Barbatos - 1942
Except for the intro and occasional weird keyboard parts, Barbatos is a strange combination of Black Metal (which is no surprise considering that this is Abigail demon Yasuyuki’s band) and Hard Rock/Metal of the mid ’70s (Kiss comes to mind). Sometimes this is excellent, but there are also a few attempts at strangeness that just go nowhere. It’s a cool experiment that simply doesn’t always work.
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Babylon Whores - Deggael
This disc has a lot going for it, excellent and complex sound production, a rich crunchy bass-heavy sound, and an interesting mix of alchemical and cabalistic references in the lyrics. There is even a music video included on here as a Quick Time movie, for the computer-enabled among you, with footage of the band lurking around some European castle with the requisite Goth-babes. Yet this video illustrates my one major reservation about this band, the nagging feeling that these guys are yearning for mainstream attention, which carries over to their music. This causes them to come across like late period Sisters of Mercy crossed with Type O Negative. Their press release labels them as “Death Rockers,” which is a fair description. They wouldn’t sound too out of place on the radio between Rob Zombie and Korn, which I think is what Babylon Whores wants. If you think that’s what you want, give them a try.
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Aztec - Loss of Our Final Pride
This is an interesting fusion of both the “raw” and “majestic” styles of Black Metal. The songs are all well written and played, and to a certain degree even pretty memorable. Except the goofy final track.
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Axemaster / The Awakening - 1985 - 1995
This is a compilation of tracks from the Axemaster and Awakening demos, all featuring my old friend Joe Sims on guitar. The songs on here cover three recordings, and three different line-ups, between the two bands. It’s interesting to hear their sound progress from Thrashy traditional Metal, to heavier Thrash (still as Axemaster), and then sort of going back to a more old-style Metal sound as The Awakening. Of course they had a different singer for each of these recordings, so that and the production makes a huge difference in their sound and style. But what never changed about them was their great songwriting and playing abilities. It’s about time this stuff got released on CD!
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Axel Rudi Pell - Oceans of Time
This is a much-improved and more mature release than The Ballads II. Oceans of Time finds Axel venturing into Power Metal territory. Although still pretty melodic this release has some aggression and energy that was nowhere to be found on The Ballads II. Songs like “Pay the Price” and “Holy Creatures” have that galloping pace that is the trade-mark of the German Power Metal sound. The majority of the album, however, leans toward a more melodic sound bringing to mind the style of Angel Dust. Something that impresses me about this release is that, even though Axel is a virtuoso guitar-player, he never gets carried away with his solos. I can think of a few musicians who could learn a thing or two about restraint from Axel. The songs show creativity and strong musicianship, and they are well-written. one complaint I have about this album is the duration of the songs. Most of them are better than six minutes long, but “The Gates of the Seven Seals” surpasses the ten-minute mark. If they could just be trimmed down a little I think the songs would be much stronger. Although this material is not at the same level as that of Helloween or Blind Guardian it’s still solid Power Metal.
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Avulsed - Cybergore
Oddly interesting & heavy combo of Death Metal and Techno.
[Metal Curse #11 had an additional loose page (“Last Second Additions”) inserted into the centerfold of the zine, featuring a bunch of even-shorter-than-usual “bonus” reviews of stuff that arrived after the deadline for that issue. This is one of those “Last Second Additions” reviews.]
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Avrigus - The Final Wish
Majestic and atmospheric to be sure, and with beautiful female vocals, this is like the most mellow parts of Left Hand Solution or My Dying Bride, but with a piano. And as great as this is, I wouldn’t have minded it getting a little heavier every now and then.
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Avenger - Shadows of the Damned
I’m probably a bit biased about this CD, since I did all the graphic design, but I think it kicks ass. Avenger combines very memorable Death and Black Metal types of riffs, with a really tormented vocal style (unfortunately the lyrics aren’t in English, although translations are provided), to create an evil masterpiece.
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Aurora Borealis - Praise the Archaic Lights Embrace
This self-financed full-length disc is really a lot more like what I would expect to get from a label, than a demo. The production and packaging are both totally professional. I suppose that’s more common than not these days. You rarely hear a demo recorded on a 4-track anymore. I’m not sure if that’s always a good thing, since some bands seem to think that a professional presentation is more important than the music. Maybe it would be better to concentrate on the songs and leave the professional production and packaging for when you get signed. It’s a moot point in this case, however, as Aurora Borealis have nearly perfected their combination of Thrash, Death, and Black Metal, and the totally pro sound and design of this CD merely complete the package. So my question is: Have AB decided that they don’t need label support, and thus declined any offers, or are the world’s record labels really so blinded by the current retro trend that they’d let a great band like Aurora Borealis go unsigned?
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