Formerly known as Drastic, this Gothic… I guess Black Metal, band is occasionally not bad. That is, when they’re not trying to be weird, “original,” or whatever. I don’t know how many different people are singing on this disc, but there are probably 10 or 12 different kinds of vocals used, including both male and female, usually all in the same song. There are good moments, but they quickly end thanks to the constant stylistic mutations.

Just like a delicious pasta sauce ruined with too much onion and garlic, a voluptuous hot dog demolished by relish, or a smooth caramel sundae devastated by coconut and almonds, Draconian’s brand of My Dying Bride worship is killed by the most typical cliche trappings of the genre. Listen, you don’t need female vocals and choirs to make Doom work! Why can’t anybody see that? Growing up in America, I hear choirs and I think of Christmas, churches, and junior high. A choir does not conjure the hopelessness of our existence musically for me. It sounds more awkward than despondent, like a loud fart during a moment of silence. Female vocals are okay in moderation, as a pleasant novelty, if the woman has a really good voice. However, I feel it’s a woman’s job to cause the pain, not to sing about it. With just the bare essentials (haunting melodies, somber dirges, Doomy heaviness, and the harsh vocals) Draconian would have been close to perfection. I could’ve even looked past the dorky vampyric spoken parts. As is, this is a work of tragedy for all the wrong reasons.

Savagely brutal Grind accompanied by ultra-heavy Death Metal moments that bring to mind Gateways to Annihilation-era Morbid Angel. With all the varied changes and tempos, rabid vocals, and the brutality always turned on full blast (okay, there is an acoustic outro), Demonicon resemble a poor man’s Skinless, which I mean as a compliment. Granted, this could be way more memorable, and while the production is damn fine for a what I believe is a self-financed full length release, this certainly ain’t no From Sacrifice to Survival. Nonetheless, these guys have a ton of talent to say the least, and it isn’t their fault that such a multitude of quality brutal music has been made available prior to their arrival.
[Note: This band was formerly known as Dominion. -Editor]

After all these years, Dissection has finally released a live album. Though it was all recorded at the same show, the songs fade in and out like one of those “greatest hits recorded live” albums. You know which albums I’m talking about… The ones that are recorded in several different venues and compiled on one CD, then released as a “live” album. For me, a live album should be like the classic live releases, Live After Death, Unleashed in the East, Maiden Japan… You get the picture. The album would be a chronicle of one whole show - tune-ups, fuck-ups and between song crowd interaction. Live Legacy sort of fits in both categories. It has the consistency of the classic live album style with the lack of filler stuff (like tune-ups and between song banter) that is associated with the “greatest hits live” style. As for Dissection’s ability as a live band, these guys really have to be seen to be believed. I had the privilege of seeing them live when they played their one and only tour in the US (with Morbid Angel and At the Gates) and I have to admit that saying that they fucking shred is probably an understatement. If it wasn’t for the crowd noise and the song introductions, this could easily pass for a studio album because both the sound and the playing are perfect. Does anybody know when Jon Nodtveidt is getting out of prison? I want a new studio album!!!

It must really be an honor for these Norwegian lads to be on Satyr’s record label, because their only goal in life is to sound 100% identical to Rebel Extravaganza/Volcano-era Satyricon. I mean we are talking note for fucking note here, man. The scary thing is it’s kind of cool. Seriously, it’s not bad at all. If originality is how you get your kicks, avoid this like projectile foreign semen, but I must admit that second rate Satyricon is a breath of fresh air compared to tenth rate Darkthrone, or worse yet that avant-garde cyber-Black Metal clamor. Some of the riffs almost have a Punk feel, and the band is at their best when things are slow and brooding, but the band wears its main influence on their sleeves unashamedly, and homage is paid around almost every corner. So, if you just can’t get enough of that new Satyricon sound, here’s some more of it. (Note: features guest lyrics by Faust and guest spoken word appearance by Samoth.)

