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AKITSA
Soleil Noir (Independent)
The strength of Akitsa's latest demo definitely lies in the first
track, "Hymn a la Guerre." Like all the rest of their
releases, they achieve some totally outstanding moments, and then
there is the material that is not so outstanding—the material
that is, in fact, downright weak. "Hymn a la Guerre,"
which is more an introduction I suppose than a complete 'song' per
se, is like a stun-gun on the listeners mind; so captivating is
this droning and archaic melody that you have to stop what it is
you are doing, and just listen closely to the lulling, oozing web
of undulating noise, a hypnotic quilt of sound that is just such
a beautiful piece, beyond words. Unfortunately, the tape only weakens
from that point onward as things become less intriguing and more
redundant in the twenty minutes that follow, the veritable anti-climax
being the punk-rock clumsiness of "Le Retour du Soleil Noir"—a
mistake I would have personally omitted, though I guess it does
lend some color to the tape as a whole. An older piece, "Totale
Servitude," taken from their first demo, concludes this tape,
which I believe was produced primarily for the band themselves.
It's highly doubtful O.T. has any interest in finding a label today
and I admire his strident anti-commercial attitude wholeheartedly,
even if sometimes I think an intervening voice might be to his benefit.
Curious now of what he'll come up with next after this one... <Yury
Arkadin> -7.5-
Contact:
URL: http://akitsa.cjb.net
ATOMTRAKT
Verwüstung (Independent)
Atomtrakt’s debut release, the pro-pressed demo MCD Verwüstung
offers a potent taste of their neoclassical militant ambience. "Ödland"
opens up the disc with their most militant-sounding song here, with
an ever-constant beat and an ethereal keyboard accompaniment. "Kalte
Relikte des Verfalls" is notable for its keyboards whose use
in the first half of the song sound nearly choir-like, while the
beats primarily find themselves colder and more industrialized.
"K.a.i.E." finds Atomtrakt hit their atmospheric apex,
complete with distorted vocalizations and a studious blend of industrialized
and militant drumbeats. Closing out with "Flammenmeer,"
I found this piece to contain their best expression of mood—beginning
markedly sombre—and slowly building, finally exuding a triumphant,
resounding feeling. A compelling debut, and I’m curious to
hear more. <Adam Wasylyk> -7-
Contact:
E-mail: atomtrakt@atomtrakt.com
URL: http://www.atomtrakt.com
BRAVE
Passages EP (Independent)
Brave is a band that continues to amaze me with each and every release.
From their early days as Arise from Thorns up to now with the release
of this five-song EP, this band can do no wrong in my books. I was
shocked when I found the band had been dropped by Dark Symphonies
but pleasantly surprised to find out that the band didn’t let
a setback like that quash their dreams/passion to make music. Passages
is a fiery EP, passionate from the get-go with stellar opener "Words,"
probably one of the band’s heaviest numbers. Singer Michelle
Loose shines on "Broken" and the title track, delivering
heartfelt vocals that continue to give me goosebumps with each spin.
The addition of violin is nice, adding a bit more depth, and the
songwriting has indeed grown with experience. No doubt Passages
is a great set of material to be sending off for label interest
and I’m confident that soon enough Brave will have the support
to push the music to the next level. I’m loving where they
are now, and I can only imagine what lies ahead. Hell, I’m
drooling already. <A. Bromley> -8.5-
Contact: P.O. Box 1077, Woodbridge, Virginia 22195 USA
E-mail: michelle@bravemusic.com
URL: http://www.bravemusic.com/
FATHER
Because You’re Worth It (Independent)
Gotta hand it to guitarist M. Griff (ex-Cathedral/Blackstar Rising)
for wanting to break away from his work in the realm of metal and
trek into solo territory that includes a vast amount of experimentation.
Piano playing, distorted vocals, surreal and hypnotic guitar work,
drum machine and just a lot of creativity helps shape this solo
excursion (as Griff points out, all words and music smitten and
deformed by himself) into a unique listen, a sharp jolt to those
who may have expected some blazing guitar-driven barnstormer. Highlights
include the amazing "You Can be My Hearse" and the dreary
"The River Rider." I need to track down the new album
Arkazum and see where Griff has launched his musical schemes this
time. Talented and not held back, Because You’re Worth it is
indeed a unique listen that calls out for all to sample. <A.
Bromley> -7.5-
Contact: Arkazum Productions, 13 Ebrington Street, Liverpool, Merseyside
L19 1QT UK
E-mail: father@arkazum.co.uk
URL: http://www.arkazum.co.uk/
GALACTUS 77
Empire of the Eye (Independent)
Like a meal at your favourite restaurant or drink at the local watering
hole, every time out a new Galactus 77 release lands on my desk
I know just what I am getting. But it isn’t always the same
reaction—sometimes I get more out of it, as was the case with
Empire of the Eye. The new seven-song release is dripping with ultra-heavy
riffs and vocal growls, moreso than in recent memory. Heavier and
more balanced is the attack for Galactus 77, proudly showcasing
their influences of Black Sabbath, Orange Goblin and Kyuss, but
at the same time furthering their corrosively catchy rockin’
ways on tracks like "I, Mastodon" and "Year of the
Salamander." Sadly singer Dan Hodgson has left the band and
no doubt this will alter the band’s delivery on the next release,
but seeing as though Galactus 77 have been pretty consistent over
the years I have followed them, I’m not worried. Rock on, brothers!
<A. Bromley> -7.5-
Contact: 12 Murray Avenue, Sussex, New Brunswick, E4E 1J3 CANADA
E-mail: Astralmisery@yahoo.ca
URL: http://www.galactus77.com
MADMAN MUNDT
s/t (Independent)
Ohio’s Madman Mundt are truly one of those bands that takes
the stage, sets their gear up and play their hearts out, not giving
two shits what the crowd thinks or how they sound. Belligerent fucks
who are out to have a good time on their time. The self-titled release
from the quartet is a pretty fucked, punked-up crossover metal,
kind of like The Dead Kennedys meets chunky metal/hard rock. Shades
of a less chaotic Amen are here, but I kind of dig the simplistic,
crusty drive of the band’s music, especially numbers like "Cancelled
Comic Book Heroes," "Ticket To Nowhere" and "Beyond,"
all ample tunes that spew out the Madman Mundt creed to full effect.
Not for everyone, but then again, I doubt the band cares. <A.
Bromley> -6-
Contact: 2441 Overlook Rd. #17 Cleveland Heights, OH 44106
E-mail: wizardfool@yahoo.com
http://www.stearnsdog.com/mundt/index.htm
WILL OF THE ANCIENTS
Cold Grim Times (Independent)
There has been much talk of this band in the circles of the Toronto
metal scene for some time now—good and bad—and finally
the band’s debut release is out for all to look into. Calling
themselves "pagan black metal" is kind of a misconception
really because, even while the band does showcase those qualities,
there is also a subtle black/thrash angle to the music of WotA that
surfaces for on this seven-song release. Personally, I think the
two tracks "Set in a Twilight Tragedy" and "For Honour
and Empire" (my favourite of the bunch) best represent what
the band is about: well-executed passages with raw black metal-esque
vocals and a knack for adding a nice flow of creativity without
bombarding us with too much going on. WOTA have proven that they
can match their music quite nicely with the buzz and release a stirring
debut. Let’s see where some live experience and growth takes
them next time, shall we? <A. Bromley> -7-
URL: http://www.grahf.com/wota
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