|
|
|
|
|
Amon Amarth - The Crusher
(Metal Blade) review by Sam Thomas |
 |
The Crusher is the latest in the series of re-releases by
Amon Amarth, with the innovative 2 CD format, one remaster
and one live recording. It’s not that long since I ended my
review of “The Avenger” with the line “bring on The Crusher,
I can’t wait!”. Well, it’s here. And once again, the whole
concept of re-releasing in this format is shown to be a huge
success. The heaviest Viking riffs pound out from the
speakers, a new reign of brutality is unleashed on my
household. And there’s the added value of a large number of
alcohol-fuelled Germans screaming their hearts out in the
background...
The Crusher was always one of Amon Amarth’s better named and
better executed |
albums: crushingly heavy, and yet with the nasty insistence
of a swarm of demented hornets. Whether you know or care
anything at all about metal or the Viking heritage, you
cannot help but feel overwhelmed by the sheer all-pervading
power of this album. For me, this was always the one where
things started to get serious – from this point on, it was
impossible to dismiss Amon Amarth as a
novelty act (if you’d ever thought of doing so). To hear it
rerecorded live is just an absolute treat. Johan Hegg is at
his most imposing when bellowing out the track titles to the
eager masses, and the sound quality is crystal clear –
mixing pretty damn perfect, ie you can hear the band
perfectly, but also hear the Germans as well.
Great live band, great recording, what more do you need to
know?
www.amonamarth.com
| www.metalblade.com |
| |
|
Barren Earth - Our Twilight EP
(Peaceville) Review by Steve Green |
 |
The sticker on the front of the cd proclaims "featuring former members of
Amorphis & current members of Swallow The Sun, Moonsorrow and Kreator,
immaculately fusing death metal with progressive rock & folk elements."
Now that wasn't an attempt at cheating the word count on this review,
but more of a simple way of saying how Barren Earth sound.
One of former member of Amorphis is Oli-Pekka Laine and to be honest,
Barren Earth do sound like Amorphis from his time in the band, circa
1990 - 2000, but the vocal roles are reversed, with the gutteral vocals
taking precedence over the clean. So if you were a fan of
|
Tales From the Thousand Lakes, then this follows a similar
path (with a little less groove) and mix that with the
lighter feel of Elegy, and add a few more psychedelic
keyboards and that's just about Barren Earth summed up. Oh,
and this sounds so Finnish it hurts... in such a good way.
Our Twilight is a great taster for their debut album, which is due out
early next year.
www.myspace.com/officialbarrenearth
|
| |
|
Damnation Angels - Shadow Symphony
(Self Release)
Review by Steve Green |
 |
Ignoring the very overblown biography, and the bands belief that they are
redefining Symphonic Metal, I'd still say that Damnation Angels are the
brightest spark to emerge upon the UK scene in a very long time.
I'm not quite sure how the band responsibilities pan out, but I'm
presuming the band is the brainchild of the one they call Maestro. It
seems he writes all of the music and lyrics, but there's no mention if
he actually plays in the band, although as there's no guitarist
mentioned, maybe he also fulfils that role. But it matters not as
it's the music contained on the shiny disc that counts. |
I have to admit that I am struggling, just a bit, to put Damnation
Angels style into context, as they seem to live on the edge of quite a
few styles, without taking the plunge completely, at least not on the
1st three numbers. Damnation Angels are, I suppose, a Power Metal band
without the cheese. A band that use orchestral sounds to good effect,
but are one that you would honestly struggle to call all out symphonic.
In vocalist Lewis Starfire, they have a potential world class singer as
the man has a fantastic set of lungs, and as I'm guessing the band are
generally in their early 20's, he can definitely mature into a world
beater.
It's not until track 4, I Hope, that the band sound how I imagined them
to sound, drawing inspiration from both Therion and Epica, they reach
the symphonic heights I'd hope (no pun intended) they would. Scott
Atkins production is crystal clear and extremely powerful and on this
song, everything seems to fall into place and the bands obvious
potential comes to life. Against All Odds maintains the quality of the
previous number and the melody line is the strongest on the album, which
in turn means it's probably my favourite song on the album.
It's a shame I missed the band in Derby last night as I do believe
Damnation Angels could go on to achieve great things, although not
necessarily in this country, as I see their main audience being in
mainland Europe, with Holland and Germany being the obvious markets for
them. Although I've love to be proved wrong and to see the UK Metal
scene embrace this very special band.
www.myspace.com/damnationangels |
| |
|
Ebonillumini - The Ebon
Channel (Self release)
Review by Steve Earles |
 |
This moving and epic release is the brainchild of J.D. Tait
(of The Meads of Asphodel, Worms of Sabnock and Gunslinger
fame), an accomplished multi-instrumentalist musician and
Christina Poupoutsi on vocals.
