This is brutality at a top level!!

Favorite tracks: "Inhuman Torture", "Lionel´s Passion" and "If you Survive"

Contact: www.smirnoff-metal.de.lv

REVIEW: SINPHONIA - WHEN THE TIDE BREAKS

SINPHONIA - WHEN THE TIDE BREAKS (Lucretia Records, 2000)

Produced by Kristian Gislason, Morten Uldbæk, Brian Søgaard Jespersen and Sinphonia

Recorded at Birdland Sound Facilities

Cover Art by Martin The Madman

Tracks: 1- Medusa, 2- Lost, 3- Moonstruck, 4- Blear The Hideous, 5- Beyond the Clouds, 6- Path of Life, 7- Adyssey, 8- Now and Forever

The music here is powerful and combined with certain melodies reminds me a little bit of certain The Gathering but Sinphonia is completely different prefering to add a lot of heaviness and more darkness to their music: Monika´s vocals are extremely melodic and add a lot of personality to the band because she has a special type of voice and she knows how to combine it perfectly with the music that the rest of the band does. Also I have to remark the great contrast between the technical heavy guitar riffs and the keybopards which are fundmanetal to create Sinphonia´s music. This guys have a lot of technical skills that they use to create the songs and they achieve great results. This is a must for any metal fan.

Favorite tracks: All the CD is magnificent.

Contact: www.lucretiarecords.com

REVIEW: SILENTIUM - INFINITA PLANGO VULNERA

 

SILENTIUM - INFINITA PLANGO VULNERA (Spikefarm Records, 1999)

Recorded at Studio Watercastle

Cover Art by Janne Matti Nurminen

Tracks: 1- Solicitude, 2- Forever Sleep, 3- Redemption, 4- Autumn Heart, 5- Whatever The Pain, 6- Maiden of the Forest, 7-Requiem, 8- With Blood Adorned, 9- At the Dawn of Wept, 10- Solicitude

Silentium is a band from Finland and they play extremely melancholic music with heavy guitars and a lot of melodic arrangements. This guys have reached a perfect balance between power and melody. The arrangements here are complex and they use heavily thekeyboards in order to achieve the harmonies that they want. The music on this CD has been mixed in the Finnvox Studios and you can feel that in the quality that the sound has letting us hear every arrangement that this band makes, letting as listen the beauty of Tiina´s vocals in all its splendour and letting us listen all the melodies perfectly. This is a must for people who love this kind of metal.

Favorite tracks: "Autumn Heart", "Redemption" and "With Blood Adorned"

Contact: www.spinefarm.fi

REVIEW: SHADOWS FX - SHADOWS FX

 

SHADOWS FX - SHADOWS FX (Impact Records, 2001)

Produced by Luiz Silva and Ricardo Mattos

Recorded at M&C Studios

Cover Art by Henrique Oliveri

Tracks: 1- They Dig my Grave, 2- Blood Street, 3- Tomorrow´s Desolation, 4- Finis Glori Mundi, 5- Death Penalty, 6- Death Lament, 7- War Feelings

This is a brazilian death thrash metal band whose music has a lot of aggression and melodies in the vein of some Scandinavian bands. But Shadows FX has achieved their own identity by adding a raw sound to their music. The tracks on this CD are dripping energy and brutality but interesting mixed with guitar melodies that make A lot of atmospheres and moods in the tracks. Another thing which I liked are the guitar solos that are technical and prefer adding melodic phrases than being hyper fast and demential. This brazilian band has also made a really beautiful instrumental in the vein of bands like Testament that is called "Finis Glori Mundi" and shows us a more subtle side of the band´s music. Lovers of the style will surely like this one.

