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THORAZINE
Geneticide (Deathgasm Records)
It’s unfortunate that the
demo-quality production has such an adverse effect on this brutal
death metal quartet. While the music itself is competent—visualize
a style and sound similar to the demo days of Diabolic juxtaposed
with groove-laden parts, not to mention a Cannibal Corpse feel here
and there—a stronger production would have surely enhanced
and highlighted the riffs, while allowing the drums to be more than
a mere blur of speed. Alberta, Canada’s Thorazine are obviously
technically proficient at both writing and performing their material—tracks
like "Into the Chaos," the title track and "Here
I Lay Rotten" demonstrate this—but much more could have
been done to make this recording stand out. Although the Fear and
Loathing in Las Vegas sample involving the name of the band was
a nice touch.
<A. Wasylyk> -6-
Contact: P.O. Box 681415, Marietta, GA 30068, USA
URL: www.deathgasm.com
URL: www.thorazine.ca
THRONE OF NAILS
Acts of War (Crash)
It is great to hear some good, brutally dark and intense death
metal from the British shores. I mean, nowadays the death metal
market is flooded with American death metal bands and loads more
coming out of Eastern Europe. England’s Throne of Nails may
not be the most technical or polished death metal act, but their
grimy, dark and downright lethal death metal is a welcome sound
to these ears. Even the production is raw and unsettling, allowing
the music to just amass this corruptive flow of pain and suffering.
Check out numbers like "I Command," "Cast the War"
or "Scar of Creation," and see just how corrosive Throne
of Nails has made them. With 11 songs pounded out in 26-plus minutes,
Throne of Nails give the listener a sordid and erratic dose of death
metal that will stick with them long after the album comes to a
close.
<A. Bromley> -7.5-
THY INFERNAL
Warlords of Hell (Moribund)
I’ve come to a point with the music I listen to where almost
any artist that employs a phrase like "Black Metal Holocaust"
I dismiss immediately as absolute garbage. With a band like Godless
North, for example, there is an exception: the music obscures the
trite lyric matter, but in other cases, like Thy Infernal, the concepts
and lyrics practically drown everything out—they are so bad
that one can’t help but have his opinion of the rest of the
music affected. How can anyone take a band seriously anymore with
track titles like "Night of the Full Moon," "Immortal
Satanic Spirit" and the title song, "Warlords of Hell"?
Such damn clichés! And just about everything about this band
is clichéd, from the heard-it-all-before vocal delivery,
to the total predictability of the uninteresting riffs. I will have
to hand it to them, though—the music here is played very well,
there is a maturity and solid focus in the song structures and their
development, these guys have not been slothful in the practice room.
But to my mind there’s no real passion, no individuality. Technique
and proficiency alone do not cut it anymore, and as far as I am
concerned they never did in the underground. This is dull, dull,
dull black metal, with some of the absolute dullest and asinine
lyrics you can imagine. I have nothing against crude satanic lyrics,
but damn it all!—use some of that grey matter your Winged Master
blessed you with!
<Y. Arkadin> -6-
TIAMAT
Judas Christ (Century Media)
The one thing that I have always appreciated about the music
of Sweden's Tiamat—whether it be their black metal early days
or their most recent romp through cosmic song styles and emotionally
potent passages—is their honest approach. What I mean is, they
don't mask their feelings behind slick production or have hidden
agendas with the way their music is assembled. You can feel the
life of each song so vividly and each vocal passage of singer Johan
Edlund sounds as if he is directing them at you. Very straightforward,
but at the same time reserved and deeply intense. Musically 'Judas
Christ' finds Tiamat with a harder edge to it, the intensity and
groove are stepped up a notch in a few spots ("Vote For Love"
and "Angel Holograms"), but at the same time falling back
into the luscious soundscapes and wickedly ethereal ways that they
have been known to deliver with their material ("Fireflower,"
"Heaven Of High" and "Too Far Gone.") Producer
Lars Nissen (Sisters of Mercy/Depeche Mode) did a great job of capturing
the band in a very open-minded state of being, willing to take chances
and try new sounds/directions. Fans of the band who want the same
band they last heard with 1999's 'Skeleton Skeletron' (a record
I was a little iffy about) may be surprised at what they get with
'Judas Christ.' But for those who appreciate the constant change,
mood swings and vibrant passion of this extraordinary band will
no doubt feel the warmth once again and want to take a good chunk
of 2002 absorbing it all in. A genuinely tantalizing release.
<A. Bromley> -7.5-
TIDFALL
Instinct Gate (Nuclear Blast)
Dimmu Borgir clone band alert! Fire those sirens up, set the
radar for low-level incoming objects, and raise shields, goddammit!
