Live 4 Metal - Reviews

De Lirium’s Order - Diagnosis (Shadow World Records) Review by Andrew Ward
	‘Diagnosis’ is the second full length album from Finland’s De Lirium’s Order and what a sledgehammer of an aural assault it is. Combing thrash similar to Testament and Onslaught with the brutality and aggression of Deicide and Suffocation, the Finns blastbeat and shred their way through ten tracks of riff filled mastery throwing in a melodic solo for good measure. Lyrically the album seems to be based on the mind of a psychotic killer who is struggling to understand the thoughts in his head, “I must go on, in search of the meaning, of the hatred,
inside me” growls vocalist SM NekroC on ‘Drowned in the World of Delirium’. As you listen to this album and take in every word you really feel like your trying to understand the mind of the killer which makes for a somewhat interesting fifty minutes. The album flows nicely and there isn’t a filler track in sight, as each song tells the story of the unfortunate character in question. This latest effort finishes with a salute to death/grindcore heroes Carcass with a salute to the brilliant ‘Incarnated Solvent Abuse’. I often find myself skipping tracks on some albums but ‘Diagnosis’ gives a compelling listen from start to finish. The standout tracks for me would be ‘Diagnosis: Deranged’, ‘Drowned in the World of Delirium’ and ‘Thy Flesh Consumed’. Although this album doesn’t win any awards for breaking the mould of the death/thrash genre, the lyrical content sets it ahead of many of the death metal bands in today’s scene. Certainly an album which will find its way into your CD player for a few weeks if not months. Overall a solid album from intelligent musicians who hopefully won’t be a flash in the pan act. www.shadowworld.fi

Dysrhythmia/Rothko - Fracture Split EP (Acerbicnoise) Review by Steve Green
	A split EP featuring two completely unconnected instrumental bands. At least the concept is a bit different from what I'm used to. First up are Dysrhythmia, a band who's name I find impossible to spell without checking it at least five times. Musically, I'd say they are about as impossible to categorize too. If you want it in simple layman's terms, then it starts off quiet, goes absolutely apeshit in the middle, and then slows down again. Of course that's only the half of it. If our old writer Gorge Korein was here, he'd tell you exactly what Dysrhythmia sound like, but I'll stick to experimental, avant garde and crazy as merry-
fucking-hell. The quieter moments are pretty straightforward, it's when the funny pills are dropped and this fires off in every feasible direction that I'm at a loss for words. Is it jazz? Is it Prog? Is it a mad haphazard collection of riffs, rhythms and just plain craziness? Yes to all three and I must like it as the fourteen minutes just fly by. Just imagine Neil Young with a million ants in his pants, and you're getting there. The 2nd half of the cd is represented by Rothko from the UK. Tell Your Story To The Winds is pretty much an ambient affair with two different bass lines replacing the guitar at the heart of the song with keyboards and drums backing up the hypnotic rhythm. Torch is a much more mellow affair and much more to my liking. A do like a bit of ambient music to mellow me out, with Harold Budd and particularly John Foxx being artists I admire, although I've not played much since I left London three years ago. I guess it's a lot less stressful living in the country. Of the two bands, Rothko will be the ones I'll be checking out in the future, although if you like your music a little crazy, then Dysrhythmia could well be your choice. www.acerbicnoise.com

Endstille - Endstilles Reich (Regain Records) Review by Crin
	This is the German Black Metal bands fifth album, and I bet most of you haven’t heard the previous four? This is one of those act that are a real cult band. Like Deathspell Omega, Moonblood, or Waitain, Endstille stand amongst prestigious company. Here we are thrown into a blood dyed trench during an artillery bombardment, mustard gas bursting from canisters above, shrapnel ripping though flesh, and the dry stench of burning skin. This is Black Metal of the purest form, driving guitar strums and thwacking snares converge upon hell born vocal rasps. Its simple, primitive and designed to obliterate the senses. The sound splashes in thick distortion, with chaos imploding and exploding within its
downtuned delivery. Vocal scowls lash their unholy vehemence across great shuddering bass thrums, all bleating in self consummation under the sheer bile oozing from every castrated musical note. The perpetual flesh flailing speed of the tracks leave little room for any other atmosphere than that of all devouring aural calamity. This is no innocence, totally A-Z Black Metal at warp 10, blasted from a blazing howitzer. So if you require your scalp peeled below your cheek bones, to leave raw flesh twitching across ya face, here is the music to achieve it. Germanic Black Metal is becoming a truly awe inspiring genre with bands such as Endstille, vomiting fresh, hungry Black Metal to the masses. www.regainrecords.com

