Reviews: Waste Of Space Orchestra, Totaled, Glitter Wizard, Marvel (Paul H, Paul S & Alex)

Waste Of Space Orchestra: Syntheosis (Svart Records) [Paul H]

Initially commissioned as an original performance for the 2018 Roadburn Festival in Holland, Syntheosis is the recorded version of the very same 64-minute piece that was performed at the festival. Waste Of Space Orchestra (WOSO) consists of an amalgamation of members of Finnish metallic psychedelicists Oranssi Pazuzu and their Tampere cohorts, Dark Buddha Rising.  Prepared over several months in the lead up to April 2018, Syntheosis was performed on the main stage on the opening day of Roadburn to a rapturous crowd of over 3,000 attendees, complemented with carefully coordinated visual. Syntheosis is a quite incredible piece of work, a studio interpretation of the performance. Recorded and mixed by Julius Mauranen, the album was completed by the ten musicians involved in the project. The album is both challenging and engaging, a psych metal album perhaps, but containing many challenging sections which really defy categorisation. Spanning over an hour and consisting of nine parts, the record recounts a story of three beings and their deep search for knowledge. The Shaman (Vesa Ajomo) who is seeing oppressing visions from the bleak future of mankind. The Seeker (Juho Vanhanen), searching for the truth from unknown dimensions with secret methods and the Possessor (Marko Neuman) who corrupts the other individuals, manipulating them into his own sinister plan.

A ceremony ends up in the opening of a portal, which sucks the three beings into an alien dimensions populated by brain-mutilating color storms and ego-diminishing audio violence. Eventually, the three are forced to reach equilibrium and melt their minds into one collective consciousness. Layered swirling synths add depth to the driving guitar work throughout this release. The performance opens with the space swirling Void Monolith, shimmering percussion and effects leading into a wall of crushing sound, and a heady anticipation. Thunderous drumming opens The Shamanic Vision, repetitive chords echoing as the pulverising drum sound and Ajomo’s bile spewing vocals gush forth in a maelstrom of explosive chaos. Seeker’s Reflection follows, a massive groove orientated riff almost drum and bass in feel, the vocals of Vanhanen remain guttural, with haunting melody and ethereal synths provoking unanswerable questions. All change for Journey To The Centre Of Mass, a funked up bass line combined with mystical flute which not only slows the pace but changes the direction completely. Once more the use of repetition enhances the effect, the steady speed totally synchronised with the overall space psych feel. The first lengthy track on the release, this would have been astonishing to witness live as the kaleidoscope of sounds combine to create a jazz permeated fusion.

As members of the band admitted in a recent interview with Zero Tolerance magazine, it would have been easier to have created a jam-orientated piece but this recording captures what exactly how complex the work is and it must have been an astonishing show. Wake Up The Possessor begins with female vocals adding a new take before the track erupts in a volcano of riffs and blasting carnage, Neuman’s horrific screams adding to the incendiary laced track. Driving bass lines and more colossal drums sounds power the track forward, whilst the space synths envelope the song, twisting and turning in a delicate yet determined manner as the track expands and progresses, it’s development akin to that of a wild horse in its desire to follow its own pathway. Monastic chanting and a slowly building sound open Infinite Gate Opening, the anarchic style of instrumental and percussive sounds clustering to create a soundscape which evokes emotions of impending doom and yet expectation of progression. Vacuum Head shakes everything up, with a battering almost black metal assault, imagine Hawkwind combined with Emperor into an unholy alliance which messes with the head. It’s quite brilliantly different with more than a nod to the double drum approach of King Crimson at times.

The piercing tone that opens The Universal Eye breaks from a single to intermittent tone as the clouds gather, delicate sounds echo as if underwater before a traumatic repetitive alarm suddenly ceases and the movement continues, haunting and enchanting. The title track brings a quite breathtaking release to a close, but this is no ordinary finale, as the 13-minute epic cascades and flows in a freestyle manner which consumes all. Syntheosis is a simply unbelievable piece of work, fluid, organic, free of shackles and any conformity and quite likely to be a contender for the best album of 2019. Waste Of Space Orchestra is: Ajomo – voice of the shaman, guitar, Toni Hietamäki – bass guitar, Niko Lehdontie – guitar, effects, Ville Leppilahti – keyboards, effects, Marko Neuman – voice of the possessor, Jukka Rämänen – drums, Petri Rämänen – deep bass guitar, Jussi Saarivuori – electronics, Jarkko Salo – drums and Juho Vanhanen – voice of the seeker, guitar. 10/10

Totaled: Lament (Profound Lore Records) [Paul S]

Lament is Totaled's first album. The band have been going since 2017, and grew out of the ashes of Acrimony. The bands sound is a mix of Hardcore and black metal, a template that is known as Blackened Hardcore. Totaled's sound is probably closer to black metal than other bands that that have been given the Blackened Hardcore label, like Svalbard or Ken Mode. In fact Totaled’s sound is absolutely filthy, almost at Beherit levels of nastiness and filth. The album starts with a short, quiet intro called Deplete, before first track As Below arrives. If ever there was a song where the term Blast Radius could be used, it’s As Below. The song starts with an insane blast beat and tremolo picked riff that is staggeringly savage. It blasts and batters the audience into submission, before a slightly more melodic section gives us a brief respite.

The song also boasts a fantastic guitar solo, one of many on this album. Next we get Eclipsed, which is more on the Hardcore end of Totaled's sound. The track features some great d-beat blasting, but also has a less blasting, more discordant part with an interesting bit of spoken word vocals, before going back to blasting, and another great solo. Transience again starts with tremolo picked blasting, the song boasts some very angry vocals (or maybe I should say more angry than the very angry vocals that all over this album). This song isn’t all about aggression, there is a section in the second half of the song that is fast, but very tuneful, with a cracking solo. The track is very fast, and flows beautifully.

Hypnosis, starts with a fast, slightly death metaly riff, before blasting off into hardcore heaven. The track has a slow, heavy discordant section, a tuneful solo and some great bass work. Desolate is more simple, flowing punky hardcore. Short, but so much fun. Ominous is a short acoustic instrumental, that brings us to the final track, the nearly 8 minutes long Bereft. Bereft starts slow and tuneful, a little like Lawless Darkness era Watain. The track takes its time building up, before a snare roll announces the return of blast beats and savagery. The blasting does give way to a mid-paced dissonant section that is achingly heavy, but melodic.

The track contains one of the best guitar solos on the album, not rippingly fast, but very tuneful and exactly what the song needed. After this the song goes into a clean, very tuneful section, before the nastiness slowly returns. Lament is a fantastic album. Riding the line between Hardcore and Black Metal, it is a uniquely nasty beast. Savage, unrelenting and aggressive, whilst at the same time tuneful, and very enjoyable. It is fast, ferocious, filthy and fucking wonderful. 9/10

Glitter Wizard: Opera Villains (Heavy Psych Sounds) [Paul S]

Glitter Wizard are a 5 piece hailing from San Froakland, CA (being British I’m not sure if that's a real place or not, the only place I can find a mention of it is on Glitter Wizard’s Facebook page). The band have been going for 10 years and Opera Villains is the bands 4th album of what they refer to as  ‘Wizard Rock’. So, what is Wizard Rock? Well to these ears, Wizard Rock is psychedelic rock, and bloody good psychedelic rock at that. Huge guitar and Hammond Organ riffs, lots of slightly punky elements as well, along with a huge amount of fun. Apparently Julian Cope has described them as being “Unashamedly glamorous hard rock” and who am I to argue with the man who sang World Shut Your Mouth. The album starts with A Spell So Evil, an up-tempo rocker, great riffs from guitar and hammond, and quite a loose feel to the structure. There is a little bit of punk in this track, as well as an interesting slight Voivod feel to how the vocals and riffs hang together. Next we get Toxic Lady which is slower, but with a dramatic feel to it.