Opening track Evident In Void mixes black metal with
gothic atmospherics. And this is the beauty of this release,
not only is the music fantastic, it’s very original, with
few reference points. Christina’s voice is like a cross
between Dimanda Gallas and Siouxsie Sioux. Into Forests So
True is full of atmosphere, it definitely works on some
ethereal level. Jung scrapes its way along the cerebral
cortex, once again the atmosphere and originality is totally
impressive. The disc closes with Wax Tribe, and again its
trip to the other reaches of the soul.
Totally recommended, gorgeous dark atmospheric music, with
the emphasis on music
www.myspace.com/ebonillumini |
| |
|
Evergreen Terrace - Almost Home (Metal Blade) Review by Steve Green |
 |
The Metal scene is so varied these days and a lot of it isn't what I deem
to be Metal, which is one reason why this site will be closing very
soon. Evergreen Terrace, despite a reasonable amount of metallic traits,
are really a melodic Hardcore band with traces of Metal and a
punk-fuelled heart. Not something your average Metalhead will
appreciate, myself included. The main verses and the music are all fine
and dandy. Full of passion, caustic vocals, great lead guitars etc...
but the melodic (clean vocal) choruses.... man, not my bag at all. They
water down the vitriol to commercial standards and as far as I'm
concerned, the two styles don't mix. Which is a shame as the heart of
the band is firing on |
|
all cylinders, but the commercial side of their sound just
isn't for me.
www.metalblade.com |
| |
|
My Dying Bride - Bring Me Victory
(Peaceville) Review by Steve Green |
 |
Here we have an EP from one of my favourite bands of the past couple of
decades, My Dying Bride. The opener is Bring Me Victory, one of the
better tracks from this years For Lies I Sire album. An album, I
confess, I've not played nearly enough. And it's something I intend to
remedy next week as I feel a week of gloom is about due.
Equally as gloomy is the utterly beautiful rendition of the traditional
song, Scarborough Fair. Made popular, of course, by Simon and Garfunkel
and also recently covered (twice) by Leaves' Eyes. You can forget about
any other version of the song you may have heard as this rendition is
faultless and is one of the most wondrous songs to have been performed |
by the band. It's so beautiful that it blows me away every
time I play it, and often on repeat.
Next up is another cover version, Failure by Swans. And Swans are a band
that although I've been aware of them for years, I've never heard their
material before. To these untrained ears, this sounds like the more
depressing side of The Doors, and if that's how Swans sound, maybe I
have some investigating to do. Rounding off the audio section of the EP
is a live version of Vast Choirs (from As The Flower Withers), which was
recorded at Graspop last year.
Adding even more value for money, a (rather bizarre) video clip of Bring
Me Victory is also included on this EP.
You can also get an EP/T-Shirt bundle on the Peaceville site for a
bargain £14.99. www.peaceville.com
|
| |
|
Precious Metal - 25
Extreme Metal Masterpieces (Da Capo Press) Review by Steve Green |
 |
The idea behind this book is amazingly simple, and it's one I
really wish I'd have thought of. As the title suggests, the
book is about 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces, and all of the
features are from Decibel Magazine. Each feature involves
interviewing every band member who made the album. And
that's it. A simple idea, but the results are a riveting
read.
The first feature isn't an Extreme Metal album at all, but
as it's one of my favourite albums of all time, Black
Sabbath's Heaven and Hell, I'm not complaining. Nothing is
off topic and with the amount of crap that surrounded this
album, well it's a miracle it is such a masterpiece. It's a
fascinating read and is a great way to start the book.
Not every album covered is of interest to me, but there
really is something for everyone as everything from Slayer's
Reign In Blood, Paradise Lost's Gothic and the Down classic
Nola to the likes of Opeth, Morbid Angel, Entombed, Carcass
and Cannibal Corpse is |
covered. While Black Metal is represented by Emperor's In
The Nightside Eclipse and Darkthrone's Transilvanian Hunger.
Of the albums I don't own, but really should, the making of
Celtic Frost's Morbid Tales is probably the best story. With
details of the band going to West Berlin at the end of the
Cold War before the wall came down. While the Sabbath
feature is my favourite, quickly followed by Down and the
making of Nola... which has got me spinning the album again
on a regular basis and I'm so pleased as I'd forgotten how
damn good that album was.
