Ascraeus - Dare to Live
Mixing Thrash, Death, and Doom, Ascraeus create a fairly unique sound. Likewise, the vocals range from clean, to raspy, to a Death growl. Keyboards make things a bit more ominous when necessary. All this adds up to a very interesting release, and I’m looking forward to hearing more from this talented band.
(0) Comment(s)
Armoured Angel - Mysterium
Generally when a band goes the extra step to put out a CD themselves, you can trust that it will be pretty cool. [Remember, this was back in 1994, and I was talking about a real CD, not a fucking CDR. -Editor] Well, Armoured Angel are a lot more than pretty cool. Their style has become a bit more deadly with this release, but the production is still very sharp. My only complaint is that the vocals are mixed too low, but even with that, this is excellent.
(0) Comment(s)
Aftermath - Eyes of Tomorrow
I’ve been waiting to hear this album for years, and I’m very glad to say that it was worth the wait. Okay, once in a great while Charlie succumbs to the temptation to distort his vocals a bit, and I don’t like it. But other than that, this is an amazing recording. These guys are maybe the most “true” band on earth. They follow no trend and have stuck with their unique brand of technical, memorable, and very energetic Thrash since day one. That is something I applaud every bit as much as the music on this disc. And I don’t want anyone to think that Aftermath have a dated sound. They don’t. Their sound is based on an older style, of course, but they have always had a unique identity, full of experimentation as much as anything else. I just hope it doesn’t take them 3 years to get their next album out.
(0) Comment(s)
Desperate Corruption - Deadly Spawn
You really don’t see a whole slew of Japanese Death Metal bands, but what they lack in quantity, they make up for with Desperate Corruption alone. Not so heavy as just fuckin’ punishingly brutal. The production is raw enough to add to the music’s inflicted pain. As far as agony is concerned, DC have it spot on. Let’s have a lyric sheet next time, though.
(0) Comment(s)
Antiseen - Hell
If they weren’t so thick and jowly, they’d really be the mean “enlightened redneck” machine they’d like to be. This is a collection of covers, some new and some from prior singles, and it’s not as hot as I’d hoped. It kicks off with a well-chosen tag-team of Curtis Mayfield’s “If There’s a Hell Below We’re All Gonna Go” and Roky Erickson’s “I Have Always Been Here Before;” both are arranged well but the resemblance to Warren Zevon is too close for comfort. The only items of interest here are the version of the Anti-Nowhere League’s “(We Will Not) Remember You” and a 7-minute bout with Sun Ra’s “Space Is the Place,” reinvented as something that sounds like a new & improved Steppenwolf.
(0) Comment(s)
Anesthesy - Exaltation of the Eclipse
Sometimes the riffs sound pretty familiar, but that’s hard to always avoid. The vocals are raw, Death-style, but the music is more Thrashy, and usually fast, especially the drums. The sound is good, and all that, but I was a bit uninspired, even upon repeated listens.
(0) Comment(s)
And Christ Wept - Destroy Existence
Heavy. Experimental. Drum machine. Those things are all good ideas. I don’t think so highly of the vocals, which sound like they have been run through an “American Metal” distortion pedal, but I will admit that as far as distorted vocals go, these are the best I’ve ever heard. Imagine a way heavier, and better Ministry, I suppose, and you’ll have a start of what these guys can do. I like it, but some people just can’t get past the idea of a drum machine.
(0) Comment(s)
Ancient - Det Glemte Riket
You may recognize the title track from Metal Blade’s Metal Massacre XII compilation, but the other song, “Huldradans,” is new. Well, actually this 7-inch was out way before the aforementioned compilation. But anyway, these two songs are Atmospheric Black Metal, and I think that Ancient are among the best at this style, so of course I like this. The sound is excellent, and the vinyl is, you guessed it, black, although the cover is full color.
(0) Comment(s)
Analogy - Analogy
This band has since changed it’s name to Damien Kross. As far as this recording is concerned, musically it’s pretty Thrashy, and backed by a drum machine so it has an Industrial edge to it, but with sort of raw vocals, which are mixed too low to really determine if that’s an effect, or if Damien is a mutant. Either way, it sounds okay. Everything was done by one man, and that’s an accomplishment. Admittedly his later work, under the Damien Kross moniker, is more energetic, and probably just better, but this is pretty interesting.
(0) Comment(s)
Page 330 of 388 pages « First < 328 329 330 331 332 > Last »