The song is interesting rhythmically, and has a very strong chorus which will get stuck in your head. Fear Of The Dark (not a cover of the Iron Maiden Track) is a great little acoustic track. Short, but memorable ballad, that is beautifully sung. Ten Foot Man brings the fast pounding rock back. This is a cracking, fast piece of rock that boasts a fantastic guitar solo, and the ending is just great, hugely energised. March Of The Red Cloaks is a great little instrumental, uptempo, bombastic and fun. Rats is another ballad, mainly just piano. The vocals are emotional, maybe a little affected, but it’s affectation that fits with the song, and is definitely purposeful. The song also has a very tuneful and melodic guitar solo, lovely! Dead Man's Wax is a taught rock track, with a slight punky feel to the riffing. The riffing is very impressive, very rhythmic and choppy. Next up is the fantastic Hall Of The Oyster King. Another dramatic, bombastic track. It’s mid-paced but very tuneful, with great riffs and vocals.

The song also features an instrumental section where we get the main theme from Greig's Hall Of The Mountain King, which is done very well and is great fun. This main theme morphs very nicely into a guitar solo. Prelude To A Duel is a short acoustic instrumental that leads us into the final track Warm Blood. The final track, Warm Blood, is also the longest track on the album, and starts with a soft clean ballady section, before going into a heavy and rhythmic piece of rock. The song is dramatic and measured, with a little bit of synth, as well as the hammond. The track is very strong and powerful, with some great chanted gang vocals, and is a cracking way to end the album. Opera Villains is a fantastic album. Well written, well played, with bags of melody and a huge amount of fun. I know in rock and metal fun is an underrated commodity, but this album reminds me of how important it is. Musically very impressive, but will also put a huge smile on your face. The best Psychedelic Rock album I’ve heard in a very long time. 9/10

Marvel: Guilty Pleasures (The Sign Records) [Alex]

There is nothing to feel guilty about on Marvel’s new album. Not that I believe in guilty pleasures. If you like something, take pride in your fandom and defend it to the death. Still, as opposed to cynical teeny pop, Hair Metal or The Darkness, Marvel plays that raw, scrappy, brand of garage inspires rock n’roll which even the most ardent fans of remarkable time signatures can enjoy, when occupying the right headspace. A cliché yet fun spike of, Chuck Berry-inspired, high pitched guitar noodling’s open All For Glory, setting us off on an energetic note. The King, as our frontman somewhat pretentiously refers to himself, has a soulful and rough vocal delivery, while the musicians behind him are distinguishable and complimentary of the relatively stripped-down style at play. Keep Pushin’ follows, its lead riff feeling lending a unique quality despite its weirdly stunted nature, while the chorus remains quintessentially classic rock.

Ten O’ Clock Postman and Girl Goodbye, bear a little more of that vintage jive, owing a lot to the bounce and playfulness of the late ’50s and early ’60s. Meanwhile, Powertrip and El Camino Real are a little more contemporary in sound, lending their bite to hard rock or perhaps early metal. I guess that the biggest factor working to Marvel’s detriment is that they don’t really have a sound of their own, relying on a number of influences which audiences might find reminiscent. However, unlike some bands playing that same trick, it doesn’t feel insincere here. Everything is where it needs to be, and there is a prevailing sense of honesty present throughout Guilty Pleasures. The players behind the project aren’t just cashing in on a history they have very little knowledge of, but have a genuine passion for their inspirations. Now, I’m personally not sure if I could see myself returning to this band on a regular basis. That said, I would happily listen to future releases and cheer them at a gig. Taken together, these factors justify my reservationist but kind score. 7/10

Reviews: Celestivl, Joanovarc, Las Dispute, Nine Shrines (Alex)

Celestivl: Tentimestwo (Self Released)

Celestivl detail their inspirations as being 20th-century Classical art, Theatre, Pop Music, The Learned style (nope, me neither) and Disney. That’s quite an array, not all of which I’m sure entirely complement each other. As far as the latter influence is concerned, one hopes that Tentimestwo brings to life the inspiration, magic, and emotionalism of the original Dumbo, rather the cynicism and laziness of the remake (Upon writing, I’ve just returned from the cinema, and don’t need another disappointment). Joking aside, this debut actually handles the task of bringing together pop hooks with sweeping orchestrals, maturely and dramatically. Beginning on the brooding scrape at strings, and subtle cymbal tapping, Melisandre makes its main trick one of suspense. Every new layer of harmony or theatrical composition washes over the listener delicately and gracefully, proving enticing as it swells towards an epic blast-beat crescendo. Shattered Pictures arrests with deliberately downbeat verses, before a gentle wave of strings grows louder and louder, leading us towards the epic chorus.

While these songs do follow a pop layout, lending to their infectious quality, look beneath the surface and you begin to notice the almost choir inspired ideas on which these songs are created. Spires and Blasphemous do not so much as follow a generic development, as they do cascade and grow, with a remarkable amount of beauty. The guitars, rhythm section, strings, and horns powerfully complement one another, not once acting in an obscuring or self-indulgent manner. Senetta Ram’s vocals are a multi-bladed sword, proving ferocious, with the opulence of opera and the softness of traditional pop. Looking at these elements as one, we are left with an album which takes the remarkable, epic and catchy sensibilities of Symphonic Metal and combines them into a project which is very much its own experience.

Not too far detached from its contemporaries, I would say that Tentimestwo is a piece you will particularly enjoy if you find pleasure in the epic yet also accessible side of symphonic music. Think, Dark Passion Play, The Unforgiving, The Holographic Principle – the style which combines the aspiration to be larger-than-life, with the desire to make crowds dance and sing! For all its worth, I think Celestivl have more tricks up their sleeve, yet this work bears all the defining characteristics of an excellent debut 8/10

Joanovarc: Joanovarc (Self Released)

Joanovarc are an act who belong firmly in that elusive genre of hard rock. A genre I now have mixed feelings about. Strange, considering the catchiness and bite opened gateways for me to a world of heavy music. Still, it seems for every act bearing the label, who brings that AC/DC, Motörhead, Girlschool brand of ferociousness stomping down upon you with force, there seems to be another willing to offer up a combination of generic riffs, edgy lyrics, and uninspired guitar solos. Acts who cruise on auto-pilot and bring nothing new to the table irritate me, in that they give me nothing of interest to say. How can I analyze Joanovarc's second album without churning out the same old spiel?

Well, I could take the recommendation approach: Do you like straightforward, guitar-based music that will stick in your head, and vaguely remind of Classic acts? well, maybe you should give this a try! Everyone else, give it a miss. However, that doesn't really let on my true feelings about the album. Alternatively, I could try and give the quartet some leeway by pointing out how moments like Waiting For, When We Were Young and Jane are pleasant slices of rock n’ roll, well performed and easy to digest. Still, that doesn't truly express my feelings of dissatisfaction towards the album. Considering I was taking the harsh approach, I would obsess over the utter lack of variety and range across the entire record. Yet isn’t that the very problem? Works like this do just enough not to get a bad score and not nearly enough to justify a good one. Hey, what do ya’ know? We got a review out of this one after all 4/10

La Dispute: Panorama (Epitaph Records)

When confronting music centered on tragedy, I become cautious. La Dispute is an act renowned for their depressive side, and I always trusted that they understood the weight of their lyricism. Crucially, there is a way of addressing difficult subjects, and the cold truth is that the examples which tend to be most poignant are the ones detailing a lived experience, unflinching and uncompromising in their honesty. Taking an outside looking in approach can be executed well, but has the potential to rob all agency from people who are suffering, when performed badly. Panorama does take that distant approach, as if observing disaster from a car window, journeying down a highway, unable to cease its tiresome passage. Crucially, however, rather than pretending to understand exactly how it feels to grieve, our narrator admits his own obliviousness. In spite of his countless efforts to show sympathy, he cannot truly empathize, as friends, loved ones and acquaintances are made to falter under the strain of their anxieties.

