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Order of Ennead - Self Titled
(Earache) Review by Chris Davison |
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This, I was really happy to receive through the post. I hadn't
heard them at all, but I knew that uber-drum machine and
Deicide founding member Steve Asheim had joined as their
resident skins basher. As a fan of the afore-mentioned
Christ-baiting blasphemy machines, I was naturally curious to
see what this outfit would sound like. The Deicide connections
are even higher though – founding member Kevin Quiron is now a
member of Deicide too, and Jack Owen is reportedly going to be
touring with the band while regular six-stringer (and
wonder-kid) John Li continues with his college studies. If
that comes to pass, then Order of Ennead (at least live) will
have four members, three quarters of whom will also be |
in Deicide. Just how different can an extreme metal band with
this amount of crossover to another act in terms of personnel
really be?
The answer: very different. There are similarities of course;
this is also at times harsh, lightspeed extreme heavy metal,
but there are some real and large divergences between the two
bands. Order of Ennead are a much more layered, unusual and
varied musical proposition. Whether in the use of the subtle,
almost black metal hyper speed riffing, the many soaring,
melodic guitar solos or rasping, caustic vocals, this is a
proper blend of death, black and thrash metal. At times, I was
reminded of a less annoying, more interesting Destroyer 666 in
the melding of the styles. This is also a great deal less one
dimensional than Deicide, while the songs appear to be much
more cerebral and engaging. Frequently the tempo here crosses
the line from “fast” to “holy smokes, I think I just shat
myself” in terms of the frankly stunning drum performance, but
the real star here is young Mr Li, who at a pretty youthful
age brings amazing instrumental skills in his guitar playing.
In much the same way as Ralph Santolla raised the stakes on
Deicide's “The Stench of Redemption”, Li brings elements of old
school metal into the raging inferno of the extremity on
display.
A crystal clear, razor sharp production helps in getting the
best from these complex, thought provoking songs. These may be
technical tracks, but they never lose track of their
aggression, attack or power. It's probably a testament to the
obvious care of mainman Quiron that this is such an impressive
debut, and this has all the hallmarks of a long nurtured and
carefully constructed album. It's also catchier than the
common cold, and twice as infectious. I expected something a
little diverting, but ended up hearing something that really,
really impressed me.
www.earache.com |
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Pure Inc - Parasites and Worms (Dockyard 1) Review by Steve
Green |
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Ok, here's the choice you have to make. Number 1. If you are a fan of the
long lamented Soundgarden, do you buy this album because it really is the
best album of it's type since Superunknown, which unbelievably, was
released over 14 years ago. Or do you, 2. Avoid this like the plague
because Pure Inc sound so unerringly like Soundgarden, what's the point of
a band who sound note for note exactly like someone else. Grunge Karaoke
anyone?
I do get pissed off with bands who don't have a single original idea to
call their own, but I have to say in Pure Inc's defence that the song
writing on this album is very strong indeed
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and every song, although it could quite easily be a cover
version by you know who, is of a very high standard. Gianni Pontillo's note perfect impression of Chris Cornell is
backed up my a wall of chunky guitar riffs and a rhythm section that's
primed for creating a big fuck off groove to rock out to. This is balanced
out by a few slower numbers, my favourite being the rather beautiful
Carrie's Alone, which could quite easily sit alongside Hunger Strike or
Wooden Jesus from the Temple of the Dog album. As I said before, Pure
Inc's song writing on this album is bordering on exceptional. So, looking
past the lack of originality, this is a very enjoyable, hard rocking
Grunge album that will delight fans of both Soundgarden and Temple Of The
Dog. www.myspace.com/pureinc |
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Sister Sin - Switchblade Serenade
(Victory) Review by Metal Mark |
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I remember those days back in the mid-1980’s when hard rock
and metal could sometimes blur together and the music was very
straightforward and the lyrics may have been cheesy, but
were so instantly likable. Sweden’s Sister Sin are very much
from that school of metal as they openly embrace, yet master
this style. This album has the solid vocals, big rhythms,
catchy choruses and ripping solos that you expect from this
kind of metal. At several points during “Switchblade Serenade”
I could close my eyes, soak in the music and it wasn’t too
hard to imagine this album having been made in 1986 instead of
2008 and I mean that in a very positive way. Their approach is
basic yet highly effective as |
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they pound and smash their way through yet they never lose
their grasp on creating a fairly true metal sound. I would say
the influences here include, but are not limited to, early
Motley Crue, Motorhead, WASP and
maybe even mid-80’s Accept. The have a great handle on the
pace of almost every song and they seem to shoot out each song
rather quickly as there is very little down time and virtually
no fillers here. My only real problem was that all five tracks
from their 2007 “Smash the Silence” EP are on this CD and I
played that disc to death months ago. So that was a little
disappointing that I had already heard five of the eleven
tracks on this disc. Out of the other six tracks, one is a
cover of Motorhead’s “Make My Day” and although it’s a
barnstormer I still felt a little let down by only getting
five new original songs. Yet this is still a fantastic, solid
metal effort in a year where there have not been enough bands
attempting this style. |
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Sothis - De Oppresso Liber
(Candlelight Records USA)
By: Dave Schalek |
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Given that I live in Los Angeles, I am somewhat familiar with
Sothis, SoCal’s resident symphonic black metal act (they open
up for numerous other acts that traipse through here, and also
simply show up as fans at shows all the time). Kicking around
in one form or another since 1999, Sothis finally obtained a
stable line-up, and have had a critically acclaimed demo under
their collective belts prior to the release of their long
overdue debut full-length entitled “De Oppresso Liber” on
Candlelight Records USA.
