Nile - The Underworld Awaits Us All (Napalm Records) [Charlie Rogers]
The South Carolina Ancient Egypt and Sweep Picking Appreciation Society, also known as Nile, break into the double digits of full length releases with The Underworld Awaits Us All. 10 albums in, and Karl et al refuses to let the eternal flame of Egyptian mythology worship die out. Known for blisteringly fast riffs, written with distinctly eastern sounding scale patterns, Nile have carved their glyphs into the sandstone of the technical death metal scene for over 3 decades now, and few contemporaries can hold a candle to their impressive back catalogue.
If you’re somehow not familiar with these Mummy’s boys, where do you jump in? With most bands that have reached a tenure of this length, there’s usually an argument to start at the beginning and listen through to the present day, however I would posit that Nile’s modern production is far more accessible to those just beginning their journey into the underworld, and this album is a great jumping off point to begin your archaeological exploration into the tombs of Nephren-Karl.
Stelae Of Vultures opens the album with all the hallmarks of Nile’s song writing - intricate sweep picked guitar parts duelling over the thunderous rumble of George Kolias’ monster drum lines, catchy riffs switching between furious chugs to spiderlike chaos riffs dancing across the fretboard. The bass is also clearly audible in the mix, which has been a hallmark of more recent Nile albums, and new member Dan Vadim Von punctuates the guitar playing with tasteful basslines that poke out of the audio wall without becoming comical or distracting. The second song brings us this album’s challenge to learn the whole song name - Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Faeces By The Four Apes, which sounds like a very important chapter for us to all learn if I’m honest. Song is great too.
Stelae Of Vultures opens the album with all the hallmarks of Nile’s song writing - intricate sweep picked guitar parts duelling over the thunderous rumble of George Kolias’ monster drum lines, catchy riffs switching between furious chugs to spiderlike chaos riffs dancing across the fretboard. The bass is also clearly audible in the mix, which has been a hallmark of more recent Nile albums, and new member Dan Vadim Von punctuates the guitar playing with tasteful basslines that poke out of the audio wall without becoming comical or distracting. The second song brings us this album’s challenge to learn the whole song name - Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Faeces By The Four Apes, which sounds like a very important chapter for us to all learn if I’m honest. Song is great too.
The third song is over by the time you’ve finished pronouncing the previous one, which is unusual for Nile who typically have longer tracks on offer than your average band, but the sheer intensity of To Strike With Secret Fang suits the just less than 2 minute length. Indeed, there’s all the elements of what makes a great Nile album on display here, and the vocal triple threat adds plenty of variety to keep the tracks distinct, and that’s not including the female choruses in tracks like Overlords Of The Black Earth.
My favourite track on the album is also one you could also describe Nile with - True Gods Of The Desert - it’s got a load of those stompy, mid tempo riffs that make you pull a stink face and test how securely your eyes are fixed into your head. Long term fans will be split into two camps by this album - those happy to hear more of that distinct Nile sound, and those wishing to hear something different and innovative. Those in the former camp will be most satisfied with this record, because largely it is more of that particular flavour we all know inside out.
For those in the second camp, I imagine you’re going to need to hop into a DeLorean and head back to when Nile first stepped out onto the scene to experience any major innovation, because their approach to song writing and composition was hewn into the tablets long ago. I think I speak for nearly all fans in saying that we’d be disappointed if Nile went soft and did what Opeth did by dropping the iconic vocals, for example. Nay, Karl knows what the fans want from this project, and he’s delivered yet another high quality offering for followers new and old to enjoy. 9/10
Fostermother - Echo Manor (Ripple Music) [Rich Piva]
When I reviewed Fostermother’s second album, 2022’s The Ocean, I lamented on how much of a step forward it was from their debut record and how much more realized an effort it was. Well take that and multiply it tenfold for their third album from Houston, Texas band, as Echo Manor is next level in every way. From the playing, the song writing, the sequencing, and even the great artwork, Echo Manor brings Fostermother amongst the giants in the Texas heavy music scene and the overall scene at large.