Panorama isn’t an album about understanding, it’s one about detachment, and all the guilt that alienation can lead to. Sombrely contemplating a shrine, asking what heartbreaking incident must have occurred, we begin on a two-part suite simply titled Fulton Street. ‘’Never needed to live and suffer through the pain, all the tyrannies of grief, if I ever do, will I even have the strength to do anything, could I lay flowers by the street’’ our narrator muses, wondering if he’d even have the bravery to pay his respects, when confronted with loss. Part II strongly suggests that Dreyer’s friend or partner is being made to grieve and that failure to relate causes a strain on their relationship: ‘’I was waiting for the anger to change and the roof beams to bend and the whole thing to break’’.

Rhodonite and Grief is imbued with discordant flutes and strings, their changeable nature lending a disquieting feel to the track. Rhodonite for stress, promethazine for sleep, A rabbit toy for kids, my deep condolences’’ our frontman sings here, acknowledging that all he can possibly do is his send his comfort to a person who, by implication, appears to be suffering through a debilitating condition or enduring suicidal thoughts. Anxiety Panorama ruminates on this theme further, specifically addressing the consuming challenge of writing about another's an emotional state, the repeated motif ‘’my panic grips, your own pain spills like poison in you’’ bearing tons of weight, as the cracked, frustrated delivery drills its way deep into my skull. As far as compositions are concerned, they don’t so much follow a set rhythm as they do flow and undulate, as if reflecting a stream of consciousness.

The one song with a set riff, Footsteps At The Pond, grows more and more fraught and distorted as it goes on, excellently reflecting the painful tone which the entire album carries, with so much hurt yet so much beauty. We close on Your Ascendant, which can be interpreted in a multitude of ways, either through the death of the individual in question, or finding comfort in suffering. Its lyrical themes and melodic motifs reprise a number of moments from throughout the album, and its vague references to traveling and leaving pain behind, leave the message very much to the listeners’ imagination.

Severely direct and relatable, Panorama is not an easy record to listen to, purely for the reason that we have all been in a situation where we have felt alienated from another’s anguish. If you love someone and they hurt themselves, or you care for someone and they hurt you, that emotional weight can be paralyzing, even if it appears pale in comparison with the actual pain of your loved one. To hear that feeling captured so precisely, in musical form, serves as a deeply emotional yet tumultuous experience. 8/10

Nine Shrines: Retribution Therapy (Mascot Records)

Nine Shrines are far from the most generic act in alternative metal. They actually have a great comprehension of melodic phrasing and tension, giving their anthems a bold and menacing charisma. Choruses on moments like Nimrod, Ringworm and Pretty Little Psycho are huge and imposing, and Retribution Therapy is a very passionately performed album, from start to finish. So what is it that’s not moving me to jump out of my seat and punch the air with excitement in this case? I think the answer to that lies in the production and compositional choices. Everything just stinks of overpolish, so that no matter how hard the volume of the riffs or rhythms hit, they have personality and grit sucked out of them by an overly sterilised and clean mix.

Compositionally, while I have already stated that I like some of the ideas themselves, their placement and structure feels very predictable and worn out. All the way through, it felt like I could tell when a hook was coming, what sort of build up these musicians were going to utilise and how each song was going to flow into the next. Very little curveballs were thrown and there was little to no surprise or intrigue underpinning the writing. Overall, I wouldn’t say Nine Shrines have absolutely no promise whatsoever. There are component parts of this record which if worked on and employed within a better context, could dazzle. I would recommend that these guys take a cue from Fever333 or Puppy who incorporate aspects of alt metal in their sound, while maintaining a unique sphere of influence. As far as album no.1 is concerned though, the strong sense of mundanity and typicality leaves a lot to be desired. 4/10

Reviews: Jordan Rudess, Avem, Sanguinary Trance, Hand Of Fate (Sean & Rich)

Jordan Rudess: Wired For Madness (Mascot Records) [Sean]

Ah, Mr. Rudess. What will Dream Theater’s king of keys and sultan of synths have in store for me, I wonder? Having already been a very busy man since the late 80’s, ol’ Jordan has well over 30 releases under his belt. Either as a solo artists, DT or with the supergroup, Liquid tension Experiment, it’s safe to say that the man never sits still. Hell, I haven’t even included his guest appearances yet! Where does he find the time to do it all!? Does he have access to some sort hyperbolic time chamber, only made privy to the ridiculously talented? The public demand answers! Dragonball Z references aside, this restless composer has never sat still and still somehow finds enough time to release new solo album, Wired For Madness. Joined but a whole host of equally virtuoso individuals (Marco Minnemann on drums, Vinnie Moore, Guthrie Govan, Joe Bonamassa and Papa Petrucci on ye olde axe), Wired For Madness is equal parts classical, prog and all manner of compositional contortions bending both space, time and the universe beyond. Strap yourself in, we’re about to go interstellar! Warp engines……ENAGE!

Wired For Madness Pt.1 opening noises take sometime to warm up, before layers of synth slowly amass, Schoenberg-esque noodling from one phrase to the next. Already a sensory overload, though a mere prelude for the madness that Rudess is about to unleash. There are moments of tangibility, acting tasteful as waypoints amongst the endless sample switching. It never buckles (or relents), Marco Minneman’s drums anchoring it all together. Nothing feels wasted, as Rudess and co sprint through each section with masterful ease. Everything comes in at just the right moment, including the shredding guitars, used tastefully and in tandem with the legion of synthesisers. Wonderful, rounding out with Rudess’s mellow tones. Wired For Madness Pt.2  by comparison is (somewhat) more measured, though no less dense. Heavier and cinematic in scope, it feels orderly as opposed to the veritable big bang of Pt.1. Amidst each cadenza, my mind creates a tale of two mechanoid lovers free of their programming, desperately trying to reunite across multiple timelines and universes in this dramatic space opera. How the hell do you follow that? Simple, you don’t and JR knows that. What follows is some Floydian moodiness with Off The Ground, a necessary comedown after Pt.1 and Pt.2’s cosmic compositional conflagration.

Drop Twist  is somewhat more tame, even more so on the funkier Perpetual Shrine, though still stuffed to the gills with Rudess dextrous finger-work. Then there’s some blues. You heard the right, blues. We’ve just traveled a million miles an hour across a million notes, so why the fuck not?  Just Can’t Win brings the boozy swagger, Joe Bonamassa contributing with his trademark guitar excellence. Just For Today is sombre a number that shifts nicely into closer, Why I Dream. Back in prog rock mode, Why I Dream is a satisfying ending, complete with an epic shred off between key and axe. Wired For Madness vastness is so alluring, I couldn’t help but totally engrossed in it’s numerous notes and noises. Rudess has been doing this for a LONG time, he knows how to make the impenetrable….well, penetrable, palatable and extremely enjoyable! Like fuel for the imagination, it immediately recalled memories of my favourite video games, conjured hope, sadness and the pure unadulterated glee from experiencing a master composer and his craft. Chaos and order come together as one, Wired For Madness is its soundtrack and Rudess and company are our guides. Glorious and totally deserving of a full blown stage production and /or musical. About robots, obviously. 9/10

Avem: Meridiem (Wormholedeath Records) [Rich]

Progressive metal when it is done right can be some of the most captivating and rewarding music you will hear but when it is done badly it can be completely dull and tedious and unfortunately that is where Meridiem the debut album by Austrian band Avem lies. The musical capabilities of the band cannot be brought into question nor the vocals of frontwoman Nora Bendzko but the band have written music which simply fails to captivate, intrigue or hold any interest to this listeners ears. The album is full of songs that generally go nowhere and do nothing.  There are odd moments throughout the album such as in the songs Lost Cosmonaut, Chernobyl and Sonder which caught my ear only to be drowned out by the mediocrity that followed it. Avem are clearly a talented and capable bunch of performers but with Meridiem their songwriting ability is severely lacking and at over an hours duration I found this a complete struggle to get through. Unfortunately this album did very little for me at all. 4/10

