Reviews: Nile, Fostermother, Simone Simons, Endless Chain (Reviews By Charlie Rogers, Rich Piva, Matt Bladen & James Jackson)

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. 

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. 

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

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

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

Reviews: Within The Ruins, Alleviate, Mike Tramp, Loss (Reviews By Mark Young, GC, Rich Piva & James Jackson)

Within The Ruins - Phenomena II (MNRK Heavy) [Mark Young]

And now some Deathcore. It is not that I have a problem with Deathcore as a whole, I can appreciate the craft involved in writing and performing in much the same way as Thrash or Death Metal, it’s just that it has never really done anything for me. I’ve never got a jolt or visceral thrill from it, and I suppose it might be due to an age thing.

Anyway, Phenomena II delivers as expected. The songs are heavy with a crushing guitar tone, typically extreme vocals and drums that don’t quit. Castle In The Sky is our opener, a repeating keyboard pattern then the guitars drop in. The problem I have is with the guitar tone, its heavy but it feels overly processed and sounds so similar to a lot of extreme bands out there, none of which I like. 

Going out on a limb I don’t know if they are using 7 or 8 strings (I’m sure someone will put me right) but it feels as though they have settled for hammering away on that lowest string which ultimately makes for a boring song. Daywalker continues along that same path with an arrangement that takes a lot from Castle, except they throw in some progressive touches with some quality melody lines, but I can’t get past the willingness to readily deploy the use of that extra string instead of exploring the rest of the neck. What do I know, it is entirely likely that I am out of date and should get with this sound and embrace it. Except I’m finding it difficult to do that. I’m also conscious of the fact that I am desperate to avoid a negative review just because it’s not what I like.

Demon Killer comes in next, and what can’t be criticised is the drumming on this, it is absolutely phenomenal. Demon Killer also has moments whey they bring some wizardry into proceedings, from about 2.00 mins in, there is storming guitar line which is just mint. On this one, it feels as though it is more organic, as opposed to following a rigid pattern. Level 12 is a mind-bender of an instrumental which takes some of the wizardry from Demon and makes a song out of it which provides a welcome reset. Its back to normal though with Eater Of Words, fast and frenetic, but it is not connecting with me on any level, and this is the main takeaway I have with this. 

The Last Son has a more measured approach, with effective use of keys to give their sound that extra layer of atmosphere and provide more to the listener than just being hit over the head with percussive guitars whilst Chaos Reigns attacks on the front foot but doesn’t offer anything different from what we have heard before. Death Mask is another instrumental, leading into Corruption which picks up the baton named repeat. I know that sounds snarky, and I suppose that it is but by this point I’m calling it as I see it.

Nothing is landing with me, and it is frustrating because on paper it ticks all the right boxes for extreme metal, yet it is tiring me out. Getting to the final song, Enigma II was a challenge because I could have just turned it in after Eater Of Worlds. The closing track is another instrumental and to be honest you feel that if they had dropped this, or any one of the others you wouldn’t have missed them.

Ultimately, it is not for me. 6/10

Alleviate - DMNS (Arising Empire) [GC]

If I have never heard of a band before I usually have a quick check to see who they are and what they are about, deathcore band Alleviate are tagged on their labels site as a ‘’supergroup’’ and when I see the bands the individual members are in, I’m not really sure why as I have heard of exactly zero of them? Anyway, they have released some singles and are about to release their debut album DMNS.

From the very beginning notes of the opener DMNS it quickly becomes clear that the deathcore label is not really merited because what we get in my opinion is djenty metalcore and to my ears there is no death metal influences here and more to the point it’s a more polished and ‘’new’’ sounding metalcore at that, the guitars have that annoying overly electronic sound that makes them sound like ducks quacking and they swap between 2 different vocalists for clean and harsh vocals both of which could be lifted from any other band you want and not make one bit of a difference.

Trying To Survive follows the well-played path of angry intro, breaking down into an atmospheric soft verse and big chorus and it’s just so insipid & bland, like it’s been done better so many times before and honestly it’s just so predictable and boring, Broken has a bit more too it than previous songs and doesn’t feel as dialled in performance wise and this may be because there is a bit more variation in the guitar work and the clean vocals aren’t as prominent and don’t really reach the ear piercingly high pitch of previous tracks so don’t suck everything in when they happen! 

Forevermore offers more in the way of just heavy and forgoes and clean vocals and once again it benefits the song massively as you can just focus on what is happening instead of waiting for the inevitable soft break bit that usually ruins the song. It doesn’t take long for Gravity to fall back into familiar territory and mix the cleans back into the mix but this time even with the higher tones they actually don’t make your ears bleed and mix in nicely and the balance works well with the more overtly djent influenced song, lead single Alive mixes in some electronic twiddling into to the already very heavily electronic sound and has an added melodic depth needed to lift the song up to another level not previously managed but while it’s all done well enough, you know exactly what is coming and it just becomes very predictable.

Better follows the usual angry, heavy bit merged with high pitched singing bits that doesn’t really add anything new to proceedings and just really merges into everything else. Die For Me has the next single written all over it as it follows the well-trodden path of angry verse that builds towards the singalong chorus and the video has rain and water splashing all over, and predictably it quickly becomes a case of heard it all before. Within Worlds gives the clean vocals a rest again and is a good effort at creating a heavy and angry noise that huffs and puffs but ultimately its ability to inspire is long gone, My Demise is one last attempt to grab the attention but really by now it’s just another cut and paste track that is again predicable and unfortunately just a bit boring, as most of the album has sounded like this so I am more than happy that it’s the last track.

I find it infuriating when you get to the end of an album and all you can think is either, I’m glad that’s over or, well that was boring and that is the overriding feeling with DMNS there were some bits that were ok but nothing ever excited me or made me want to hear it again, it all just sounded by the book and safe with no real redeeming qualities or longevity because once you listen to this you wont be revisiting it for years to come, because you will hear it once and think yeah, that was ok and then forget about it. 5/10

Mike Tramp - Songs Of White Lion Vol. 2 (Frontiers Music Srl) [Rich Piva]

I generally keep it positive when I do my reviews. I can only think of two instances where I hated what I listened to so much it created a visceral response that required some venom to be spit. The two were the most recent record from Monster Truck and the debacle where Mike Tramp redid a bunch of White Lion classics with disastrous results. Surely, I will not feel that way again about…wait, I am getting word that there is a Volume 2 of Mike Tramp running more White Lion classics, this time covering a bunch of songs from my favourite record, Mane Attraction. This can’t be true...but wait, I am getting word that is it really a thing…and it is also just as much of a shameless money grab where Tramp takes his classics pretty much destroys their legacy.

Overdo stuff much? How about all of the freaking layers on Lights And Thunder? Is Tramp even trying? His karaoke voice over some layered will a million singers vocals is a shit show. Sure, try to add keys to the track and think that will make it better, because it doesn’t. What the hell is going on with the vocals on the pride deep cut Lonely Nights? I hated Till Death Due Us Part the first time around, I didn’t think that track could get worse, but somehow Tramp makes this happen. Kudos for taking on El Salvador from Fight To Survive, but no kudos for what was done to it. 

