I’m guessing that as a bunch of mostly metal-heads, most of the readership here don’t have these guys on their radar. That’s a shame, because we should all try and keep an open mind when it comes to musical diversity, and remember some of the music that got us to this point (and I don’t just mean grudgingly tolerating the existence of Ghost). Listen to some of Rob Halford’s solo work, and the lyrics will tell you that “Good old Southern Blues” was a key input to where Priest and his vocals and many others came from, and since The Outlaws have been at this since 1975, he may well have meant them. This album is proof that if you’ve still got something to say, then keep publishing, and from opener Southern Rock Will Never Die (a touching tribute to fallen heroes of the genre), this album tells you exactly where it is coming from and going to – good ‘ol fashioned twin-guitar Southern Rock, with a liberal sprinkling Country with the vocal harmonies, but then if the whole band can sing, f****** go for it! This really doesn’t sound like a bunch of guys in their twilight years, and has tightly written, melodic and moving music that you can see blowing the roof off at somewhere like the Rock And Blues Festival (which if you have never tried it, is huge fun). The stand out track for me is definitely the titular Dixie Highway, one of those great historic American roads that ain’t there no more, and the whole album is a conceptual road album dedicated to its cultural impact. And if you just think it’s too lightweight, then the pacey guitar work across the whole piece, notably Windy City Blues should prove that though wrong. I didn’t expect to, but I really like this album. 8/10
Mokoma: Ihmissokkelo (Self Released) [Paul Scoble]
Mokoma have been making music for 24 years. The Finnish five piece have made 12 albums, several EPs and a vast number of split EPs and singles before Ihmissokkelo. The band was originally a solo project for founding member Marko Annala, which originally had more of a hard rock sound than the Thrash style that the band has since become known for. Vocalist, guitarist and band founder Annala is joined by Tuomo Saikkonen and Kuisma Aalto on guitar (joined 1997), Janne Hyrkäs on drums (joined 1999) and Santtu Hämäläinen on bass (joined 2003).
Although the band are known for thrash Ihmissokkelo has more than just trash on it; there are 3 main styles of song on the album. Let’s deal with the obviously thrash first. Ilmoitusluontoista asiaa is a blast of fast, tight riffs with harsh vocals, the track has bags of energy and huge chanting chorus. Tuhat ei riitä is a fast taut piece of thrash, the riffs are fantastic, and the harsh vocals are verging on Death Metal. Leikin loppu is mid-paced thrash, but with a real bombastic feel to the rhythm. The track has loads of drive and is perfect for head-banging. On all of the Trashy tracks the guitars and bass sound great, with nice thick distortion, and the drumming is superb. The next style is still very metallic, but it’s in a slower, doomier, more rhythmic style. It still has a feel that is quite early nineties, maybe a little like Pantera’s slower material or like some of Machine Head’s early music. Title track Ihmissokkelo is slow and very heavy, with harsh vocals. The track has an unstoppable, bulldozing rhythm, and a great chorus. Pimeä aine is a massively heavy track with a definite Pantera feel, but despite the heaviness the track is dripping with melody. Syyttävä sormi has a fast thrashy opening, before slowing down to a rhythm that feels fairly industrial, the track also boasts a great chanted chorus.
Mokoma: Ihmissokkelo (Self Released) [Paul Scoble]
Mokoma have been making music for 24 years. The Finnish five piece have made 12 albums, several EPs and a vast number of split EPs and singles before Ihmissokkelo. The band was originally a solo project for founding member Marko Annala, which originally had more of a hard rock sound than the Thrash style that the band has since become known for. Vocalist, guitarist and band founder Annala is joined by Tuomo Saikkonen and Kuisma Aalto on guitar (joined 1997), Janne Hyrkäs on drums (joined 1999) and Santtu Hämäläinen on bass (joined 2003).
Although the band are known for thrash Ihmissokkelo has more than just trash on it; there are 3 main styles of song on the album. Let’s deal with the obviously thrash first. Ilmoitusluontoista asiaa is a blast of fast, tight riffs with harsh vocals, the track has bags of energy and huge chanting chorus. Tuhat ei riitä is a fast taut piece of thrash, the riffs are fantastic, and the harsh vocals are verging on Death Metal. Leikin loppu is mid-paced thrash, but with a real bombastic feel to the rhythm. The track has loads of drive and is perfect for head-banging. On all of the Trashy tracks the guitars and bass sound great, with nice thick distortion, and the drumming is superb. The next style is still very metallic, but it’s in a slower, doomier, more rhythmic style. It still has a feel that is quite early nineties, maybe a little like Pantera’s slower material or like some of Machine Head’s early music. Title track Ihmissokkelo is slow and very heavy, with harsh vocals. The track has an unstoppable, bulldozing rhythm, and a great chorus. Pimeä aine is a massively heavy track with a definite Pantera feel, but despite the heaviness the track is dripping with melody. Syyttävä sormi has a fast thrashy opening, before slowing down to a rhythm that feels fairly industrial, the track also boasts a great chanted chorus.