When I say “heavy” in regards to Fostermother, it is not in the traditional sense of heavy metal. The band is heavy, but there are elements of psych (the boys love them some Pink Floyd) and even an underlying pop sensibility to Echo Manor. Some of this is super catchy, catchier than anything the band has done before, but never without the output challenging you and maintaining the heavy vibe. There is also a significant change in tempo for the record overall, as more songs lean towards faster, relatively speaking for the band’s prior output.
Fostermother - Echo Manor (Ripple Music) [Rich Piva]
When I reviewed Fostermother’s second album, 2022’s The Ocean, I lamented on how much of a step forward it was from their debut record and how much more realized an effort it was. Well take that and multiply it tenfold for their third album from Houston, Texas band, as Echo Manor is next level in every way. From the playing, the song writing, the sequencing, and even the great artwork, Echo Manor brings Fostermother amongst the giants in the Texas heavy music scene and the overall scene at large.
When I say “heavy” in regards to Fostermother, it is not in the traditional sense of heavy metal. The band is heavy, but there are elements of psych (the boys love them some Pink Floyd) and even an underlying pop sensibility to Echo Manor. Some of this is super catchy, catchier than anything the band has done before, but never without the output challenging you and maintaining the heavy vibe. There is also a significant change in tempo for the record overall, as more songs lean towards faster, relatively speaking for the band’s prior output.
The overall sound on Echo Chamber is fuller and more realized, with the opener, Wraith, being a microcosm of all of the previous points. The second song, Empty One, continues this, creating a heavy psych soundscape that reminds me of a brighter version of their labelmates Obsidian Sea. All We Know has that pop sensibility I mentioned, and also highlights the vast improvement in the vocals of the bad as well. The most Fostermother song on Echo Manor is the title track and could be their trademark track. It has all of what you love for the band as well as cool layered vocals and great guitar work. I think a lot of people’s favourite track, and for good reason, is going to be King To A Dead Tree, which both rips and crunches, and features a killer solo from Rusty Miller of High Desert Queen.
The boys go off their usual path with the acoustic driven Carry Me, which is more CSNY does Pink Floyd than anything else. Following that one with what is probably the heaviest track on Echo Manor, Watchers, was perfect sequencing to go along with that killer riff, but not without that very cool heavy psych vibe that is ever-present across all ten tracks. Lighthouse is more vintage Fostermother, slowing the pace a bit, bringing the riffs, and placing the track perfectly in a way that sets up the closer, the epic In The Garden Of Lies, in the best possible way. The closer is their closest take on Floyd and leverages keys more than any other track. I love how this one fades out to bring the journey to a close.
Echo Manor is the next step you wanted from Fostermother and a whole lot more. This is the band fully realized and about to conquer the heavy music world with their unique take on heavy psych that is executed as good or better than any band out there today. Great stuff, and a top tier record for 2024. 9/10
Echo Manor is the next step you wanted from Fostermother and a whole lot more. This is the band fully realized and about to conquer the heavy music world with their unique take on heavy psych that is executed as good or better than any band out there today. Great stuff, and a top tier record for 2024. 9/10
Simone Simons - Vermillion (Nuclear Blast) [Matt Bladen]
The crimson chanteuse that is Simone Simons looks to bring a scarlet overkill with her debut solo album Vermillion. Yes you read that right Vermillion is her debut solo album, finally on a brief break from fronting the pioneering Epica, Simone made her way to the studio of fellow Dutch metal music pioneer Arjen Lucassen where Vermillion was conceived. With Arjen on board it's bound to be epic, if anything it's epic(er) than anything you may expect, auditory journey through Simone's career to date.
From the beginnings of symphonic metal scene on the dramatic Dystopia or the anthemic In Love We Rust, through songs that merge the classical soprano vocals with guttural death metal growls, provided on Cradle To The Grave by Alissa White-Gluz and on R.E.D by her Epica cohort Mark Jansen and her love of electronic/industrial metal (The Weight Of My World) and film soundtracks, no wonder then that Simone worked with Arjen for this album as he's got a pretty long resume when it comes dealing with different genres and creating colossal soundscapes.