Same for The Road To Valhalla, but maybe even worse. What hut me the most is what he has done to one of my favourites, All You Need Is Rock And Roll. I mean these records back in the day were overproduced, we can all agree to this, but somehow it took it even further. His effort on the chorus of this song is a crime and his microphone should be taken away from him immediately. Crimes against classics is the charge, and this MF is guilty as charged. The countrified Farewell To You took all my strength to not start dry heaving. Crimes against classics is the charge, and this MF is guilty as charged. Farewell indeed. Get out and stay out.

I really dug White Lion back in the day, especially Mane Attraction and Pride. It is his prerogative to record whatever he wants, but someone should have talked Mike Tramp out of re—recording his best material and making it considerably worse, twice now. Just awful, making Songs Of White Lion Vol. 2 the most unnecessary release of 2024. 1/10

Loss - Human Factor (DMG) [James Jackson]

There’s a leaning towards the more mainstream heavy metal/thrash played out on Metallica’s Black album and the Youthanasia through Risk and Cryptic Writings albums by Megadeth, that offers a strong appeal throughout this album.

The Brazilian trio consists of Marcelo Loss on bass and lead vocals, Adriano Avelar on guitar and vocals and Teddy Bronsk on drums, this is their second album, the first, Storm, released in 2022.
Human Factor showcases the band’s musical acumen, borrowing from blues, groove, metal and rock in order to craft eleven songs that each contain enough vocal melodies that instantly hummable and riffs that soon become something to nod along to.

There’s a familiarity to the tracks, perhaps they’re a little too close to sounding like something else, but I vaguely remember a quote that says something to the extent that all of the good riffs have already been written; so a sense of the familiar isn’t so unexpected.

A few tracks stand out in a peculiar fashion, the slide guitar led acoustic track Right Or Wrong holds a very bluesy sound to it and is criminally too short, it’s a brief mid album interlude that could’ve easily become something more, the other is Novena and the easiest (or laziest) way for me to describe it would be to reference Sepultura’s Kaiowas or any of the more Brazilian culture inspired and influenced tracks from Roots - for obvious reasons.

Whilst the album doesn’t offer a particularly new or unique take on the genre, there are times, as discussed, where things feel familiar but it’s a good all round album. 6/10

Reviews: Attractive Chaos, The Exploited, Warlord, Thotcrime (Reviews By Zak Skane, Rich Piva, Paul Hutchings & James Jackson)

Attractive Chaos - Tame & Conquer (Self Released) [Zak Skane]

Opening up the album The Moon brings in some huge anthem vibes with the lead guitars bringing catchy solos and some driving group woahs phrases thrown into the mix. Following this we get some gentle sparking acoustic arpeggios whilst the angelic appearances of Emma vocals comes into accompaniment before the track crescendos into chunky power chord grooves that build it up to choruses filled with heavenly vocal melodies and arpeggios based solos.

Magical Powers ramps up the heavy with it’s metalcore styled machine gun precise breakdowns accompanied with some neo classical styled lead playing. The vocal arrangement brings in some venomous Arch Enemy styled harsh vocals before they are met with the operatic choruses which rise us into the heavens before it pushes us down into the dirt with some pounding breakdowns. Words On A Letter closes the first half of the album by bringing in some Metallica and Judas priest styled riffage, whilst huge tribal drums are gathered in the pre-choruses and followed blissful vocal harmonies that are orchestrated in the choruses.

Finally opens up the second part of the album on a major note, with the uplifting choruses being elevated by 80’s sounding key boards making this the most pop sound track on the album that features some awesome keys and guitar solos trade offs mixed in some groovy off beat hi-hat grooves. They may have gone soft for five minutes but don’t be alarmed because Right Now comes back with some heavy sounding riffs and furious thundering sounding double kick grooves followed by some twin lead assault before dust settles with their closing track Obsession.

Obsession throws every music style to the wall whilst making damn sure it sticks. It goes from Latin pop with it’s Spanish guitar styled strummed riffs accompanied by vocal trade offs and rumba styled drum beats. The track performs this perfect balancing act with it’s Latin elegance and it’s pounding modern metal grooves before it fits in a short piano before the final chorus closes it.

Attractive Chaos released a strong follow up to their to previous release The Fire Between Us. The chemistry between the members is still running strong, from their strong slab of metal to their exotic takes of Latin and 80’s pop. The bands flawless ability of the throwing any genre to a wall and making it stick is astounding, resulting at carving deep path to their defying future. 8/10

The Exploited - Punks Not Dead & Troops Of Tomorrow (Cherry Red Records) [Rich Piva]

As a kid growing up on Long Island and investigating every record store, I could ride my bike to, I used to see The Exploited albums on the shelf all the time but only went as far as checking out the dude with the crazy mohawk on the cover of their records and tapes. Something so punk rock as having a haircut like that was a bit to crazy and scary for this sheltered suburban kid, so I probably bought Look What The Cat Dragged In, but were their haircuts really so much better? It was only in my college years that I understood how cool and important the The Exploited were to UK punk and the punk scene overall. 

The Scottish band was huge in the UK, with both albums and singles making it into the top 20 of the charts. Their music, message, and influence were even bigger than their fleeting success, influencing thousands of kids to pick up an instrument and rage against the machine (before it was really cool to do so, you know, in the 90s.) They were not first, and sometimes they were slagged off in the press, but you cannot discount what they did for punk. So, let’s all thank, once again, Cherry Red Records, for brining us a cool package of the band’s two biggest studio records, Punks Not Dead and Troops Of Tomorrow, in one nice package with bonus tracks for both of these legendary punk records.

The Exploited’s first record, Punks Not Dead, is titled to literally tell the world just that after many thought that was the direction the genre was going in or was already at. This is working class punk rock, loyal to the first wave of the 70s and resolute in keeping that flag waving. The album made it all the way to number 20 on the UK charts on the heels of tracks like Army Life, Dogs Of War, Exploited Barmy Army, Ripper, and the title track. It is a must listen for any fledging punk rock historians who have not heard it before. Along with the original 15 tracks you get another 15 B-sides, alternative versions, and live cuts, making this pressing worth it for newbies and fans alike.

Also included is the band’s second album, Troops Of Tomorrow, which I prefer of the two. It is rawer and is straight ahead thrash punk that influenced a number of bands from the US punk/thrash/crossover scene, like Agnostic Front, DRI, and SOD. I love the face ripping opener Jimmy Boyle, the killer Daily News, Sid Vicious Was Innocent, and the Mr. Bungle covered U.S.A. Cherry Red gives us some extra treats here too in the form of six additional rarities to make the completists very happy.

While the band always seemed to have to justify their existence and their credibility, there is no denying how important The Exploited were to punk rock overall. As usual, Cherry Red is here to help us understand this, so go pick this up and teach yourself something about punk rock history. 8/10

Warlord – From the Ashes To The Archives: The Hot Pursuit Continues (High Roller Records) [Paul Hutchings]

We touched on Warlord earlier this year when Free Spirit was released. American’s Warlord were one of the classic metal outfits who specialised in a brand of epic metal that the likes of Manilla Road, Sentry, Cirith Ungol and any band that plays at Keep It True Festival deliver.

