Live albums—especially the truly great ones—are like attempts to capture lightning in a bottle. They freeze a fleeting, unrepeatable moment: the exact convergence of band, audience, room, and emotion that exists for only a few hours and then vanishes.
Unlike studio recordings, which are carefully constructed and endlessly adjustable, live albums rely on a fragile balance of spontaneity and precision. A bum note here, a misplaced solo there transforms the songs from a soulless play through into something else. I think its probably worse when you have seen the band in question, exposed to the power, caught up in the emotion and violence of the crowd and then are given something that is flat and emotionless.
This brings me to The Crawling, with their live opus captured in Belfast in 2024, delivered to a febrile crowd and it’s a performance that makes good on the accompanying PR for this release. Its raw, stripped back and without any studio polish whatsoever. It represents what they sounded like, errors and all and you have to give them props for doing so. The tracks presented represent their recorded output to date and so I assume (rightly or wrongly) that they are considered by the band to be their high watermark that subsequent records must match up to.
Once the intro completes, its into March Of The Worm. A militaristic drum pattern drives this forward, into a crushing, doom metal arrangement. They just attack it with relish with an expansive guitar tone that squashes all in front of it, and that sets the scene for the rest of the evening. I can’t tell you if they tear through this in a more energetic way than in the studio, but I can say that it totally nails that unpolished live sound.
As a three-piece, it must be difficult when live to be able to fill that space, especially in the quieter moments such as on Sparrow where the guitar drops back to allow the bass and drums to come in. They don’t shy away or look to speed up the arrangement as there is a supreme confidence in their material. Vocally, it’s an assured performance from Andy Clarke, who also handles guitar duties making sure that there is plenty of chunk to go around.
Another Vulture is dropped with some venom, the opening frenzy pulled back into more traditional doom with discord running through it. The arrangement itself cycles from the this heavy opening into a melodic pattern and back again before upping its game with an exemplary drum performance from Ant Deane, it is an absolute cracker bringing light and dark together, heavy and soft approaches. It’s a theme explored on An Immaculate Deception. Both are done very well and make for engaging music, although I’ll be honest right now that the latter could have been shorn in length.
Another Vulture is dropped with some venom, the opening frenzy pulled back into more traditional doom with discord running through it. The arrangement itself cycles from the this heavy opening into a melodic pattern and back again before upping its game with an exemplary drum performance from Ant Deane, it is an absolute cracker bringing light and dark together, heavy and soft approaches. It’s a theme explored on An Immaculate Deception. Both are done very well and make for engaging music, although I’ll be honest right now that the latter could have been shorn in length.
Their final song, Wolves and the Hideous White is presented as a tribute to their home crowd and to the underground movement. They bring that message with a deep sense of pride and the crowd are there for it. It is an outstanding way to close the show, leaving with nothing left to give.
I think that as a document, representing their journey it is a valid one. It is honest, authentic and one that they should be rightly proud of. It should make you want to seek out their studio material and give it a spin. Based on this, if you do get an opportunity to catch them live then you should. 8/10
I think that as a document, representing their journey it is a valid one. It is honest, authentic and one that they should be rightly proud of. It should make you want to seek out their studio material and give it a spin. Based on this, if you do get an opportunity to catch them live then you should. 8/10
Edenbridge – Set The Dark On Fire (Steam hammer/SPV) [Cherie Curtis]
Edenbridge’s Set The Dark On Fire does exactly that. The album blends dark, resonant and luxurious instrumentals with radiant sounding vocals which teeter on the edge of optimistic.
What stands out to me is how maximalist the texture is. This isn't a huge surprise within this genre but the layers upon layers of sound especially from the keyboards which swing from synth to organ and strangely enough, elements of pipes (if my hearing is correct) which I find unique. Complemented by a drum progression so articulate that you can barely notice through each track before it slowly rises and crashes like a tidal for a wave over each chorus. There’s a battle between vocals and instrumentals over who gets to be centre of attention.
Edenbridge’s lyrics paints a picture, Bonded By The Light and Lighthouse are a personal favourite. These tracks are symphonic and powerful with vocals that border on operatic with stunningly memorable harmonies that belong in a theatre or a church. This album incredibly substantial without being too distracting or having elements negate each other.
Whatever I expected was swept away and the amount of thought and energy that Edenbridge put into this one is apparent yet there is no strain or rush, just a natural progression like a storm or a flood. Tracks are broken up with some glorious Interludes; the album gets better the further along you get.
