Okay, what once was an awesome, innovative Death/Doom band, is now reduced to In Flames clone #198,767,496. So, did Metal Blade simply demand these guys change to fit what’s hot right now, or were they just hungry? The world may never know.

This is a three-way split of raw, underproduced Black Metal. The first band on the bill is Burning Winds, who are notable for having their debut album released in only 200 copies by Necroscope (Paul from Profanatica’s label). This band is easily the worst band on this split and no matter how much the other two try, they can’t match the supreme sucking power of Burning Winds. The music is primitive, the production is awful and if there was ever a band that makes Von look like Silver Mountain, Burning Winds is it. Songs begin and end randomly, there are tracks that end apparently in the middle song and the only thing cohesive about the four songs on display is that all of them suck. Next on the bill is Kerberos. Kerberos is almost as raw as Burning Winds but at least the songs are better. They aren’t great by a long shot, but compared to Burning Winds, they are definitely an improvement. The five songs on display are raw, distorted and about as abrasive as getting a sandpaper facial. Last on the bill is Misanthropy, a band that makes Kerberos sound good but at the same time, don’t suck nearly as bad as Burning Winds. This band seriously needs to turn up their guitars. Musically, this band sounds like they may have some fast Horna-esque underproduced Black Metal going on - if only I could hear the riffs. Most of the time, the guitar is buried squarely underneath the drumming and the vocals. The drumming is clearly a machine and the vocals sound like someone strangling Donald Duck. Obviously, this isn’t an album I can recommend. This is only available in 333 copies but I kind of doubt that too many people will be sorry they missed out on this release.

What a fucking mindless band name! “Hey, Bill, heard that new Bullethole?” “Bullethole? Go fuck yourself, Jim!” Some of the most unskillfully shouted vocals ever recorded completely lay waste to what would be a decent Thrashcore effort. But even if this totally rocked in every way, how much could you really get excited about a band named fucking Bullethole?! Fucking Bullethole, man! Nobody had a better suggestion than Bullethole?

I need about… 3.50

France’s Bloody Sign play a convincingly Old School high speed blend of Thrash and Death Metal drawing influence from Possessed, old Morbid Angel, and old Pestilence (and I’m not just saying that because they do a kick ass cover of “Parricide,” possibly the highlight of the album). Everything here is up to par, but if I could make one suggestion it would be to mix it up a little more. Add more tempo changes and dynamics, like the all-out heaviness towards the end of “Vana Vigala Loits (part 2)” which is so brutal not even a jew-harp can weaken it. The introduction by the Setumaa People was a bad idea, in fact it may be the most annoying thing ever recorded, and the live track sounds like shit. Other than that, this is pretty solid, and once the bugs are ironed out we could have a serious force to be reckoned with in the near future.

Black Funeral arose from the ashes of Sorath (the American one, not the one that had that split-CD with Unclean) back in the early ‘90s and had a style of Black Metal that was clearly influenced by the likes of Burzum, Darkthrone and Emperor. Over the years, this band released two full-length albums in that style and then Mike Ford (the sole permanent member of Black Funeral) decided to change the focus of Black Funeral to a Death Industrial style similar to Brighter Death Now, MZ 412, his other project Valefor, and others in that feedback-laden Industrial genre. This album is, in a way, a time capsule. The music for this album was originally recorded back in ’96 but the vocals were not laid down until 2000. Remember when Darkthrone did that? This is kind of in the same vein. You get cold, dark Black Metal in the Burzum / Emperor style and sound. The thing that kind of brings this down is the drum machine. The drums sound too mechanical and the bass drums sound like a light switch. I did like this better than their last album (the Death Industrial one) but I can’t help but wonder what this would have sounded like with a human drummer and a better drum tone. I’ve followed this band for a long time and though they’ve managed to keep their “cult” sound and status, Black Funeral has yet to release a “definitive” album.

I have no earthly clue why any label would want to put out this worthless fucking CD. The production is beyond awful. This CD was obviously duplicated from a TDK blank tape that was purchased at a GL Perry in 1986, dubbed over 9 times, urinated on, microwaved, then left outside for 3 years. If I turn my stereo up to its highest possible volume I can almost make out the prototype for all lame, substandard, poorly programmed drum machine-driven Black Metal cheese over the last 11 years. Act now while supplies last.

This band has just blown up so big right now, I wonder if a review is even necessary. Especially when we’re dealing with a band so musically varied, which makes the review even tougher yet. That’s why I don’t quite understand all the record labels using BtBaM as a comparison on every new Metalcore band’s CD promo sticker. Nobody sounds like these guys, and these guys sound like nobody. This band’s music is an amalgam of just about every kind of extreme music out there. Death, Black, Thrash, Hardcore, Metalcore, Grind, Gothenburg, the list goes on and on. one of their best qualities is that they can borrow from all these genres so creatively, and without it sounding confused or thrown together, that the finished product could not sound more original. The biggest difference between The Silent Circus and their debut, is the addition of Emo arrangements intact with good clean singing and all. So now, amidst this extravaganza of extremity, the band can also shift to poignant Indie Rock and back effortlessly without missing a hitch. Simply put, there is something here for everybody. Everybody cool, I should say. Oh, and just in case you didn’t know, this supergroup features ex-members of other awesome projects, Prayer for Cleansing, Undying, From Here On, and the criminally underrated Azazel.

Substandard Death/Grindcore from Italy. They try their best to pay homage to the Gorefathers, Impetigo, Carcass, and Gut, but a lot of bands do, and a lot of bands do it better. The main problems are the guitar sound, which is extremely heavy but so low in the mix, and severely unintelligent lyrics. I’d give you some examples but my IQ might drop from typing them. Let’s just say you can live without this one, that is unless it is your steadfast goal in life to own any and all things Gore. If that’s the case I envy your income and free time.