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ARCANA
- Lizabeth (Cold Meat Industry)
The only bad thing about the latest 3-song EP entitled Lizabeth
by two-piece ambient outfit Arcana is its length of time. Only 15
minutes, but 15 minutes of some of the most vibrant and beautiful
amalgamations of noise and choir-like harmonies you will hear. Truly
breathtaking. Much like the versatile offering of the band's last
project, Dark Age Of Reason, Lizabeth digs deep into the soul and
explores all the beautiful and dark angles that life has to offer
with masterful precision as seen on the songs "The Dreams Made Of
Sand" and "Cantar De Procella (The Opening Of The Wound)". Amazing.
Just wish it had been a bit longer... *NOTE* As of press time I
got a hold of the full-length, entitled Cantar De Procella. Same
substance and style, just more of it. Truly stunning to say the
least.
Adrian Bromley
DIABOLIQUE - Wedding The Grotesque (Black Sun)
Famed underground artist Kristian Wahlin (a.k.a.
Necrolord) has now decided to take a back seat with his Liers In
Wait death metal fix and formulate a new life within the band, now
leaning towards gothic music. And very gothic this is. The reference
points within Diabolique stands as is ; Sisters Of Mercy meets My
Dying Bride meets Fields Of The Nephilim. Very, very dark, but most
of all, this is overdoing the depressive factor just a little. Wahlin's
vocal croonings brood in such a deprived and cold manner it is as
if he is finally ready to fall into eternal sleep. His vocals make
Aaron's of My Dying Bride seem like a happy whippersnapper who has
just got his latest Nintendo 64 videogame. Maybe a little too tedious
for some as one can get very impatient, but there is some fine,
and I mean some fine, searing guitar work where power chords flow
into melodies creating thick layers of despair accompanied by haunting
synthesizer passages. But a real highlight of this is the twenty-four
page CD booklet where one can embrace the best and most personalized
art that Wahlin has to offer.
Chris Bruni
DODHEIMSGARD - Monumental Possession (Malicious Records)
Dodheimsgard has gone total old-school on this second
LP. This is nothing like their first; the production is far better,
the material is catchier and sounds like something Necropolis would
LOVE to have put out. Dodheimsgard remains mean and difficult to
listen to - like this type of black metal should be. The vocals
vary from something similar to Bull Metal's (Typhon days) to Aldrahn's
powerful own. This is a definitive release for people who value
no holds barred, corpsepaint infested, spike-wielding, simplistic
black metal, something Malicious can always be counted on for.
LL
EMPEROR - Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk (Candlelight/PHD)
How I've waited for this day! The Reverence EP was
a small taster, but now it's time for the main course! AttWaD represents
a revitalized direction for Emperor (image and music-wise), one
that fans of their first opus In the Nightside Eclipse will immediately
notice. Gone is the corpse paint, along with the lousy production
(suffered on ItNE). But what we have here is a much more aggressive
Emperor, most due in part to new drummer Trym (ex-Enslaved) who
maintains the legacy left by former drummer Faust. An increase of
clean vocals (courtesy of shrieker Ihsahn) is also present, which
have mixed blessings on my part as they do seem out of place in
some of the songs. The instrumental intro "Alpartr (The Oath)" sets
the tone and leads into the chaotic "Ye Entrancemperium" which shows
how far Emperor have come, brutality-wise. "Ensorcelled By Rhaos,"
"The Loss and Curse of Reverence" (from the band's last EP) and
"The Acclamation of Bonds" also serve as amazing, stand-out tracks.
Now, the million dollar question: is this record better than In
the Nightside Eclipse? It's actually an unfair question, as half
the band who recorded ItNE are no longer in the band. But how about
music-wise? On Anthems... Emperor have better production, more aggression
while still creating many majestic moments. The best black metal
record of the year as of yet, it'll take something (un)godly to
come close to topping it.
Adam Wasylyk
GEEZER - Black Science (TVT/A&M)
Okay...two changes to note: the band is now known
as Geezer not G//Z/R and Fear Factory screamer Burton Bell doesn't
sing for the band anymore. Could that be a problem? Um...yes. Unfortunately
new singer Clark Brown, a virtual unknown from Massachusetts, does
a smashing job as new singer for the band, which features legendary
Black Sabbath bassman Geezer Butler. Continuing from where the band's
1995 debut Plastic Planet left off, Geezer's sound and style stomps
and grooves through darkened tales of science fiction and imagination.
The music also delivers a solid wallop to our senses, track after
track, starting with brilliant openers "Man In A Suitcase" and "Box
Of Six" and storming through other standout tracks like "No. 5"
and "Northern Wisdom." After talking to Burton Bell (during press
for Remanufacture) and hearing him mention Butler was looking for
a new singer 'cause he had other commitments with Fear Factory,
I was skeptical at what was going to be conceived for the sophomore
outing. Needless to say, I worried too much. This record, considerably
much different than Plastic Planet though equally as good, gets
the blood going each listen. My pick for one of the better releases
of this year.
