Conan - Violence Dimension (Heavy Psych Sounds) [Rich Piva]
I think by now we know what we are going to get from a new album by Conan. That doesn’t mean it’s not going to be really good, which is exactly what their seventh album, Violence Dimension, is: really good. This band has been consistently heavy and skull crushing, and nothing has changed across the seven tracks (eight on the deluxe edition) delivered here.
You get all the low-end heaviness. You get the screamed but tolerable vocals. You get the earth-shattering riffs and seismic rhythm section. The songs are there too. There is a bit of a tempo change in Foeman’s Flesh that takes the song in a bit of a different direction in a very cool way. But let’s be clear what a tempo change is for Conan compared to some prog band.
You get all the low-end heaviness. You get the screamed but tolerable vocals. You get the earth-shattering riffs and seismic rhythm section. The songs are there too. There is a bit of a tempo change in Foeman’s Flesh that takes the song in a bit of a different direction in a very cool way. But let’s be clear what a tempo change is for Conan compared to some prog band.
Desolation Hexx has more riffs than you can count, and all of them kick you right in the ass. Total Bicep is my favourite title for a Conan song ever and brings the same level of bone crunching, but picks up the pace rips it up, and even has a groove to it, even if it is a bit too long.
I love the guitar work on the mostly instrumental, plodding title track. A three-minute song! Conan looks for radio hit with Frozen Edges Of The Wound. I joke, but imagine a world where Conan has a hit single. It is only three minutes and it does absolutely crush. Speaking of crushing, Warpsword exists to destroy you and everything around it all in 46 seconds.
The closer, Ocean Of Boiling Skin, is exactly what the closer for a Conan record should be; ten minutes of riffs pounding you over the head with an angry man yelling at you in the best kind of way. The deluxe version has another track, Vortexxion, which is a bit much at 12 minutes given the beating we already took with the regular part of the record, and actually got me a bit aggravated, but maybe that was the point of it.
You know what you are getting with Conan, and Violence Dimension is just that. In the right frame of mind this is the record I want to grab, but it is not a throw on and chill album by any means. But if you like Conan you already know that, and if you don’t you probably will stay away anyway. Violence Dimension is not going to bring new fans but will keep the current ones very happy. 8/10
Inhuman Nature - Greater Than Death (Church Road Records) [Mark Young]
So, let’s get this out of the way first. If you are looking for something that has MMM (Modern Methods of Metal, for example that certain sound of guitar from possibly a 7 or 8 string beast, heartfelt cleans into anguished growls, that sort of thing) then you should probably look elsewhere. I mean that with the greatest of respect because what Inhuman Nature do is to basically sweep all of that caper out of the way and then attempt to pummel you with a high-speed attack from track 1 to track 10.
You know what you are getting with Conan, and Violence Dimension is just that. In the right frame of mind this is the record I want to grab, but it is not a throw on and chill album by any means. But if you like Conan you already know that, and if you don’t you probably will stay away anyway. Violence Dimension is not going to bring new fans but will keep the current ones very happy. 8/10
Inhuman Nature - Greater Than Death (Church Road Records) [Mark Young]
So, let’s get this out of the way first. If you are looking for something that has MMM (Modern Methods of Metal, for example that certain sound of guitar from possibly a 7 or 8 string beast, heartfelt cleans into anguished growls, that sort of thing) then you should probably look elsewhere. I mean that with the greatest of respect because what Inhuman Nature do is to basically sweep all of that caper out of the way and then attempt to pummel you with a high-speed attack from track 1 to track 10.
On one hand you could argue that this is boring, old hat etc but then you would be missing the point. I caught these supporting Heriot at the Star And Garter a while ago, and it struck me that they were incredibly focused on making sure that what got live was the same as what you got on record. We know that on occasion some bands can sound amazing in the studio and then live, well it could be described as underwhelming. With Inhuman Nature, it was more how they translated that live fury into the studio space because we know they can do it live.
The answer is yes. Putting the intro track to one side (From The Shadows) their second album boots off with Dawn Of Inhuman Man and it is exactly the sort of thing that is required here, its straight in with that high-tempo attack, replete with an incendiary solo and everything is alright with the world. You cannot describe this as new, never been heard before blah blah but this is the result of not overthinking what is required from metal.
The answer is yes. Putting the intro track to one side (From The Shadows) their second album boots off with Dawn Of Inhuman Man and it is exactly the sort of thing that is required here, its straight in with that high-tempo attack, replete with an incendiary solo and everything is alright with the world. You cannot describe this as new, never been heard before blah blah but this is the result of not overthinking what is required from metal.