Whilst Free Spirit was a new studio release with a new line-up, From The Ashes To The Archives is a limited edition released to mark the band’s summer shows. It’s basically re-recordings of the 2002 album Rising From The Ashes but with the new line-up and some original parts by founder William J. Tsamis, who died in 2021.

Eight tracks spread over 45-minutes allows Warlord to flex their mega muscles in a way that will appeal to anyone who enjoys the fantasy lyrics and riff heavy metal that the band play. Tracks like Invaders, Winds Of Thor and Achilles Revenge give you an idea, as if you needed it, of the content.

Without wishing to sound cynical, there’s very little reason I can see for this album being released. The music is okay, although some of it is very ponderous and dated. It’s defiantly rooted in the 80s, and songs like Achilles Revenge with it’s dual Maiden-esque guitars have that giant feel about them for sure.

Ultimately, if you like this band, then this reissue is going to be on your list. If you aren’t a fan, I cannot for one minute see you rushing out to buy it. A solid but probably unnecessary release. 6/10

Thotcrime - Connection Anxiety (Prosthetic Records) [James Jackson]

Blending electronic elements with more traditional metal instrumentals is not as rare as it once was, a surge of movie soundtracks from the 90’s helped pave the way in regards to mashing seemingly opposite genres together with a variety of results. The influx of metalcore bands adding techno, cyber, dance elements to their craft has pushed the crossover into the mainstream a bit more; it’s no wonder then that the amount of bands exploring this venture is increasing.

Thotcrime, the band consists of members from the UK and the USA, their third full length album Connection Anxiety builds upon a catalogue of EP’s, remix albums and guest appearances.
Their sound is primarily an energetic mix of hardcore riffs and samples, blending quite pop like elements with blast beats and near black metal vocals; there are moments where everything gels exceptionally well and every track has a touch of something different to it.

It soon becomes apparent though that sometimes less is more and the blending genres gets muddied as one sound competes and conflicts against the other rather than work in unison as it ought to; vocally at times this is also the case, both female and male voices can be heard throughout the album and at times they work really well with the music they accompany, at other times not so much. And that’s the general feeling that I get from this album, that at times it’s strong and coherent, others it’s too eclectic for its own good. 5/10

Reviews: Thermality, Massive Hassle, Positive Reaction, Myrk- (Reviews By Matt Bladen)

Thermality - The Final Hours (Black Lodge)

Formed at Vara (Sweden) Academy of Music & Business, Thermality are a disgustingly young, disgustingly talented band playing the style of metal Sweden is most associated with. Yep it’s melodeath, influenced by Dark Tranquility, In Flames, At The Gates, Arch Enemy, Soilwork etc etc. Going through a few line-up changes as they were all basically still in school, they are now a solidified five piece with one album, mixed by Fredrik Nordström and an EP behind them. 

In quick succession, just five days total, they have recorded a follow up album, again mixed by Fredrik Nordström and have been signed to Sound Pollution/Black Lodge Records, which explains why something recorded din December 2023 is only now being released. So does The Final Hours expand upon their debut? Well not really, there’s more maturity in the writing as the members used it as part of their course so, there’s more studious refinements, but mostly Thermality leans on technical guitar interplay, thrash/death metal riffs and screaming vocals, all the trademarks of melodeath. I will concede that they’re a talented bunch and with a band so young there’s always time to progress in their musical journey. 

Hopefully now their studies are out of the way they can focus on perhaps adding some new wrinkles to their love of classic melodeath. 7/10

Massive Hassle - Unreal Damage (Septaphonic Records)

Marty and Bill Fisher return with the second Massive Hassle record and the brothers again combine their influences and their other bands to make another stomping 70's garage, blues, doom rock amalgamation, composed and performed with the duality only brothers can muster.

The Nottingham duo again sing in unison from Crap Is Your Life to Somewhere Sane, choppy, fuzzing riffs and muscular drumbeats are the major focus but on tracks such as Chorus Of Dawn there's some bluesy soloing ala Jeff Beck, the blues sticking around on the strutting Stay Sound, going a bit Clapton while Right Time merges Dire Straits with Thin Lizzy.

What's excellent about Massive Hassle is that you can pick out Mammothwing, Church Of The Cosmic Skull and Dystopian Future Movies (Walk Of Shame) but it has it's own undeniable flavour, from the gospel ruminations of Tenspot, the singer songwriter machinations of Somewhere Sane, to the twisty QOTSA-like Lost In The Changes and the glam rocking of Crap Is Your Life. Their first album was the brothers starting Massive Hassle as grandly as possible, Unreal Damage is them settling into their position amongst both men's vast output. 7/10

Positive Reaction - Dreaming Of Violence (Engineer Records)

A South Wales 'supergroup' Positive Reaction is a collection of musicians from the South Wales scene who are all devotees of NYHC and Detroit punk, its music with a message, delivered brashly and aggressively through the snorting, sneering vocals, the four-piece, soon to be five, cite bands such as Agnostic Front, Negative Approach and Discharge as influences and with this four track EP they bring so much of those bands but with a bit of Welsh grit.

A track such as Why? has a repeating vocal line, shouted by vocalist Mike, as it's mirrored by a riff from Jon. In the back room Gav's bass is high in the mix and gives open bass grooves. It's anthemic and makes you want to shout along, while Building Something has a lot of punk, 90's groove too hooked on Chris' expressive drumming as Burn It Down rages as the final act of defiance, a solo coming through the background. Dreaming Of Violence is an incitement to rebel, to fight anyone who wishes to oppress. Positive Reaction's second album adds more maturity, cohesion and attempts to merge old and new school hardcore. 8/10

Myrk - Instinct (Self Released)

Savage death from Bristol created by drummer Adam Myrk- Robertshaw (though it's him only on the EP) and joined by Will Jones, vocalist of Dehumanut, along with a live band made of Drew Lanfear (lead guitar), Adam McKay (rhythm/lead guitar) and David Harris (bass).

Instinct is the debut EP from Myrk (stylised as Myrk-) a three track assault on the senses which attacks from the outset. It's the sort of aggression that saw them playing alongside Terrorizer and Damin recently so Myrk- must have the chops and the potential to hold their own.

Vicious and violent, the Bristol battery of Myrk- is something to behold if you like it heavy. 7/10

Reviews: Scarlet Rebels, Dark Tranquillity, Tim Bowness, Extinction A.D (Reviews By Matt Bladen & Mark Young)

Scarlet Rebels - Where The Colours Meet (Earache Records) [Matt Bladen]

Scarlet Rebels have featured in these pages a lot, whether it's album or live reviews going right back to when they were V0id. It's because they're a Welsh band and we're a Welsh publication but with each passing release they belong more to the UK as a whole. On a similar trajectory to Those Damn Crows but climbing the ladder their own way, Scarlet Rebels continue to play the smaller clubs and stages to get their message and their music out there.

That's not to say they haven't had success, they've had a Top 10 record but Scarlet Rebels do things their own way and while TDC have become arena sized due to anthemic party anthems, Before this SR have gone for more political and societal clout, a left leaning perspective on life coming from their West Wales upbringing. They have been very active collecting for food banks at their live shows and with Where Colours Meet they are distributing 100 preview copies of the album to local charity shops all to raise money for charities.