Another volley of missiles is coming our way, but if you have good
hearing you should come of this scrape unscathed. No malicious disrespect
to Tidfall, as even the blind could see they have talent, but if
you played ‘Instinct Gate’ back-to-back with ‘Puritanical
Euphoric Misanthropia,’ all your non-metal friends are going
to ask you, ‘Is that a long fucking album or what?’ Allow
those of us at U! to paraphrase a time-honoured saying: just because
you can imitate doesn’t mean you should exercise the right
to duplicate.
<A. Ristic> -5-
TRISTANIA
World of Glass (Napalm)
I knew in advance that the new Tristania release would be commercial
and compromising in nature. I already felt this transition on the
‘Angina’ MCD, which was the first sign to me that this
band was going downhill. But I have to admit, as accessible, catchy
and over-produced as this album is, it is still brilliantly done,
and Vibeke's vocals have never been better. Such a powerful and
emotional performance, it is the highlight of the entire CD. New
member Osten Bergoy does a satisfactory job filling in for the absence
of Morten Veland, who is no longer part of the band. Aside from
this not much has changed, except that the material has gotten slightly
more diverse and 'electronically-enhanced,' so to speak. There are
conspicuous electronica and industrial metal influences scattered
about this album, evident in such numbers as "The Modern End,"
"Lost," and the appropriately titled "Selling Out."
My favorite track on the album is "Deadlocked," which
I thought was the most emotional piece here and also the one closest
to the older material. In all honesty, despite all I say, this is
a pretty remarkable record. It's just that when I compare it to
their old material, such a huge gulf arises that my opinion is bound
to be affected for the worse. In my view, all of these hard rock
and electronica influences only dilute the majesty and stark emotion
Tristania is capable of.
<Y. Arkadin> -6-
TWISTED TOWER DIRE
The Isle of Hydra (The Miskatonic Foundation)
There are a lot of great bands out there playing heavy metal
music nowadays, but very few of them have the passion and exuberance
that Virginia’s Twisted Tower Dire display within their music,
most notably on the superb offering ‘The Isle of Hydra.’
From the opening tacks of "Battle Cry" and the title track,
onto "The Longing" and closer "Dying Breath,"
TTD never lets go of their love for heavy metal as singer Tony Taylor
screams his lungs out on each track. Nothing is fake, pompous or
cheesy as the album plays on, just great heavy metal! Masterful
storytelling along the lines of Iron Maiden (an obvious influence)
helps as the band just pushes the music even further with their
talent and tight musicianship. TTD are a band that can do no wrong
right now as they continue on their quest for heavy metal stardom.
And as far as I can see, the best is yet to come.
<A. Bromley> -8-
UFYCH SORMEER
Anthem To the Glory of the Great Octagon (Ancestral Craft Prod.)
While there is a nice ambiance to the music of Ufych Sormeer
(couldn’t they have found a better band name?) and instrumental
opener "The Bells Of The Nebulous Limbo Vomit Their Prophecy"
(what the hell?) does a great job of setting up the album, however
the epic black metal within falters. Unable to keep up with the
grandiose feel of their adorning artwork or elegant/bizarre song
titles (check this one out: "The Funeral Songs Of The Demonsword
Resounds Beyond The Ice-Veiled Caves"), Ufych Sormeer comes
across sounding like second rate Dimmu Borgir, Anorexia Nervosa
and Cradle of Filth trying to get our attention. And even with a
touch more darkness and medieval sounds adorning their musical passages,
they still can’t get my attention. Maybe a little more emphasis
on song titles and artwork and a little bit more work on songwriting
is needed before we care about swords found in medieval caves or
whatever the fuck these pompous stooges are singing about.
<A. Bromley> -2-
UNTIL THE END
Blood in the Ink (Eulogy)
One listen to Until the End’s new album ‘Blood in the
Ink’ and it is quite easy to draw your own conclusions rather
quickly about the sound and style of the band. You see, the hardcore
stomp of Until the End flows like many other bands of the genre,
and while that may seem to be a negative point against the quintet,
their style is a lot meatier than many others of the genre, a dose
of strength that makes this record a cut above the rest. Singer
Mean Pete sings like he is going to fucking beat the shit out of
you, harsh vocals and full of attitude. No wonder they call him
Mean Pete, eh? So to all of you hardcore fans out there, ‘Blood
in the Ink’ is good hardcore music for those of you who like
to get down and dirty in the mosh pit. This is not pretty music,
and the magnificent artwork that goes along with the album does
a great job of showcasing that to the music fans. Choice cuts: "Death
Disguised As Salvation" and the awesome "Free of Filth."
<A. Bromley> -7-
V/A
Tortured Souls Vol. 1 (JCM Records)
Compilations are always a mixed bag, as they can only ever be as
good as the bands on them, or the songs chosen to represent them.
In the case of ‘Tortured Souls Vol. 1,’ there are quite
a few positives, not the least of which is the level of quality.