Possessed To Die echoes the golden era of thrash, quick changes, harmonic parts and downpicking. And of course, whammy abuse. Servants Of Annihilation completes this early trio of blasters and effectively serves as a snapshot for the album as a whole. Lyrical topics are as you would expect but you didn’t come here for that. You came for the visceral thrill of metal played fast, for lead breaks that go everywhere on the neck and propulsive drumming. In short, you came to be entertained and that is exactly what they do.
Fortress Of Delusion is their slow number (not really) and again harks back to that golden age where songs would build up slowly before lighting that blue touch paper and it’s great to hear that it can still be done with style and energy. Its one of things that the later tracks observe, in that they avoid the easy trap of just having it fast from the off with just one aim in mind.
Fortress Of Delusion is their slow number (not really) and again harks back to that golden age where songs would build up slowly before lighting that blue touch paper and it’s great to hear that it can still be done with style and energy. Its one of things that the later tracks observe, in that they avoid the easy trap of just having it fast from the off with just one aim in mind.
Lines In The Sand II brings in timing changes and those little touches which makes it a little more engaging than just playing fast. This one has a storming riff set to it and an intelligent build to it whilst title track (Greater Than Death) is where they deploy what I describe as the ‘slidey-thrash’ motif with a controlled speed to it. I’m glad that they went with this approach because that riff is a pure ear worm and has that classic live build to it too.
The hours spent touring has granted them a greater understanding of what works and where and I’m pretty sure that they will play this faster live because I don’t think they will be able to help it. The speed returns on Mad Man’s Cage with some fiendish guitar work on this to flesh it out, it could have been wrapped up quicker, but that is a minor criticism really when held against the rest of the album, and I’ll forgive them for the nods to Slayer on this one.
What I won’t forgive them for is dropping The Maze Of Eternity in next. I’ve been vocal about interludes elsewhere and nothing sucks the momentum from a release for me in having it as the penultimate track, especially after Mad Man’s Cage. Dead And Buried is the last offering and luckily has enough about it to re-engage me from a fan’s perspective. It favours the more methodical attack, which allows for the suitably lit lead break and I must give a shout out to Ben Taylor and Mack Stray for their guitar work on here, its heavy and intelligent and carries it forward at every turn.
It’s the sort of release that is necessary to remind us why we like the music we do. We got into this because we needed that thrill and escape that heavy music brings. Inhuman Nature understand that heavy music has to be exciting, it has to be able to grab you from start to finish. We know that as a genre it must develop and sometimes it develops in a way which isn’t to your taste but here, they have said ‘this is what we like, we think you will like this too, come along for the ride’. It’s a quality album that speeds along and despite that last minute blip, it’s a very strong and assured release from them. 8/10
What I won’t forgive them for is dropping The Maze Of Eternity in next. I’ve been vocal about interludes elsewhere and nothing sucks the momentum from a release for me in having it as the penultimate track, especially after Mad Man’s Cage. Dead And Buried is the last offering and luckily has enough about it to re-engage me from a fan’s perspective. It favours the more methodical attack, which allows for the suitably lit lead break and I must give a shout out to Ben Taylor and Mack Stray for their guitar work on here, its heavy and intelligent and carries it forward at every turn.
It’s the sort of release that is necessary to remind us why we like the music we do. We got into this because we needed that thrill and escape that heavy music brings. Inhuman Nature understand that heavy music has to be exciting, it has to be able to grab you from start to finish. We know that as a genre it must develop and sometimes it develops in a way which isn’t to your taste but here, they have said ‘this is what we like, we think you will like this too, come along for the ride’. It’s a quality album that speeds along and despite that last minute blip, it’s a very strong and assured release from them. 8/10
(Inhuman Nature will play Day Of Wreckoning in Swansea alongside Acid Reign and Red Method in June - Ed)
Cosmic Cathedral - Deep Water (InsideOut Music) [Matt Bladen]
Talk about a super group! Cosmic Cathedral is the result of jam sessions featuring four veterans of the music scene; Neal Morse (keys/guitars/vocals), Chester Thompson (drums/percussion), Phil Keaggy (guitar/vocals) and Byron House (bass), between them they have played with Spock’s Beard, Transatlantic, Genesis, Frank Zappa, Glass Harp and Robert Plant, there’s a huge amount of talent on display and this comes through on Deep Water, a record that was born in the jam room and put together by Morse’s long-time collaborator Jerry Guidroz.
