To say you know what you are going to get when a new band puts out an album can be a complement or it could be a complaint. For the latter, some bands you want to see expand out from their comfort zone and break out into new territory. Grow as a band musically. When said band just puts out a record with the same old sound from them you may feel disappointed. Fu Manchu is not that band, as all I want them to do is play Fu Manchu songs and just rock.
Give me riffs, give me Scott Hill’s unique, always- a-bit- buzzed vocals, give me Bob Balch’s amazing solos, give me those trademarked tempos and tones. Fu Manchu are perfect just they way they are, and their first album in six years and their 13th overall, The Return Of Tomorrow, is proof of this, and also a very fitting name for this collection of 13 tracks, a double album at this point in their career, with zero filler tracks no less!
As mentioned above, you know what you are getting from Fu Manchu, in the best way possible. The opener, Dehumanize, could come from any of the killer Fu records, and that is exactly what I wanted. Hill’s call and answer to himself vocals with a killer riff and upbeat desert rock tempo that they had a hand in creating is all right here. How about the cool riff on Loch Ness Wrecking Crew? This one is trademark Fu Manchu chunky goodness.
As mentioned above, you know what you are getting from Fu Manchu, in the best way possible. The opener, Dehumanize, could come from any of the killer Fu records, and that is exactly what I wanted. Hill’s call and answer to himself vocals with a killer riff and upbeat desert rock tempo that they had a hand in creating is all right here. How about the cool riff on Loch Ness Wrecking Crew? This one is trademark Fu Manchu chunky goodness.
Speaking of riffs and chunky goodness, how about the mid-tempo dual guitar riff attack on Hands Of The Zodiac, which is such a Fu Manchu title. If you were to ask me, I would say there is already a song by that title on some old EP which, again, is just perfect for what I am wanting from one of my favourite bands.
Scott Reeder’s drum work gets to shine on this one, which is so often overshadowed buy all the riffs and solos, but he is always so steady. Speaking of solos, whoa the one on this song. Brad Davis’s bass gets a highlight on the slow burner, Haze The Hides, which again is a perfect title for this song where you are expected to chill for a second and let everyone get nice and toasty again. Did I mention the solo on this one too?
More classic Fu gets passed around in the form of tracks like Roads Of The Lowly, Lifetime Waiting, and Liquify, and I am here for all of them. The guitar work on (Time Is) Pulling You Under is worth the price of admission alone and is that an almost doom riff I am getting from Destroyin’ Light? It sure is, until we transition into another prototypical mid-tempo Fu Manchu burner where the band is truly on fire. On fire you say, I’ll be damned if Solar Baptized isn’t exactly that in all of its psych slow burn glory and killer building to and explosion riff.
I love the psych desert vibes on What I Need, which may be the track that trends the furthest away from what you expect from the band, with an almost tender interlude driven by those two guitars. The title track just kills and may be my favourite song on the record while, the closer, High Tide, is Fu Manchu in a smoky jazz club taking everyone down off their last 53-minute high, which works perfectly.
Is there a more consist band than Fu Manchu, both in sound and in quality? A band’s 13th record and one that has been making music together since the late 1980s has no business making such a killer record at this point in their career, but once again here with are with Fu Manchu and The Return Of Tomorrow. Return indeed. 9/10
Celestial Sanctuary - Visions Of Stagnant Blood (Self Released) [Mark Young]
And now, here is three gore-filled nasty visions of death metal, courtesy of the one of the finest exponents the UK has to offer, Celestial Sanctuary. Following on from 2023’s Insatiable Thirst For Torment, which was one of my releases of the year they have dropped a gruesome treat in the form of a 3-track EP just in time for their appearance at Download.
The mark of a good band is being able to progress release on release and it's apparent here, the three songs have that next-step quality to them that points towards the next album being an absolute stormer (no pressure). Riffs that catch in the throat like partially chewed meat, gory subject matter with a sound that matches, the tangible quality of the new material is there for all to hear.
Sinewy guitar heralds Visions Of Stagnant Blood rushing in, changing tempos and patterns coming together along with the ‘Gurning one’s vocals’ as they charge through another platter of splatter. It hits immediately, no introductions or rising ambient noise structures, just bang straight in with a glorious guitar tone that maintains the supreme chunk and clarity, so it's not lost in the mix. The arrangement is just classic death metal – trem picks here, blast beats there and a lead break that does what it needs to. Digging into the arrangement, it is put together so well and is a hint of what is to come in the next 19 or so minutes.
