REVIEW: ARCH ENEMY - A COLLECTION OF RARE AND UNRELEASED SONGS FROM THE ARCH ENEMY VAULT

 

ARCH ENEMY - A COLLECTION OF RARE AND UNRELEASED SONGS FROM THE ARCH ENEMY VAULT (Century Media, 2002)

Produced By: Arch Enemy

Tracks: 1- Starbreaker, 2- Aces High, 3- Scream of Anger, 4- Diva Satanica, 5- Fields of Desolation 99, 6- Damnation´s Way, 7- Hydra, 8- Video: The Immortal

Cover Art by Arch Enemy

Here we have some unreleased tracks, covers and other rarities from this great band that recently released their album "Wages of Sin" one of the best in their career. This time they deliver some covers like Judas Priest´+s "Starbreaker" or Iron Maiden´s "Aces High" (this two versions are killer and have even more energy than the original versions). Here you have seven tracks that you will not find anywhere else in Arch Enemy´s discography and that have great sound, power and originality as all Arch Enemy´s albums have. A must for lovers of Arch Enemy, of the bands that have been covered and of original music.

Favorite tracks: "Aces High", "Damnation´s Way" and "Fields of Desolation"

Contact: www.centurymedia.com

REVIEW: ANTHENORA - THE GENERAL´S AWAKENING

 

ANTHENORA - THE GENERAL ´S AWAKENING (Independent, 2002 )

Produced By: Tony Fonto and Anthenora

Tracks: 1- Planet Jail, 2- Dark Horizon, 3- The Savior, 4- Gemini

Cover Art by Davide Musizzano

Recorded at Remaster Studios 

Metal !!!! In its purest form, with some power metal shades and really modern sound (and some late eighties reminiscences). That is what we have here. This four track MCD delivers a lot of energy and the songs are really memorable (this guys have composed good songs with catchy choruses and epic vocal lines that will be surely sang by metal audiences). One thing that I liked a lot are the guitar solos that are in the songs. This guys have consciously avoided the neoclassical runs and speed solos that many metal bands are using nowadays and they have instead used more original ones with a really good guitar sound. Thumbs up also for the original singer who uses his vocal ranges but not uses shrieks and techniques that have been overabused by other bands.

Favorite tracks: "Planet Jail" and "Dark Horizon"

Contact: www.anthenora.com

REVIEW: ...AND OCEANS - CYPHER

 

...AND OCEANS - CYPHER (Century Media, 2002)

 

Produced By: Tommy Tägtgren

Tracks: 1- Fragile: Pictures of Silence: Melting the Skies, 2- Picturesque: Cataclysm Savour: And the Little Things that Make Us Smile, 3- Angelina: Chthonian Earth: Her Face Form Worms, 4- Halcyon: The Heavy Silence: IN Silent Rain, 5- Aphelion: Light Evanescence: Into Extinction, 6- Opaque: The Morning I Woke Up Dead: Today is the Day, 7- Aphid: Devil Flower: Fruits of Lunacy, 8- Voyage: Lost Between Horizons: Eaten By the Distance, 9- Catharsis: End of Organisms: Absolute Purifications of Sin, 10-Silhouette: IN White Rooms: Vacant Bodies, 11- Comatose: The World Amnesia: Planet Dead, 12- Debris: The Magenta Harvest: Liquid Flesh, 13- Nail: An Odyssey in Flesh: Celebrate the New Skin

Cover Art by Shannon Hourigan

Recorded at Abyss B Studio

And Oceans is back with their new album. This time they decided to record again in the Abyss Studios and they achieved again their huge sound with things from black / death metal and that mechanical feeling that the band has in their songs thanks to the keyboards and the guitar sound (this guys have a unique guitar sound that together with the keys give this cold dark feeling to the songs). The songs are extremely weird with many dark melodies and multiple arrangements. And, as on every ...And Oceans album we have many original ideas and many interesting parts that give the band a lot of identity. This is a must for any person that loves metal music and has an open mind.

Favorite tracks: All the CD. A masterpiece as always.

