Reviews: Jesus Piece, Cave Moth, Attractive Chaos, Chris Duarte (Reviews By GC & Matt Bladen)

Jesus Piece - So Unknown (Century Media Records) [GC]

Another ‘’core’’ release for me this week but not of the death variety I have some good old fashioned hardcore from highly rated Philadelphia crew Jesus Piece and their tricky but also highly anticipated second album So Unknown.

And its straight to business on opener In Constraints which goes straight for the throat with some absolutely huge sounding riffs full of metal tinged beatdown goodness and the vocals from Aaron Heard are absolutely savage it’s a breathtaking start, following on is Fear Of Failure which keeps the same sort of attack as previously its all done with devastating precision & furious focus and waiting so long to release this album (5 years) cleary hasn’t dimmed the furious flame that burns within. Tunnel Vison starts off slowly and the ups the pace before dropping back into the slower pace and the variation on styles throughout the whole piece bodes very well for the song while never dropping the heaviness levels. 

FTBS is full of pitch harmonic laced groove riffs and beatdowns from David Updike & John Distefano that proceed to pummel and destroy you for 2:12 before leaving without an apology, they then ramp up the atmosphere on Silver Lining and you can tell a lot of thought has been put in here because it really allows the song room to spread its wings and expands the sound to amazing effect without loosing any of the focus and fury show so far. Gates Of Horn starts with a blasting beginning but is then once again slowed right down to really let the vocals take the lead and picking up the pace midway shakes it all back into life to gallop towards a chaotic end before fading out with a huge beatdown section, stunning.

Profane has an early 00’s metalcore vibe ala Turmoil and other such luminaries it’s a slow and creeping attack on the senses and again that it can be done in just over 2 minutes but not lose any of the savagery is a testament to how special Jesus Piece are as band. An Offering To The Night the picks the pace straight back up and really is an absolute masterful and savage triumph of thumping drums, brutal guitars, and savage vocals. 

Stolen Life starts with and almost melo-death opening and is again full of atmospheric picked guitars and the echoing drums from Luis Aponte and low end rumble courtesy of Anthony Marinaro but once it kicks in it is a full on two-stepping hardcore beauty that manages to mix in some quieter parts but never drops anything or makes you lose interest for the whole song and its then onto closing track The Bond to one last time let Jesus Piece show us why they are obviously going to be one of the frontrunners of the hardcore scene for many years to come, it’s a sublime mix of huge and atmospheric guitars that create a wall of sound and the off kilter drums are beautiful and once again the vocals just sound furious, a perfect way to end a stunning album.

Was it worth the 5 years wait for this album, the easy and emphatic answer to that is of course yes, yes it was 100% worth the wait. This a savage and brutal album that also mixes pure anger and raw emotion into every minute of its running time and it hits you like an anvil in places but also manages to draw back just enough in parts to keep you wanting more and then it delivers more, and it is everything you wanted, let’s hope it’s not 5 more years before the next album. To say I liked this album would be selling it short as it was stunning and deserves all the praise that is coming its way, make it your business to listen to this album and make your own judgment because you won’t regret it. 10/10

Cave Moth - Paralytic Love (Self Released) [GC]

I have looked over the PR kit for this release and it’s all very arty & abstract and quite frankly a bit wanky, which is never a good start! BUT then I did see the line for fans of Knoll, See You Next Tuesday and Ion Dissonance which made me ignore all the nonsense and hope for the best.

Starting off with the whirlwind of Carpe Diem you instantly know that this is going to be good, and the Ion Dissonance influence is now so blatant it hurts but I don’t care, because Daniel Quinn is some sort of wizard and the blasting drums which are programmed sound fantastic, I realize I have moaned about these in other reviews because they sounded shit but not here, he is also responsible for guitar and his short sharp stabbing riffs are precise and crisp and Dan Wolfson’s chaotic and violent vocals are perfect! and all this in just 47 seconds, yes please! 