Based on what we have here, we have every reason to be enthused about what they do next. As I’ve said the music here represents a step up, as they have managed to keep that core brutality whilst refining their material accordingly. What is difficult is not to be too excited about what comes next but for me it’s great that we have so many great bands in the UK extreme scene, and you should make every effort to pick this up and get onboard. They are one of the best we have. 10/10
Golgotha - Spreading The Wings Of Hope (Ardua Records) [James Jackson]
In this instance however, the band in question are a Spanish Doom/Death Metal act in a similar vein to the likes of Draconian; formed in the early 90’s by guitarist Vicente J Paya, the band have released a number of singles, EP’s and albums, Spreading The Wings Of Hope being their fifth full length album.
Love, whether it be lost or won seems to be the lyrical theme throughout the album, played out through the dual vocals of Andrew Spinosa, whose death metal style is complimented by the emotive clean vocals of Maria J Llado, a technique that I’m particularly fond of.
The album Sullivan released in 2011 at the age of Twelve was called Cyclone, in the intervening years he has made three more making Salvation his fifth album. The album features twelve songs that are stylistically Blues, R&B and soul
The album kicks off in fine fashion with Dark Love, an up-tempo piece of Boogie Blues with a great stomping pace. The song features a really good Piano solo and Quinn does a very good guitar solo as well. Next comes the title track, a funky clean riff blues song that has similarities to Stevie Ray Vaughn’s Couldn’t Stand The Weather. Again, the pacing is spot on with a purposeful walking pace, and the guitar solo is very good, not quite SRV very good, but pretty close and there aren’t many guitarists who can say that.
Rise Up Children is a super fun Boogie Blues song with some great slide guitar, it rocks along at a perfect head nodding tempo and reminds me of the sort of thing that Gary Clark Jr is very good at. Next, we get the song Don't Wanna Die Today another piece of funky blues, which is fast and super tight. The chorus is tuneful and melodic and is very distinctive and memorable, and most of the verse is built around a great Blues riff.
After Don't Wanna Die Today comes Once Upon A Lie, and at this point things start to go off the rails. Once Upon A Lie is very bland 90’s Soul Pop, everything is lightweight and feels throwaway. It’s blander than Mild Cheddar and is so inoffensive that I am very offended by it. The next song, Better In Love is even worse as it is in the same style but is a ballad. It’s more bland than the track that proceeded it, in fact it’s blander than The Lighthouse Family. It’s so lightweight and throwaway it practically doesn’t exist.
Things do improve with the next track, which isn’t bad, but is quite odd. Leave No Love Behind sounds like Dire Straits, with Quinn doing a passable Mark Knopfler impression on the guitar, but it has a Latin feel to the rhythm, so it’s more Sultans Of Samba, rather than Sultans Of Swing. It sounds a little like Dire Straits being covered by Los Lobos.
It's a return of the bland for Eyes On Me, another soulless Soul Pop song with a nineties feel. Next comes Half My Heart, a ballad that reminds me of The Beatles song that was rediscovered and finished by the remaining members in the early nineties called Free As A Bird, it also has a bit of an Electric Light Orchestra feel. It isn’t terrible and has a nice guitar solo. The album comes to an end with a live track, Eyesight To The Blind. It’s a piece of clean riff blues, there is a similarity to SRV and the second song on the album Salvation (Make Me Wanna Pray). It’s a great song and is recorded very well.
If I’m being honest, I find Salvation quite frustrating. The album has some really good songs on it that are full of great energy and are very well played and written. However, there is also some of the most bland music I have ever heard, and a couple of tracks that feel throwaway. I do suspect some of the bland soulless soul is an attempt at commercial chart success, which isn’t that outrageous, The Lighthouse Family and M People were some of the biggest selling acts of the 1990's in Britain, Bland sells.