Cosmic Cathedral - Deep Water (InsideOut Music) [Matt Bladen]
Talk about a super group! Cosmic Cathedral is the result of jam sessions featuring four veterans of the music scene; Neal Morse (keys/guitars/vocals), Chester Thompson (drums/percussion), Phil Keaggy (guitar/vocals) and Byron House (bass), between them they have played with Spock’s Beard, Transatlantic, Genesis, Frank Zappa, Glass Harp and Robert Plant, there’s a huge amount of talent on display and this comes through on Deep Water, a record that was born in the jam room and put together by Morse’s long-time collaborator Jerry Guidroz.
It means that there is a massive prog influence to these songs but also a groove of Gov’t Mule, the free-form jazz-fusion expression of Brand X/Steely Dan (Time To Fly/Walking In Daylight) and of course The Beatles influence that is so prominent through anything Morse is involved in. He’s also got quite a lot of background with super groups in Transatlantic and Flying Colours.
Chester Thompson calls Cosmic Cathedral “One of my favourite projects I’ve ever been a part of” high praise from the Zappa/Genesis drummer, but that’s probably because he’s creatively involved here rather than just being a session player, the same can be said for Byron House who has been a session musician for years now but now gets a chance to lock into some of his own grooves with Thompson on this record while Keaggy and Morse bring their years of prog rock experience (they are also both key figures in the Christian rock movement).
Chester Thompson calls Cosmic Cathedral “One of my favourite projects I’ve ever been a part of” high praise from the Zappa/Genesis drummer, but that’s probably because he’s creatively involved here rather than just being a session player, the same can be said for Byron House who has been a session musician for years now but now gets a chance to lock into some of his own grooves with Thompson on this record while Keaggy and Morse bring their years of prog rock experience (they are also both key figures in the Christian rock movement).
Like all good prog bands the main bulk of the record is the Deep Water Suite, 30 odd minutes of expertly crafted music that forms one long song, each section segueing into one another as they flex their creative muscles on an epic scale. There is a strong Christian theme to this album, I will say now but if you’re listening to a Neal Morse record, or a Phil Keaggy record for that matter, you would think there would be.
However it never really interferes with the overall sound of the album, a killer mix of 80’s period Yes, The Beatles and a mixture of the several other Morse projects Cosmic Cathedral puts four top tier musicians in a room together and lets them create magic. 9/10
However it never really interferes with the overall sound of the album, a killer mix of 80’s period Yes, The Beatles and a mixture of the several other Morse projects Cosmic Cathedral puts four top tier musicians in a room together and lets them create magic. 9/10
The Great Sea - Noble Art Of Desolation (AOP Records) [Joe Guatieri]
The Great Sea are an Atmospheric Black Metal band from Germany who formed only recently in 2022. Here they bring us their first release, that being a full length titled, Noble Art Of Desolation.
Diving into the album it opens with The Water Remains, a multi-faceted track which stands at just over eight minutes long. It verges on Folk Music with its opening guitar refrain which repeats throughout the song, accompanied by galloping drums, it brings thoughts of a medieval setting to my mind.
Then by 1:11 we fall into a world of thick distorted walls which are disintegrating in real-time, feeling swallowed up by the gigantic keys which feel like the clutches of whatever god this is above us. There are also some classic blackened blasts to be enjoyed as well but after a while of these sections being carried out, The Water Remains ends up outstaying its welcome.
Later we go into track four with No Peace Among Men which takes the cake for my favourite song on the album. I love the guitars here, they sound so crunchy in their attack, dare I say surprisingly enough, I’m getting a more Alternative Rock sort of vibe here. I think that I gathered that from just how catchy that hook is alongside the bend within the chord progression, it feels very victorious.
Down the line we then go into track six with Upright In Nothing. It presents a more Doom Metal approach to songwriting, it feels like it's trying to reach for an atmospheric crescendo throughout and it does try as I think that it brings out the best drum performance on the record with the consistent pounding. Unfortunately it just ends up falling a bit flat as it doesn’t go to that next gear and that sums up the album for me.
I can see what The Great Sea are going for with Noble Art Of Desolation with the use of their keys/synthesisers, marrying them with Black Metal but it feels more like makeup then what it does foundation. They just don’t sit with me right, at times they can be a nice partner but I find that too often, they dominate when I want the instruments to breathe more.
Overall, The Great Sea knows the location of the buried treasure but has struggled with the rapids, taking them off course. The debut, Noble Art Of Desolation, shows promise but the band requires more aggression and focus if they want me to be part of their cabin crew. 6/10
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