Contact: www.centurymedia.com

REVIEW: ALL BORO KINGS - JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT

 

ALL BORO KINGS - JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT (Century Media, 2002)

 

Produced By: All Boro Kings

Tracks: 1- ABK, 2- Twist the Cap, 3- Just for the Fun of It, 4- Blowin Smoke, 5- It´s All Good, 6- The Rat, 7- King of the World, 8- The Party´s On, 9- Independent, 10- 12 Pack, 11- You Got It, 12- Broke, Drunk

All Boro Kings play rocking music with a lot of hooks and very modern influences.. here we have from straight rock and roll to some hip hop and rapping on each of the tracks. This band has also some punk attitudes, specially in some of the vocals. The guitar sound is rocking (I mean is distorted, but not as crushing as in a metal band). All the songs have many hooks on the choruses and on the melodies, specially the ones done with the vocals (you will be singing some of the songs while listening to them for the first time in your life). I think that many of the songs in the album can be potential hits if they are well promoted. This guys rock and they are wild while simple and catchy.

Favorite tracks: "Just For the Fun...", "It´s All Good" and "12 Pack"

Contact: www.centurymedia.com

REVIEW: ALIENGATES - DARK DAYS QUANTUM

 

ALIENGATES - DARK DAYS QUANTUM (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: Aliengates

Tracks: 1- Manual for a Dark Age, 2- Fever The Mind, 3- Saintfilth, 4- Dark Days Quantum, 5- Heartless, 6- Blind Leads Blind

Cover Art by Bjoern Goosses

Recorded at Die Klangfabrik 

A heavier than hell release!!!!Fast riffs with a crushing guitar sounds, powerful and technical drumming with a lot of double bass, screaming and devastating vocals, melodic guitar solos and melodic arrangements designed to give more variation and identity to the songs. All this and more you can find on Aliengates music. Their music is death metal with screaming vocals and witha modern guitar sound that makes the results even more brutal. But this doesn´t end here: there are many climatic moments that are created by the guitars, that have eerie melodies that add a different feeling to the songs. And we have to mention the bestial singer who not only screams but he also knows how to recreate the atmosphere that Aliengates want. The sound of the recording is extremely clear and amazingly good !!!

Favorite tracks: "Fever the Mind", "Saintfilth" and "Heartless"

Contact: www.aliengates.com

REVIEW: 7TH NEMESIS - PROMOTIONAL CD

 

7TH NEMESIS - PROMOTIONAL CD (Independent, 2002)

Produced By: 7th Nemesis

Tracks: 1- 7th Banner, 2- Omega Dei, 3- Phoenix Resurrectio

Cover Art by 7th Nemesis

This is extremely brutal death metal played with a lot of technical skills and with some modern guitar riffs with pinch harmonics that are played here and there in order to add a different feeling to each part. Through the three tracks that the band presents on this CD they show no mercy for the listener, going at full speed and full brutality without hesitation. The drummer here is killer with the double bass works and with the rhythms that he creates besides the fastest parts (he prefers adding heaviness instead doing only blast beats). The vocals are of two types: the guttural one and the more screaming type, both of them adding a lot of brutality to each of the track. The thing that I have to remark is the good sound that this recording has despite being a promotional CD....this good sound also gives a lot more of brutality to the music because you can clearly feel the power of the guitars and the drums!!

Favorite tracks: The three

Contact: www.7thnemesis.fr.st

REVIEW: VORACIOUS HATE - ACT FOUR

 

VORACIOUS HATE - ACT FOUR (Independent, 2000)

Produced By: Voracious Hate

Tracks: 1- Eye For an Eye, 2- Sign V, 3- Die Plage, 4- Degree of Sadness

Cover Art by Voracious Hate

Recorded at KST Studio

I have to remark that this band has changed its name to Encounter because of the change in the music that is evident on this MCD (on the previous album this band was a straight forward death metal band). The entrance of Peter Rung on vocals has given more strength to the songs here that are pure metal !! Voracious Hate music is really heavy but yet has a lot of melodies and the addition of Peter has added new sides for the band to experiment and it also has added a lot of power, having vocals that will not be out of a place in a thrash or power metal band having a harsh voice but at the same time having a lot of melody. The guitars here sound better than in the previous album. Now I hope to listen some new stuff from Encounter soon!