Their last record See Through Blue was a damning indictment of the Conservative party and they don't let up with Where The Colours Meet, the world is still broken and Wayne Doyle (vocals/guitar) still has something to say but this album is more about inspiring unity against those that see fit to divide us. They have pushed the boat out for scope by getting Colin Richardson and Chris Clancy to produce the record, one of the best teams out there, moving Scarlet Rebels sound towards stadia.

This more anthemic production works well with the positive message of the music, it's about unity and the band have ingulfed their blues based rock n roll with strings, piano and a massive drum sound that the band say was inspired by U2 and Springsteen, it's classic but modern, Wayne's vocals calling for understanding and unity on It Was Beautiful, as he locks into cavernous rock grooves alongside the rhythm section of Gary Doyle (drums) and Carl Oag (bass). This trio are the foundation, the blue collar strut that lets Chris Jones play more intricate leads and impressive melodies than before.

It's an album that is set to make Scarlet Rebels, an all in rock record that has killed cuts, including two long time live favourites Let Me In and Practice Run, finally recorded. Alongside some special guests such as Elles Bailey on the mega ballad Out Of Time which she co-writes while My House My Rules has a Lizzy-like propulsion courtesy of Ricky Warwick co-writing it. There's a bit of Def Leppard on Grace, some troubadouring on Streets On Fire, a big old smack of AC/DC Secret Drug and emotive rocking on Declining.

Where The Colours Meet is THE definitive modern rock album of 2024. 9/10

Dark Tranquillity - Endtime Signals (Century Media Records) [Mark Young]

One of the bands that has somehow escaped my attention Dark Tranquillity has been releasing music since their inception in 1991. Endtime Signals represents their 13th full-length release which is monumental in terms of recorded output. As I’m late to this particular party it seems that they have been navigating some choppy waters in the last few years with the departure of original members, leaving Mikael Stanne as the last man standing from the band's creation. As charter members and in some circles credited with At The Gates as kickstarting the Gothenburg sound that harnessed melody with downright filthy death metal, it’s an exciting release for me to review.

So, with all this in mind I’m slightly disappointed. It sounds great, the production is spot on, it is crystal clear, but it doesn’t land the way I hoped it would. It’s entirely possible that I have got the wrong end of the stick in terms of what I expected.

Shivers And Voids is our opener and starts off at a canter with those as promised melodies on display. Mikael’s voice is suitably gritty and there is an air of authenticity to it, but it feels light as I was expecting something a little heavier. The reliance on the arpeggio passages is the reason why it comes across the way it does as if they were trying to please two different audiences. I expected more something to really grab you by the throat and drag you along. 

Unforgivable is more like it, sounding like the opening track should be. There is some absolutely fiendish riffing on this one, working like a beast whilst those crystalline melody lines drape themselves over it. It’s a quality song and for me should have been the lead off track (opinions will vary, obviously). 

Neuronal Fire is a pretty standard melodic rocker, if anything it comes in a little lacklustre and already, I’m feeling that this is going to be an uneven release. Melodic death metal, when done the right way is one of the most thrilling listening experiences and here it as all the right ingredients and an urgent lead but there is a definite pattern forming, one that screams that it is following a safe arrangement – melodic riffery into a slow measure back up to speed and repeat.

Not Nothing, starting off with clean vocals just takes me right out of it, and as it develops that pattern, I mentioned is there for all to see. I’m starting to dislike the experience now because its now predictable and boring. I never thought I’d say that this early in a review. Let me point out, that just like Neuronal Fire it knows it has a job to do and just does it. It feels lifeless. 

Drowned Out Voices is as melodic as you like, there is a reliance on slower ‘anthemic’ chords and the clean vocals that come in just don’t fit. Its possible that the arpeggios played over the cleans are not helping and this sounds so similar to Arch Enemy, circa Wages Of Sin? The main verse guitar lines are as good as you would hope, its that insistence on wanting to drop back the tempo just so they can shoehorn some atmospheric touches in there. One Of Us Is Gone, in all honesty should not have been on this album. I’ll leave it there.

The Last Imagination sees them get back on the melodic death train, unfortunately listener apathy has set in. The notes I mentioned on predictability ring true once more as an effective riff once again gives way to piano and an attempt at an uplifting chorus. They have just settled themselves in now, slippers on, sat in the comfy chair waiting for the Horlicks to be brought in. Starting brightly, Enforced Perspective is more speedy, more instant and I’m now waiting for it to throw me under the bus. 

Huzzah, they didn’t possibly realising that they have leaned too far one way and are now trying to pull things round. Our Disconnect sees them back in that mid-temp arena again and by now I’m just letting it pass over me. Musically, like all of the songs so far there are flashes here and there but that blueprint that each of them shares is just there. There is no danger, and it feels as though they are treading water.

I’ll be honest, the last three songs, Wayward Eyes, A Bleaker Sun and False Reflection just come and go. Wayward Eyes using the clean vocals again, the song has one eye (no pun intended) on wanting to be something else and is just forgettable. A Bleaker Sun just riffs on what they have done earlier, and False Reflection just made me give up.

Sorry.

On the review release, there were two extra songs not listed on Bandcamp, Zero Sum which has a cracker of a riff and a great build and In Failure which is a belter until those cleans come in, they just don’t work.

On reflection, it is a frustrating experience. As one of the OGs of the Gothenburg scene, and also having 30 plus years under their belt I expected more from them. There is some great riffs on display, but the willingness to follow what appears to be a safe route almost every time means that any possible thrill evaporates. I think that existing fans will enjoy it. I think fans who lean more to the cleaner side of the melodic will like it. I’ll leave that with you. 5/10

Tim Bowness - Powder Dry (Kscope) [Matt Bladen]

Tim Bowness makes his Kscope debut with the 16 track, 40 minute art rock record that makes the first time Bowness has written, performed and produced a record by himself, his podcast partner and no-man other half Steven Wilson mixes the record in stereo and surround sound. He was also there during the creative process to juggle ideas, perhaps due to his years a totally solo performer.

That's what Powder Dry is a collection of songs that are totally Tim, a true solo album that are influenced by the likes of Joy Division, The Cure etc, all bands he has captioned on The Album Years Podcast, and ones that encapsulate the themes of this album such as extremism, the environment and crisis, perhaps why the title is Powder Keg.

Industrial beats permeate though Idiots At Large, atmospherics and dreaminess are the cornerstone of A Stand Up For The Dying and while Ghost Of A Kiss and Summer Turned are two conflicting but equally as catchy tracks, while This Way Now strips things back to acoustics. Powder Dry has ominous overtones due to the subject matter but there's a kaleidoscope of musical colours from Tim Bowness here. 8/10

Extinction AD - To The Detested (Unique Leader Records) [Mark Young]

The 4th full length from the Long Island natives

Desperate Grasp has typical hardcore ‘sound’ in the production, hardcore vocals that are delivered with force by Rick Jiminez, a hardened thrash edge running through it. Verse arrangement into chorus hits that sweet spot of combining both genres without losing sight of what makes them work. I think it leans more into the Thrash side ever so slightly, especially with the lead break that erupts late on. 