Favorite tracks: "Blood Street", "Death Lament" and "Tomorrow´s Desolation"

Contact: lushadows@hotmail.com

REVIEW: SHADEGROWN - IN A COLD WINTERNIGHT

 

SHADEGROWN - IN A COLD WINTERNIGHT (Independent , 2002)

Produced by Shadegrown

Cover Art by Shadegrown

Tracks: 1- I am the Shadow-Walker, 2- A Dream of How All Dies, 3- I Drown in Shadows, 4- IN a Cold Winternight

Andreas "Shade" Pross is the composer and executor of all the music contained on this CD. The music can be classified in a sort of epic death/ black dark metal with a lot of atmospheres and keyboards. Great keyboard lines are what give a lot of originality to the music on this CD, along with the many different vocal moods that Shadegrown achieves on each of the tracks. Here we have spoken vocals, growling vocals, a screaming one too, and below them the heavy guitars mixed in a really original way with the keyboards. A really interesting project. I hope to listen more from Shadegrown soon.

Favorite tracks: The four tracks are magnificent, specially the combination of heavy guitars and keyboards

Contact: shadegrown666@uboot.com

REVIEW: SERPENT - ART OF WAR

 

SERPENT - ART OF WAR (Independent, 2002)

Produced by Serpent

Cover Art by Serpent

Tracks: 1- March To Death, 2- Art of War, 3- Panzar, 4- Spanish Inquisition, 3- Behind the Cross

Here we have this killer swedish band whose music can be described as some sort of death/thrash metal. Here we have interesting and fast riffs but what I liked most are the shouted choruses like the one in "Art of War" that are the guys, Sin and Tyr, shouting "Art of War" very violently. There are some intereting melodic riffs in sort of a black metal style with some keyboards that I think are played by Raven (I would like the keyboards a little bit louder here). And one think I think this guys must use on every song are the killer solos. I think this is a distinct characteristic of Serpent´s music along with the keyboards in tracks like "Spanish Inquisition". A very violent release with some beautiful elments. Really contrasting.

Favorite tracks: "Art of War" and "Behind the Cross"

Contact: http://fade.to/serpent

REVIEW: SEMEN DATURA - THIS LOVE IS DEAD

 

SEMEN DATURA - THIS LOVE IS DEAD (CCP Records, 200)

Produced by Semen Datura

Cover Art by Copo 2000

Tracks: 1- This Love is Dead, 2- Bishop of Blood, 3- Scream, 4- Price of liberty, 5- Rabenmensch, 6- Ouellen, 7- Follower, 8- Finalergeist, 9- Die Rache Ist Mein, 10- Hear the Blade Rings

Here is this powerful release that I would define as a mix of metal, rock and gothic music. Here we have the crushing riffs that this band makes in the songs, then we have some rocking riffs too that give a lot of hooks to each song. And then there is the combination of male and female vocals that add a lot of melodies and atmosphere to the music. The guitars sound really raw (and maybe that is a little bit weird for a band of this style) but they sound great and very clear also in the clean parts and in the melodies. The production is really clear and you can listen every note, every drumbeat and every vocal line. A heavy and melancholic release.

Favorite tracks: "This Love is Dead", "Rabenmensch" and "Die Rache ist Mein"

Contact: www.semendatura.com or www.ccprecords.com

REVIEW: SAURGA - DØDSLÆNGSLEN & KALDET

 

SAURGA - DØDSLÆNGSLEN & KALDET (Nox Infandus Records, 2001)

Produced by Saurga

Recorded at Low Pain Recording

Cover Art by Mortifer / B. Pedersen

Tracks: 1- Drømmende Længsel; 2- Under en Crimson Måne, 3- Om Nat I Stilhed, 4- Dødslængslen & Kaldet

Here we have four tracks from this Danish duo consisting of Mortifer on keyboards, percussion and vocals (and she composed all the music here) and Harnas who does vocals here. The four tracks are really calm and dark. There are keyboards all over the place which play dark chord progression giving the basement for the melancholic and spoken vocals. There are some changes in the music but most of the time is really relaxing and enchanting for all your senses. There are some flute (I think is some sort of typical flute) that Mortifer plays in some pasages that add a lot of sadness and sorrow to the songs. This music is a reflection of a beautiful and sad soul.

Favorite tracks: The four contained here are pieces of dark beauty. I liked them a lot.

Contact: www.saurga.subnet.dk