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Karnak Seti - Stranded By Existence (Self
Release) Review by Steve
Green |
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I really shouldn't be too hard on Karnak Seti. They hail from the Madeira
Island in Portugal, an area almost untouched by Metal music and therefore
had to record in a studio not geared for the sort of music they play. I
say that by way of an introduction as my gripe with this release is the
soulless/muddy production, which I fear is the result of a producer and/or
studio that has no experience of this type of music. But even a
substandard production won't hold a good band back for long. There are
glimpses of brilliance on this album, mainly with the rather splendid
Clear and the razor edged White Sky, and the overall song writing and
performances are good, (especially the lead guitars) and the |
vocals, whilst not gelling fully with the music on every song,
will I'm sure sparkle when recorded in a better environment.
I know Karnak Seti worked hard to get this album recorded, so I'm going to
applaud them for what they've achieved so far. And I hope they persevere
and get the recording their music deserves, because there's enough here to
warrant the band a bit of interest. Visit the band at:
www.myspace.com/karnakseti
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Naumachia - Callous Kagathos
(Metal Mind) Review by Jesse Ketman |
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Epic Polish black metal is the name of the game this time, as Naumachia
return with (apparently) their second album. I’d never heard of them
before, but was moderately impressed with the result. While Callous
Kagathos fails to match the epic desolation of Emperor, nor the complexity
and brutality of Polish brethren Behemoth, Naumachia does prove to be more
than an average listen. This album is all over the map, sometimes
approaching even a (dare I say) Bal-Sagoth style sound, albeit with
significantly less cheese. On the whole, I’d probably have to recommend
this to fans of newer Mayhem or Agathodaimon than anything else. They have
this under-the-radar quality that makes me |
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think they could be very big someday, but probably not for a
number of years, if that dream comes to fruition at all.
There’s not enough present yet to distinguish Naumachia
significantly from the BM flock, but the deviation is there in spirit.
Give them a try and see if it’s your bag.
www.naumachia.net |
www.metalmind.com |
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Overcast - Reborn To Kill Again (Metal Blade) Review by Steve
Green |
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There wasn't a lot of foreplay when I first heard this album. Shit, I
didn't even look at the label, I just stuck it in, and away we went. At
first I just couldn't work out who this was, despite the vocals sounding
achingly familiar. I was reminded of a menacing, more hardcore
version of Anthrax and the vocals... well a raspier version of Twisted
Sister's Dee Snider sprang to mind. While opening number Diluting Inertia
/ Grifter had me stumped, the cleaner vocals of Brian Fair were more
obvious on Root Bound Apollo.
Now I've got the intro out of the way, I'll backtrack a little to give you
a brief history of the band. Overcast formed in 1991 and split in late
1998 and Brian Fair was in the band prior |
to joining Shadows Fall. Also in the band was Mike D’Antonio,
who ended up in Killswitch Engage. This album consists of 11 re-recorded tracks
from that time, as well as 2 unreleased songs. And I think Overcast got
back together to, number 1: obviously to have a blast cranking out a few
old songs together, but I also think it's a big "fuck you" aimed at all of
the people who treated them badly when they were originally together and
also to prove to all of the labels who didn't sign them, how wrong they
were. And it is hard to see how no one of any importance snapped them up.
But hindsight is a wonderful thing.
Despite any comparisons you may expect with either Shadows Fall or
Killswitch Engage, I still think that Overcast are more comparable to my
original diagnosis: A more hardcore version of Anthrax with a raspier Dee
Snider on vocals.
www.myspace.com/overcastrocks |
www.overcast.cc
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Raunchy - Wasteland
Discotheque (Lifeforce Records) Review by Jesse
Ketman |
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It should be said right now that nobody should judge this band
from the lame name they have for some ungodly reason chosen.
This is some brutal Gothenberg soundscape from Denmark,
injecting new life into every facet of a very tired genre. The
whole ambiance of Wasteland Discotheque is something akin to
some mutant version of Soilwork hopped up on steroid powder.
It’s all very invigorating, really. Sharp guitar sounds and
brutally catchy riffs are punctuated from a solid double-bass
attack, while the vocals cut a perfect harmony between clean
and rough, without sounding too much like all those bands on
MTV I know we all hate. My only grievances come in the form of
a lot of recycled song |
structures; honestly, though, considering the subgenre these
guys fall into, it’s hard to get too down on them, as it’s all
pretty enthralling otherwise, despite some hated metalcore breakdowns. Definitely
recommended, provided you can stomach another band of the ilk.
www.lifeforcerecords.com |
www.myspace.com/raunchy |
www.raunchy.dk |
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Tankard - Best Case
Scenario (AFM) Review by Metal Mark |
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So Tankard chose some of their most favorite beer drenched
songs and re-recorded them for this best of type album. Some
people are going to prefer the old or original sound, but
others might like the richer more consistent production that’s
contained on these songs. For what it’s worth, I am normally
not that fond of re-recordings, but here I think it works
because they maintain the energy and style that was always
there, yet the production helps it sound even stronger and
heavier. Despite the fact that Tankard are a long running
German thrash band, they never had the sound of what most
people think of as “German speed metal”. Most people associate
that label with acts like Sodom, Kreator and |
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Destruction. Tankard were and still are a bit more
straightforward music wise and less dark of course because humor has always been
part of their approach. The humor is a bit one-dimensional,
but it’s also harmless fun. Tracks like “Maniac Forces” and
“The morning after” are just easy to get into because of their
simplicity. Sometimes I shake my head at some of their song
and album titles, but they just about always bring solid, fun
thrash that goes down easy and is fairly fulfilling. |
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Whitechapel - This Is
Exile (Metal Blade Records) By: Dave Schalek |
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All right, I admit that I’m an idiot. Awhile back, I gave “The
Somatic Defilement”, the debut from Tennessee-based deathcore
sensation Whitechapel, a positive review as an interesting
example of a genre that is admittedly not my favorite.
Frankly, I haven’t listened to the album since, and I don’t
know what the Hell I was thinking, in retrospect. Then, the
absolutely awful Summer Slaughter show with a boring-as-Hell
Whitechapel really soured me on the band, and deathcore, in
general. That show occurred, of course, after I had agreed to
write a review for “This Is Exile”, the latest from
Whitechapel; therefore, to be fair, I gave myself some time to
forget about them and not come into this review in a |
prejudiced mood.
It turns out, that really doesn’t matter because Whitechapel
is just boring as Hell on “This Is Exile”, the band’s second
full-length and first after making the jump to Metal Blade
Records from Candlelight Records. Whitechapel dutifully hit
all of deathcore’s requisite elements: alternate a blast with
a breakdown, none of it well written, combine with the
deathcore dual vocal presentation of growl and scream, and
that pretty much sums up “This Is Exile”. As expected from a
release from Metal Blade, the production is polished and
Whitechapel are technically proficient, but the songwriting is
just awful and generic, at best. That totally ruins “This Is
Exile” and results in an utterly forgettable release that the
pre-pubescent kids will probably eat up, but those of you with
a discerning ear will find nothing of interest here.
Certainly, my opinion of Whitechapel continues to slide and
“This Is Exile” only serves to accelerate my opinion. In a
word, awful.
www.metalbladerecords.com |
www.whitechapelmetal.com
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