Long overdue is the operative term here, everyone, because
Sothis are about seven to ten years too late with their carbon
copy form of symphonic black metal. Almost identical in |
tone and texture to “Spiritual Black Dimensions”, “De Oppresso
Liber” is certainly an impressive entry in the genre with
well-written songs, good production, and fine musicianship. In
short, “De Oppresso Liber” is a mature work and is far beyond
the usual quality to be found on a debut full-length. That’s
not too surprising given that the band has been around for
about ten years. In particular, Sothis’ dual guitar attack has
a tendency to shred it up just a bit faster than some of their
brethren; that is, you-know-who from Norway and England.
Of course, the main problem here is that, fine musicianship
aside, Sothis bring absolutely nothing new to the table in a
genre that some people tired of over five years ago. There’s
nothing horrible about “De Oppresso Liber”, but the album is
wholly unoriginal and I fear that Sothis may have missed their
chance to really make a mark (naturally, that doesn’t stop
Candlelight from labeling Sothis as the next big thing).
Still, “De Oppresso Liber” is a good symphonic black metal
album and marks Sothis as a band to watch. I do hope that they
can move beyond the pigeonholed description with future
releases, though.
www.sothis.us
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www.candlelightrecordsusa.com |
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Suspyre - When Time Fades
(Sensory)
By: Joe Florez |
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For some reason, I thought that this band was in the black
metal vein. When I popped this in for the first time, it
turned out these guys are progressive metal. Talk about being
technical and complex. These guys go all over the place and do
it with ease. “Possession/The Negative” had my head spinning
with where they were going. Yes, there are some elements that
come off as Dream Theater, but boy oh boy do they go off into
tangents. Chunky riffs that have a groove get really flashy
and go all over the place. There’s a female keyboardist that
just flails with her fingers when it’s required. There are
some string arrangements thrown in during the solo which is
quirky, but adds an |
atmospheric vibe. As far as Clay’s vocals are concerned, he
has a sort of grit to them that are understandable, but he can
also growl when he wants to. It’s modern metal with a hint of
70’s prog rock thrown in when they
keyboards are inserted. Orchestrated arrangements are injected
in the intro of “Evolutions”, but then slowly break away into
their stride. Now, things are pretty straightforward for this
genre until all of a sudden during the solo when I hear a damn
sax. Now, that's bizarre, but kind of cool. Not expecting that
at all. I would have to say that in the end that without all
of these nuances that come and go unexpectedly on each track I
would disregard this disc because it’s all been done before.