Is there a more consist band than Fu Manchu, both in sound and in quality? A band’s 13th record and one that has been making music together since the late 1980s has no business making such a killer record at this point in their career, but once again here with are with Fu Manchu and The Return Of Tomorrow. Return indeed. 9/10
Celestial Sanctuary - Visions Of Stagnant Blood (Self Released) [Mark Young]
And now, here is three gore-filled nasty visions of death metal, courtesy of the one of the finest exponents the UK has to offer, Celestial Sanctuary. Following on from 2023’s Insatiable Thirst For Torment, which was one of my releases of the year they have dropped a gruesome treat in the form of a 3-track EP just in time for their appearance at Download.
The mark of a good band is being able to progress release on release and it's apparent here, the three songs have that next-step quality to them that points towards the next album being an absolute stormer (no pressure). Riffs that catch in the throat like partially chewed meat, gory subject matter with a sound that matches, the tangible quality of the new material is there for all to hear.
Sinewy guitar heralds Visions Of Stagnant Blood rushing in, changing tempos and patterns coming together along with the ‘Gurning one’s vocals’ as they charge through another platter of splatter. It hits immediately, no introductions or rising ambient noise structures, just bang straight in with a glorious guitar tone that maintains the supreme chunk and clarity, so it's not lost in the mix. The arrangement is just classic death metal – trem picks here, blast beats there and a lead break that does what it needs to. Digging into the arrangement, it is put together so well and is a hint of what is to come in the next 19 or so minutes.
Puddles Of You Reflect The Filth Within kicks off with a homage to all things Cannibal Corpse, you will know exactly what I mean, and why not? It sounds great and allows it to lurch into a lumbering stomp-through. They say to take influences from the best and there is classic era Morbid Angel in here for me, the lead into the melodic break is Trey all day long whilst the slow rhythm / double bass punch down is quality. This is one of the reasons why I hold them in such high regard, is the ability to look backward and super-charge the best ideas to suit.
Recently I’ve started judging songs on their ability to make me want to play it and this has gone straight on that list. It has everything you want from modern death metal. Gavage Of The Vile closes proceedings with a low-string attack and comes in with a quality progression / melodic break. Is this their magnum opus (so far?) it could be. Its structure is chock full of ‘oh that’s class’ moments, changing tack to suit without moving far from that stomping motif they do so well.
Thomas’s vocals stretch themselves to dig into the grime required, the lows are low whilst the higher pitches are taut and if you have seen them live you can picture his face as he does it. It’s a powerful statement of intent that shows that they are now finding a range that puts them at the top of a pack. The best thing is that others will look to this and raise their game accordingly because they will have to in order to keep up. With that in mind, this is surely a win-win for us.
Based on what we have here, we have every reason to be enthused about what they do next. As I’ve said the music here represents a step up, as they have managed to keep that core brutality whilst refining their material accordingly. What is difficult is not to be too excited about what comes next but for me it’s great that we have so many great bands in the UK extreme scene, and you should make every effort to pick this up and get onboard. They are one of the best we have. 10/10
Golgotha - Spreading The Wings Of Hope (Ardua Records) [James Jackson]
Golgotha, the name of many a band including a NWOBHM act based in Stafford during the 70’s and 80’s, an American Deathcore outfit and of course the hill of biblical repute.
In this instance however, the band in question are a Spanish Doom/Death Metal act in a similar vein to the likes of Draconian; formed in the early 90’s by guitarist Vicente J Paya, the band have released a number of singles, EP’s and albums, Spreading The Wings Of Hope being their fifth full length album.
During my research into the band I’d read a rather negative review that portrayed previous works as mediocre, that after a hiatus the band returned to “public indifference”, whilst I can’t comment upon previous releases nor the lack of interest, the album that I’ve been presented with has plenty of promise.
The songs are quite catchy and well written, the melodic sound more than capable of portraying the Doom aesthetic that they’re about; there are moments admittedly that I feel could have been done differently, the piano led interlude in Solitary Soul could have lasted a few bars longer, but that’s neither here nor there.
Love, whether it be lost or won seems to be the lyrical theme throughout the album, played out through the dual vocals of Andrew Spinosa, whose death metal style is complimented by the emotive clean vocals of Maria J Llado, a technique that I’m particularly fond of.
Overall a very competent album that deserves further attention. 7/10
Quinn Sullivan – Salvation (Provogue Records) [Paul Scoble]
Quinn Sullivan must be sick to death of people talking about his age. Due to being a protégé, and a pretty precocious one at that, his first TV appearance happened at age 6 and he released his first album at 12, Sullivan’s press seems to be obsessed his age.