Adrian Bromley
HELL-BORN - s/t MCD (Pagan Records)
Containing members of Behemoth (now ex?) and Damnation,
Hell Born's sound is definitely influenced by 80's speed/black metal
bands while adding 90's influences. Boasting guitars and drums that
are relentless in their speed and aggression, the band also have
an unusual vocal approach which sounds robotic/distorted which in
turn gives this music a different feel. Along with the four Hell-Born
tracks there's a Destruction cover as well. I must say that this
retro thing is getting somewhat ridiculous, but Hell-Born don't
rehash from the past but rather incorporate it into their sound.
Retro never sounded so good.
Adam Wasylyk
IN THE WOODS - Omnio (Misanthropy/PHD)
Talk about patience as the ultimate virtue. Yes,
In The Woods have created an album of many wonders and many epics,
but for the closed minded, this might be a little hard to swallow.
Easily surpassing their Heart Of Ages opus, In The Woods' musical
progression has definitely reached soaring heights with Omnio. Epic
in every possible way, this album can be described as erotic progressive
metal. Not as dark and sinister as Opeth, and not as experimental
as 3rd And The Mortal, the beauty and somber atmospheres that create
Omnio are simply overwhelming. Olv. Svithjod's vocals can be an
acquired taste but there is this passion that the singer sings with
that caresses the soul and at the same time a feeling of darkness
and desolation will grasp it. Same goes for the music. Nothing too
technical, the epic, dark eroticism becomes far from tedious and
far from bombastic. And yes, if you listen closely there are a few
Maiden-isms within blending with a touch of the avant-garde. The
mood is set with the 14 minute opener "299 796 km/s" and by the
time "Weeping Willow" caresses through the speakers, you will feel
entranced as now there is no turning back as you prepare for the
grandiose finale of the title track. Bottom line : this is one of
the ultimate melancholic works of extreme dark art to be released
this year. Immerse yourself.
Chris Bruni
MY LIFE WITH THE THRILL KILL CULT
A Crime For All Seasons
(Red Ant/St. Clair)
I must admit, upon first listen of this album, I
wasn't particularly impressed. Perhaps it was my frame of mind at
the time, or some other unknown factor of oppression, but as you
can tell from my rating, my opinion has drastically shifted. This
album truly gets better with every listen mainly because each time
through, another song gets under your skin, and gets you singing
right along. Regardless though, A Crime For All Seasons is a masterpiece
of witty choruses and catchy rhythms. The album starts off with
"Fangs Of Love," a pretty cool song with a twinge of punk-ish guitar
riffs; quite a strange twist coming from a band like Thrill Kill
Kult, but their trademark sound still underlies the entire tune.
For those not in the know, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult are
a staple of the industro-goth scene, having been around since the
late-80s, they have released many tunes frequently played at your
favorite goth club such as the classic "Leathersex." TTK continue
the tradition with this release, delving back to their roots, and
coming up with a fresh sound that is still somewhat reminiscent
(sic) of 80s electronica. I could mention other notables on this
album, but what good would an entire track listing do for you? I
must, however, mention my favorite song, "Mr & Mrs Bottomless Pit"
which contains one of the coolest lines I've heard to date, "Evil
comes and evil goes, just like the drugs from Mexico." It's funny
how I find myself saying this line even in my sleep...
Gino Filicetti
UNLEASHED - Eastern Blood-Hail To Poland
(Century Media/St. Clair)
The only reason anyone should buy this CD is if they
are a big Unleashed fan and have no hope of seeing them live. With
that said, this is one of the worst sounding live recordings ever
made. The vocals are too prominent, the guitars sound impotent and,
where there are supposed to be crowd noises, almost none exist.
Surprising because the only place these guys can probably pack a
house is in Poland. It's not that their studio material isn't good
(some of it really kicks ass) but it seems that either can't make
it in a live setting or the producer or mixer in the studio makes
them sound like better musicians than they really are. On a positive
note, there are 21 tracks and the CD is about 78 inutes long, if
quantity is your thing. If you want quality though, skip this disc
if for no other reason they have four studio albums with enough
songs to pick from, but thought that their material was lame so
they repeated four of the them on the album.
Alex Ristic
V/A - Awakening - Females In Extreme Music (Dwell Records)
A lot has been said in the alternative and rock music
world about women who 'rock.' What about the woman who can growl
or play nasty guitar riffs? What about the women who live and breath
metal music? Where is the support for them? Well, the good people
at Dwell Records have actually gone ahead and helped bring together
female-fronted or bands with female members to the Awakening compilation.
This compilation covers all forms of extreme, black, and death metal
music that feature woman musicians. Bands from Europe, USA and Canada
are represented here and all are excellent examples of the role
of women in the fast-growing, but still underground metal music
scene. Most of the bands who have material on this compilation have
provided worthy numbers - most notably Gehenna's "Angel Wings &
Raven Claws," November Grief's "Spine Worm" and ultra-heavy Deathwitch
number "Flag Of Black Death." This record not only provides us with
great music, but a better understanding for those that think that
playing metal is just for men. Not the case here, as some of these
bands can easily run over some all-male acts out there. Recommended.
Adrian Bromley
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