REVIEW: DEFORGE - SILENT TERROR INSIDE

DEFORGE - SILENT TERROR INSIDE (Independent, 2001)

Produced By Deforge

Tracks: 1- Fear West, 2- necrotic Skin, 3- Terminal Revolting Idea, 4- Back To life, 5- K.K.K.

Cover Art by Ettore Gaetano

Recorded at: Temple of Noise Studios

A modern death metal band with some thrash touches !!!! This is the style that this guys from Italy play. Full of brutality this band has chosen a more technical side to play their music. In fact the first thing that got my attention was the drumming sound, almost mechanical and that lets you listen all the complex rhythms that this guy is playing behind the drumkit. Then you have the deathly guitars with a really fat distortion that is essential to achieve the results that the guys in Deforge want. Plus, we have a bass player that plays many interesting arrangements through all the tracks. The mix of this CD is really good and makes things more brutal than it would be with a rawer production. This guys rule and lovers of death metal should check them.

Favorite tracks: "Fear West", "Terminal Revolting Idea" and "K.K.K."

Contact: konkhra@tiscalinet.it

REVIEW: DARK TRANQUILITY - DAMAGE DONE

DARK TRANQUILITY - DAMAGE DONE (Century Media, 2002 )

Produced By: Dark Tranquility and Fredrik Nordström

Tracks: 1- Final Resistance, 2- Hours Passed in Exile, 3- Monochromatic Stains, 4- Single part of two, 5- The treason wall, 6- Format C: For Cortex, 7- Damage Done, 8- Cathode Ray Sunshine, 9- The Enemy, 10-I, Deception, 11- White noise / Black Silence, 12- Ex Nihilo, 13 - Video: Monochromatic Stains

Cover Art by Niklas Sundin

Recorded at Studio Fredman

Here is the new album of Swedish death metal gods Dark Tranquility. Yes, one of the founders of the Gothenburg sound are here with "Damage Done". As always the band delivers technical death metal with that typical swedish flavor that we know bands like Dark Tranquility or In Flames have. This band has achieved its own identity and they show this on this latest CD with all the elements that ahve made them famous: fast riffs played with a lot of technical skills, clean guitar interludes, melodic guitar phrases and solos and powerful vocals. When looking back on Dark Tranquility´s career we can find that on each recording they have got a better mix and sound and this one is no exception being the album with tightest mix and more devastating guitars. A classic.

Favorite tracks: "Final Resistance", "The Treason Wall" and "The Enemy"

Contact: www.centurymedia.com

REVIEW: CYCLOPS - CYCLOPS FROM HELL

 

CYCLOPS - CYCLOPS FROM HELL (Independent, 2001)

 

Produced By: Cyclops

Tracks: 1- Welcome to me! (intro), 2- Metal Eye Beast, 3- Kill the Beast (Part One), 4- Bloody tears, 5- Metal Be With Us, 6- Stop this Hell

Cover Art by Mauro Vanzati

Recorded at Jam Studio

A slow melodic intro lets us into the heavy metal world of Cyclops. Here we have pure heavy metal with interesting guitar arrangements and clean epic vocals. The influences that I find here are those of Iron Maiden, some Helloween and a touch of old Queensryche. One extra point to these guys go for the excellent guitar solos (with lot of feeling and technique). All of the songs here have epic melodies and are of the kind of songs that are composed to be sung with your fist in the air. The mix is good but I would mix a little bit louder the guitars to make the result even heavier. There are some acoustic moments like in "Kill the Beast...". Plus there are lyrics thata re very sentimental (specially for people in Argentina) about the desparecidos and the killings that the militar governments did here in this country. Lovers of heavy metal don´t miss this one.

Favorite tracks: "Bloody Tears", "Metal Eye Beast" and "Stop this Hell"

Contact: www.cyclopsfromhell.com

REVIEW: COAL CHAMBER - DARK DAYS

COAL CHAMBER - DARK DAYS (Roadrunner Recs., 2001)

Produced By: Ross Hoghart

Tracks: 1- Fiend, 2- Glow, 3- Watershed, 4- Domething Told Me, 5- Dark days, 6- Alienate Me, 7- One Step, 8- Friend, 9- Rowboat, 10- Drove, 11- Empty jar, 12- Beckoned

Cover Art by Kris Mc Caddon

Recorded at Rumbo Recording Studio

In the life of the band the first album is what brings you immediate success, the second one is the one that solidifies your fame, but it is the third one the one that decides if you are going to continue being succesful or not. Knowing this, the guys and girl in Coal Chamber have started this third CD with a potential hit called "Fiend". The sound continues being the same as in their first two albums, that is heavy guitars with really fat sound, a clean bass guitar that follows closely the guitars, strong vocals and rhythms designed for the mosh pit or for headbanging. The mix of this album is good but no so different from the one in the first two albums. A third album to continue being among the top new metal bands.

Favorite tracks: "Glow", "Fiend" and "Empty Jar"

Contact: www.coalchamber.com

REVIEW: CHEMIKILLER - 4 SONG DEMO CDR

 

CHEMIKILLER - 4 SONG DEMO CDR (Independent, 2002 )

 

Produced By: Chemikiller

Tracks: 1- The blackest Night, 2- House of Blood, 3- Seek the Reaper, 4- Flesh Eaters

Cover Art by Chemikiller

Each Chemikiller songs sounds different fom the previous one!! The first track here opens up with a real thrash death riff before getting into a fast thrashy tun, then the second one, "House of Blood" is more rocking with more direct riffs and drumming. The third one is a more direct track and the fourth one is in a Motorhead style (and reminds me a little bit of Sodom´s classic song "Ausgebombt" from teh "Agent Orange" album). But each song is completely different from the other yet retaining the Chemikiller sound...and that is good. The singer here has a very special vocal range (sometimes closer to Tom Angelripper) and that also gives a lot of identity to the tracks. The sound of this four track demo is good and I would like te band to mix the guitar louder so they give some extra power to each of the songs.

