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Adult Swim - Metalocalypse / Sealab 2021 DVD
(Adult Swim /
Sony) Review by Chris Davison |
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I tend to find adult cartoons a bit of a hit and miss affair
– while I liked the Simpsons and (especially) Futurama, I
just couldn’t get into Family Guy, American Dad or South
Park. Horses for courses, I guess. I’d previously caught
some Adult Swim shows on Bravo, in between watching Chuck
Norris kick some generic ass in the beard-bashing skills of
“Walker Texas Ranger” and the never-ending fly-on-the-wall
documentaries showing what a combination of no education, no
hope and never ending drinks promotions can do to a nation
of dullards. However, I did decide to watch these DVDs with
an open mind, even though the little I’d seen of
Metaloclypse had left me feeling a little cold.
…In fact, the problem that both the double DVD sets have is
that while the episodes (each lasting a little over fifteen
minutes) are fine to watch individually, or even at a push
two in one sitting, any more of that and the individual
jokes start to wear a little thin. Despite the obvious metal
credentials of Metalocalypse, it was Sealab 2021 that had me
laughing |
most. A very amusing pastiche of Hanna Barbera style
adventure cartoons of the mid-70’s (and the “Filmation”
cartoons, too), it shows the comic misadventures of Captain
Murphy and his crew on the titular Sealab. While
each episode has some kind of plot, most of the comedy comes
from the bizarre and angular scripting, and the hilarious
dialogue. In one episode, while the Sealab starts to
disintegrate around their very eyes, the crew decides that
this is less important than deciding which side they join in
a hypothetical war between robots and cyborgs, while in
another show, a bogus Feng Shui master wages war on the
hapless crew. Sure to raise at least a smile with even the
most miserable of bastards among our readers, this would be
my tip to buy if a restricted budget allowed only for one
purchase.
Metalocalypse, with its plethora of guest stars (including
Mike Amott, James Hetfield and King Frikkin Diamond, among
others) and its celebration of all things metal should be
bloody amazing, but much like letting Stevie Wonder man the
belt fed .50 cal, it’s a bit of a hit and miss affair. Sure,
the basic notion of a death metal band staffed by imbecilic
social misfits and still managing to have the worlds seventh
largest economy raises a smile, and yes, death metal songs
about Coffee and working in an office (among other topics)
are pretty funny, but I kept having the awful feeling that
having watched just a couple of the episodes, that I’d
probably seen all there was to see. In order, I suspect, to
keep the ADHD addled of us watching, there are enough geeky
references placed in the episodes to keep the devoted
metaller interested; thus when bassist Murderface is
presented with his car and is told “it has big fat tyres and
everything”, you’ll be aching to tell the non-rocker sat
next to you that this is a Deep Purple reference. You’ll
also no doubt be aching to point out that Carpathian Forest
high school is named after….well, you get the picture. Nice
asides for the metal fan though these references are (and
clearly a labour of love for the creators), they can’t
really distract that this is a samey show. Fun, for a while
at least, but don’t expect to be sat at your TV having
Dethklok on endless repeat, because you just won’t. |
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At War - Infidel
(Heavy Artillery) Review by Metal Mark |
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Back in the mid 1980's there was a healthy underground going
on and labels like Metal Blade and Combat were the front
runners of the scene. Down below the surface there were
other labels helping keep the scene alive too. One such
label was California's New Renaissance Records. They had
some crap bands, but they were also home to such overlooked
gems as Medieval, Executioner, Blood Feast and of course At
War. This Virginia trio released their debut "Ordered to
Kill" in 1986. It was a tight-fisted kick in the head that
pulled from the liked of Motorhead and Metallica. They also
managed to bring in their own sound as well. Two years later
they followed it up with "Retaliatory Strike". It |
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was a more aggressive effort, but the original sound that
existed in parts on the debut were almost gone by this point
and had been replaced by a desire to be faster.
Unfortunately that was it for this band until now. So
twenty-one years later the same line-up returns with a
follow-up. The songs here are much closer to 80's thrash
than they are to anything that's been done in recent years.
At War are still playing no-nonsense, medium fast past songs
that gallop ahead as well as this band's material from back
in the day. The lyrics have not progressed at all, but the
music has certainly gotten tighter. If I had to pick an
individual from this band who has improved the most then it
would definitely be drummer Dave Stone. His playing is far
more varied than it was the first time around. Another
department where At War has improved is in the production.