Exodus - The Atrocity Exhibition... Exhibit A (Nuclear Blast) Review by Marco Gaminara
	Some things get more pleasant with age, they mellow and become more easy going. Others sour and become acidic and bitter. Guess which Exodus fall into? Yup, other than "A Call To Arms" there's sweet fucking nothing that could remotely be called mellow on this album and "Riot Act" is all about anger and aggression, let alone bitterness. Tom Hunting's back from his hiatus and it sounds like all he's done in his off time was get faster and heavier, and boy do those pounding drums sound sweet, especially with Gary Holt and Lee Altus' powerful guitar riffs chugging along to them. We all know that Rob Dukes is perfectly able to portray all out hate in his voice, but he's also able to tinge it with more subtle emotions in
"Funeral Hymn", like contempt. Jack Gibson's bass thunders along keeping the mid-tempo song ballsy. "Children Of A Worthless God" builds up from its relatively calm intro to flow over the verses to melodically sung bridges, then back to the acerbic choruses. But it's the leads that truly impress, Gary and Lee trade them off each other in a way that hasn't happened since the H-Team split. I almost said that "As It Was, As It Soon Shall Be" has a very Exodus feel to it, funny that, huh? I guess what I meant was it has a very 'Impact Is Imminent' feel to it, or perhaps even, dare I say it... 'Force Of Habit'. This is primarily owing to the heavy melodic feel of the track and its grandiose epic leads. Following it up at twice the length but twice the pace is "The Atrocity Exhibition", granted they don't manage to sustain the intensity for all 10 minutes, so there are slightly slower interludes, but those probably last for a couple minutes of the song. The lyrical content is much to be admired and is a not so subtle dig at that which is to make humane through inhumanity to others that aren't part of the same clique. Something I've always known is that Gary Holt definitely has a way with words and "Iconoclasm" is no exception, but when you add to that his tremendous guitar virtuosity, the man is a god. Tom builds up "The Garden Of Bleeding" in such a way that when everyone else joins him, there's nowhere for them to go but faster and heavier, yet they manage to reign everything in for the chorus and then let it all out again at full gallop, only to be forced into a canter 'til it completely breaks free and hauls ass. Yes, the donkey pun was kinda intended and then pointed out for those of you that didn't get it... and for those of you that just think I'm mad, you should listen to "Bedlam 123"as it gives a new meaning to the term crazy fast, if the term indeed existed, harking back to their far earlier days when they were younger and fitter. ;-) To say Exodus are back in top form would imply that there was a period where they weren't, and that would be sacrilegious to say the least, so I'll just say they are still in top form and be done with it. www.exodusattack.com \| www.nuclearblast.de

HIM - Venus Doom (Sire Records) By: Joe Florez
	It was just a mere two years ago that the Finns landed a North American deal and served up Dark Light. While it was a decent effort, it lacked a lot of charisma that the older releases contained. I think there were two factors for the change. One: the boys recorded their disc in Hollywood which meant they were taken out of their element and partied all night long. The result, Valo had to go to rehab. Two: American producer Tim Palmer was at the helm of the project and while he is a major talent, I think the disc was super polished and the end result was beyond commercial. Well, Tim is back and the boys recorded this newie right where they should have all along…Finnvox Studios.
It is with great anticipation that I throw this on. The first track and title track is something that I wasn’t expecting right off the bat. It starts off extremely doomy. The guitars are tuned way low and the drumming is simply thunderous thanks to Gas. However, it switches right away to the pop/post goth mode that has made the band famous in the beginning. Valo croons his way through this one effortlessly with emotion and is darkly romantic like his past works. The thing that I am shocked at is that the combination of pop and doom is consistent and I haven’t heard the band quite like this since their origins. For those that don’t know, HIM never started out with that commercial edge. They were sludgy ala Type O and Black Sabbath. Just keep listening to the title track and you will eventually hear the song drag. It’s pretty wild. “Passion’s Killing Floor” is the single that the label is pushing out and while this may perhaps be the most radio friendly song on the terrestrial airwaves, this one has more bite than ever before. The ear grabbing keyboard work is intact, but guitarist Linde keeps those crunching licks coming. There is a lot of power being showcased here. “The Kiss Of Dawn” may be a ballad, but don’t expect it to be all romantic and gentle as this one packs quite a punch, is heavy as hell and contains more doom and depression than ever before. God damn! I think the pressure was on the guys to come up with something that wasn’t a carbon copy of their past works and I think they struck gold here…big time! Recording their last effort in L.A. was a bad mistake and being back on their home turf proves to be more worthwhile. Tim does a superb job on here as well. This is the ultimate mix of catchy, heavy, doomy, and melodic while being depressing at the same time. I am not sure if the Hot Topic/HMV kids will dig this, but the old time fans like myself with embrace this whole heartedly. Welcome back. www.sirerecords.com \| www.heartagram.com