It’s a strong start, and it’s onto Escape From New York, which is more (day I say) funky before those diamond hard guitars come in properly and take over. The short stabs remind me of Pro-Pain, and Pantera as they deploy those longer riff patterns. Its quite the mixed bag that used well, wisely avoiding any repetition of Desperate Grasp. What is telling is that they can make what is a mid-paced track move with intent.

Epidemic Of Mutation wants to stomp a hole in you, and goes for it from the off, there is a serious chunk to their sound, its monstrous really, especially when you compare against other bands that opt for use of 7 or 8 strings to be heavier without proper application. It’s a sound that you would kill for. Its three for three of efficient crossover metal. 

With Apocalypse Rising we find them dropping further into hardcore territory, that’s not to say that it is leaden, there are moments of speed and little melodic touches here and there but what is apparent is that after 4 songs I think that we won’t hear anything that departs too far from the blueprint that has been established so far. Again, what I would say is that what they do is very good, its heavy AF but there is a sense that the slow / rapid measures are going to dominate proceedings. 

Impervious (Unrepentant) is grand, featuring Matthew K. Heafy and as I thought it doesn’t move too far from their core sound there is a mint chorus section and a lead break that is spot on. There is a closing measure where the drums and guitars are as one, set perfectly as Fill The Void decides its had enough of the slow stuff and goes full throttle so when there is a pre-lead slow-down you don’t mind at all. This is more like it, its fast, urgent and almost takes flight. More of this please.

Burnt Sienna kicks in with some Latin percussion and makes me eat my earlier words about a blueprint. Sorry lads, as they flick a switch and go from acoustic into full on electric, then hit us with Shepherding Swine, an energised beast of a thing, acting more as Deathcore with some fantastic flourishes, once again anchored by some prime drum work courtesy of Mike Sciulara. The drums are the epitome of someone who understands the brief and is just in total control of the kit. 

The penultimate track, Behind The Veil Of Sanctity realises that the finish line is in sight, and they need to close out strongly. And they do, mixing up that thrash/ hardcore attack (as they have done earlier) with a scorching solo and some of those storming riffs. Speaking of storming riffs, final track The Cure Or The Cause there are some cheeky Slayerisms in there which fits so well. This is built for causing maximum damage in the pit and we should mention that there is some sterling work on here from Ian Cimaglia (guitar) and Tom Wood (Bass). 

The final track stays on traditional ground, and I mentioned that after Apocalypse Rising that the songs would follow a largely similar format as the album progressed. This was the case, so on one hand you could be a bit snarky about it, mentioning the lack of variety from track to track and so on and so forth. Or you could look at this as being an aggressive collection that manages to hit the target in achieving the perfect balance between thrash and hardcore, resulting in some destructive music that is built for causing injury and mayhem (in a totally cathartic way) live. I’m going with the latter. 7/10

Reviews: Heavenblack, Kaisas, Senses, Nightsteel (Reviews By Matt Bladen)

Heavenblack - Blindfolded (Sleaszy Rider Records)

Ahh nothing I like more than when a band successfully makes modern old school heavy metal. The Greeks seem to be especially good at it and Blindfolded the debut album from Heavenblack is another quality addition to the collective. 

Though they don't sound Greek, in fact they sound like they come from Bridgend, yeah there's bits of Queensryche and Priest but the overriding sound is that of Bullet For My Valentine or Trivium as the classic metal harmonies are brought through some modern metal meatiness, My Insane for instance is thrashy as is The Dominant. The tracks are anthemic, with a big drum sound and biting guitars, the mainly mid-pace riffs leading to big choruses, such as Hell Denied and On My Skin. 

Vocally too there's lot similar to Matt Tuck, clean and a bit angsty as the tracks are well written but never jump out too much at you. Bags of talent on offer here but if they're aiming for more of the Evergrey/Queensryche sound then I suggest making the music a bit more progressive than it is. Still a decent modern old school metal record. 7/10

Kaisas - Ieria (Sleaszy Rider Records) 

The fourth album from Greek hard rock band Kaisas is not as cohesive as it should. Founded by Babis Kaisas (guitar/bass/songwriter) and drummer Fotis Nestor Canister are the core of the band but Ieria features 9 singers including David Reece (Accept, Bangalore Choir), Ian Parry (Elegy), Alan Kelly (Shy), Paul Jackson (Roadhouse), all well versed in the AOR/melodic rock genre which is where this act is comfortable. 

Unfortunately like a lot of the early years of this genre Ieria suffers from a lot of dodgy lyrics. Apparently inspired by female nature through history, a lot of the lyrics bring the ick, the exception being Birmingham Lights which is dedicated to Tony Mills. The rest though is not good, the songs are quite basic, the vocals feel phoned in from everyone involved and the lyrics often are just dire. I don't like to badmouth an album but I didn't find much to enjoy on Ieria. 5/10

Senses - Under Your Spell (Self Released)

Now this is how you do AOR/Melodic rock! Under Your Spell has the slickness and song writing of a band who seem destined to sign to Frontiers Music. An album cover dressed in neon pinks and blues, it sounds exactly like it looks. Paying homage to the likes of Journey, Boston and Night Ranger as well as more modern Scandi acts such as H.E.A.T, Eclipse. The booming opener Silent Disco sets the scene with some similarities to Separate Ways, the neon and sunsets shimmering through the song about letting go and just enjoying yourself.

 
There's the typical lyrics of love, loneliness and using music as a release. Lonely takes things towards a poppier direction while Hard Action has some chugging Leppard style guitars as Out Of Line brings a touch of NWOBHM. The keys stab, the guitars rock (I Know) and the vocals are highly melodic, with maturity in the lyrics especially on the tough ballad of a title track. Senses can pen a tune, saving the best until last as bona-fide radio single Give Me Life... is such a good cut they even retitle it ...Charlize for an acoustic version to close the record. You will fall under Senses' spell very quickly, with this album of catchy, modern melodic rock/AOR. 7/10

Nightsteel - Nightsteel (Self Released)

I'd love to tell you about Nightsteel, but I can't find anything about them as a band, no band members, no info, nothing. They have a bandcamp where you can buy this debut, but no other social media. So apologies in advance if I don't go into as much detail as I should and also I apologise if Nightsteel are an A.I band (power/classic metal seems to be the go to genre for A.I created content). *Editors note - they are a real band*

Anyway what's the album like? Well it's classic heavy metal inspired by Helloween, Gamma Ray, Accept and Manowar, very Germanic in sound and scale with twin axe harmonies, meteoric vocals and plenty of speed. The one gripe is that the production is all over the place, some tracks are very modern some are more retro but the music scratches every itch you could want.

Be it with synths on Eternal Fight, mid-paced rockers on Calm Lake and a Whispers Of The Heart is a big ballad. Again the lyrics aren't the most creative, Panagioti is a major crime no matter how heartfelt the sentiment. So the mysterious Nightsteel bring the steel with classic power/heavy metal. I'll keep digging about who the hell they are. 7/10

Reviews: Brave Rival, Hail Darkness, Berenice, Evilyn (Reviews By Paul Scoble, Rich Piva, Matt Bladen & GC)

Brave Rival – Fight Or Flight (Self Released) [Paul Scoble]

Second albums have the tag of Difficult attached to them, a bands first album tends to contain songs that the band have been working on for years, they have probably played the songs countless times live before they have to record them. 