Set The Dark On Fire is very well done. Edenbridge has a very distinctive sound and even though the album is 13 tracks it doesn’t feel long and every track has something different to offer. It’s produced well and I'm surprised I haven't heard these guys before; they're underrated. It’s a hard one to describe as it’s so atmospheric, it’s one you must sit and listen too rather than move along with. 8/10
Casket – In The Long Run We Are All Dead (Neckbreaker Records) [Spike]
I’ve often thought that staying in a band since 1990 requires a specific kind of mental illness or at least a very high tolerance for damp vans and lukewarm lager. Germany’s Casket have been lurking in the shadows for over thirty-five years now, and their latest full-length, In The Long Run We Are All Dead, is a testament to the sheer, bloody-minded endurance of honest death metal. No trends. No hypes. Just eleven tracks of uncompromising, lead-heavy rollers that sound like they were forged in a scrap metal yard during a thunderstorm.
The opener, The Will To Comply, sets the tone immediately. It’s got that raw, "no triggers" honesty that makes most modern productions look like a bit of a plastic toy. Schorsch’s "vokills" (brilliant term, that) sound like a man who’s been gargling with industrial-grade solvent, sitting perfectly atop Susi’s thick-as-treacle bass lines. It’s visceral. It’s dirty. It’s exactly what you want when the world outside looks like a skip fire.
Does it reinvent the wheel? Don't be daft.
What it does do, however, is remind you why the wheel was a good idea in the first place. Tracks like Hammer, Knife, Spade and Skull Bunker are masterclasses in the mid-paced, atavistic chug, the kind of stuff that makes you want to smash your own furniture just to see if you can. The rhythm section, anchored by Marinko’s relentless drumming, moves with a "savagery and nonchalance" (their words, but I’m inclined to agree) that only comes from playing over two hundred shows in every DIY dive-bar in Europe.
I particularly enjoyed Mainstream Mutilation, a title that probably says everything you need to know about their worldview and the closing stomp of Graveyard Stomper. There’s a certain "Urn"-like weight here that carries through from their 2021 EP, but expanded into a much broader, more suffocating canvas. It’s the sound of a trio who have seen every trend come and go and decided to ignore every single one of them in favour of a "fundamental rot" that feels true to the bone.
Perhaps some of the younger "tech-death" crowd, you know, the ones who need a flute solo and a degree in mathematics to feel alive, might find this a bit basic? Maybe. But for those of us who appreciate the simple, skull-cracking joy of a well-placed riff and a drummer who actually sounds like they’re hitting something, this is pure gold. It’s a grey afternoon in an industrial estate, grim, persistent, and utterly essential if you’ve got a heart made of cold stone and a soul that thrives on the low-end.
Eleven tracks. No filler. Just a solid, dependable slab of German efficiency applied to the concept of total annihilation. 9/10
Under - What Happened In Roundwood (APF Records) [Rich Piva]
The Stockport, UK trio Under are loud, noisy, dissonant and, as a listener who has never heard the band before, to me sounds like if you threw the bands like The Melvins, Unsane, The Blood Brothers and Mclusky in a blender, and their new album, What Happened In Roundwood, would be what your poured into you big ass smoothie cup for immediate consumption and sudden violent reaction to what you are ingesting.
You want some off kilter sludgy noise rock? Cool, because the opener, Tantrum, got you. Track two, Ma, starts with a Twin Peaks if it was set in a dank warehouse vibe; dissonant being a key word here. It’s like a weird, crazy black swirl circling your head, until the monster attacks. The Alchemist is the most Melvins-esque track on the record, a slower tempo trek that also reminds me of early to mid 90s noise rockers Steel Pole Bath Tub.
Edenbridge’s Set The Dark On Fire does exactly that. The album blends dark, resonant and luxurious instrumentals with radiant sounding vocals which teeter on the edge of optimistic.
What stands out to me is how maximalist the texture is. This isn't a huge surprise within this genre but the layers upon layers of sound especially from the keyboards which swing from synth to organ and strangely enough, elements of pipes (if my hearing is correct) which I find unique. Complemented by a drum progression so articulate that you can barely notice through each track before it slowly rises and crashes like a tidal for a wave over each chorus. There’s a battle between vocals and instrumentals over who gets to be centre of attention.
Edenbridge’s lyrics paints a picture, Bonded By The Light and Lighthouse are a personal favourite. These tracks are symphonic and powerful with vocals that border on operatic with stunningly memorable harmonies that belong in a theatre or a church. This album incredibly substantial without being too distracting or having elements negate each other.
Whatever I expected was swept away and the amount of thought and energy that Edenbridge put into this one is apparent yet there is no strain or rush, just a natural progression like a storm or a flood. Tracks are broken up with some glorious Interludes; the album gets better the further along you get.