Mehida - Blood & Water (Napalm Records) Review By Strawb
	My travels take me to Finland this time, and a five person band put together by the keyboard player, Mikko Harkin, to produce this eleven track output of progressive melodic metal. The release has achieved some success in the charts of its homeland, so the Finnish audience rate it. The tracks are varying in their type, pace and influences. The clue is on the tin, progressive melodic. The Metal is there, but only in brief doses; for example, the track Multitude displays some voice-over style vocals and then a patch where the main influence appears to have been SOAD [and the song is outstanding for this patch] but then goes back to fulfilling
the progressive melodic brief. As I look through my notes it is comments such as ‘it flows and is pleasant on the ears’, ‘nothing to make it stand out’, an opening described as ‘plinky’ and another as ‘squeaky’ and finally, ’as soft as shit’ that I feel describes my feelings towards this disk. Do not form the opinion that it is bad in any way because each of the contributors are capable and able, nor that it is badly produced or mixed, because nothing is further from the truth. It just did not press any of my buttons on the days that I listened to it. As I have previously stated, this creates something of a dilemma when reviewing because I will criticize where required, but this is a case of criticism not required, it just was not inspiring on the day. The album does fulfil its stated aim of progressive and melodic, so if that is the area where your boat is floated then this disk comes recommended. Internet sites? Of course there are - www.mehida.com/ & www.myspace.com/mehida

Mountain - Masters of War (Megaforce) Review by Metal Mark
	Classic rock band Mountain return with what is essentially a tribute album as it is an album of all Bob Dylan covers. Now right away, this concept strikes me as rather odd because you have a once sort of known band covering only one artist. The norm seems to be that one band does an album covering many different bands or many different bands or artists cover one band or artist. Okay, maybe this only bothers me, but it still seems like this album is starting out by being founded on a rather shaky idea. First, how many people are really die hard Mountain fans? Maybe some, but would these Mountain fans really want to hear
an album that is just Dylan covers? Okay, I need to step off the soapbox and get at the music. Largely it’s a rather by the numbers hard rock album deep in need of something to make it memorable. If I were asked to describe the album in a word then I would say “dry” or maybe even “wooden”. Even though Leslie West claims was very excited about this project, that enthusiasm doesn’t seem to have made it’s way into the music. While listening to the album I picture a band playing Dylan covers in a small, darkened bar on a Wednesday night while the patrons sit around and hold conversations while passing the time. So at times this album really is like background music. I suppose that’s due to the fact that it just doesn’t do enough catch my attention and mind wanders elsewhere. Perhaps Leslie West would have had a better chance had he done it as an “all-star tribute” of sorts. If he had different artists working with on every track or even every couple of tracks then perhaps he would have had a better shot at getting a different here and there. Unfortunately it’s a rather dull affair that likely neither Mountain or Dylan fans are going to be too thrilled about. www.mountaintheband.com

P:O:B - Crossing Over (Fishfarm Records) Review by Strawb
	My world of metal journey continues today, taking me to Norway and this first album release from P:O:B. The band’s full name is Pedestrians Of Blue which does not have anywhere near the same impact, IMO. It is released on the band’s own Fishfarm label, which they formed by choice despite their previous EPs attracting interest from other companies. This no doubt allows them to keep the independence and from the reviewers point of view signposts the direction for any praise and criticisms. The twelve tracks display various styles. The opener, Father and Son opens with a church organ being played for the opening thirty seven seconds before a cascade of instruments
provides force and pace before settling into a steady beat and the arrival of the vocals. Further variations of pace and tempo keep this track going until its end. And this continues throughout the album, never falling into one category or pace throughout. The Line has an opening that reminded me of Erasure and Respect before this illusion was shattered as each of the four band members let loose with their individual skills to weave a Prog fans delight. There are commercial tracks on here, and there are tracks with heavy inspirations; a bit of something for everyone, then. Is it a case of jack of all trades and master of none? Well, no. The bases are covered and each listening to of this disk has provided a different favourite track. The only constant opinions I have maintained are that the album could have managed without How Much More Than A Dream, which is the slow ballad, and that the closer, Out Of The Rain, is too long and provides a weak ending to an otherwise excellent album. P:O:B can be found on the internet at www.pedestriansofblue.com \| www.myspace.com/pedestriansofblue