Then along comes album number two, and the band have to write and pretty much immediately record that make-or-break album, it’s no wonder second albums have the Difficult label attached. One band now having to take the anxiety causing next step with a second album is Portsmouth based band Brave Rival. The blues rock band have been together since 2019, and took three years over making their first album; Life’s Machine, released in 2022. The musicians who have to do this are Ed Clarke on guitar, bassist Billy Dedman, drummer Donna Peters and two, that’s right, two vocalists in Chloe Josephine and Lindsey Bonnick.

The style on offer on Fight Or Flight is a mix of blues rock, hard rock, progressive rock and blues. With two lead singers the vocal side of the album is stunning with lashings of vocals harmonies, and choruses that are very big and singalong. However, the band haven’t cut corners on the music which is just as good as the Vocals.

The album kicks off with the song Bad Choices an up-tempo boogie rocker with a taut controlled verse and stomping chorus. As you would expect with two vocalists the vocals are huge with some great harmonies. Next comes the song Seventeen, a mid-paced strutting piece of rock music. The chorus has a great flow to it, and the song also boasts a great guitar solo.

Stand Up features the talents of Will Wilde on harmonica, the song is a blues boogie with a measured and controlled verse and big chorus with great harmonica work on it. The song has a great guitar solo as well as a great harmonica solo. Next comes the first of several ballads, Insane opens with soft and gentle clean guitar, and beautiful vocals, the chorus takes the song into power ballad territory with a much bigger production and huge vocals. The song has a very emotive guitar solo and builds to huge proportions before collapsing to a soft and quiet ending.

Fairytale has a soft intro before the song turns towards taut driving rock that has a very purposeful feel to it. The chorus is very big and powerful, and quite heavy as well. Heavy is another power ballad, starting with soft and clean guitar and vocals. The song builds once it reaches the chorus, adding strings that sound huge before the song drops back to the soft and clean verse. 

Again, the song builds to a huge chorus with lots of strings, this goes into a great guitar solo from which point it’s a huge power ballad with lashings of strings until the song reaches it’s end. All I Can Think About has an Americana feel to it, strummed, clean guitar and lush vocal harmonies which in the second half of the song reach Gospel proportions, the vocals are really great throughout the song, which also has a very affecting and emotive guitar solo.

Next comes the song Five Years On which is a great piece of boogie woogie Southern rock with really fun vocals and a great up-tempo stomp. The song has a great chorus and a huge ending. Unravelling is a great pop rock song that’s full of energy and fun. The song boasts a chorus that is full of melody and a great melodious Guitar solo.

Sink Or Swim is an interesting piece of progressive rock with a verse that feels a little like Post Rock and a chorus that is huge and dramatic that reminds me a little of some of Devin Townsends less Heavy material with similar dynamics. Blame The Voices has an Epic feel to it, with maybe a little bit of James Bond Theme as well. The song features lots of strings, and feels huge and powerful, vocally this song is stunning and has an immense ending.

Fight Or Flight comes to an end with the song Stars Upon My Scars, a melancholy Blues ballad with very emotive vocals and guitar solo. The verse is soft, gentle and sad, whilst the chorus bigger, powerful and very emotional.

Fight Or Flight might have been a difficult album to make, but it is not difficult to listen to, its superb. A great collection of songs, in several different styles that all hang together and feels like a complete whole. It’s a satisfying album to listen to, the ebb and flow and of the album takes you on a journey and nothing feels samey. The vocals are stunning and will definitely make the album stand out in a crowded rock marketplace, making Brave Rival stand a little apart from the rest of the crowd. Great album, highly recommended. 8/10

Hail Darkness - Death Divine (Vatican Records) [Rich Piva]

*Updated 04/10/24* It seems that this record is the result of A.I (according to the only member of the band on Substack) It is claimed it was an experiment. We do not endorse the use of A.I instead of real musicians.

When I see tags like occult rock, psychedelic, and doom you bet I am going to be grabbing that album from the promo bin. When I start to play it and it sounds like it was recorded in a shed in the forest in 1975 (this is a compliment), has spooky doom vibes, and female vocals that send a chill up and down your spine you know this is something I am going to be screaming about for a while. This is exactly what you get with the debut album from Phoenix, Arizona’s Hail Darkness, Death Divine. Even with this band being from Phoenix, there is nothing warm about Hail Darkness or the ten tracks that make up the record. In fact, I had to confirm that their location was correct, as this sounds way to cold, dark, and evil not to be from some remote European village, but alas, here we are, and boy am I here for it.

The band has been releasing singles and EPs for a couple of years now, and the honing of their craft shows with a fully realized end to end record with Death Divine. I love the retro feel of this record and the early doom/proto vibes that are emanating from every note right from the opening track, Luciferian Dawn. This is some witch coven/satanic mass stuff lyrically, delivered by the head of the brood in the most wonderful way. The fuzzy guitar tone partnered with those reverbed vocals is a perfect potion to whip up the most excellent witch’s brew. I love how the second half of the track goes full on doom with a siren song to go along with it. 

It is not all just Coven inspired evil on Death Divine, you get riffs too, like the fuzzy one on Cult Of The Serpent Risen, but how about when the track transitions to bongos and incantations in the most glorious way? With Horns Of A Beast may be my favourite track, as we start to incorporate flute and you get some Blood Ceremony vibes. Another favourite is Goat Of Mendes…Raise The Glass as we go full on occult doom with a killer riff and excellent solo. It is hard to pick a favourite to be honest, with the great vocals on Coven Of The Blackened One, the fuzzy heaviness and weirdness of Azarak! and the killer riff and chunkiness of the closer, See You In Hell, any of your choices is the correct one.

I love everything about Death Divine. The witch’s coven vibes, the hauntingly evil and sexy vocals, all of the tempo changes, the fuzzy retro-ness of it all, the heavy and light aspects, and a million extra points for the album cover. Hail Darkness has a winner with their debut record, all hail the evil one, and all Hail Darkness. 9/10

Berenice - Berenice (APF Records) [Matt Bladen]

Violence, pure audio violence, that's what to expect when you listen to the debut release from East Anglia's extreme metal "super group" Bernice. I say "supergroup" as the band contains guitarists Dave (A Horse Called War), Charlie (Goat Monsoon) and Calum (from Obscene Entity). Alongside this triumvirate it's drummer Aaron (Devilment) and vocalist Jim (Bastard).

With a diverse past behind all of them, they bring a savage mix of bands such as Nails, Black Breath, Power Trip and All Pigs Must Die, forming in 2023 the recorded this savage EP not long after forming and signed to APF in anticipation of peeling off your skin with their stark, savage extreme metal that comes from an intense place.

This EP is the audio version of a kick in the nuts, it's an instant stab of pain and then a dull throb of that lasts after the EP ends. They're raging at the gap in wealth, the unfairness of poverty, the fact that many are struggling so hard just to even live. All delivered by raging vocals and buzzsaw riffs.