Theseus clocks in at a mighty 51 seconds and is an absolute delight with more of the scatter gun attack of everything thrown at you all at one swift blow it almost feels like the songs are too short because they seem capable of so much more but then we get Rabbits Foot and its 54 seconds more of complete mentalness which packs in more than most bands manage in 3 minutes, these guys are not here for a long time they are here for a food time and so am I! Next up is Fault Of Charlatans which at 1:24 is something of an epic but once again the pure chaotic beauty that has been show previously is ramped up about 10 notches here and you also get to hear Brian O’Leary’s bass sound adding another layer of texture to the whole song.

My Blood kicks us through the halfway point and is probably the most full-on grind track on the album and its just so good, they hit every tick point I need and it’s a joy to listen to, Silence is of course not silent or quiet it’s another grinding death metal mixed barrage with some beautiful guitar work and the vocals here are probably the best so far. Aghast Optic takes the ‘’longest song’’ title at a huge 1:29 and doesn’t relent or slow down and the body of this song is just a savage and unrelenting wall of noise, then last track Paralytic Love really takes on the grind mantle and lasts just 17 seconds and it’s the perfect way to end this absolutely batshit crazy album.

Well, well, well! I really wasn’t expecting that much from this, but I can safely say that Paralytic Love is an absolute fucking BLAST! I loved every single second, and my only complaint is that there wasn’t more of it to listen to. This is as good as it gets for a grind or mathcore release, and I cannot fault one bit of it. I highly recommend that you take six minutes out of your day to listen to this album because frankly you would be stupid not to! 10/10

Attractive Chaos - The Fire Between Us (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]

The debut EP from Attractive Chaos is some gothic symphonic metal based around concepts of love. Comprised of Even Flow bassist Pietro Paolo Lunesu, Beneath My Sins guitarist Clément Botz and vocalist Emma Elvaston also of Beneath My Sins, Attractive Chaos have released 6 track EP of Gothic, Symphonic, Eurovision-ready anthems such as Won & Lost. Massive synths and orchestrations are put ontop of the proggy, modern, power metal riffs. Attractive Chaos draw heavily from Dutch Symphonic metal bands such as After Forever, Delain and Within Temptation, The Fire Between Us is very Dutch sounding and if you know anything about symphonic metal bands from this country do have a definitive difference to many other bands in the genre. 

I will also have to say that for me the main comparison I could make is The Gathering, as Emma's vocals are a kindred spirit to Anneke Van Giersbergen's angelic soaring. As these songs are wrapped in romance they tend to be quite mid-paced relaying emotion as the musical backing of Pietro, Clément and session drummer Thomas Calegari gives pop-tinhed metal, the addition of Clément's growls and Mario Del Rio Escobedo's baritone on The Storm and Still Here add an additional theatricality. Attractive Chaos impress out of the gate with this EP, it explains their sound but leaves room for exploration. 7/10

Chris Duarte - Ain't Giving Up (Provogue Records) [Matt Bladen]

Coming out of the Texas blues seen in the wake of Stevie Ray Vaughan's death, firebrand Chris Duarte has been playing energetic punk blues since the 90's. Noted for his boisterous, bloody, passionate performances, he has dabbled with all styles of the blues throughout his career but on this 15th release he teams up with producer/guitarist Dennis Herring who produced his classic second album Texas Sugar Strat Magik in 1994. But rather than attempting to recapture old glories, Chris has called on Herring to produced a stripped back blues/roots album which was recorded live through vintage equipment, capturing the Texas Shuffle and Scuttle Buttlin of Duarte's playing. 

This analogue, raw production method leaves the album sounding retro meaning that there isn't the slickness of Joe Bonamassa or Gary Clark Jr, though there is the same experimental spirit. That comes from the genre hopping between blues, country, funk etc but also in the rhythm section where Texas Sugar drummer Brannen Temple returns but it's the use of drum machine that really captures the ear as the syncopated beats remind me of Phil Collins (Come My Way) but also J.J. Cale and Dire Straits too. It's a sound that's very much "of it's time" but works well with the virtuoso playing of Duarte giving a uniqueness. 

With the title Ain't Giving Up, this album is Chris reminding everyone that he's still here and he's still a master of the blues but isn't afraid to take what could be seen as risks with the genre. With the funk of Big Fight, to the rock n roll of Bye, Bye, Bye, through classic four bar blues on Gimmie Your Love and the closing salvo of Weak Days, Duarte definitely isn't giving up the blues anytime soon. 7/10