Slavia - Strength And Vision (Drakkar Productions) By: Dave Schalek
	Slavia is a long-running Norwegian black metal project largely due to the efforts of one man, Jonas “Aus Slavia” Raskolnikov Christiansen, a former member of notables Koldbrann and Disiplin. Only recently has a permanent line-up been realized with strong connections to Taake, mostly in the form of Taake main man Hoest, assuming bass duties here, and guitarist Dreggen. However, Raskolnikov handles all of the instruments on the Slavia’s debut full-length, entitled “Strength And Vision”, on France’s Drakkar Productions. A couple of red flags are raised immediately. The cover art depicts an Anglo-Saxon king
performing a knighthood ceremony of sorts, as well as numerous iron crosses. Further investigations on the album yield a couple of German anthems attached to a couple of tracks. Combine these elements with some of Hoest’s recent antics and you might be led to believe that Slavia is toying with NSBM imagery. However, visits to the band’s website, Drakkar Productions, and Encyclopaedia Metallum yield no such confirmation. At any rate, black metal in its raw form is all about hate, anyway, and that’s exactly what is presented on “Strength And Vision”. Boasting a powerful production that highlights the guitar while retaining a thin, grating sound, Slavia also incorporates plenty of speed and rasped vocals while occasionally slowing the pace a bit. Although there are a few moments of groove with some good bass lines, there’s virtually no melody as Slavia concentrates on, for the most part, pummeling the listener into submission. This is, of course, not a very original approach, but Slavia is basically playing bread and butter black metal, and well done at that. I’ve previously mentioned the couple of German anthems, but there’s also a very odd moment at the end of the track “Divided By Three” that consists of a sitar, or similar instrument, playing a decided Middle Eastern or South Asian melody for a minute or so. To be honest, the context of the inclusion of such a moment is somewhat lost on me, but it is notable, none the less, for, if nothing else, its contrast with the rest of the album. At any rate, “Strength And Vision” by Slavia is a strong addition to the raw black metal genre. www.drakkar666.com \| www.slavia.no

Y3K - Retribution (Battle Hymn Records) Reviewed by Nathan Ward
	Y3K, sounds like the name of a rap group, or something equally rubbish. But they’re not; they are in fact a really good Black Metal band from Spain. Retribution is 8 tracks long and as all black metal albums, it has an instrumental opening track, which is entirely orchestral, with an Arabian fantasy feel to it. There is a lot of orchestral backing throughout this album, some sounding like a backing track to a child’s nursery rhyme, one track being ‘The Creeping Chaos’, but when the guitars, drums, bass and vocals kick in, you remember you’re listening to something at the other end of the musical spectrum. The orchestration was handled by Rhadamantys, of Opera Magna fame.
The vocal work on the album varies between three styles; that I can hear. There’s the guttural roaring of Scathing Scimoth, who handles the main vocal duties. The male backing vocals, handled by Loquacious Shihan, have a low operatic/Gregorian chant feel to them, which add more fullness to the sound. Finally there are the female vocals, handled by Mara Frischherz, she does do a bit of the higher scale singing like Simone Simons (Epica) or Floor Jansen (After Forever), but mostly she sings normally. The guitar work is heavy and sometimes melodic in parts, with some riffs sounding similar to Dimmu Borgir, like the riffs in ‘Eihwas, Raised to the Sky’. The bass guitar has some interesting passages throughout the album, most notably on ‘The Creeping Chaos’. Unlike the metal albums where you can’t really hear the bass, or the bass is mixed in with the bass drums, ‘Retribution’ as been mixed so you can hear each instrument. Drum duties go to ‘Lord of the Sea’ also of Opera Magna fame. My favourite tracks off the album are: ‘The Creeping Chaos’ because it has that messed up children’s nursery rhyme feel to it, but it’s talking about summoning a God to wreak havoc. ‘Eihwas, Raised to the Sky’ which has a Dimmu Borgir feel to it, but the vocals are a bit deeper than Shagraths’. ‘Eternity in the Chalice’ with has a good rhythm to mosh to. My final favourite song is the last one; ‘First Shall Be Five’. This is probably the most melodic song on the album, with one of the few guitar solos dotted around the album, ‘First Shall Be Five’ also has an epic sound to it. Overall ‘Retribution’ is a good album; the orchestration isn’t over done, and fits in with the rest of the music, giving the songs a fuller sound. It’s probably not as heavy as some of the black metal bands you can find out there in Europe, but if you like a bit of a melodic feel to your black metal try this album. www.y3k.es