Sanguinary Trance: Wine, Song & Sacrifice (Self Released) [Sean]

Anonymity is pretty kvlt. Seriously, one look at either the band’s Facebook or Bandcamp will reveal a mystery wrapped in an enigma. No photos, names, not even a Tinder preference! Okay, I may have made p the last one but the point still stands. In this day and age!? Yes indeed, a rare thing when all of our data is shared, scrutinised and digested by every Tom, Dick’n’ Zuckerberg. Digression aside, it’s pretty kvlt, reinforced by the Austrian Black Metal entity known as Sanguinary Trance. Though the (sole) member(s) may be shredded in darkness, their/his/her/whatever debut EP has come to light in the form of Wine, Song And Sacrifice. Shall we? Atmosphere begins to build as opening title track, Wine, Song And Sacrifice, eventually erupts in pure black metal might. It’s Bathory like build is soon replaced by blasting and shrieking, leads falling on each other in tumultuous chaos. Shades of Burzum’s hypnotic aura entrenches itself into the sound, including some Varg like shrieking for good measure. The vocals themselves, however, are far more powerful and varied, shrieking all manner of unholiness into a cavernous and raw production.

Traces of discordance appear here and there, adding to the overall intentional discomfort. A solid start, the 13 minutes go by fairly quickly and end on a high of strumming acoustic guitars. Carvings begins to wade further into the delirium. Compared to the more orthodox title track, Carvings comes across as something FAR more inhuman and unhinged. The EP closes with The Dionysos Whip, fully leaping into the dissonant abyss, all manner of foulness swirling in its twilight depths. Note clashes with note, this instrumental is akin to having ones being stripped away and devoured by the ravenous deep. Lead fights with lead in eerie cacophony, it’s haunting presence conjuring moments of Deathspell Omega. The sudden harsh noise at the end causes me to jolt, sending my then resting cat, careening into the wall.

Thanks for that. Well bugger me sideways, there aren’t many EP’s that pack this much clout AND vision. All in all, a strong first offering from the fledgling outfit. Whatever visions Sanguinary Trance have witnessed in the twilight, one can only hope they will return soon. For now, allows Wine, Song And Sacrifice to consume you. It’s corrupting tendrils will bury deep into your flesh, ensuring you’ll be hitting repeat into the wee hours of the dreadful night. 8/10

Hand Of Fate: Messengers Of Hope (Self Released) [Rich]

Messengers Of Hope is the debut album by Greek symphonic metallers Hand Of Fate. This album was originally released in 2018 and features the former line up of the band having recently obtained a new singer and a new drummer. Messengers Of Hope plays to the usual staples of the symphonic metal genre with operatic vocals, a heavy use of keyboards and some fairly pedestrian riffs but whilst most symphonic metal bands go for an epic bombastic sound Hand Of Fate go for a more subdued atmospheric sound. Whilst this is a slightly different take on the genre it means that this album doesn’t really jump out at you with the songwriting being a bit on the boring side of things. Whilst there is some stuff to enjoy on this album it didn’t do much for me and Hand Of Fate don’t really have anything that makes them stand out in a sea of similar symphonic metal acts. With the previously mentioned line up changes hopefully the band will step up their songwriting for any upcoming releases. 6/10

Bloodstock Metal To The Masses Heat 6 Review

Metal To The Masses South Wales Heat 6, Fuel Rock Club, Cardiff

The final heat in what has so far been an enthralling contest arrived. A real change in styles in comparison to other heats and another night of high drama, weirdness and disappointment. A smaller crowd than previous heats but no less vociferous provided one of the strangest results the event has ever seen.

Having travelled from the other side of the country, it was perhaps harsh that Haverfordwest’s In Which It Burns (8) drew the challenging opening slot. With fewer people in the room (the curse of the opening slot), the Pembrokeshire lads hit hard, heavy and with an intensity that was the theme for the evening. IWIB’s play a groove orientated thrash with vocalist and guitarist Wayne ‘Stretch’ Mayhew the focal point. Stretch’s roaring vocals, the combined guitar work with lead guitarist Steven Flynn and the rhythm section of bassist ‘Mikey’ Thomas and drummer ‘Vinny’ Lowe work cohesively as a unit and the band present as one tight outfit. Stretch used the time between songs to add a bit of humour, always a challenge when your songs are so freaking miserable. Listing an international directory of paedophiles before introducing The Creed, dedicating a track to The Westboro Baptist Church, “a bunch of religious cunts”, and the mysterious 6341 were among the highlights of a set that started well and improved as the band utilised the stage and their opportunity to the max. A fine opening to Heat 6 but nothing could prepare us for what happened next.

It’s almost impossible to describe the second band on the bill. For weeks the dread and worry had coursed through the event organisers. It was well founded but what happened next is perhaps best left unspoken. For those who like a challenge or were there, you can make your own review of the genesis of Trombonoscopy (7) featuring ROMBONOSCOP from the following words:

Skeleton Fear Crazy Milk Financial Intro Lights Milk Nonce Dancing Disbelief Disappointment Incredulity Dog Pension Track Octopus Trombone Dancing Organised Stuffed Market Police Backing Dog Milk Pit Insane Omelette 28 minutes Strange Dirty Laughter Banana Spoons Scratching Broccoli Unclean Darkness Freaky Dog Stock Burgers Shower Sandwich Weird Applause Milk Chanting Nonce Clef Stand Trombone Second Got Milk Dog Nonce Plan Prospectus Outfit Got Small Value Bizarre Lighting Smooth Squid Violated Help.

Unexpectedly, slot 3 of Heat 6 suddenly became the hardest slot of the entire event, it was up to the South Wales valleys metalcore of Epic Fail (7) to try and bring a sense of order to the evening. The band hit the stage hard, working with energy and passion which produced a strong reaction from the still reeling audience. Their hair is indeed sprinkled with a bit of the fantastic, and their music is polished, underpinned with melody and an experience which comes with a decade of experience. In my interview I mistakenly recorded that keyboardist and vocalist Natasha Sault had a broken foot but that was my error as it was main singer ‘Reggie’ Harris who was wearing the boot of shame, not that it affected his guttural roar in any way. It may have affected his ability to stand on the stage though and this detracted from the visual side of the show. As I said in my review of Heat 5, in a venue like Fuel, those at the back are often unable to see the pit area, and there were several people at the rear asking where the singer was. With one of the guitarists also decamped to the pit for the entire set, this weakened the experience and is something that the band need to consider for future shows. We need to see you all – it’s a visual experience too!

Having reformed for the second time, From The Depths (6) have a history that could fill a book (not a big book but a book). The band brought a sizeable following with them and their metalcore was lapped up. Vocalist Luke Powell plays the misery well, rarely showing any emotion throughout the short set. Guitarist Benjamin Morgan linked well with bassist David Williams and drummer Rhys Morgan, and musically the band were neat and consistent. Morgan’s additional vocals were a little low in the mix but that didn’t appear to worry the crowd. However, after around 20 minutes the band called their set to a halt, a quick goodnight and that was that. Little interaction, and perhaps a feeling that they had proved their point. There may be more going on there but having been late hitting the stage, even a decent number of votes was not going to be enough to put them through.