I’m not entirely sure how to describe this band, although I guess that maybe something like early Soundgarden might come to mind, with maybe something like the Supersuckers mixed in a little. The press release mentions Motorhead, but I have no idea where anyone would get that comparison. If all the songs here, uhh, rocked as hard, I guess I’ll say, as the disc-opener, “LSD” (which in this case stands for “Lost Souls Day”), this would be a real ass-kicker. Still, it’s not bad.

Every riff on this album sounds like a slightly deconstructed and rearranged Slayer rip-off. I love Slayer as much as the next guy, but there’s a fine line between admiration and plagiarism. A strong, brutal voice could have saved this, but the singer’s weak, thin, gruff snarl only adds to the monotony. While the playing and production are solid, there’s just nothing interesting going on here.

While I really hated this band’s self-titled first demo, I have to say that Demon Sword has improved vastly since then. This is the band’s third demo (I never got to hear the second one) and while it is stylistically similar to the debut, the playing is much better and the sound has also improved a lot. I’m generally not a big fan of the Grim Black Metal style as it tends to be underproduced and sloppy, but Christ Blood is tight and there is enough lower-end in the guitars to give the whole thing some crunch. The only major problem Demon Sword seems to have is the overly repetitive nature of the drumming. The beat is pretty much the same on the majority of their songs, resulting in the illusion that all of tracks on this CD sound a lot more repetitive than they actually are. Other than that, Christ Blood is one of the better Black Metal demos I’ve heard in a while.

This is so fucking cult! Here we have a traditional 4-song demo/CD (a rarity in this age) by a Norwegian Death Metal band that sound like some lost relic from the early ’90s Nuclear Blast / Relapse roster! Now, that’s just plain tits. Seriously, these guys make it like they used to. Hints of old Gorefest, Resurrection, a pinch of Disharmonic Orchestra, and especially old Benediction make up the sound and feel of Deject, and you can add to the fold a healthy helping of suicidal lyrics for good measure. I just don’t know what else you could ask for. Contact this band, get a copy of this demo, and instantly become the coolest kid on your block.

“Death machine, infest my corpse to be”? Nope, not that cool. These guys take more of a Meshuggah approach. Heavy, layered, angular, and with vocals that are abrasive but totally understandable, which isn’t always a good thing in this case. They make it clear that they are not above borrowing a few Nu-Metal tactics, but I guess they have to eat. Not really my thing, but talented without question, and recommended underground exploration for fans of Meshuggah, Strapping Young Lad, Slipknot, and other safer Metal bands.

This is a great collection of this Czech Grind band’s EPs and other rare tracks, all remastered! Featuring the gore-soaked songs from the Poppy-seed Cake EP, No Pate, No Mind EP, Party’s Over EP, The Greatest Shits MCD, and the Grind Over Europe ‘96 cassette, this disc is non-stop ultra-brutality from start to finish.

Just two songs to go on here, but the strengths and weaknesses of this one-man band are instantly recognizable. The bright side is the music, Thrash with a Death tint not too far removed from the feel of old Sepultura, and the melodic, clean guitar passages are done very well. The downfall here is the horrible vocals. He sounds like Jamez Hetfield in mid-gay-love coitus. The production here could use some cleaning up as well. Overall, this guy has some talent and some good ideas, but he needs to save up some cash and recruit a good singer. His voice makes this intolerable. Plus, he thanks god (“the supreme energy that enables me everyday to achieve my dreams”). What the fuck is up with that? Real defiant, fag.

I wish that I knew how to best describe this album, but I really don’t - it’s complicated in its simplicity. I suppose that the occasional slower pace is nothing too new for Darkthrone. And neither is the raw-yet-clear recording, nor the super memorable riffs that seem to be impervious to wearing out no matter how many times they’re repeated. And of course the raspy vocals are the same, too. But, somehow everything seems to come together in just exactly the right way. The resulting Black Metal is so close to a grotesque, decayed form of perfection that language itself fails me.

