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Past
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ABORYM
Fire Walk With Us! (Scarlet)
Aborym’s deconstructed, malformed, malicious black metal has
transcended the genre’s boundaries by taking traditions of
the past—cold guitars, haunting atmospheres and hateful vocals—and
adding an experimental edge wrought with electronic and industrial
components. The music on ‘Fire Walk With Us!’ is a new
facet of black metal bestiality; pushing extremes with new visions
of harshness…it’s what every innovative band does. Programmed
drums have never been used so convincingly. They give a harrowing,
cold sound to the band’s mechanized heartbeat as slow, deliberate
beats are mixed with uncompromising blast beats. Featuring the talents
of Attila Csihar (ex-Mayhem), his vocal performance rivals his work
on ‘De Mysteriis…’—some of his screams and unearthly
sounds must be heard to be believed. This can be seen on the opener
"Our Sentence," featuring great drum programming, electronic
prowess and an awe-aspiring scream you’d expect to hear moments
before the Earth was decimated. The arcane ambient parts push new
and untouched extremes, as one will witness in "Sol Sigillum."
And this leads us to their cover of Burzum’s "Det Som
En Gang Var." Adding their personal influences to its already
cold nature, it’s an amazing reinterpretation of a black metal
classic. Overall, Aborym’s ability to fit sonic lulls and electronic
harshness into their black metal sound makes their aggression all
the more destructive. Definitely a band who are happier to set trends
than to follow them.
A. Wasylyk -9-
AT THE GATES
Suicidal Final Art (Peaceville)
How could this not be a great recording? Managing to assemble a
good number of classic At The Gates tracks and a few demos onto
one recording, the 17-track collection on ‘Suicidal Fine Art’
is a good retrospective of how At The Gates evolved over their careers.
Classic songs such as "The Red in the Sky is Ours," "The
Burning Darkness," the amazing "Blinded By Fear"
and the powerful "Slaughter of the Soul" partly make up
this release, along with two demo versions: "Ever Opening Flower"
and "The Architects." What really makes this release by
Peaceville great is the nice packaging, the rare photos and of course
ex-ATG singer Tomas Lindberg’s honest liner notes. His tales
of the band from start to finish really hit home and make every
one of us ATG fans appreciate them more for what they brought to
metal music. God bless them. There will never be another band like
them.
A. Bromley -10-
BURNT BY THE SUN
s/t (Relapse)
And before you know it, it's over—yet still, you will be astounded
that the debut EP from Burnt by the Sun is only 8 1/2 minutes in
length. Because although ‘BBTS’ is anything if not face
ripping in its noisecore-flavoured, grinding intensity, BBTS’s
approach is not purely about speed and aggression. Discordance Axis/ex-Human
Remains drummer Dave Witte’s presence of course means that
there are more than enough brutal and intense blast beats and fucked
rhythm-switching to go ’round, but BBTS’s compositions
are deep, complex and varied. It is their rapidly changing and developing
character which makes them seem in excess of their 2-odd-minute
average length. BBTS plan to record their debut with Botch producer
Matt Bayles in June. I suggest you prepare your mind for the furious
storm which will inevitably result by purchasing this without delay.
P. Schwarz -9-
CSSO
Are You Excrements? (Morbid)
Coming from one of Japan’s more popular underground metal exports,
CSSO’s weird amalgamations of sounds and influences are among
the oddest I’ve heard thus far this year. The leadoff track
"Cosmic Super Strong Ordure" begins with a lot of wah
pedal and an almost retro/stoner feel…and then the death grunts
begin. "Living Dead a Go Go" kicks into a stoner rock
segue, which spirals into a pit of feedback and distortion, ending
with soft-spoken vocals – an antidote to the chaos that had
had thrived only moments prior. Computer beeps highlight the nice
bass line and driving guitars in "Diversion of Former Customary
Trite Composition," but by this time CSSO’s all-encompassing
sound was too much for these ears. I can appreciate a band taking
influences from unrelated genres and trying to create something
different, but in this case the result is too disjointed. For experimental
grind fans only.
A. Wasylyk -6-
DIABOLICAL
Synergy (Scarlet/SPV)
Here’s a word you don’t hear too often when describing
an offering from the Swedish scene: sweet! Not since Necrophobic
has a band combined the best elements of black and death metal,
and churned it together to create one humungous fireball of brutal,
bludgeoning force. A favourite that even your CD player will refuse
to spit out.