Like many New Renaissance bands the production was very raw
on their previous albums, but it's definitely better this
time around. All in all At War are not pushing any
boundaries on their new album. However, At War certainly
more confident than they did back in their younger days and
they are not afraid change up the pace more either. I am not
sure that it hits with quite the fire of "Ordered to Kill",
but "Infidel" manages to do enough to convince me that At
War still have ammo left to give. |
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Azarath - Praise the Beast
(Agonia Records)
By: Dave Schalek |
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Azarath, a balls out brutal death metal band from Poland
most notably featuring Behemoth drummer Inferno as well as
the remains of mediocre act Damnation, dial it back a notch
on “Praise the Beast”. “Praise The Beast”, the band’s third
full-length and released on Agonia Records, isn’t merely the
straightaway blast fest typical of Azarath’s previous
efforts. Rather, this time around, Azarath pile on some
nasty groove and give the production a deep, bottom heavy
approach. The net effect is a vicious sounding slab of dark
death metal that comes across as a collision between
Immolation, notably in the vocals and a few of the quirky
song structures, and Krisiun for the kaleidoscopic whirlwind
of sound, |
notably from Inferno’s insane drumming.
In fact, without Inferno’s obviously top notch drumming
anchoring the musicianship, Azarath would probably be just
another run of the mill, albeit pretty good, brutal death
metal band. Definitely the drumming will give you pause to
sit up and, although not groundbreaking by any stretch, note
that “Praise the Beast” is a vicious beast, indeed. Rapid
fire rolls, fills, and double bass typify Inferno’s work
here, and the deep seated guitars and bass complement the
sound perfectly. Also noteworthy are the vocals, courtesy of
Bruno (how many guys are out there named Bruno and are
playing in death metal bands throughout the world?), as he
delivers his attack with the pitch, timbre, and style of
Ross Dolan. Rather than just being a copycat, though,
Bruno’s vocals also give Azarath a decidedly darkened tone.
Backing it all up is some fluid guitar taking a page from
the work of Moyses Kolesne.
In all, “Praise the Beast” is a noteworthy entry in the
brutal death metal genre with excellent variation,
musicianship, and songwriting. What’s not to like? Buy or
die.
www.myspace.com/azarath666
| www.agoniarecords.com |
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Bloodline - Hate Procession
(Canonical Hours) Review by Luke Goaman-Dodson |
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Listing an intriguingly diverse set of influences
(conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, neocon Christopher Hitchens,
and bizarre homoerotic fetish artist Tom of Finland, to name
a few), Sweden's Bloodline share current and former members
with veteran bands such as Aborym, Dissection, and
Carpathian Forest. Although their music is closer to
depressive black metal than Genesis P Orridge and co,
Bloodline follow the transgressive and misanthropic
aesthetics of the early industrial scene, and the liner
artwork and sampled material ticks all the basic industrial
boxes (serial killers... check; totalitarianism... check;
terrorists... check; etc). Lead guitarist Wredhe is also a
member of turbulent depressive |
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black metal band Shining, which can be clearly heard in
Bloodline's use of slow-paced and dissonant harmonic-minor
riffs. After a brief intro track, 'The Great Becoming'
begins with an utterly pummelling
martial riff, before descending into an average symphonic
breakdown over which some sort of pseudo-fascistic sample
plays, then picks up again in the last 5 minutes for a far
more convincingly apocalyptic finale, featuring a
surprisingly traditional solo. 'Order of the Parasite'
reminds me very faintly of Ministry's 'Scare Crow' at
points, albeit steeped in a far grimmer vibe than that of
the irreverent Texans. All of this unfortunately dissipates
into yet another pseudo-fascist symphonic breakdown, which
simply adds nothing to the music, atmospherically or
melodically. For the sake of clarification, I am not
particularly prudish about the use of taboo subject matter
in art and music - I doubt many of you are either - but I do
prefer at least more subtlety and focus than simply sampling
a bloke who sounds a bit like Hitler over some Gothic-horror
synths. This, however, does not reflect on the quality of
the rest of the music, which is very high, and makes it
worthy of attention for anyone interested in industrial or
black-metal. Recommended.
www.myspace.com/werewolftraining
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Graveworm - Diabolical Figures
(Massacre Records) review by
Sam Thomas |
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Diabolical Figures is the seventh full-length offering from
Italy’s Graveworm, although they seem to have developed a
penchant for appearing on German labels. They haven’t moved
too far from the early model, as in “Underneath the Crescent
Moon” or the later “Engraved in Black”, in that you can
still see a marked resemblance to Cradle of Filth, not least
in Stefan Fiori’s vocals (he could well be Dani’s slightly
less demented twin). And another reminder of Cradle is the
inclusion of an improbable cover, in this case “Message in a
Bottle”. It’s not perhaps quite as good as the 2003 cover of
“It’s a Sin” (you can’t go wrong with a bit of Pet Shop Boys
– just ask Steve!) - well, actually, it’s nowhere near as |
good, full marks for absolutely crucifying something that
deserved to be killed – but who cares?
But to write this off as just another CoF wannabe would be
completely unjust. By all means, take that as a starting
point, but Graveworm have their own identity, and are edging
ever so slightly away from their origins, and becoming more
distanced from CoF with every release. “Forlorn Hope”, for
example, is as heavy a track as you could wish for, yet
still manages to incorporate some pretty cool keyboards and
some nice spoken links. Plus, of course, the warp-speed,
sneered vocals which we all know and love. There’s a certain
catchiness to this whole piece that sets it apart from the
dross of derivative black metal, and ensures that Graveworm
cannot be consigned to the status of copycats.