Favorite tracks: "Flesh Eaters" and "House of Blood"

Contact: www.chemikiller.cjb.net

REVIEW: CHAOS THEORY - THE SMOKEY BASEMENT EP

 

CHAOS THEORY - THE SMOKEY BASEMENT EP (Independent, 2002 )

Produced By: Chaos Theory

Tracks: 1- Not for Me, 2- Shame, 3- Give Up

Recorded in a Smokey Basement

Chaos Theory´s music is difficult to label but it has a lot of elements of eighties thrash metal and of pure heavy metal, such as the vocals and certain rhythms (some passages in "Shame" reminded me of early Anthrax). But despite this, Chaos Theory does not sound like an eighties thrash band. In fact they have a modern guitar sound and a bass player whose bass lines can be clearly listened through the whole recording. The guys here have good technical skills that help them to create the great music that we can listen on this EP. The mix of the three songs is clear and I really hope that this guys record more songs soon to listen the way in which the band evolves. This is a good sign that bands that have been influenced by thrash have developed their own sound, like Chaos theory did and are making a big thrash metal comeback. Thrash is back !!!

Favorite tracks: The three

Contact: www.chaostheoryonline.com

REVIEW: CELESTIAL DAWN - GENESIS

 

CELESTIAL DAWN - GENESIS (Independent, 2001)

 

Produced By: Celestial Dawn

Tracks: 1- Celestial Dawn, 2- Breakdown, 3- Spectre, 4- Another Rising Sun

Cover Art by Brian Kosovan

Recorded at The Sound Module

This is pure heavy metal!! Here we have this band whose music is metal in its purest form. It has all the elements of the genre, distorted guitars, open riffs that let the vocals do the melodies, and we have a drummer that knows how to play rhythms living a lot of space for the guitars to do their job, there are also melodic guitar solos that creates epic melodies in the songs. The vocals are closer to eightioes thrash metal ones than to typical metal because of the use of some relly high pitches (that bands like Toxik or Hexenhaus used a lot in their music). Here you have a good mix of the instruments that lets you hear perfectly each one of the instruments. Lovers of heavy metal in its purest form will surely like Celestial Dawn´s music

Favorite tracks: "Breakdown" and "Spectre"

Contact: www.celestialdawn.com

REVIEW: CATHOLICON - 2002 & 1999 PROMO DEMOS

 

CATHOLICON - 2002 & 1999 PROMO DEMOS (Independent, 2002 )

Produced By: Catholicon

Tracks: 2002 Promo: 1- Dawn of a Dark Age, 2- Gallery of God´s Love, 3- 14th Century Apocalypse, 4- Embodiment of All That is Not, 1999 Promo: 5- 14th Century Apocalypse, 6- Coronation, 7- Heir To The Throne, 8- Remember the Fallen

Since I have just reviewed the 2002 promo demo cd from Catholicon I will review here their promo demo from 1999. Here you can listen how Catholicon´s music has evolved between the two demos. In the 1999 the guitar sound was closer to death metal while the vocals were more of teh black metal type. Also there was less keyboard work than in the 2002 demo (even if it is present in this older version of "14th Century Apocalypse"). The sound is far more primitive in the older demo and you can feel that the mix was not as good as in the new one. A good starting point to compare the evolution of Catholicon´s music.

Favorite tracks: "Coronation" and "Heir To the Throne"

Contact: www.fuckyourgod.com

REVIEW: CATHOLICON - PROMO DEMO 2002

 

CATHOLICON - PROMO DEMO 2002 (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Catholicon

Tracks: 1- Dawn of a Dark Age, 2- Gallery of God´s love, 3- 14th Century Apocalypse, 4- Embodiment of all that is Not

Cover Art by Catholicon

Recorded at Underworld Studio

This is Catholicon´s new promo demo and here they show their brutal mix of death metal and black metal with some grind touches (in some of the fastest parts). This guys are one of the most brutal bands in the underground and I really like the way in which they have made a fusion of different styles and achieved their own identity through that (in some parts there are also some keyboards that accentuates one of the riffs in a great way (check "14th Century Apocalypse")). There are also multiple types of vocals here: from a screaming and shrieking one to one that is closer to screaming grind (because it is really distorted) to a more guttural one....and this voices interact through the four tracks in an amazing way. If you like the aforementioned styles, check Catholicon´s music.

Favorite tracks: The four

Contact: www.fuckyourgod.com

REVIEW: CARNALITY - BRUTAL EXECUTION

 

CARNALITY - BRUTAL EXECUTION (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Carnality

Tracks: 1- Forever in Your Grave, 2- Cadaveric Orgasm, 3- Frozen Human Meat

Cover Art by Francesco Rapini

Recorded at: Fear Studio

This is a three tarck MCD from this extremely brutal band from Italy. The music can be related to "Blessed are the Sick" or "Covenant" era Morbid Angel (because of the complex riffs that are played really tight and that emphasize the rhythmic brutality and not only the simple speed) or with bands like Sinister because of the brutality of the vocals and the drumming. One thing that I have to point out is that this guys have achieved a great sound and the recording is really well mixed and that makes the music even more brutal and powerful (in fact I think differnt than those bands that think that the worst the sound is the music sounds more brutal....I think that bands like Carnality show that having a polished sound add a lot of heaviness to your music. Thumbs up also for the killer drummer that is a rhythmic beast and essential to Carnality´s sound.

Favorite tracks: the three. They are a showcase of extreme brutality

Contact: brutalcarnality@yahoo.it