Favorite tracks: The four are really good tracks

Contact: www.voracious-hate.purespace.de

REVIEW: VORACIOUS HATE - THE DEPTH OF HUMAN NATURE

 

VORACIOUS HATE - THE DEPTH OF HUMAN NATURE (Independent, 2000)

Produced By: Voracious Hate

Tracks: 1- The Depth of Human Nature, 2- Feigned Security, 3- Healed Soul, 4- Opiate of the Mass, 5- When Insanity Commands, 6- Tempting Poetry

Cover Art by A. Rung

Recorded at Atlas Tonstudio

It is amazing the decision that this band has made of changing their style (an obviously the name of the band). This album is a pure death metal album but with a lot of melodies such as the ones you can listen in "Healed Soul". In fact this band´s music is complex death metal with many melodic riffs and changes (I would really like them to do this kind of riffs in the new incarnation of the band with the addition of the more melodic vocals of Peter Rung....that would be great). This band is brutal but has at the same time really good musicianship that allows them to create this really good compositions with many changes and moods using guitars that play melodies and heavier than hell riffs with a lot of soul in them. A really good band that is evolving to new levels.

Favorite tracks: "Feigned Security", "Healed Soul" and "Tempting poetry"

Contact: www.voracious-hate.purespace.de

REVIEW: VLE - BOOK OF ILLUSIONS - CHAPTER I AND II

 

VLE - BOOK OF ILLUSIONS - CHAPTER I AND II (Independent, 2002 )

Produced By: The VLE

Tracks: Chapter I: 1- Kano, 2- Freedom to Fly, 3- Behold the Night / Beyond Sunsets, 4- Timeless, 5- 3 in 5, 6- Drift, 7- Stark

Chapter II: 1- Kano, 2- the Dancer, 3- Trilogy of the I, 4- AMIntro, 5- AMTheme, 6- Scotland, 7- A Scene from a Tree, 8- In Silence, 9- Stark, 10- A Fortunate Reversal

Cover Art by The VLE

This is with no doubt one of the best releases of the year. Vle´s music can be described as Dark Experimental Soundscapes. And this is a well definition because despite being of extreme beauty, Vle´s music is extremely dark. And it really kicks ass with the dynamics of this compositions that gare made with keyboards and computers following the instinct of the composer The Vle...every musical piece here is improvised and The Vle has done a great job in creating the melodies and passages that we can listen here. Every soundscape here is completely different from the other and each one is a musical world in its own. After doing all the compositions, Michael molina recorded the real drums for this amazing release. Now The Vle has ready the third and last chapter of the Book of Illusions trilogy and I am ready and willing to listen to it. I say it again....this is one of the best releases of the year.

Favorite tracks: Both CDs are amazing. One of the best releases of the year

Contact: www.mp3.com/vle or ovle25@hotmail.com

REVIEW: VICIOUS CIRCLE - VICIOUS CIRCLE

 

VICIOUS CIRCLE - VICIOUS CIRCLE (Nightmare Records, 2002 )

Produced By: Steve Cichon

Tracks: 1- the Winner, 2- In Your Hands, 3- Never Run Away, 4- Hanging By a thread, 5- Hallucinations, 6- Rocks That Make The mountain, 7- Peace lady, 8- No mans Land, 9- Every Dog, 10- Gun To the Head, 11- What Ever You Do, 12- Vicious Circle

This CD opens powerfully with "The Winner" a really heavy tune full, of crushing guitars and the mid ranged vocals of the only composer and musician here, Mr. Steve Cichon. Through the twelve tracks that we can listen here, Cichon shows us all his potential as songwriter and guitarist going from powerful and rocking tunes to more calm songs that showcase his skills as a composer. Here we have many different moods through all the CD. A thing to remark of this CD is the really good mix and production that it has letting the listener hear every detail (specially when he uses clean guitars and after that starts a heavier part. This CD is a must for lovers of good songwriting and composition with heavy guitars and interesting soloing.

Favorite tracks: "The Winner", "Hanging By a Thread" and "Gun To the Head"

Contact: www.nightmare-records.com