A. Ristic -9-
HALFORD
Live Insurrection (Metal-Is)
Not to be outdone by the 1998 double live CD released by his ex-bandmates
in Judas Priest, Rob Halford, hot on the heels of his well-received
‘Resurrection’ album, offers his own double live CD, which
serves as a retrospective of the man’s entire musical career,
excluding the ill-fated Two project. Judas Priest, Fight, and his
most recent project, simply titled Halford, are all represented,
with the musicianship, production, and, of course, Halford’s
voice, virtually impeccable throughout the course of this package.
During the Priest classics ("Metal Gods" and "Electric
Eye," among others) that Halford belts out, the crowd cheering
almost sends shivers down your spine, and it is evident that the
crowd and the Halford band are clearly operating on some sort of
perfect symbiotic level, each feeding off the energy generated by
the other. Among the songs written by the current Halford band,
"Resurrection" and "Cyberworld" are performed
with the greatest energy, and receive a hearty response as well.
Also included are three previously-unreleased studio tracks, adding
extra value to an already worthy release.
T. Bengtson -9-
IMPALED
Choice Cuts (Deathvomit/Necropolis)
Becoming as infamous as they are sick, Impaled have put together
a collection of covers, rare tracks, and old demo material, drained
the fat and served up the meatiest flesh for our consumption. It’s
a distinct pleasure to hear their cover of "Carneous Cacoffiny,"
originally grotesquely penned by Carcass. For the uninitiated, Impaled
play in the Carcass style, but their music retains a more grindy
sound with the dual vocal tradeoffs. As good as this album is, I
have a bone to pick. The album cover depicts a baby being born with
an immediate life-ending hacksaw decapitation. People apparently
have been busy with their red markers of disapproval banning, censoring,
and complaining. Gore metal and its huge underground following are
playing their style with visuals. Just like a good horror movie,
reaction is expected, and if the visuals can disturb and keep you
awake in the middle of night then their vision has been actualized.
If somebody is actually offended by this album cover, you have no
place owning this CD or being a part of this scene. You obviously
have no comprehension of what this music is about. Don’t kid
yourself. Go pander to the manufactured music of popular culture
and buy your way into acceptance.
S. Wasylyk -8.5-
KARABOUDJAN
Sbrodij (Relapse)
An offshoot of the brilliant Swedish avant-garde metal band Pan-Thy-Monium,
Karaboudjan contains many of the exciting elements of the aforementioned
band and adds an experimental flavour to boot. The brainchild of
Dan Swanö, his passion for aggression and melody plays out
beautifully on ‘Sbrodij,’ a three-song EP that leaves
one wanting more with each passing listen. Where does one begin
to describe the chaos in a recording such as this? Take a bulldozer-heavy
bass sound, ultra-heavy, flowing riffs, occasional eerie melodies,
nonsensical vocals serving as an instrument in themselves, nice
Moog touches and a crazy saxophone (à la John Zorn), and
you have a good idea of what this band sounds like. As was said
earlier, it’s an offshoot of P-T-M, so don’t expect the
exact same sound as the amazing ‘Khaooohs and Kon-fus-ion’
album (also put out by Relapse Records). Karaboudjan lack the harsher
elements of P-T-M (namely the growls and the blast beats) while
sharing the same love for mind-blowing melodies, a passion for heaviness
(especially the bass grind) and a concept that unfortunately few
will realize. Brilliance can be a scary thing.
A. Wasylyk -9.5-
RAMMSTEIN
Mutter (Motor Music/Universal)
When 1998’s ‘Sehnsucht’ was released, Germany’s
Rammstein were relatively unheard of. Within a few weeks of the
release of the first single "Du Hast," a catchy yet heavy
industrial metal tune sung in German with a cool Reservoir Dogs-style
video to accompany it, this band was everywhere. People loved what
they were doing musically and sung along in German, even if they
didn’t know what the fuck they were singing about. Some called
them a flash in the pan and others just hated them. Whatever your
thoughts of the band were, they triumphed over here in North America
and their latest record finds this once predominantly electronic-based
act sounding a bit more metal. With a strong German ambiance coating
the music here on ‘Mutter,’ Rammstein drive home their
aggression with unique passages, soft-spoken segues and rhythmic
collaborations. Songs like the title track, first single "Links
2 3 4," and "Zwitter" do damage here as these German
noise aficionados triumph once again. Though not too far from the
ways of the popular ‘Sehnsucht’ opus, ‘Mutter’
shows the band making an effort to experiment with their own strengths
and weaknesses other than relying too extensively on technology
to guide the way. The sounds of the next album will indeed be interesting
to hear.