Berenice make an impact on this debut, unflinching aggression, aimed at those in society that exploit the poor and the needy. Savage and satisfying. 8/10

Evilyn - Mondestruken (Transcending Obscurity Records) [GC]

When a review for a Transcending Obscurity release lands in my inbox I’m usually pretty sure that it can be guaranteed to be fairly decent as there one of those labels that rarely misses with their signings and so we come to today’s release and following on from forming in 2017 and releasing an EP a few years ago, this is Evilyn’s debut album release Mondestruken, so is it any good?

Opener Dread doesn’t really give you much time to prepare yourself as its full of erratic and off kilter guitars that screech and squeal but there is also a very prog like feel to the way the song pans out towards the middle and its definitely death metal but not as we would usually expect it to sound and it feels like the beginning of Omission is just a continuation of the previous song as it continues with the more slowed pace and is heavily bass lead and throws in some experimentational guitar sounds randomly here and there and they are needed to add some life into the track as it does slightly pick up the pace towards the end of the track and it ends in a somewhat abrupt and chaotic fashion.

Limits has the doomy/prog nature from the outset and it’s a slow and lumbering beast of a song that never really gets out of first gear and kind of stays the same and is actually slightly tedious when it hits the midway mark as its all just to slow and once again they finish with a flurry of technicality and flair but it just seems out of place. Bloviate means to talk at length in an inflated or empty way and this is what it feels like the music here is doing I just can’t get my head around the slow and doomy riffs with odd timed double bass drumming and twangy basslines that all just seem too erratic for its own good and a bit confusing as to what they are aiming for? 

Penance when it starts does actually sound a bit more of a straight forward death metal track it has the slightly slower than normal pace but all the music finally matches but then they revert back to character and drop all the momentum and straight into more doom influenced sections but here it seems to work a bit more that it has previously and for me is probably the best song on the album, Vacuous continues with the decent run and is more tech influenced than most of the songs and here the stop start nature of the song actually benefits what they are trying to achieve and even the signature prog influence adds another interesting sound to the piece as a whole. 

Interwoven is another solid track and the shorter runtime also helps because they now seem to focus on creating a sound that isn’t spaced out and sections added for the sake of sounding technical all the trademarks are there, and you fully know what to expect now but it doesn’t sound as forced here as it has on some other tracks, Forgotten falls directly back into the slow and lumbering section but here the addition off some nice squealing pitch harmonics add another dynamic as the guitars don’t just sort of happen they now grab your attention in a good way and there is some nice chaotic drumming that also catches the ear. 

Into the closing stages on the album and Slithering is another passable track but it’s just once again a bit too one paced throughout, and it just sort of gets a bit tedious the longer it goes on and its not even 4 minutes long so that paints its own picture! So, Eat The Elite closes the album out on an unexpectedly savage high note, its another of the shorter tracks on the album so the focus is all out, and you don’t then get too mixed up in the whole technical but somehow doomy tedium of some of the previous tracks.

To answer my original question, is it any good? I have got to be 100% honest and admit that this wasn’t really for me, it wasn’t that it was bad it just got slightly too similar in some places, and you can tell that there is definitely something there and some parts were genuinely decent to listen to but honestly, for the most part I was slightly bored and don’t think I would give Mondestrucken another listen anytime soon. 6/10

A View Of The Tributes: WV1 Fest (Live Review By James Jackson)

WV1 Fest - Saturday 10.08.24

Offering two stages, over two days and over twenty bands offering a wide variety of tribute acts to some of rock and metal’s most popular artists, WV1 Fest has been on the scene for the last decade.
Remarkably I hadn’t heard of it until about two years ago, by that time, tickets had sold out but I made it my intention to attend the following year.

 
Saturday the 10th of August marks the second year that I’ve attended and I wasn’t disappointed. Located in West Park, Wolverhampton the location offers a number of facilities to keep you entertained, fed and watered throughout the day; both stages are easily accessible for all attendees, open spaces offer more than enough room for your own chairs as well as some well spaced picnic tables, a few fairground rides offer a different sort of entertainment and for those looking for a bit of shopping there are a few tents offering clothes, temporary tattoos and the like.

 
Opening the festival was Sack Sabbath, who do a great job of not only sounding like Black Sabbath but also looking like them as Ozzy and Iommi’s impersonation is on point, both in mannerisms and appearance, tracks from the (original) bands back catalogue are played out under a suitably grey sky; including Fairies Wear Boots, Symptom Of The Universe as well as the obvious choices of Iron Man and Paranoid but for me the inclusion of Children Of The Grave was a personal highlight.

We stick around the main stage for Faith No Man and whilst my knowledge of Faith No More’s material is extremely limited, recognising only a few tracks including We Care A Lot and Epic, plus the Commodores cover, Easy.

 
Hi On Maiden were next on the Rabbit Hole Stage, but it was the draw of Ghost tribute act Popestars that took us to the Hangar Stage and some much needed relief from the sun, I caught Popestars at last years fest and thoroughly enjoyed the performance, the interaction between the band and the audience was fantastic and this year they didn’t disappoint; tracks from Ghost’s catalogue such as Rats, Absolution, Mary On A Cross, Spillways and Square Hammer to name a few are lapped up by an eager audience.

Heading back to the main stage after a great set by Popestars, we are greeted with technical difficulties as Stiff Bizkit have taken to the stage, they battle on regardless and impress with their performance.

There’s a delay in proceedings as PA issues are attended to before Metal Militia take to the stage, another act that was at last year’s event and the fact that they’ve returned this year is proof of their talent and dedication to their craft. They thrash through the Metallica covers, old school hits from Master Of Puppets and Ride The Lightning garner mass appeal from the audience, the classics are greatly received, they throw out Lux Aeterna and The Memory Remains, the latter from a very much divisive time in Metallica history.

With two bands left to play, a Guns N Roses tribute followed by a Rammstein tribute.. I leave.. begrudgingly… but I’ve other arrangements elsewhere, a showing of The Lost Boys at an outdoor cinema.

 
Apart from the aforementioned PA issues, WV1Fest has yet again, done a great job of providing good quality entertainment for a reasonable price, something which is in short demand these days.

A View From The Castle Grounds: Holding Absence At Chepstow Castle (Live Review By SJ)

Holding Absence,  Casey, Caskets & Glass Hearts, Chepstow Castle 10.08,2024

Allow me to paint a picture… it’s a warm summers day in one of Wales’s oldest castles in Chepstow. There’s an incredible line up of talented artists who will be performing outside during the Perseids meteor shower… what else can make this more breath taking? As it is Chepstow Castle, it did mean it was open to the public during the day giving some of us the opportunity to wander around the venue, hear the sound practise and potentially bump into some of the artists who are walking around. The queue outside started a few hours before the doors opened as fans eagerly and patiently waited outside. Holding Absence’s Ash, kindly tied signed drumsticks to the stage barricade for fans to take home, which was a thoughtful gesture albeit most were gone before the event started.