They have also curated a very talented band, Arjen on guitars and keys with long time Arjen collaborators Rob Van Der Loo on bass, Koen Herfst (drums) and John Jaycee Cuijpers to add backing vocals they also have a string section from Ben Mathot (violin) and Apocalyptica's Perttu Kivilaakso (cello) on closer Dark Night Of The Soul. It's Simone's vocals and Arjen's compositions though that are the magic of this album, it's the closest to a new Ayreon album we'll probably get for a while so it's wonderful to hear more of the bombastic Lucassen metal with Simone taking the lead. The lady in red enraptures with this solo effort. 9/10
The crimson chanteuse that is Simone Simons looks to bring a scarlet overkill with her debut solo album Vermillion. Yes you read that right Vermillion is her debut solo album, finally on a brief break from fronting the pioneering Epica, Simone made her way to the studio of fellow Dutch metal music pioneer Arjen Lucassen where Vermillion was conceived. With Arjen on board it's bound to be epic, if anything it's epic(er) than anything you may expect, auditory journey through Simone's career to date.
From the beginnings of symphonic metal scene on the dramatic Dystopia or the anthemic In Love We Rust, through songs that merge the classical soprano vocals with guttural death metal growls, provided on Cradle To The Grave by Alissa White-Gluz and on R.E.D by her Epica cohort Mark Jansen and her love of electronic/industrial metal (The Weight Of My World) and film soundtracks, no wonder then that Simone worked with Arjen for this album as he's got a pretty long resume when it comes dealing with different genres and creating colossal soundscapes.
They have also curated a very talented band, Arjen on guitars and keys with long time Arjen collaborators Rob Van Der Loo on bass, Koen Herfst (drums) and John Jaycee Cuijpers to add backing vocals they also have a string section from Ben Mathot (violin) and Apocalyptica's Perttu Kivilaakso (cello) on closer Dark Night Of The Soul. It's Simone's vocals and Arjen's compositions though that are the magic of this album, it's the closest to a new Ayreon album we'll probably get for a while so it's wonderful to hear more of the bombastic Lucassen metal with Simone taking the lead. The lady in red enraptures with this solo effort. 9/10
Endless Chain - Agony (Self Released) [James Jackson]
There’s an intro to Agony and it’s an acoustic piece that hints at the melodic elements to come, the title track follows, opening with an Eastern flavour to its guitar parts, picking up from that acoustic guitar and developing it into a song that holds all the elements of gothic metal with a healthy dose of melodic death metal style that you could ever ask for. Human Race showcases the range of the dual vocalists that the band sports, a typically gothic/doom style opens the track, death metal vocals offer a harsher element to proceedings and when accompanied by a cleaner vocal offer a great mix.
Agony is the second full length album from the band, its predecessor, Forthcoming Past was released in 2021, an EP containing the tracks Beyond What You Believe, We Are We, Until No One Comes and Blind Kings was released earlier this year, tracks which all appear on this latest release.
After We Are We and Burn The Skies Above comes the album’s equivalent of a ballad and whilst everything that proceeds and follows the track is massively on point, I’m slightly unsure about how Ghost hits, but it’s not until I give it another listen or two that it’s worth shines through, it’s a different style, but holds its own in retrospect.
Until No One Comes and Blind Kings follow, both of which previously released upon the aforementioned EP, the latter is probably my favourite song so far. Beyond What You Believe, the title track of that EP, is the penultimate song on the album and sees a brief return of that Eastern mysticism, another song that ticks all of the right boxes.
Album closer We Are All Vulnerable is an epic track, the most melancholy of them and weighs in at around seven minutes, unfortunately it meanders its way through the midsection and the melody and emotion get somewhat lost, though I’ve a feeling that as with Ghost, a further and perhaps more concentrated listen, would offer a different perspective. Agony, it was not. 9/10
No comments:
Post a Comment