A. Bromley -7.5-
SPIRIT CARAVAN
Elusive Truth (Tolotta)
With previous stints in St. Vitus and The Obsessed to his credit,
Scott ‘Wino’ Weinrich is a card-carrying member of the
doom metal pantheon, and perhaps among the very few icons who continue
to create music that could be considered vital to the genre, rather
than mere nostalgia. Through the fuzzy, mary jane-saturated haze
of low-tuned riffs that are so fat that they should be appearing
on a special "Free Stomach Stapling" edition of the Jerry
Springer show, Spirit Caravan’s latest album appears on the
doom rock horizon as a call to arms announced by Wino’s distinctive
vocal approach and some mighty fine songwriting. ‘Elusive Truth’
is a hooky, mid-paced album burgeoning with fuzz-rock guitars and
groovacious rhythms, which provide the ideal foundation for the
opening tune—confusingly enough, a remake of the song "Spirit
Caravan," originally performed by Wino’s previous band,
The Obsessed. The rolling riff, lengthy soloing, and wonderfully
understated chorus hook of "Black Flower" immediately
advances the second track as a particularly memorable cut, although
it is the infectious "Find It" that stuns the ears with
one of the best hooks on the album, ensconced in a bottomless tar
pit of heavy, heavy rock. Only rarely encountering awkwardness,
‘Elusive Truth’ flows with confidence and conviction,
based on solidly arranged, dynamic songs, and an inimitable performance
by Wino and company.
T. Bengtson -9-
THORNS
s/t (Moonfog)
If I’d had the chance to hear ‘Thorns’ before our
last issue on black metal went to print, I would have demanded that
they be the main cover band. Zyklon have their merits, but Snorre
Ruch’s final getting-of-act-together-via-the-encouragement-of-Satyr
has turned out to be possibly black metal’s greatest moment
since Satyricon’s ‘Rebel Extravaganza,’ or possibly
even Dodheimsgard's ‘666 International.’ Snorre has taken
the original sound of Thorns—the sound which is at the heart
Norwegian black metal?—and combined a concentrate of black
metal's harshest and most solid sounds to form one layer of the
present-day music of Thorns. It may be the thickest, most important
layer, but yet it is a layer—though the layers of ‘Thorns’
are not such that they should be considered individually outside
their combined synthesis. Electronics, which we saw Snorre experiment
with somewhat on the ‘Thorns Vs. Emperor’ EP, are his
other principal tool, and there are few others who can utilise them
so creatively and fittingly as he does. "Shifting Channels"
is where this first becomes obvious to the cursory listener, though
seconds into pummeling opener "Existence" it is easily
perceivable that ‘Thorns’ offers a soundscape that is
quite out of the ordinary—and somehow mechanical, though it
exudes a pungent, organic sonic stench. Both Satyr and Aldrahn’s
vocals strongly complement the individual, intoxicating and harsh
musical soundscape that this creates. The creative apex of ‘Thorns’
is the two-part, 15-minute "Underneath the Universe,"
which flows from atmospheric ambience to crushing fury with effortless
yet shocking ease. Listen to ‘Thorns’ with your eyes closed
and your concentration focused, and it will encapsulate your mind.
It is powerfully mesmeric and sonically deep. As an album from the
black metal genre, ‘Thorns’ is as close to unique as makes
little to no odds.
P. Schwarz -9.5-
VITRIOL
s/t (Neurot Recordings)
I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have an out-of-body
experience, and musician Ben Green has done just that with his new
band, Vitriol. Green, he of Godflesh fame, has managed to find the
right momentum and craftiness to bring out a solid state of reality
and take us all on a soul-searching journey. Vitriol is quite the
experience, not for the fact that it is a calm and sedate world
we are thrown into, but for the fact that Green has paid special
attention in capturing the real essence of sound and inspiration
(especially on tracks "Terrae" and "Occultum").
Recorded in the mountains of Wales, Green makes us feel as if we
are there too as he applies his musicianship to the songs he is
molding. Hell, at times as the music plays on it seems like our
own wandering minds are helping Green to sculpt the sounds within.
A unique spin each time out.
A. Bromley -8.5-
Contact: Neurot Recordings, P.O. Box 410209, San Francisco, CA USA
94141
URL: www.neurotrecordings.com
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