Set The Dark On Fire is very well done. Edenbridge has a very distinctive sound and even though the album is 13 tracks it doesn’t feel long and every track has something different to offer. It’s produced well and I'm surprised I haven't heard these guys before; they're underrated. It’s a hard one to describe as it’s so atmospheric, it’s one you must sit and listen too rather than move along with. 8/10
Casket – In The Long Run We Are All Dead (Neckbreaker Records) [Spike]
I’ve often thought that staying in a band since 1990 requires a specific kind of mental illness or at least a very high tolerance for damp vans and lukewarm lager. Germany’s Casket have been lurking in the shadows for over thirty-five years now, and their latest full-length, In The Long Run We Are All Dead, is a testament to the sheer, bloody-minded endurance of honest death metal. No trends. No hypes. Just eleven tracks of uncompromising, lead-heavy rollers that sound like they were forged in a scrap metal yard during a thunderstorm.
The opener, The Will To Comply, sets the tone immediately. It’s got that raw, "no triggers" honesty that makes most modern productions look like a bit of a plastic toy. Schorsch’s "vokills" (brilliant term, that) sound like a man who’s been gargling with industrial-grade solvent, sitting perfectly atop Susi’s thick-as-treacle bass lines. It’s visceral. It’s dirty. It’s exactly what you want when the world outside looks like a skip fire.
Does it reinvent the wheel? Don't be daft.
What it does do, however, is remind you why the wheel was a good idea in the first place. Tracks like Hammer, Knife, Spade and Skull Bunker are masterclasses in the mid-paced, atavistic chug, the kind of stuff that makes you want to smash your own furniture just to see if you can. The rhythm section, anchored by Marinko’s relentless drumming, moves with a "savagery and nonchalance" (their words, but I’m inclined to agree) that only comes from playing over two hundred shows in every DIY dive-bar in Europe.
I particularly enjoyed Mainstream Mutilation, a title that probably says everything you need to know about their worldview and the closing stomp of Graveyard Stomper. There’s a certain "Urn"-like weight here that carries through from their 2021 EP, but expanded into a much broader, more suffocating canvas. It’s the sound of a trio who have seen every trend come and go and decided to ignore every single one of them in favour of a "fundamental rot" that feels true to the bone.
Perhaps some of the younger "tech-death" crowd, you know, the ones who need a flute solo and a degree in mathematics to feel alive, might find this a bit basic? Maybe. But for those of us who appreciate the simple, skull-cracking joy of a well-placed riff and a drummer who actually sounds like they’re hitting something, this is pure gold. It’s a grey afternoon in an industrial estate, grim, persistent, and utterly essential if you’ve got a heart made of cold stone and a soul that thrives on the low-end.
Eleven tracks. No filler. Just a solid, dependable slab of German efficiency applied to the concept of total annihilation. 9/10
Under - What Happened In Roundwood (APF Records) [Rich Piva]
The Stockport, UK trio Under are loud, noisy, dissonant and, as a listener who has never heard the band before, to me sounds like if you threw the bands like The Melvins, Unsane, The Blood Brothers and Mclusky in a blender, and their new album, What Happened In Roundwood, would be what your poured into you big ass smoothie cup for immediate consumption and sudden violent reaction to what you are ingesting.
You want some off kilter sludgy noise rock? Cool, because the opener, Tantrum, got you. Track two, Ma, starts with a Twin Peaks if it was set in a dank warehouse vibe; dissonant being a key word here. It’s like a weird, crazy black swirl circling your head, until the monster attacks. The Alchemist is the most Melvins-esque track on the record, a slower tempo trek that also reminds me of early to mid 90s noise rockers Steel Pole Bath Tub.
Isaac has (for Under) a straightforward rhythm to it and shows that the trio isn’t completely void of melody. This one (literally) screams 90s underground to me. The cleanest singing on the record comes in the form of Escape Roundwood, a long, sprawling track that is like noisy doom post hardcore, and it is wonderful.
Under are masters of quiet loud quiet when they want to be (see the track Rings), and when they turn on the psych-leaning guitar work it is next level stuff. I am sure bands like Converge and Dillinger Escape Plan come up in conversations about Under, but these guys are way more all over the place (compliment), and my favourite track on the record, the closer, Felling, is a great example of this.
What Happened In Roundwood is not going to be for everyone. Art rock is not always pretty, especially when it is as dark as what Under has created on these eight tracks. I would need to be in the right mood for this record, but when I am, it will fit perfectly. I am just not sure how often I want to feel the way I need to in order to really enjoy this record, but that might just be the magic of What Happened In Roundwood. 8/10
What Happened In Roundwood is not going to be for everyone. Art rock is not always pretty, especially when it is as dark as what Under has created on these eight tracks. I would need to be in the right mood for this record, but when I am, it will fit perfectly. I am just not sure how often I want to feel the way I need to in order to really enjoy this record, but that might just be the magic of What Happened In Roundwood. 8/10
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