However and luckily, thank God that these folks are daring
enough to travel in uncharted waters. Prog metal now tests my
patients of sorts because I have heard so many bands do this
stuff to death already and with lengthy numbers you can lose
interest quickly if you aren’t into this style. There is a lot
going on here from being metal, to proggy to classical to flat
out weird and that’s the charm to this release. I think that
those that are still into the genre will appreciate this one
very much. A more than worthy listen.
www.lasersedgegroup.com
| www.suspyre.com
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Xystus - Equilibrio: A Rock Opera
(Sensory)
By: Joe Florez |
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Ok, the minute I opened the package and saw the disc, I
immediately thought that was going to be another run of the
mill over the top metal project with an orchestra that would
be compared to the likes of Nightwish, Dimmu Borgir and the
ilk. Let me tell you something. Once I popped this in, I got
schooled. Big time! This is a band/project of epic proportions,
times infinity. As I was doing some slight research of the
band, I had no idea that they had two previous discs under
their belts already. This is a Dutch group that was co founded
by drummer Ivo Van Dijk who was previously with Within
Temptation, I believe. Anyway, this undertaking was enormous
as this was actually a theatrical play with |
dancers included and a DVD will be available soon. The CD
however is just as gigantic as this is classical/metal/rock
opera heard like never before. Forget about how big Manowar’s projects were in
the past. This is greater and quite frankly…better. An eighty
string piece orchestra was included in this puppy. The singers
on here include Epica’s Simone Simons and a singer from the
Les Miserables. I thought that this was going to be synthetic
and over the top in a typical metal fashion, but I was treated
to something more. This is a humungous tale told over the
course of an hour. The intro “My Song Of Creation” is amazing.
String arrangements, wind instruments accompany the meat and
potatoes which is the nice and beefy guitar work along with a
nice rhythm section and it’s catchy too. This sounds like
something that belongs in an epic movie like Braveheart or
Gladiator, but no! This was made specifically for the ears.
Simone Simons dominates the song here and while her voice
sounds quite well with her day job, she absolutely shines
here. You can tell that she had some major training under her
belt as she sounds professional and she is in total control of
her voice. Nice breath control and powerful lungs that tells
everyone that she’s in the house. The mixture of classical and
metal worlds collide head on “The Traveler.” This track is
heavy. The male vocals are powerful and the music that
supports his is just as fantastic. Without going out of
control, you get some nice drum work along with some mean six
string licks and the orchestra is bombastic. The best part
about it is that not only on this song, but all of the tracks
are organic. Nothing is synthetic here or sounds processed.
The classical arrangements set up on here are natural and
don’t have that commercial or poppy feel. While some may not
get the way how a real orchestra is supposed to be played,
most true music fans will get it. This thing absolutely has
everything from a grand choir section to professional
musicians on all fronts who came well rehearsed and prepared.
Hey, there are even some death metal growls if you listen to
“Last Breath.” I can go on about this project for hours on
end, but it would do you or the band no justice. I just
believe that if you like your music enormous and like change,
then this is for you. If you worship every other band that
plays so called classical metal, then you need to revel in
this. You have never heard anything like this. I should know.
I have heard the spectrum of music and I have never been blown
away by an epic like this. This is first class, timeless,
sophisticated, mature and then some. Buy the damn thing.
www.lasersedgegroup.com
| www.xystus.nl
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Zebulon Pike - Intransience
(Unfortunate) Review by Metal Mark |
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When I was in college there was this one building with a long
winding staircase in the middle of the room. I never got tired
of going up that staircase because of it's unique structure
and you could stop halfway up and be rewarded by viewing the
building from an angle that a more traditional staircase would
not have been able to provide. Minneapolis based instrumental
band Zebulon Pike brought to my mind memories of that
staircase as I absorbed the three tracks that comprise their
third album "Intransience". They have folded in aspects of
heavy fuzzed out doom, stark bursts of progressive rock as
well as pieces of just classic style metal, avant garde and
other forms. The results are quite phenomenal as |
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they work like architects with unlimited resources in
constructing the three tracks presented here. Zebulon Pike
have the technical ability to easily push and pull the music
to and fro and keep everything winding and flowing through
moody and even explosive passages. However, despite the
obvious talent they never get bogged down by trying to be
showy or attempting to squeeze in too much. This is the kind
of album where about two minutes into the opener "Mirrors of
Blessed Miracles" I just leaned my body back into the chair,
closed my eyes and let the heavy yet soothing sounds just
envelop me. It only got better from there as they seamlessly
shifted around bringing so many pulses and bursts of heavy and
emotionally charged moments that all manage to form a whole
like a juggler easily keeping three very different items
constantly going at the same time. Zebulon Pike's greatest
feat here might just be that they are deceptively complicated
because although they lure you in with some basic parts they
quickly know when to start manoeuvring
the music. You become so focused on each individual movement
that sometimes it's easy to forget all that they are doing. So
when you step back and take in the album as a whole then you
realize that it's even spectacular then it at first appeared.
www.myspace.com/zebpike |
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