I generally find Metal books a bit and miss, and thankfully,
this is one of the better ones I've read and comes highly
recommended to all.
http://decibelmagazine.com/Home.aspx |
| |
|
The Black Dahlia Murder - Deflorate
(Metal Blade) Review by Steve Green |
 |
Not my normal listening pleasure, but I don't mind The Black Dahlia
Murder. And while Metal Blade are trying to link them towards more
established Death Metal bands (on the biog) such as Suffocation and Hate
Eternal, I tend think of them more as a Melodic Death Metal
version of Cradle of Filth, albeit without the fancy extras and the Dani
Filth trademark shrieks. Technically superb, this baby fires off all
over the place, but despite the multiple layers and frequent time
changes, this is a cohesive piece of music with some wonderfully superb
musicianship. And with those words of praise still fresh in your mind,
I'm still inclined to wonder what all the fuss is about as this band are
lauded by (almost) all. |
|
Yes, they are very good at what they do, but I personally
wouldn't go any further than that.
www.myspace.com/blackdahliamurder
|
| |
|
The Ruins Of Beverast - Foulest Semen
Of A Sheltered Elite (Van Records)
Review by Steve Green |
 |
The Ruins of Beverast is a project put together by Alexander von
Meilenwald, who was the drummer in Nagelfar and this album is his third
under the this band name. I've not heard the 1st two albums, so I had no
idea what to expect here. With an album title such as, Foulest Semen Of
A Sheltered Elite, I was expecting the rawest of lo-fi Black Metal with
absolutely zero finesse. But never judge a book by its cover, or in this
case, an album by its title as Foulest Semen Of A Sheltered Elite is a
stunning album of very dark and very epic, Blackened Metal.
I was completely thrown by the chanting at the start of I Raised This
Stone as a Ghastly |
Memorial and as this
masterpiece slowly unfolded before me, I was left dumfounded
as to how good this album is. Long, 10 plus minute epics,
ranging from atmospheric Doom through to Black Metal, with a bass
sound reminiscent of Type O Negative bassist Pete Steele's trademark
rumble. Complex, twisting rhythms, collide with more conventional Black
Metal traits. Brooding atmospherics seep from every pore and the moods are
generally blacker than black and the list of
superlatives I could throw at this album are endless.
It's an
enthralling listen, complex, yet accessible. Hauntingly beautiful and
utterly captivating. My only complaint is that at 79
minutes, it's a huge undertaking to get through all of this
in one listen, so personally I'd have left off the 15 minute
finale, Arcane Pharmakon Messiah, which isn't the best way
to end such a great album.
www.van-gbr.de |
| |
|
Various - UK Black Metal Vol 2 : UK Legions Of Black Metal
Review by Steve Earles |
 |
Yet another example, if any were needed, of the level of
talent in the UK. Opening with the too long absent Worms of
Sabnock, their exclusive track The Atheist & The Priest is
ferocious unique black metal, full of pounding riffs and
dark melodies, a logic progression from their Dark Harmonies
debut. The Worms of Sabnock are soon to share a split CD on
Godreah records with Old Corpse Road, who in turn contribute another
exclusive track to this compilation with the fantastically
titled Hell’s Kettles (which isn’t about Satan making a
cuppa). Among the other highlights, Brad Dur contribute the
brooding The Continuation. |
Ebonillimini‘s Into The Forest So True is a masterpiece of
operatic vocals and dark atmospherics. Proxenus contribute
an exclusive track Fear of the Dark, which just broods with
menace. The CD ends in fine style with the splendidly named
Whorethorn and The Awakening of Vulfarru.
Once again, we see the sheer array of talent the UK is
capable of producing, lets hope people get behind them and
support them, they deserve it.
www.myspace.com/theuklegionsofblackmetalzine |
| |
|
Wilde Starr - Arrival
(Furnace Maximus Records) Review by Steve Green |
 |
I've no idea how many cds we've received over the years, but I'd wager
that we've received at least between 4 or 5,000. And I'd say the press
pack I received with this cd is definitely amongst the best. Slick,
informative and well presented, it sets you up nicely for what is one of
my favourite albums of the year.
Wilde Starr are a three piece but are centred around the duo of female
vocalist London Wilde and guitarist/bassist Dave Starr, who's played
with the likes of Vicious Rumours, Laaz Rockit and Chastain. And while
Dave Starr has the pedigree, it's London Wilde who steals the show here,
as far as I'm concerned.
Wilde Starr have the vibe of an 80s Metal |
band, but that's mixed with a more contemporary sound
The opening trio of Rose In The Dark, Arrival and Touching
God, are all exceptional, with the 80s Metal vibe I've
already mentioned being a perfect backdrop for a great vocal
performance and London's vocals just take this album to the
next level. And then we reach track 4, Rise. Wow, if I
thought the album was good up to this point, Rise just
raises the fucking roof, with London screaming in a similar
vein to Rob Halford
and this album just gets better and better.
A lot of the melodies are ones that'll be stuck in your head for days.
Last night alone, I woke up on many different occasions and had at least
3 different songs from this album going through my head. The melodies
just stick and while the 1st 4 numbers are definitely the strongest, the
rest of the album is still a superb listen.
Who do I recommend this album to? Well definitely fans of 80s Metal,
obviously Judas Priest and I'd say fans of everyone from Heart to
Evanescence and just about everyone in-between. I like it when a band
comes from out of nowhere and just blows you away and I hope this album
gets the recognition it deserves.
www.myspace.com/wildestarr |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