All told, this is a thoroughly good (Police episode
excepted, but even that’s good for a laugh) release of
utterly acceptable symphonic gothic metal. Very catchy, very
listenable. Definitely one of my favourite Italian bands. If
you haven’t discovered Graveworm before, you really need to
do it now. End of subject.
www.graveworm.de
| www.massacre-records.de |
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Laudanum - The Coronation
(20 Buck Spin Records)
By: Dave Schalek |
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The word laudanum, an opium derivative, conjures up imagery
of Victorian-era socialites passed out on the parlor floor
in a stupor. Oakland’s Laudanum provides the perfect
accompaniment to such imagery with their second full-length,
entitled “The Coronation” and released on 20 Buck Spin
Records. No, Laudanum are not an exercise in drone, but
rather revel in a sludge driven form of doom with plenty of
atmospherics thrown in.
The sludge takes up about half of the time on “The
Coronation”, and gives the album a solid backbone.
Consisting of exceptionally loud, bass driven riffs,
cascading percussion, and screeched vocals, the music draws
strong comparisons to Eyehategod, albeit with a |
slower pace. At once noisy, catchy, and deeply
reverberating, the sludge also shares the stage with
Laudanum’s forays into ambience and atmosphere. Frankly, the
vocalizations and deep harmonics present in the psychedelic
ambience remind me of the classic sounds of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” and “Lux
Aeterna”, which are iconic sounds of the film “2001: A Space
Odyssey”. Also included in the atmospherics are moments of
lightly strummed guitar and industrial noise.
Given the disparate elements intertwined on “The
Coronation”, you’d probably expect the whole thing to
degenerate into an incoherent mess. However, Laudanum do a
nice job of weaving the elements into a cohesive whole that
gives the album excellent dynamics that might otherwise be
absent on a release consisting solely of sludge. A varied
release of sludge driven doom, “The Coronation” comes
recommended. http://laudanum.org
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www.20buckspin.com |
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Macbeth - Gotteskrieger
(Massacre) Review by Steve Green |
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The roots of Macbeth go all the way back to 1985 and the restrictions of
the old East German government, which ultimately led to the band
disbanding, along with the suicide of their then singer. So 24 years
after they first began, and with only a 2006 self release under their
belts, Macbeth are ready to release their first "proper" album on
Massacre Records.
Although completely sung in German, courtesy of the gravel throated Olli
Hippauf, this is a breeze to get into. This is a very proud version of
Teutonic Metal, with a grandiose feel, which sits alongside a very
simple Metal ethic. Pushing it all the way is a Thrash undercurrent,
backed up with gang-shout style vocals, just to give it an old school
feel. The |
production is anything but old school as the sound on here
is beautifully crystal clear.
I have to say that Massacre are the perfect label for Macbeth as this is
100%, undiluted German Metal. I love the German slant on Metal, whether
it be the Scorpions, Accept or Grave Digger and Macbeth are a band
worthy to sit alongside such giants, and this album will most definitely
appeal to fans of the latter 2 bands. And as you may have guessed, this
one comes highly recommended.
www.massacre-records.com |
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Moloch - Depression of Surtr
(Blackmetal.com)
By: Dave Schalek |
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Another one man project on Blackmetal.com records, Ukraine’s
Moloch plays black metal in the vein of Burzum and early
Darkthrone with plenty of experimentation in ambient
atmosphere and other explorations of raw black metal. Turns
out that Moloch has been around since 2004 and is one of
those prolific projects with who the Hell knows how many
splits, comps, EPs, full-lengths, and so on. There are even
a few “boxed sets” floating around out there. Undoubtedly,
most of the shit is probably really hard to track down, so
the good folks at Blackmetal.com have issued for us
“Depression of Surtr”.
A fix-up “best of” compilation, “Depression of Surtr”
consists of nineteen tracks culled |
from various demos, splits, you name it, and spreads it all
out over 70 plus minutes. Most of the music is pretty basic, Burzum-like
black metal with lots of guitar meandering and tremolo
picking, a few traditional all out blasts with incredibly
low-fi production (as you would expect), and a few keyboard
driven ambient tracks playing in “Daudi Baldrs”/ Neptune
Towers territory.
None of the music appearing on “Depression of Surtr” is
wholly original, but that’s obviously not the point anyway
as Moloch does a good job with simple, ambient driven raw
black metal with plenty of droning atmosphere, no more, no
less. As would also be expected with a release like this,
the music is somewhat all over the map with variations in
production values, jarring changes from one style of raw
black metal to the next, and so on. As a bonus, there are a
couple of covers to close out the compilation, one of which
is a hilarious “muzak” version of “En As I Dype Skogen”
without vocals.
In short, “Depression of Surtr” is worth tracking down, and
is recommended.
www.myspace.com/molochukr
| www.blackmetal.com |
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