The third style was a bit surprising, but not in a bad way. Several of the songs have a rock feel to them, in some places noise rock, folk rock or punk. Ilmoitusluontoista asiaa has a noise rock feel to it, its softer but makes up for it by being loaded with melody and a fantastic chorus (something this album excels at). Toinen ihminen is a mid-paced with several soft, clean sections and another big chorus. In some of the softer sections the song feels a little like a power ballad, and that's not a bad thing as it’s done so well. Jäljet is a great piece of punk rock, fast and so much fun, it’s packed with tunefulness, and as you’d expect, has a fantastic chorus. Huomenna voikin olla niin is mainly soft, tuneful and feels like a ballad. The track features a chorus bigger than the known universe, and gets more taut and rocky as the track goes along. Ihmissokkelo is a great album. Hugely varied, packed with melody, tunefulness, and energy. The thrash is tight, aggressive and vibrant. The songs with a slightly softer feel do not feel out of place at all; this all feels like one complete whole. It’s an interesting, varied and very creative take on Thrash Metal, highly recommended. 8/10
Stonus: Aphasia (Self Released) [Matt Bladen]
After 10 years of experimentation Cypriot rockers Stonus have finally released their debut album. Aphasia is a syrupy, fuzzy, all analogue stoner rock record that plays with sonic experimentation with the live-in-the-studio feel. Aphasia impairs a persons ability to use words and the record does this two, there are vocals but you don't need to listen to them, it's all about feel, with opener Awake reminding me of Wales very own Lacertilia because of it's driving groove and occasional moves into the psychedelic realms of desert rock. It certainly gets the head moving easily with the fat as hell riffs that put them in the same boat as Greek bands Natraxas and 1000mods a much more mind expanding style of stoner than some Aphasia benefits from it's analogue production and recording by bringing those shimmering sounds of Hawkwind to the title track, but also low slung doom on Mania. This is dusty desert rock from the Eastern Mediterranean fit for expanding your mind, Aphasia is most definitely a late night headphone record, full of groove, drive and dizziness it's got all those sounds Messrs Homme, Garcia, Bjork and Oliveri initiated all those years ago. Sonic exploration ripe for your favourite relaxation technique. 7/10
Murmux: Abattoir (Self Released) [Robert Lang]
I’ve had such fun trying to describe this album to myself. Does it sound like Xasthur covering Ultraviolence? Ultraviolence covering Xasthur?? Ildjarn jamming with Rotterdam Terror Corps??? I don’t know, although on his second full-length since December last year (!) one-man project Murmux seems to draw influence from each of these artists at once. His achievement is to conjure the atmosphere of depressive black metal, while jettisoning its usual instrumentation: the programmed percussion pounds out techno beats, and distorted, doleful synth lances out from the depths of the murky soundstage, but if there is any guitar or bass present then their sound is so sabotaged that they are impossible to distinguish as such. The only unmistakably black metal element is the vocals, straight out of the distorted, howling-into-an-empty-tin-can school popularised by Mutiilation's Willy Roussel. And the songs?
Well. Opener Abattoir (Part 1) assaults and perturbs from the get-go with ghastly screams, eldritch keys and spasmodic blasts of gabber bass-drum. Master is a despondent instrumental piece reminiscent of some of Xasthur’s synth interludes. 8 (Part 1) starts and ends with a kick-drum rhythm paying apparent tribute to Ennio Morricone’s score for The Thing, and reaches a strangely affecting climax with repeated surges of agonised howling over a yearning synth line. Is it good? Well, I wouldn’t go that far, no. As a whole it’s divertingly weird and it does succeed in generating a certain ambience, but on a compositional level there isn’t much of interest. The melodies, such as they are, are rudimentary and do nothing to distinguish themselves or stick in the mind. Even DSBM lives and dies by its tunes; I’ve listened to this several times now and I certainly couldn’t hum you any of it. Still, worth a look for sheer creative audacity. 4/10
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