Not that Darkest Hour need all these guest appearances to boost the cred of their patented melodic Gothenberg-inspired Deathcore, but I admit it was a treat to hear Tomas Lindberg lend his trademark scream to the authentic hybrid. By now, what else can be said about this band that hasn’t been said already? I’ve been hooked since their flawless full length debut, Mark of the Judas, and while in my eyes they still haven’t topped that album, I have yet to be let down. With this band you know what you’re going to get, and that’s a good thing. All you Metalheads that miss the glory days of At the Gates, In Flames, and Dark Tranquillity take note, this is the new blood.

The obscure one-man Black Metal side project of Xaphan from Summon. Well, while Summon are releasing albums in 5.1 Dolby surround sound, Xaphan is apparently using a 17-year old answering machine to record his solo work. This production is BAD! What I can make out seems to have an old Mayhem-like quality, but it could just be the evilness of the unholy tape hiss. I really would like to hear something a bit more polished before I make a proper judgment, as the sound here is just too fucked up to decide either way.

Take the theatrical prowess of Queen, the sap of Iron Maiden’s career lows, the melodic hooks of Air Supply, the modern Choir Metal feel of newer Therion, and the polished finesse of Nelson and you have a nauseating, operatic blend of Power Glam so overwhelmingly gay that it may prove to cause erectile dysfunction in heterosexual males.

I’ve been a Danzig fan since the days of the original Misfits, so I was very happy to discover that someone was finally smart enough to release these video clips on DVD. Of course I have the old VHS tapes with some of the early videos, but I think that I can speak for all fans of the band when I say that we want all the videos on DVD. And that’s really the only flaw with this disc: it’s missing some key videos! Okay, there are three versions of “Dirty Black Summer,” two of “How the Gods Kill,” only one for “Sistinas,” but right back to multiple versions for “Bodies” (two), and “It’s Coming Down” (three), plus a live version (from 1993) of “Mother.” But where the hell are such classics as “She Rides,” “Killer Wolf,” “Cantspeak,” “Her Black Wings” and so on?!? Perhaps it was not possible to get the rights to some of these from the band’s former label, American Recordings, but if so then American should get off its ass and re-release those old tapes on DVD! As far as this DVD is concerned, I don’t know that I needed the extra versions of some of the videos, since they primarily consist of unused footage of the band playing, but it’s truly great to at least have some Danzig videos on a more permanent format than tape. If only it had all the band’s vids this would have been an easy ten.

This, the band’s fourth CD release and companion piece to the We May be Through With the Past… CD (on Status records), is amazingly diverse and yet still seems coherent. The band jumps from fast, intense Hardcore to laid-back mellowness in such a natural way that John Zorn probably beats off listening to this disc. If you can displace that disturbing visual for a moment, please take my advice and track down a copy of this CD. Existing fans will surly worship this, as it is probably the band’s best work, and there’s something wrong with anyone who wouldn’t be converted after a listen or two.

Cryptopsy are so fucking awesome live, it doesn’t really matter who’s singing. As long as Flo’s on, you know you’re going to have a good time. Sadly though, the actual experience of seeing the group live has pretty much crippled any live album’s attempt to contain it. The sound is very good and the guys nail each song perfectly, but it’s no substitute for the real thing. I guess if you wanted to pay full LP price for a drum solo this is one case I couldn’t really argue with you.

When you name your band after the patron deity of everybody’s favorite barbarian (Conan, for those who are spending their years in a coffin), you can either be an epic Viking-esque Metal band or a complete guitar-wanker band. Crom has wisely chosen to emulate the father of Viking Metal, Bathory - though there are some “guitar hero” antics (listen to those guitar solos!) as well. The Fallen Beauty ends up sounding like the bastard offspring of the atmosphere of Blood on Ice and epic Power Metal with the concentration on the Blood on Ice elements. To cement things firmly in that Blood on Ice vein, **Crom has also included a cover of “Man of Iron” that is at least as good as the original. The clean vocals are done well and the playing on this EP is really solid. I honestly wish more bands would put this much effort and time into their albums because it shows. This will probably appeal to fans of Viking era Bathory, Falkenbach or Power Metal bands in the vein of Lord Weird Slough Feg / Hammers of Misfortune.