While most of the bands are unknowns in the greater scheme of the
things, the production levels of the various tracks are damn good
throughout. But there are some things that contribute to making
the release being less than perfect, chief among them being the
lack of diversity shown in acts on the CD—mostly brutal, and
while perhaps sounding different from band to band, it can become
a wall of death after a while, which leads to changing the CD. To
add to the positives however, the tracks from bands that you would
want to clamour for more from include Aerbus, Endzeit, Depresion,
Life’s Ruin, Pandemonium, PCP, and Infestation.
<A. Ristic> -7-
Contact JCM Records: P.O. Box 270132, Vadnais Heights, MN 55127,
USA
URL: www.jcmrecords.com
VIRGIN BLACK
Sombre Romantic (The End)
Sometimes the simplest forms of music are the most powerful ones.
That said, Australia’s gothic/epic/dark entity Virgin Black
deliver one hell of an intense roller coaster ride, one full of
passion and complexity. Let me correct myself—the music of
Virgin Black is not simply constructed, far from it, but the music
is played with little need to go overboard with extravagant guitar
riffs and lots of production gloss. The music of this quintet revolves
around a world of darkness, a world made up of epic song structures,
haunting keyboard work and superb use of cellos and choirs. The
music unfolds with a real sense of uneasiness (just check out opening
instrumental "Opera De Romance"), a precursor of what
may be coming out from the shadows. While the music does intensify
in parts ("Walking Without Limbs," "Drink the Midnight
Hymn"), Virgin Black stays mainly in the shadows, casting out
creepy sounds and focusing a lot on the delivery of such darkened
passages, sending our imagination into overtime. Chalk-up another
great signing for The End Records, as Virgin Black are indeed one
of today’s most arresting acts.
<A. Bromley> -9.5-
WATCHMAKER
Kill. Crush. Destroy (Wonderdrug)
I don’t think I have heard anyone scream their head off
like Watchmaker vocalist Brian Livoti since Seth Putnam (Anal Cunt)
or Pete Ponitkoff (Benumb). And that is some good company. Anyway,
Livoti and his clan of madmen come together here on the new album
‘Kill. Crush. Destroy’ and just tear the roof off the
fucking place. Disjointed heaps of madness and brutality are unleashed
in the form of tracks "Like Saturn Devouring His Children,"
"Flowers of Evil" and "Dummy Text," and rarely
does this record ever let up. There is no time to rest during these
intense, raging fits. What a fitting album title for a record that,
well…er…just read the title and you’ll know exactly
what the fuck you are about to get into. Splendid insanity!
<A. Bromley> -8-
WITHOUT
FACE
Deep Inside (Dark Symphonies)
While Without Face has not yet achieved that jaw-dropping synthesis
of its various elements necessary to reach out and slap you in the
face, ‘Deep Inside’ clearly displays a band on the path
to something quite great, and with an impressive sound in its own
right, despite the fact that it promises even more. At the core
of Without Face’s sound is a reliance upon dual male-female
vocals which interact in a unique manner, with the operatic female
vocals darting between a lead and backing harmony capacity while
the male vocals move between upfront metallic growls and impressively
operatic backing harmonies in their own right. This stunning array
of vocal styles is applied in a highly impressive manner, and is
merged with a musical approach that may be most closely likened
to a streamlined progressive metal approach that benefits from riffing
that is grittier than initially expected. In fact, at times the
guitars possess a controlled, riff-oriented thrash feel that adds
a sharp edge to the music, although the riff formation tends to
be guided by a more progressive rhythmic sense that tends to constrain
the riffs to short, sharp jabs which are very tight in execution.
Among the best songs are "I And I," with its particularly
stunning vocal harmonies, and "Screaming Heartbeat," which
is quite reminiscent of Lacuna Coil in its guitar and vocal arrangements.
Without Face has reportedly signed with Elitist Records, so keep
an eye out for a new album from the band in the future.
<T. Bengtson> -8-
WOLF
Black Wings (No Fashion)
Whoa! This one totally caught me off guard, I tell ya. With
a fist in the air and a heavy bass line setting the charge (Ooh!
Shades of Iron Maiden, I say!), Wolf lunge at us with a fierce ’80s
heavy metal-inspired album that is masterfully played and sounds
great (thanks to producer Peter Tagtgren). Rapid-fire guitar work
from guitarist Johan Bulow provides a worthwhile offensive as singer
Niklas Olsson (he also plays guitar) hits the high notes effortlessly,
coating the music with a real sense of heavy metal nostalgia. Get
caught up in their passionate creations like "I Am the Devil,"
"The Curse" and "Night Stalker." I’d rather
listen to bands like Wolf, K-Octave and Twisted Tower Dire play
’80s-inspired heavy metal music than Primal Fear or HammerFall,
because they don’t cheese it up as the latter ones do, they
just play from the heart. Wickedly heavy and a whole lot of fun!
<A. Bromley> -7.5-
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