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Past
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AKERCOCKE
Rape Of The Bastard Nazarene
(Goat of Mendes)
In mixing brutal death metal and the style of Principle...-era Cradle
of Filth, Akercocke lay the tracks for a journey of deathly black
metal slaughter, let down only by a production which weakens blast-beat
sections slightly. They show originality and inventiveness in combining
industrial noise into their music and, on "Maguerite & Gretchen",
slow the pace and create an intense atmosphere with their use of
minor key melodic vocals. The best unsigned band I have heard this
year, by far.
Paul Schwarz -9-
Contact: 97 Victoria Rd., London, N22 4XG, ENGLAND
E-mail: akercocke@hotmail.com
...AND OCEANS
The Symmetry Of I, The Circle Of O
(Seasons Of Mist/PHD)
Bringing together the unbridled harshness of Impaled
Nazarene and the attention to melody of Legenda, fellow Finns ...And
Oceans have crafted an album worthy of your attention. Showcasing
some great melodies, the black metal sextet aren't afraid to throw
in a blazing blast beat here and there. What was great to discover
was a song never passed without either a great melodic passage or
some cool speedy segments. Despite parts of the band that may throw
some for a loop (for example, the name of the album, song titles
like "Mechanic Hippie," "Acid Sex And Marble Teeth" and "I Wish
I Was Pregnant") the music is here and really, that's all that counts.
A. Wasylyk -8.5-
DELLAMORTE - Home Sweet Hell (Osmose/PHD)
There is just something missing from the band's latest
offering. While their last full-length Uglier And More Disgusting
was a bombshell of a record, with monstrous Entombed-styled riffs
fueling their harsh attack, this time out it seems as though the
momentum of the material is lacking a scope of recklessness. Sure
the band can still kick out the tunes and rock n' roll like the
rest, just seems as though they turned it down a notch at times
- and I wish they hadn't. Choice cuts: "The Tombs Of My Fear" and
the title track.
A. Bromley -6-
IMMOLATION - Failures For Gods (Metal Blade/Attic)
Immolation embody a near-perfect example of how music
and lyrical content can be combined together to create a fearsome
and engrossing experience. 'Failures...' is an assault on the senses
more virulent than anything Immolation have previously created and
is a truly monstrous death metal album in its own right. The warped
drum and guitar style, with massive riffs and disjointed, powerful
rhythms both in abundance are the solid back-bone while Dolan's
vocals once again excel in crushing delivery and brilliantly written
sentiment. This is easily among the finest death metal albums that
has or will be released this year.
P. Schwarz -9.5-
INTERNAL BLEEDING - Driven To Conquer (Pavement/PHD)
By the time their third song came around, I was already
tired of Internal Bleeding's brutally charged (at times) effort
'Driven To Conquer.' The reason? Too same sounding for the most
part and to be honestly frank, the music just doesn't live up to
what a lot of other death metal bands are doing these days. While
the vocals of singer Ray Lebron do hit a truly guttural stride at
times, in the end not even some serious guitar riffing and double-kicks
could save this from mediocrity. Only salvageable tracks are: "Conditioned"
and "Slavesoul." Fans of the band, go ahead and check'em out. Not
a fan? You ain't missing much.
A. Bromley -4-
KILLENGOD - Into The Ancient Moon (Warhead/Repulse)
There must be something in the water that has an
affect on Australians. They are some of the craziest motherfuckers
around. Killengod prove this to an extraordinary point. Fierce songs
that want to rip out of your speakers and feast on your warm blood,
'Into The Ancient Moon' takes the best ingredients from thrash,
death and black metal, tosses them into a bowl and stirs up the
pot with speed, speed, speed. On the pushing end of extreme music,
it is no wonder that these boys are on the move.
K. Carman -9.5-
MALEFACTION - Man Grows Cold (Independent)
Pasting a sick, mental image of society in general
and the multiple wrong doings of man today, Manitoba act Malefaction
leash one of the most powerful and totally in sync independent LPs
I have *ever* heard. From its stellar soundclips that lead into
every single monumental sound extravagance, the band's "black metal
influenced hardcore art" creates a vacuum of insecurity and paranoia
until the bitter end. Where has the band been? I'd heard a track
on the Utopian Vision Compilation a few years back. They must have
been hiding out, planning such a vicious attack as Man Grows Cold
is. In the visions detailed by Malefaction are true, then we can
begin to live in fear people. Superb!
A. Bromley -9.5-
Contact: 484 River Rd. Andrews, MB RIA-3C2 CANADA
SOD
- Bigger Than The Devil (Nuclear Blast)
Those asking for a repeat of the legendary 'Speak
English Or Die' ('85) are asking too much. Maybe SOD are a victim
of the sound they helped to invent, since played to death by countless
successors. But I don't think so. What made SOD so great was that
they had the intensity of thrash combined with the groove of hardcore.
Now it just seems like the majority of songs thoughtlessly bash
it out for a couple minutes and then move on to the next. Sure,
there's still some really intense riffing, but not enough. This
time 'round I can't do the Milano Mosh.
P. Silbiger -6-
SUMMONING - Stronghold (Napalm/St. Clair)
Combining black metal influences with an ambient
backdrop, Summoning have created something truly special here. Never
the ones to sound predictable or similar to their contemporaries,
Summoning proudly walk down their own musical path. This type of
music can't be faked, the emotions and atmospheres that Summoning
create are unparalleled on any release thus far this year. Soaked
in keyboards, 'Stronghold' may be one of the better albums I've
heard to fully utilize them in quite a while. At times majestic
and at others chilling, an entire spectrum of emotions are explored
in a full hour of usic. A top 10 in my books, Summoning's new piece
of work won't go unnoticed.
A. Wasylyk -9.5-
TARTAROS - The Grand Psychotic Castle EP (Necropolis/St.
Clair)
If King Diamond were ever to become black metal,
Tartaros would have been his vehicle. Keyboards and melodies set
up just the way King likes them, but then taken apart by a brutal
black metal attack worthy of early Emperor, of course not a surprise
seeing as how Tartaros mastermind, Charmand Grimlock, is best friends
with the band. The album itself is three years old, but skipped
me the first time around, and is now reissued as a digipak as a
prelude to their fall release of The Red Jewel. If you're a Norwegian
black metal fan this one's going to be hard to pass up; an Emperor
attack with raspier vocals, computer enhanced beats, and effects
that make it sound like an early sixties horror flick. Heck, at
points this almost sounds like black metal techno. Enter the Grand
Psychotic Castle and you may never leave.
A. Ristic -9.5-
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