Closing off the night and Heat 6 was Throwing Knives (6). Sadly, the Cardiff based band drew the smallest crowd of the evening, but that didn’t faze Throwing Knives, in the slightest. Vocalist Brett Davies opening the set with a statement of intent, “we’re not really metal” before launching into 30 minutes of aggressive punk infused hardcore style rock. Despite their protestations, Throwing Knives were a classic demonstration of why M2TM is so interesting, pulling in a wider and diverse range of bands than we’ve ever seen. Throwing Knives were tight, competent and in guitarist Daniel Streeter a gem of a guitarist. His sound was the purest I’d heard all evening. Alongside Streeter bassist Steve Hubbard failed to stop moving for the entire set, whilst drummer Peter Kennedy was a blur of movement as he hammered his way around the kit. Maybe not the most comfortable of fits, Throwing Knives are probably an acquired taste for your standard metal fan, but their high energy set impressed.

With the votes in, it was another tight decision. The judges work to a set of criteria and this is matched against the fan vote. On the night, it was In Which It Burns who took top spot, a healthy number of votes and the strongest performance on the night. Wildcard slot surprisingly went to Trombonoscopy, the decision based on several factors, some of which you can consider in the following paragraphs. Commiserations to Epic Fail, From The Depths and Throwing Knives. As always, thanks are due to the organisers, the venue, the sound team, the bands and the fans for another great evening.

Roundup

As the heats conclude, and with a couple of weeks until the first semi-final, it is worth pointing out a couple of things which really need to be said. Bringing a support really helps. Not only are the heats 50% based on the fan vote, the judges are also looking for crowd engagement and response. A raging room which is moving and responding is always going to impress.

The six heats have produced a huge variety of acts, some superb, others still learning and finessing their craft. The heats were drawn at random. With a different draw, it is a certainty that the semi-final line-up would be totally different. So, if you didn’t get through, it doesn’t necessarily mean you weren’t good enough; just unfortunate to be in a heat which contained other bands who were as good as you.

Planning your set requires time and effort and is immediately noticeable if you don’t. This is part of the criteria for the judging. Run to time and use the opportunity to gain maximum exposure for your band. 30 minutes should be easy enough to fill but if you can’t or overrun this won’t earn you any favours. Ask any of the bands that have played the New Blood Stage at BOA. The requirements that the festival places on you are tight and you need to follow this ethos from the start.

This isn’t a competition to win a recording contract or financial reward. It’s about promoting new talent. Entertaining the audience is key. Playing to the whole of the venue means visually as well as aurally. Several bands have had members deliver the entire set from the pit. You can’t be seen from the back! Get in people’s faces but ensure that everyone knows you are there.

If you didn’t get through, learn from the experience. The South Wales scene is buzzing now. Speak to bands who did get through, former finalists and winners. Establish their dos and don’ts. Find the work ethic that will push you forward. Promote yourselves and be confident without arrogance. Above all, be gracious.

Reviews: Nordjevel, Tug Of War, West Of Hell, King Zebra (Rich, Matt & Pascal)

Nordjevel: Necrogenesis (Osmose Productions) [Rich]

I first heard Nordjevel last year and was completely taken aback by how good they were considering they had only been in existence for a mere three years. Their debut album and the follow EP were insanely strong and savage slabs of Norwegian black metal which seemed to tick all the boxes for me. The band has undergone some line up changes over the last year adding new guitarist Destructhor (formerly of Morbid Angel and Myrkskog) and new drummer Dominator (formerly of The Wretched End and Dark Funeral) to their ranks and the result is Necrogenesis an album that builds on the strengths of the previous releases and expands and surpasses them. Yep this is a phenomenal album. Nordjevel seem to take the best bits from several other black metal bands and combine them to make a sound that is their own. 

You have the raw and nihilistic sound of classic Norwegian black metal, the melody from bands such as Dark Funeral and Necrophobic, the black and roll approach of bands such as Satyricon and Vreid and a big splash of thrash metal. These elements all combined together make for a truly vicious listening experience. From start to finish this album rips and tears from the savagery of opener Sunset Glow, The Idea Of One-Ness, Amen Whores and the crushing epic finale of Panzerengel. The album is littered with awesome tremolo riffs, snare shattering blast beats and the unholy screams of frontman Doedsadmiral. The album is ably assisted by a blistering mix which manages to be both crystal clear and filthy in equal measure. Nordjevel have sent my jaw agape with Necrogenesis. It meets all my hopes and expectations of a black metal album and manages to surpass them. If there is a black metal album to top this in 2019 then it’s gotta be some extra special. 9/10

Tug Of War: Soulfire (Escape Records) [Matt]

What we've got here is some slick West Coast AOR, music built for beach side days and long open top car journeys. You'd probably be surprised to hear that the band is European (mainly Swedish) and the singer Canadian, not that it matters as guitarist/producer/songwriter Tommy Denander has found an absolutely A+ talent with unknown Canadian vocalist BK Morrison who has a velvet set of pipes sounding most like Mr Coverdale though on the poppier songs he's got a touch of Lou Gramm. My Soul Is A Ghost Town is better than any Whitesnake song since Ready An Willing , a slinky brooding number with Morrison in full Coverdale heartbreak. As I said this is West Coast AOR, so it's a melting pot of blues, soul and hard rock with Denander writing everything from the synthy Somewhere In The Past, the riffy Bullet With Your Name (Van Halen anyone?), the bluesy Come Home and the anthemic Fade To Black, but it's Morrison who keeps the attention, handling every song with the same total professionalism and natural talent of singer's who have been doing this much longer. I'm not sure where Morrison has been but I'm glad Denander found him as he makes these good AOR songs great. Soulfire is an excellent debut album, perfect with summer right around the corner. 8/10

West Of Hell: Blood Of The Infidel (Self Released) [Pascal]

I was almost about to overlook this Canadian outfit from Vancouver on my first listen. Initially I thought it was just another crossover, thrash, power metal band with an old school flavour. But for some reasons I was intrigued. Was it the tightness of the rhythm section? The impeccable musicianship of Sean Parkinson (lead guitar)? Or maybe it was simply because of Chris Valago the excellent vocalist? Musically it’s rich, with distinctive influences alongside more modern elements. Imagine early Pantera meets Geoff Tate. Most of the tracks are between 6 and 8 minutes but this is not a prog by any stretch. The template for the 7 songs on this full length about rage, rapid breaks, epic tempos and ferocious riffs. 

Have a listen to Chrome Eternal or The Machine to measure the full extent of Chris’s vocal abilities. West Of Hell is an interesting listening experience. It's not love at first sight or fatal attraction but I have been dragged back to titles like Infidels or The Dark Turn with their strong melodies and their superb vocals. Sound wise it's not too far from the slower songs of Lost Society or Death Angel on some other tracks. It does also remind me of Chemical Rage from Portland but West Of Hell is far more homogeneous in their proposition even if it's only their second album 7 years after their first effort. The production is very decent for a self release and for that alone they deserve the utmost respect. 8/10

King Zebra: King Zebra (Self Released) [Pascal]

King Zebra all the way from Zurich Switzerland. Eric St Michaels (ex China) is the new lead singer on this 5 track EP which has only two new songs along with some re-recorded numbers. They have had numerous albums with different singers but they are always heavily oriented towards the 80’s and glam hard rock in particular. But if this was a talent competition the judges would say that the production is just alright, the titles are predictable and the song writing is not very innovative. Admittedly they use the backing vocals the same way we did with Black’ N’Blue on Firewalker or Like A Hurricane. The Ratt style intro on King Zebra is pretty good but the overall track does not deliver its promise, they need to do better if they want people to take more notice, they tend to go through the motions on Bad Reputation and What I Like. They remind me of acts like Pink Cream 69 or Panini but what would Simon Cowell say? I think he'd stick with my score of 4/10

A View From Another Country: Dream Theater (Live Review By Manus)

Dream Theater, The Sony Centre For The Performing Arts, Toronto

The Sony Centre For The Performing Arts isn’t somewhere you’d expect to see a metal show, but Toronto suffers from a dearth of mid-size concert venues, especially ones open all year round. The all-seated auditorium holds a capacity of 3,191, making it pretty much the only place in the city that would accommodate a band of Dream Theater’s popularity level without being half-empty or needing a second night. Tonight, the place is packed. Dream Theater are currently on the tour cycle for their new record, Distance Over Time, but more excitingly, they’re commemorating 20 years since the release of Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory, which it’s safe to say is more of a fan favourite than anything they’ve put out this decade. It’s well-known that the second set of the evening will be the concept album played in its entirety. There’s just a bit to get through first.

