Fleurety - Department of Apocalyptic Affairs
The bio reads like a spy novel. Unfortunately, it proves to be far more interesting than the music. Fleurety suffers from a severe case of schizophrenia. Department of Apocalyptic Affairs throws together elements of Progressive Rock, Jazz, Techno, and Industrial for a completely incoherent mix. The band is a “supergroup” of sorts that features members of Mayhem, Arcturus, Aura Noir, Ulver, and Dodheimsgard. I would have thought that a collaboration by this group of musicians would have produced some awe-inspiring Black Metal. Reading through the bio, it seems that these guys are actually mocking the very scene they are a part of. This is their way of giving the middle-finger to Black Metal purists. The only reason I even listened to the entire album is because of its bizarre nature. If you think that the latest efforts by Mayhem, DHG (formerly Dodheimsgard), and Ulver are “ground-breaking,” you may enjoy this. If you appreciate bands like Immortal, Darkthrone, or Emperor, you should avoid this like the plague!
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Fleshgrind - The Seeds of Abysmal Torment
For regular readers, it should come as no surprise that this is insanely brutal Death/Grind. What else would you expect from United Guttural records main man, Rich Lipscomb, and his band of sickos? It might, however, be of interest to you to find out that their bassist, Jimmy, also plays guitar for Doom-masters Avernus, since Fleshgrind’s blazing intensity is about as un-Doomy as possible. This combination of speed and pure sickness is tempered with the necessary writing ability to create somewhat memorable songs, which is hard enough anyway, but when you take the brutality factor into account, it’s almost amazing. The Seeds… is an ass-kicking experience, and nearly flawless, but to completely appreciate this band’s true power, you must see them live.
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Fleshcrawl - As Blood Rains from the Sky… We Walk the Path of Endless Fire
It’s good to hear the return of Fleshcrawl. Somehow I missed out on their last album, Bloodred Massacre. I’ll have to track it down. This new LP is a real monster, but in a more Thrashy way than the current Grind tendencies of a lot of modern Death bands. That’s fine with me, of course, and certainly helps to give them a distinct sound. One that also kicks your ass sideways, I might add. And they even do an Exciter cover.
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Firebird - Firebird
Hold on, this must be a different Bill Steer - let me check the bio… Fuck! Okay, this is totally insane. I’d maybe expect that freed from the Doom influence of Lee Dorrian, Cathedral’s bassist Leo Smee might very well be involved with a retro ’60s/’70s Rock band like this. But Bill Steer? This is about as far away from Carcass and Napalm Death as you could get. The playing is solid and so on, and I guess they do a good job with what they’re doing, but I honestly wouldn’t really know and don’t care anyway. If I had any interest in this kind of stuff, I’d go listen to the originators, whoever they might be.
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False Prophets - Blind Roaches and Fat Vultures: Phantasmagoric Beasts of the Regan Era
Spanning this Punk Rock band’s career from 1980 - ‘85, and consisting of rare stuff (7-inch tracks, demos, etc…), this is really a disc for fans only. Maybe this isn’t F.P.’s best work, but it seems kind of uninspired and really just not too good. And, umm… they do an extremely lame Rap in one song about 3/4 of the way through the CD. Maybe more - I couldn’t continue.
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Faerghail - Horizon’s Fall
Black Metal that is alternately fast, or slow and sort of melancholy. The raw, thin production does little to help things, but this does contain some brief flashes of greatness, nonetheless. Generally those are found during the slower, more melodic parts. As a bonus, all the tracks from the band’s last demo (Dark Ocean Calm) are also included.
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Eyehategod - Confederacy of Ruined Lives
Looks like I’m the designated Eyehategod reviewer for this issue. Fine by me. I never get tired of saying good things about the Sludgegods. This picks up right where Dopesick left off. Slow, noisy, bloodshot-eyed stoner Sludge with filthy grooves, Sabbath-like hooks, and good ol’ cathartic droning. All this colonized under a grey area of dyslexic depressed/pissed off crass. Mental problems, intoxication, and a strong sense of rhythm make for a delightfully deranged combo. Get high then get this. Best Eyehategod song ever: “Blood Money.”
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Eyehategod - Southern Discomfort
Y’know, it’s a good thing that life sucks. Because if it didn’t, bands like Eyehategod wouldn’t exist. This was intended to be a collective send-off to the band everyone thought was broken up for good. Luckily they have gotten back together. A lot of people talk shit about Eyehategod and I just can’t explain why. What’s really funny is when someone claims to like Grief, yet says Eyehategod “sucks.” It is the same vein of misery that this band’s crawling brand Sludgecore is created. And both bands can also turn Sabbath-like groove into a numbing tool of discordance. If you’ve never heard this band before, this may be the ideal introductory phase. I’m partial to Dopesick and Take As Needed for Pain, and most of these tracks are from, or around the time of, those recordings. These are all studio out-takes and tracks taken from 7-inches, so for the most part, this is nothing a big Eyehategod fan doesn’t already have. I know I’m not one to pay $16 for different versions of songs I already have, but there are some tracks here from a split 7-inch with 13 that I’d never heard. “Serving Time in the Middle of Nowhere” is one of them and it’s traditional Eyehategod: Catchy, dirty, and screamed in anguish. Perhaps the least essential piece of this band’s works, but it’s good shit nonetheless. If you don’t like these guys, life must be an endless good time for you.
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Excel - Split Image
This is the band’s 1987 Split Image LP (obviously), plus quite a few extra demo tracks. Similarities to early Suicidal Tendencies abound, but that’s hardly a surprise considering that Excel is/was from the same area. But, far from being any kind of rip off, Excel incorporates some more aggressive, Metal-style drumming, ala post-Crossover DRI, as well as a more powerful, early Thrash influenced production. I don’t know if anyone other than me would like this these days, but this is one CD I’ll be playing frequently!
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