First on the line up were our very own Cardiff alternative rock band Glass Hearts. They opened with their new single The Worst Part Of Me, which was released just a few days before and it was met with good reception from the crowd. They provided energy to kick off the event as the castle was still filling up, giving the crowd a buzz as they were walking in bopping their heads. Although, as it was still day, we couldn’t get the full effect of the stage lights, but the audio quality, vocals and performance overall were great. The highlights included The Worst Part Of Me and Letting Go.

The Leeds quintet Caskets cascaded the stage with Drowned In Emotion. They were energetic from the get-go, with fantastic vocals from both Matt and Craig throughout the set. Benji owned the stage with the guitar and James smashed out a drum solo that riled the crowd up. They got the crowd singing and surfing. Highlights include Lost In Echoes, Glass Heart and Drowned In Emotion – mainly songs from their 2021 album Lost Souls.

Before the next act, we were treated to a lovely palette cleanser of the Welsh national anthem, again highlighting how important the event is to the Welsh community.

Casey provided some of the heaviest songs of the night and, they went back to their roots by playing one of their oldest songs first, Bloom which was released in 2016. They then brought the crowd to an emotional standstill with Happy and brought it right back up again with the guitar riffs from Toby which got the crowd going, causing mosh pits to erupt.

It started to get darker during this set, so the stage lighting was becoming more prominent. Tom confessed that he would hear about his heart surgery in two days and exclaimed that it is a humbling experience to perform after Caskets. Tom has been open about the need for open heart surgery as the reason Casey had to cancel some of their shows a few months ago. I wish Tom the best recovery. Highlights include Little Bird, For Katie, Happy and Bloom – songs predominately from Love Is Not Enough.

As the sun set and the meteor shower was at its peak, the lights from the stage illuminated the crowd. The headliner of the night, Holding Absence echoed “Heart in hand. Here I am.” From Head Prison Blues and the crowd erupted. This was followed by fan favourites Like A Shadow and Her Wings, respectively. Holding Absence performed 16 songs, with the live debut of Drugs and Love, Death Nonetheless and These New Dreams. Lucas’ shout outs are just as poetic as the lyrics to their songs as he bellowed “Reach for the stars. None of us have the right to be doing what we are doing.” They also proceeded to throw paper aeroplanes into the crowd, with Lucas exclaiming “Thank god Holding Absence can play instruments because they can’t throw paper aeroplanes” providing laughter. 

Holding Absence always provide high energy stage presence and the crowd mimicked this as there was a lot of crowd surfing, dancing and emotional moments such as a proposal. The crowd were enjoying it so much that they were advised to hold back a bit because the barrier at the front might collapse. Highlights include Head Prison Blues, Like A Shadow, Her Wings, Honey Moon (with Lucas playing the guitar), These New Dreams, The Angel In The Marble, A Crooked Melody and Afterlife. (Special shout out to the merch design for the hoodies and tops, they looked amazing, and I couldn’t help but buy two).

From the outset, all the bands’ emphases how meaningful this night was for them and how important this night is for the fans. There was clearly a huge amount of respect for each other amongst the bands, with each band giving their thanks to one another and the staff who came together to put this show on. It was a magical night from the culmination of the venue, the meteor shower, friendly staff, high quality stage production and a passionate line up that can’t be replicated. It will be a fond memory for years to come.

A View From The Back of The Room: Radar Festival Day 3 (Live Review By Matt & Tom Bladen)

Radar Festival 2024, O2 Victoria Warehouse, Manchester 26-28.07.24

Sunday 28.07.24

Day 3 and it was in a little later to start as the first band we wanted to see was Adharma (9). Again a band made up of Radar Alumni, I've managed to miss them every time they have played locally so to say this was anticipated was an understatement. The project build around Charlie Draper, her own personal history and tragedy has shaped these songs, she uses them as catharsis, scars worn proudly and displayed through anthemic modern pop metal. With band made up of the scenes most talented players, Adharma's shows are safe spaces, in keeping with the festivals overall manifesto of inclusivity. A boisterous start to Day 3 with a lot of love in the room from the crowd and the crew.

Next there was more sheer virtuosity on display Oxymorrons unfortunately had to pull out it was another Radar long time alumni that took the spot. Acoustic guitar genius Mike Dawes (9) arrived with a blast of A Shuffle In D Minor, his self deprecation and between song banter as entertaining as his brilliant playing. Coming from the same school as Tommy Emmanuel, John Gomm and Andy McKee his tapping technique is wildly inventive and lends itself to playing instrumental covers of songs and interpreting them in his own way, so Van Halen's Jump is followed by Gotye's Somebody That I Used To Know and then John Mayer's Slow Dancing In A Burning Room where he can fall back on his blues chops. Friend to many in the Radar fraternity Mike saved the day here closing with a version of Euclid by Sleep Token that was breath-taking.

Elsewhere on Sunday we had the ultra modern rock meets R&B of Siamese (7) which was slick and highly enjoyable as was the 'future jazz' of Sungazer (7) which continues the angular shape throwing from Dirty Loops the previous evening before Blood Command (7) levelled the second stage with total aggression.

More on the aggression front later though as on the mainstage it was Welsh future megastars Holding Absence (9) who showed why they will be taking on arenas very soon. Fusing metal, pop, rock and anthemic courses; Lucas (vocals), Scott (guitar), Benjamin (bass) and Ashley (drummer), continue a proud tradition of Welsh post-hardcore/emo spearheaded by Funeral For A Friend, Hondo MacLean, The Blackout alongside contemporaries Casey. Emotional vocals that got the crowd singing back, making it feel like being amongst friends as Hold Absence have an intimacy to their show no matter how big the stage but they also have a star quality, it's from the honesty of their lyrics and the maturity of their music. Not long after this they played a headline show in Chepstow Castle cementing their arena ready status.

Back to the second stage and remember what I said about heaviness? Yeah well I doubt I've seen anything as punishing as Hunanity's Last Breath (8), the second stage headliners and penultimate band of the weekend, closed out the Sneak Energy Stage with a sound that threatened to flatten Manchester. Brutal, technical deathcore HLB make a statement with colossal breakdowns, thunderous riffs and guttural vocals. Seriously if you like music that is heavy as a heavy thing then HLB will batter you into submission.

The final band of the festival was Norwegian proggers Leprous (7) who played a 'real time request' set, what this entailed was them playing songs that they had chosen as part of their recent setlists and then give the audience four choices of songs at six different occasions. Now Leprous are a brilliant live band, they have refined and adapted their sound as the years have progressed, each album taking them further into more melodic and anthemic territory as their early prog metal sound has been shook off.

Now with a set like as this I was expecting for them to perhaps delve into their last a bit further than they did. But unfortunately there were no choices from Bilateral and Tall Poppy Syndrome given as I'm sure much of the fanbase would love to hear these again. However the furthest back we went was to 2013's Coal but we did also get two from the as yet unreleased Melodies Of Atonement (due 30th August), but mostly it was a lot of songs that have been commonplace in the set for a while now.

Still maybe I'm grumpy as Leprous were great, they perform well but I perhaps wanted a bit more digging into their catalogue.

So that was Radar 2024, a festival that will continue to grow and adapt, creating it's own space in the UK festival scene as an inclusive, eclectic alternative to so many that continue to book the same acts again and again.