The hour-long first set consists of six songs, four of which are off the new album. They get a decent reception, but when the intermission ends and the ticking that starts off Regression kicks in, a roar comes from the crows as if the show is just beginning. The second set is really the main event here. The band sounds incredibly tight, which is no easy feat considering the material they’re performing. With only one speaking break during the entire set, between Through Her Eyes and Home, they perform the music exactly as it is on the album, much to the fans’ pleasure. With and the few breaks the musicians get lasting only a few seconds, they still never manager to run out of steam. The seamless transitions between songs are particularly impressive tonight, and seeing the band make the technically challenging playing look so effortless is awe-inspiring. The band is on top form.

The same can’t be said for vocalist James LaBrie. He has bursts of energetic movement and powerful vocals, but these are few and far between, and he spends the majority of his time onstage leisurely strolling back and forth and getting a little too lazy when it comes to the longer and higher notes. At times it’s not even clear if he’s annunciating the words, or singing the actual words for that matter. Then again, he does leave the stage for up to around five minutes at a time many times throughout the show, leaving the stage and crowd in the hands of his bandmates.

A show could easily be ruined by a weak vocalist, but in this case, it doesn’t matter so much. The band plays so well that LaBrie’s lazy performance is one of the later things you’d think of recounting this show. Of course, some better showmanship on LaBrie’s part would have improved the show, but the rest of the band made up for what he lacked, ad then some. 8/10

Reviews: Manowar, Iced Earth, Sin Theta, Stahlmann (Matt, Paul H & Polly)

Manowar: The Final Battle EP I (Magic Circle Music) [Matt]

"It's the end of the world as we know it" one would be intrigued to see what Michael Stipe would think of Manowar, however this EP does indeed signal the end. It's the first part of three special releases in conjunction with their globe trotting Final Battle World Tour, consisting of four new songs it was recorded at the bands Valhalla Studios, it sees them, and I quote "utilizing the unparalleled power of their PMC statement monitors with over 27,000 watts of ground-shaking clarity". Once again clad in the fantasy art of Ken Kelly, March Of The Heroes Into Valhalla is an orchestral cinematic opening to this last ride into glory, building up with choirs, swelling strings as things get more epic by the second.

However those riffs come in Joey DeMaio's booming bass taking control as Eric Adams snarls about lighting and thunder on Blood And Steel and referencing those black winds from so many years ago, everything about this track somes up why Manowar are seen as the epitome of 'true metal' oozing with machismo (toxic or otherwise) and po-faced seriousness for the music they play. Then we get to what Manowar do best, overblown epic sounding metal, Sword Of The Highlands sounds like it was scored for Lord Of The Rings and has Adams whispering about the clan battles of old (shame they aren't playing any Scottish dates) as his voice builds and builds into a colossal ballad of glory, triumph and tragedy.

The EP is rounded out by You Shall Die Before I Day a song that's unlike anything else in the Manowar catalogue as the distorted bass riffs are met by Joey DeMaio himself on the vocals for this thundering semi-doom number. Always a band that have caused controversy or even been a subject of ridicule Manowar have maintained their status in the metal world by having the songs to back it up and these four tracks signal the beginning of a glorious end. 8/10     

Iced Earth: Enter The Realm (Century Media) [Matt]

So as one band ends one goes back to the beginning as this is a vinyl re-release of American metal titans Iced Earth's one and only demo. It's the second retrospective from Jon Schaffer after the Purgatory release late last year, this one has been mastered from the original tapes and brought out for the first time on vinyl. This is the blueprint for what was to come in their long career, it cements the the importance of those Jon Schaffer guitar riffs and the occult/historical lyrics with Nightmares having that thrash meets classic metal style that Iced Earth are renowned for now, yes Gene Adam's vocals are not as good as any of his successors but it's that rawness of a band laying their gauntlet down that will get this EP noticed. It is almost especially for completionists but if you want to possess a piece of IE history then pick up Enter The Realm. 7/10    

Sin Theta: S/T (Self Released) [Paul H]

This is a five-track EP from five-piece Sin Theta from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, who describe their sound as progressive thrash. The intro segues into Thy Bloody Kingdom, Thy Bloody Deeds, which does indeed back up the description of their sound. Complex time changes and shifts in tempo combined with an undercurrent of heavy thrash throughout all aided by a superb vocal performance from vocalist Lundi Reed. At just shy of nine minutes in length, this is a bold statement for an opening track, but it works well, the band knitting tightly together and aided by a decent production. Obsolescence follows, a solid, chunky song with plenty of thick riffs. The delicate instrumental The Everflowing Tide brings a different side to the band before they conclude this interesting EP with the crushing Nefarious. Plenty of potential here and band that are worth keeping in range. 7/10

Stahlmann: Kinder Der Sehnsucht (AFM Records) [Polly]

For those of you that don’t know Stahlmann are a four piece NDH band that have the right algorithm of hard rock and electronic/industrial vibes. The vocals are an area on the album that stick out the most for me however it does seem that the band haven’t taken many creative risks with the album. Wahrheit oder Pflicht has an eerie intro of a children’s voice before the track hits force, it’s definitely one of the many that needs to be listened to on full blast, the electronic pauses bridge into the chorus well.

Some of the tracks on here have a few aspects that seem quite repetitive in the hard rock genre (and not always for the best) the other contributions of NDH music is what has saved the overall rating of the album. The ‘Woah’ background vocals in Die Besten just seem unnecessary, the song was more than fine if this wasn’t included, it ruins the song and it just isn’t necessary. Other than that, I enjoyed the instrumental pace working with the vocals. Neub Kebeb Fallt has a more electronic feel to it which is a big win if it’s done correctly. The track is a great success, with the tone reducing on the verses and blaring into a heavy rock vibe on the chorus, it works well.

Kinder Der Sehnsucht also the title of the album is definitely one of the tracks that stuck out and again, if it wasn’t for the unnecessary ‘woah’ through the track it would be just fine. Some tracks of this album were superb, others were adequate but could have been made so much better if it wasn’t for unnecessary back-up vocals, Mart Soer's voice is powerful and does not require assistance with elevating this on any occasion throughout the album. If boundaries were pushed a bit more I feel that this piece could be so much more than just another industrial/electronic/rock band. 6/10

Reviews: Tronos, Satan Takes A Holiday, The Pilgrim, Drunken Crocodiles (Mark, Paul H & Paul S)

Tronos: Celestial Mechanics (Century Media) [Paul H]

In a week when the crazy Canadian Devin Townsend released one his most over the top albums, this beast landed in the inbox to review. A mind-altering hour or so of some bone crushing metal, guided and directed by none other than Napalm Death’s Shane Embury and producer Russ Russell. Having pieced the album together over the past couple of years, and a supporting cast including metal drumming legend Dirk Verbeuren, Voivod frontman Denis ‘Snake’ Belanger, vocalist Erica Nockalls (The Wonder Stuff) and no fewer than three legendary bass players – Faith No More’s Billy Gould, Mastodon’s Troy Sanders and death/thrash icon Dan Lilker.

“The concept was born way before we even hit the first note,” Russell commented. “We talked of the end of humanity, the quest to explore outer and inner space, the extension of life and consciousness through space travel, energy transference through meditation and ultimately through death... how would humanity live on? In some far-reaching space craft or just by leaving our bodies behind? After many conversations we decided we should really give it a try, so we got together for a weekend and two songs were born. It came really easily and was exactly what we had in our heads, so we decided to go for the whole album.”