Quinn Sullivan – Salvation (Provogue Records) [Paul Scoble]
Quinn Sullivan must be sick to death of people talking about his age. Due to being a protégé, and a pretty precocious one at that, his first TV appearance happened at age 6 and he released his first album at 12, Sullivan’s press seems to be obsessed his age.
The appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show led to being noticed by none other than Blues legend Buddy Guy, with whom he has performed live and has provided guest spots on albums for, and also guesting with B.B. King on stage. To say that Sullivan's early career was successful is an understatement, but time has passed now and twenty five year old musicians don’t get leeway due to youth.
The album Sullivan released in 2011 at the age of Twelve was called Cyclone, in the intervening years he has made three more making Salvation his fifth album. The album features twelve songs that are stylistically Blues, R&B and soul
The album kicks off in fine fashion with Dark Love, an up-tempo piece of Boogie Blues with a great stomping pace. The song features a really good Piano solo and Quinn does a very good guitar solo as well. Next comes the title track, a funky clean riff blues song that has similarities to Stevie Ray Vaughn’s Couldn’t Stand The Weather. Again, the pacing is spot on with a purposeful walking pace, and the guitar solo is very good, not quite SRV very good, but pretty close and there aren’t many guitarists who can say that.
Rise Up Children is a super fun Boogie Blues song with some great slide guitar, it rocks along at a perfect head nodding tempo and reminds me of the sort of thing that Gary Clark Jr is very good at. Next, we get the song Don't Wanna Die Today another piece of funky blues, which is fast and super tight. The chorus is tuneful and melodic and is very distinctive and memorable, and most of the verse is built around a great Blues riff.
After Don't Wanna Die Today comes Once Upon A Lie, and at this point things start to go off the rails. Once Upon A Lie is very bland 90’s Soul Pop, everything is lightweight and feels throwaway. It’s blander than Mild Cheddar and is so inoffensive that I am very offended by it. The next song, Better In Love is even worse as it is in the same style but is a ballad. It’s more bland than the track that proceeded it, in fact it’s blander than The Lighthouse Family. It’s so lightweight and throwaway it practically doesn’t exist.
Things do improve with the next track, which isn’t bad, but is quite odd. Leave No Love Behind sounds like Dire Straits, with Quinn doing a passable Mark Knopfler impression on the guitar, but it has a Latin feel to the rhythm, so it’s more Sultans Of Samba, rather than Sultans Of Swing. It sounds a little like Dire Straits being covered by Los Lobos.
It’s back to Blues for I Can't Stay (And You Can't Go), a nice purposeful track with a great and very memorable chorus. The song has a relaxed swing to the tempo and is a lot of fun. Next comes Nothin' Gonna Change My Mind which is a Funk track with a great clean guitar riff, and lots of horns, to my ear it sounds like Was Not Was and is cheesier than a multipack of Wotsits but is also really good fun (just like a multipack of Wotsits).
It's a return of the bland for Eyes On Me, another soulless Soul Pop song with a nineties feel. Next comes Half My Heart, a ballad that reminds me of The Beatles song that was rediscovered and finished by the remaining members in the early nineties called Free As A Bird, it also has a bit of an Electric Light Orchestra feel. It isn’t terrible and has a nice guitar solo. The album comes to an end with a live track, Eyesight To The Blind. It’s a piece of clean riff blues, there is a similarity to SRV and the second song on the album Salvation (Make Me Wanna Pray). It’s a great song and is recorded very well.
If I’m being honest, I find Salvation quite frustrating. The album has some really good songs on it that are full of great energy and are very well played and written. However, there is also some of the most bland music I have ever heard, and a couple of tracks that feel throwaway. I do suspect some of the bland soulless soul is an attempt at commercial chart success, which isn’t that outrageous, The Lighthouse Family and M People were some of the biggest selling acts of the 1990's in Britain, Bland sells.
However, it doesn’t get you artistic success, the tracks that were more strait Blues worked so much better and felt much more authentic. What really worries me about this album is it doesn’t feel like it is all by the same artist, if you asked me what Quinn Sullivan's style of music is, I couldn’t tell you, this feels like a compilation album. Which is a shame, because when this album works is works very well. About sixty percent of this is good, so that’s what it gets. 6/10
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