Tuesday, 11 April 2017

Reviews: Duel, From Eden To Exile, Codex Alimentarius, SelfMachine

Duel: Witchbanger (Heavy Psych Sounds) [Review By Paul]

Back in February 2016 we were fortunate enough to grab a copy of Duel's debut Fears Of The Dead which earned an 8/10. Witchbanger picks up where we last heard the band, full of fuzzy distortion and gritty riffs. The tunes remain infectious, memorable and chunkier than a fisherman's jumper. It's only seven tracks in length but they are all footstomping tracks, which allow the Halfmann brothers to open up the throttle and the express themselves with some mighty fine fretwork. Shaun Avants' vocals are spot on, the JD soaked tonsils giving it all, especially on the title track and the bouncing Astro Gypsy. There are hooks a plenty, some right dirty soloing and overall a filthy time is had by all. If you like the hooks of Clutch and the drive of Sabbath then check out the Austin outfit. A fine follow up. 8/10

From Eden To Exile: Modern Disdain (Attic Records)

From Eden To Exile are probably not the happiest of chaps, as you can see their debut album is called Modern Disdain which would lead one to assume it's not about fluffy bunny rabbits. With Gospel Untold this is proven to be true as the brutal riffs come thick and fast trying to keep up with Liam Turland's intense drumming as Matt Dyne roars, barks and screams his way through the aggressive lyrics. FETE draw their influences from LOG, Sylosis and even Pantera as the speedy riffs give way to thundering groove as bassist Joey Jaycock, guitarists Tom Kelland and Mike Bell grind in the slower heavier skull crushing beatdowns.

Modern Disdain is a debut record built by lots of touring, the band have been featured on the Bloodstock New Blood stage and various UK tours which has made them into the explosive metal machine they are today, the songs on this record are savage each one attacking your soft fleshy bits boosted by the production of Krysthla/Gutworm man Neil Hudson means that this record crushes anything in it's wake. A strong debut that will see From Eden To Exile rise through the metal ranks rapidly. 8/10

Codex Alimentarius: The Infinite Growth Paradigm Verses Finite Resources MK.II (Self Released)

The Codex Alimentarius (Latin for "Food Code") is a collection of internationally recognized standards, codes of practice, guidelines, and other recommendations relating to foods, food production, and food safety. Wait...no that's not right...THIS Codex Alimentarius are a melodic death metal band from Devon (yes folks Devon), TIGPVFRMII is not really the bands second record it's a re-recorded version of their debut EP (Mk.I) which was released in 2010 and having dug through the internet and found the original you can hear the difference, this version is louder, bolder and is guaranteed to cause more devastation than before.

The music contained on these 6 tracks is the best kind of melodic death metal, the triple guitar wielding six piece utilize their unique position to it's maximum allowing them to play snarling riffs overlapped by twin axe harmonies this is at it's most evident on the epic Baptised which is probably the band's showpiece song which happily opens the EP kicking it off well. With growling vocals, the aforementioned triple guitar harmonies and blitzkrieg rhythm section Codex Alimentarius are a great band for those that love the Gothenburg sound, what they'd score on the Food Code scale is anyone's guess, but if music is food for the soul then they score a solid 7/10

SelfMachine: Societal Arcade (WormHole Death) [Review By Paul]

I'd never heard of Self Machine before but the Dutch outfit's debut certainly puts down a marker. Hailing from Tilburg, Amsterdam, the five piece outfit has been around for a few years with influences such as KSE, Soilwork and Periphery you may be unsurprised to hear that the band focus very much on the metal core type sound, thumping bass lines and razor sharp guitar work combine with the clean and growling vocals of Steven Leijen. Opener Against The Flow is a snarling powerhouse, whilst Join the Hatetrain adds in some of the more complex polyrhythms and time changes so popular in the djent movement. As the album progresses further influences become apparent with No Cliche very reminiscent of US outfit Staind. It's well constructed, with some chunky riffs and crushingly heavy parts. It's not my go to genre at any time but it's good solid stuff all the same. 7/10

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