This is a ferociously heavy album, at times veering towards the industrial terror of Fear Factory, at other times moving at a faster, more animated pace. Opening song Walk Among The Dead Things smoulders menacingly; the blistering heaviness of Birth Womb could peel the flesh of your face And A Treaty With Reality is amongst the heaviest songs I’ve heard for a long time, albeit balanced with Erica Nockalls beautiful violin work. I’ve played it several times and constantly discover new things.

Interesting sounds, with a real gothic twist at times, such as the haunting Premonition, are literally falling from Celestial Mechanics as you journey deeper. Crushing riffs, Verbeuren’s massive bass lines driving the songs forward with a thunderous approach all congeal to deliver a perfect album which deserves multiple plays. The brave stab at Sabbath’s Johnny Blade, all 6:22 of it closes the album in raging style, this version much faster and completely amended. It is something to drive your car fast to. Celestial Mechanics is an album I am still exploring. With such superb and legendary musicians at the helm, this release also lives up to the hype. One of the releases of the year so far. 9/10

Satan Takes A Holiday: A New Sensation (Despotz Records) [Mark]

Well, this is a new band for me, completely new, and this is their fifth album? Where have I been? Satan Takes A Holiday takes influence from all sort of places for A New Sensation, 70’s garage rock, pop music, grunge, and 90’s British indie, I think. This is interesting and very different to what I normally listen to, but I am always up for having my horizons expanded, musically.

A New Sensation opens the album with a Queens Of The Stone Age feel, dirty feedback then a very very catchy riff, the vocals are immaculate and a few listens in you’ll be singing along for sure, this isn’t complicated music, this is sing alongs and a few beers. Unicorn keeps the energy flowing with hooks galore and a really catchy bassline/riff combo that has a great little run that made me rewind this track a few times, another catchy belter.

Son Of A Gun has a more punky upbeat feel with guest vocals by Tess De La Cour, take me back to the 80s! Other album highlights include Pilot and Kingslayer, the latter being a seedy groovy number. The gist of this album is, if you like Satan Takes A Holiday’s sound, you’re going to love this album, if it’s not something you’re into, you’ll be off after one or two tracks, but it is a sound that’s recognisable and could be something played on more commercial radio stations, if only guitar based music was still in favour at those places. 7/10

The Pilgrim: Walking Into The Forest (Heavy Psych Sounds) [Paul S]

The Pilgrim is a project from Gabriele Fiori, main man with Italian heavy psych rock bands Black Rainbows and Killer Boogie. This project is Gabriele on his own with an acoustic guitar, doing minimalist folk. Most of the material is just one gently strummed acoustic guitar, with Gabriele’s vocals, there isn’t much in the way of percussion either, maybe a little tambourine on a couple of tracks, but that seems to be it. Very simple, minimalist folk with just a little bit of colour added on a few tracks by an organ, or pleasant little guitar solos. There is a similarity with the late sixties / early seventies singer songwriter style of songwriting. The overall style is quite close to the track Horse With No Name by America. Most of the material on the album is very soft and gentle. Simple melodies, with nice understated vocals. 

The tracks with an organ (Peace Of Mind, The Time You Wait, Pendulum, and Suite 2) feel a little more depth to them, with the extra tonal aspects. The songs with guitar solos also feel like they have an extra dimension to them, opening up the track and making them feel a little more interesting. The slight downside of having such a simple style, just strummed guitar and vocals, is that if the melodies drop from being beautiful and serine (and a lot of the material on here is very beautiful), it starts to feel a little dreary, Sailor and Secrets being tracks where this was a bit of a problem.

But on the whole this is a very sweet, melodic, tuneful album, that will have you humming the tunes for days. Some of the songs are achingly beautiful, When I Call Your Name being a good example of this. Walking Into The Forest is a sweet little album. It’s a shame that some of the material is a little bland and dreary, as it is on an album with some really great songs. A good album, that could have been great if the quality was consistent. 7/10

Drunken Crocodiles: Out Of Barrel (Too Loud Records) [Mark]

Drunken Crocodiles have recently signed to Too Loud Records to release their debut album Out Of Barrel. The band consists of Elia Borelli on bass and vocals duties, Ivan Marchettini playing guitars, Emanuele Mollica on the drums. Viktor is a slow walk through a wet swamp, it opens this album with all the groove of a Clutch track slowed down and fed through the distortion machine. The pace changes about halfway through with a more uptempo effort and the introduction of vocals, rounding out a very solid opener, though the vocals seem to be sat behind a blanket or slightly muffled, it’s a weird sensation to listen to them. 

The Monk is up next, with a monolithic intro, this is great, more along the sludge lines I was hoping for, riffs taking up a lot of time and space, then the track 180s and we’re into another uptempo affair after the minute or so build up, reminds me a little of Red Fang, no bad thing for sure, but this isn’t very monk-like. There’s an impressive groove that fills out the middle of the track that transports us all the way to the end of almost seven minutes, this is a little bit too self indulgent and could have been trimmed to make a more concise sounding effort.

Shortcut has a very 90’s sound, like early grunge demos mixed with a bit of alt-rock, it’s a nice direction change and one that I was not expecting, we also get a closer examination of Elia’s vocals here, and they’re decent, nothing super special but enough to compliment the music. Mate is another track that accentuates the slower more melodic side of Drunken Crocodiles, a well put together tune that has a lovely build and break feel throughout. 

Tricky Quiet is my album highlight, it has a great groove and the vocals seem to shine the most on this track, it’s overall the best example of what this very capable band are able to create, pulsing rhythms, great atmosphere, myriad influences woven into one solid track. Overall, this sounds like an album from a live band who are still finding their studio chops, a really solid effort that fans of Red Fang, Mastodon or Baroness may enjoy. 7/10

A View From The Back Of The Room: The Quireboys, FM, Bad Touch & Vega (Live Review By Rich)

The Quireboys, FM, Bad Touch & Vega at The Globe, Cardiff

Tuesdays are generally rubbish. Stuck in a void between the start of the week and the middle of the week and with no end in sight they are pretty much the most depressing day of the week. So when a chance to brighten up my Tuesday evening with some live music I grabbed the opportunity by both horns and hit The Globe to see a touring package containing some very prolific UK hard rock and AOR bands.

With four bands playing in total it was gonna be a long gig with an early start and the band that had the unfortunate position of kicking off proceedings at 19:10 were AOR heroes Vega (8). I have had the pleasure of seeing Vega perform live before albeit in their own headlining show and they are a fantastic live band and even with this early slot and a half full venue the band gave it their all and played a short but energetic set that showed just why they are so revered by the AOR scene. The band were clearly enjoying themselves clowning around despite the very limited space they had on the stage. Frontman Nick Workman especially played up to this purposely bumping into the other band members and generally larking about. It’s always great to see bands having fun on stage. Despite the short set length they crammed in a good number of songs such as Let’s Have Fun Tonight, Kiss Of Life, Every Little Monster and White Flag amongst others,

The only band I had absolutely zero knowledge of on this bill were Bad Touch (7) who are a hard rock band from Norfolk and they impressed with their old school inspired hard rock. With a sound that has plenty of groove and swagger as well as a bluesy undertone the band took to the stage, kept on stage banter to an absolute minimum and let the music do the talking. Frontman Stevie Winwood impressed with his soulful vocals an the band kept the room rocking from the start of the set to its conclusion. Unfortunately not being familiar with this band I could not tell you what songs they played.

The first of the nights co-headliners were UK AOR legends FM (8). Another band I am not wholly familiar with but have certainly heard of and know their strong reputation in the UK hard rock scene and a reputation they have rightly earned as they played a brilliant set. Easily one of the slickest and most professional sounding performances from a band I have seen in a good while FM played a set chock full of sweet AOR anthems such as That Girl, Face To Face, I Belong To The Night and KIlled By Love. One of the things that stands out the most with FM is frontman Steve Overland and his INCREDIBLE voice. Probably one of the finest live vocal performances I have ever seen I was absolutely mesmerised throughout their set. FM are definitely a band that I need to go on a journey of discovery with as they thoroughly impressed and had the biggest cheers and singing from the audience for the whole night.

Last but not least were the night’s other co-headliners Geordie hard rockers The Quireboys (7). The band put in a strong performance although frontman Spike sounded very hoarse and strained from the start. His vocals did slightly improve throughout the set but they definitely did not sound right. The rest of the band were tight and cohesive and seemed to be enjoying themselves on stage pouring out a good many tunes which resonated well with the audience. We were treated to a couple of new songs from upcoming album Amazing Disgrace as well as old favourites such as Hello, This Is Rock ‘N’ Roll, I Don’t Love You Anymore and 7 O’Clock. The band were late on stage and did run over past 11pm meaning that a good chunk of the crowd had to depart before the conclusion of the set to get trains and buses but this didn’t seem to bother the band or dampen the enthusiasm from the rest of the audience. There is little I can fault about the performance by The Quireboys apart from their music just isn’t much to my taste.

Reviews: Gasoline Outlaws, Kurokuma, Red Handed Denial, Raised By Owls (Matt & Rich)

Gasoline Outlaws: Light Up The World (Self Released)

The sophomore album from Belfast rockers saw them setting up a PledgeMusic to fund the album successfully, however once the PledgeMusic platform collapsed, it affected the band badly but they've managed to get the album made and with those venerable folks at Stampede Press handling the promotion it's finally seen the light of day. It's also a major step forward for the band musically, this is clear from the opening bars of Light Up The World which has an immediate riff and some pumping organs to lay down what's to come.

The songs here a lot more mature than on the reasonably generic debut, that could be because The Answer's Cormac Neeson co-wrote a few of the songs, now I'm not sure which ones but Livin' This Way has that driving The Answer groove to it, then they ramp up the swagger riffs on Better Days Coming which has the brilliantly smoky vocals of Amy Montgomery in conjunction with the unique style of Matt Fitzsimons who has a brilliant set of pipes which remind me a lot of the band Rattlesnake Remedy (that's an obscure one even for me) and even Neeson himself, but it's an ideal classic rock vocals that's full of dynamics equally suited to ballsy rockers and the orchestral ballardry of Where We Started.

The rest of the band are Adam Parkin's excellent fluid guitar playing, Chris Fitzsimons' rhythmic bass and Ryan Hood's expressive drumming. The crunching Psycho is moody and a bit proggy, though the rushed lyrics in the chorus will annoy one Mr Hewitt, I think it works. Light Up The World is an album that brings together hard rock, country, blues and radio friendly anthems (Fight For One More Day), they aren't afraid to mix it up a little and it's that kind of attitude that will see them heading to bigger things this year, after a rocky genesis Gasoline Outlaws are ready to Light Up The World. 8/10

Kurokuma: Sheffield’s Best Metal Bands Vol.1 (Off Me Nut Records)

What happens when you mix the gargantuan grooves of doom, with the extremity of sludge and the brain melting weirdness of avant-garde into a bowl, put them in a blender with a can't give a shit attitude? Well you get Sheffield cult madmen Kurokuma. This is their third EP and it's four tracks of ear abusing oddness that doesn't follow any musical patterns at all, it's 24 minutes of sonic expressionism that rarely has vocals letting the almost abusive music do all the talking needed. KVN the first track opens with bass throb that will bring to mind One Of These Days, it's hypnotic and lasts for a good minute before the repeating drum beat kicks in, then after about another minute the harshest riff I've heard for a long time opens up, sounding like it was played with a cheese grater RVN is enough to put you into a trance-like state.

Then a more distorted guitar sound speed the track up as the dual vocals never approach anything you could consider to be 'clean' both shouting and screaming fo the last part of this 6 minute acid trip from hell. No time to breathe Wasp Nest has a bowel moving bassline and is actually the shortest song on the album almost used as a transition ready for the cover. Yes folks a cover and it's an obscure one as this Sheffield trio take on Deeper Underground by Jamiroquai, however this is probably unlike any version you've heard before, with the dance-funk giving way to lumbering doom interpretation that's preceded by lines from one of the original Godzilla (Gojira) films, with that familiar bassline now as destructive as the gargantuan lizard's feet through downtown Tokyo. The EP ends with a buzzing EDM version of Wasp Nest which sounds like a Prodigy song, it's an appropriately strange ending to a immensely peculiar record that's got a great balance between heaviness and quirkiness. 7/10

Red Handed Denial: Redeemer (Self Released)

The conceptual storyline started on Toronto native's Wanderer EP continues on their latest album Redeemer, now the concept is a little strong and this record follows the "anti-hero's journey as they wander through limbo seeking passage into the afterlife". If I was to characterize their sound it would be a Monuments merged with Coheed & Cambria fronted by Paramore's Hayley Williams if she was able to roar like Alissa White-Gluz, so now you are adequately prepared you can crank the volume and let the down-tuned riffs of tracks like Empire hit you like a tonne of bricks.

While songs such as The Art Of Bargaining have a much more pop-friendly feel but has a backing track of InMe styled technicality as Chris Mifsud and Aleksei Perepelitsa (guitars) trade off fleet fingered six stringing while a breakdown in the middle letting Dominick De Kauwe (bass) and Tyson Dang (drums) bring some groove with Lauren Babic relying heavily on her soaring cleans though on other tracks like Awakening and the abrasive Locked In A Vacancy she uses those paint peeling screams to really bring the power. At 14 tracks it's probably a little too long but it is a concept album and it's very well sequenced meaning that it never really gets too samey, with Solace a brilliantly emotive orchestral ballad that brings us into the final two songs. Redeemer is a great album for anyone who's a fan of modern technical metal that has a knack for a massive chorus. 7/10

Raised By Owls: Dreadful (Self Released) [Rich]

I am a massive fan of comedy and a massive fan of extreme metal but never really see the pair combining together in a working formula. In my experience metal bands who try to be funny either come across as forced or relying on a cheap gimmick to garner laughs but Raised By Owls as well as being a very competent deathgrind band are also side splittingly funny. Raised By Owls started off as a silly project between a few friends and have in a short space of time got a following beyond anything they ever imagined resulting in a performance on the New Blood stage at Bloodstock 2017 which was so popular that you could not get everyone into the tent to watch them. The band are still riding off the wave of popularity with their second release Dreadful. If you have managed to avoid Raised By Owls up until now they basically are a mix of death metal and grindcore with supremely silly song titles and idiotic lyrical content playing on the silliness and weirdness of British popular culture (especially if you grew up in the 1990’s).

The band's natural comic talents really come to the fore with their belly rupturing hysterical song titles with such gems as Cult Of David Dickinson, The Philip Schofield Chainsaw Massacre, Halloween At Richard And Judy’s and my personal favourite Rob Halford Robs Halfords. It’s very rare that an extreme metal album can have me snorting with laughter (it can also earn you some weird looks on the bus) and that is the genius of Raised By Owls. If you took away the silliness then the music would work on its own but the two go so well together in the band’s capable hands. Dreadful will no doubt be lost on overseas listeners unless they are well versed in British popular culture but if you want a laugh then this album is well worth a listen. I think the band themselves are completely baffled by their success but as long as they continue to mix their fantastic sense of humour with some gnarly deathgrind then I think they may be around for a while yet. This is definitely the only album I am likely to hear death metal and Mr Blobby combined. Brilliant stuff. 8/10