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April / May 2004Legacy | Wycked Synn | Mick Monroe | Kinetic | Salt the Earth | Fat Ass | When Dreams Become Nightmares | Cernunnos | Neo Blast Compilation 3 | The Dead Heros | Estrogenocide | Anima Nera | Feverdream | Iron Maiden | The Crown | The Last Year | Royal Anguish | Son of Eric | HESS | Herod | Anathema | Terror 2000 | Driver 13 | Cadaveria | Conspiracy AD | Chaosbreed | Snake Oil Supercharm | Streetwalkin Cheetahs | Brides of Destruction | Funeral for a Friend | Chigger Red | Kraised | DTA | Total Devastation | Torture Killer | Mutliated | Mindsnare | Seasick | Ronin | Beyond Surface | Steve Vai | Joe Satriani | Warrant | Tesla | Eric Moore & the Godz | Puddle of Mudd | Orquesta Del Desierto | Bucket Boys | End of All | Secret Heroes | Place of Skulls | The Ancient Enemy | Force of Evil | Dragonforce | Cheap Trick | Gamma Ray | Leatherface | Heavenly | Frost | Hammerfall | Fleshcrawl | Valkyrie | Crionics | Khold | W.A.S.P. | Persuader | Hate | Omegalord | Mower | Sceptic | Jasad | Corpse F_ckin Art | Mortifade | Insomnium | Chainsnap | Dyecrest | SOiL | Dragonforce Legacy If only the sound quality was as brilliant as the cover art. In my opinion, a prog-metal act should never be underproduced. An album of this caliber deserves glossy production. Aside from that, I've owned recodings by three different bands named Legacy so no originality points will be rewarded. Just like LA's Black Triangle, I'll give some vocal advice: Show off that killer scream more often!!! http://www.www.legacyrocks.com Wycked Synn Thank God someone successfully released a Melodic Power Metal CD so well-crafted it compares to the early works of Crimson Glory... Not a bad note on the entire album. Every moment is perfectly executed, almost as if it were a compilation of my personal favorites. Headbangers will surely miss out if they don't hear this masterpiece. Bravo, Lads. For more on Wycked Synn go to http://www.chavisrecords.com Mick Monroe Welcome new Canadian/Filipino artist Mick Monroe. That's about all I can do. His debut release Original Symphony is hailed the future of rock-n-roll. Ah, sorry! Excuse me?! This release from start to finish is a blast from the past. I know there's quite a few 80's hair band fans out there and I apologize. If you got down to the brass tacks, I could probably call myself one. Well maybe. Aren't we over that . It seems every track has that cheesy sound to it. It's hard to describe but I think you may already know what I mean. Song titles range from My Drug Is Love, Motley and Kiss, to Blasted in Beverly Hills. And so forth. I can't totally slam this release or be negative towards Mick Monroe. On this disk he recorded and engineered. He mixed it, designed the packaging for it, wrote all the songs minus one which was written by Cory Tetford. Fifteen in all. Plus, he is responsible for all the vocals, all instruments performed and programming. All of which are done very, very well. There's definitely a very talented individual here. He gets the E for effort award. I just can't get past the style portrayed here. Kinetic Forming back in 2002, emerging from the Greek underground metal scene, Stavuros Bonikos-guitars(ex Brain Fade), Savvas Betinis-bass ,vocals (ex Acid Death), Manolis Mamas-guitars(ex Brain Fade), and Kontandinos Alexakis-drums(ex Wisdom), rise up to give you their straight from the gut, aggressive death metal. With heavy influences of thrash ,power, progressive, and death metal, Kinetic give you their somewhere between 'Swedish and American' technique brand of death metal. Just call it Greek death metal if you will. With their slashing solos, intricate melodies and pounding drum, the three tracks on this self produced/release demos are nothing less than great. Very professional looking demo I might add. Tracks are 1. The Realms of Nightmare, 2. Hate Master, 3. Never Ending Winter. Fans of Soilwork, Dimension Zero, In Flames take heed. Head to the web and get yourself one of these before it's too late. We will be hearing more from Kinetic very soon. Kinetic is currently label searching. A great listen over and over. Salt The Earth This already released ep, The Process Of Breaking comes to you from Lawrence , Kansas based Sat The Earth. Salt The Earth is an emo rocking band. Developing a different approach to heavy music, delving into their post hardcore, metal background. Some good intricate guitar workings here. Very personal and emotional lyrics throughout this hard edged disk. A not too heavy nor too light style. Good song writing going on. Destined for the airwaves. Check them out if they happen into your area. I feel the members passion and dedication to the music as opposed to their college careers will pay off. Fat Ass Hailing from the Summit City, Fort Wayne, IN, Fat Ass are a high energy, guitar rock, punk band. Their sounds gives me a reminder of Ramones, Rancid feel. An all out old school punk feel. Lonesome Sal-guitar, vocals, Skinny Jay-bass, vocals, Erick Fromohio-guitar, vocals, and Salsa Dave- drums, vocals, bring out a fast, slamming attack. With tracks like Shut Up And Drink, Booze And Pills, to Mommy You Stink and Rub One Out. As well as others. Thirteen in all. Fat Ass give you a fast, fun parting brand of punk rock. All punkers and those slightly interested in punk must check this one out. A well rounded release. Definitely a good listen. fatasstinks@yahoo.com When Dreams Become Nightmares If I'm not mistaken, and understanding their website correctly, WDBN are no more. Dead. Upon entering the site, a message comes up saying,' When Dreams Become Nightmares are dead. Everyone is off doing other things. It was fun. Thank you, drive thru. This is some very unfortunate news. Belting out an infectious blend of a crossover mix of hardcore and metal in the vein of the Crumbsuckers and Agnostic Front. This New Orleans outfit gave a powerfully startling debut titled Lucid. The bands many influences ring throughout. Members listen to anything from Earth Crisis and Sepultura to The Cure and Sarah McLachlan. Hopefully they impacted the underground scene enough to make it back together soon. Cernunnos Up from the ashes, from the land of Georgia, USA, come Cernunnos. A very talented young band. Back by world renowned keyboardist, Adina Blase, Cernunnos give you their own patented brand of metal. A dark mystical journey into black metal. Very well done I might add. Great song orchestrating. The Beast lets you transcend into an atmospheric world of dread filled, high octane metal. Will appeal to all fans of black metal. The Beast contains five tracks that never lose any heaviness or intensity. A great listen over and over. You've gotta check out Cernunnos. http://www.mp3.com/cernunos Neo Blast Compilation 3 Neo Blast Records unleash their third compilation/sampler, Blast From The Underground. A great selection of death/black metal from all over the world. Some heavy grinding death and doom going on here. It's interesting listening to the many styles of death metal from all regions of the world. I'm already tracking down some of the titles for myself. Some great underground death metal bands here. Twenty-one in all. This disk is a must for all. Bands are as follow: The Dead Heros I feel punk rock, good punk rock is a lot like blues musicians. It's a feeling, something deep within that brings out the music. Sure, anyone can put out a punk album. But that's all it will ever be. The Dead Heros give unto you, their latest. Let It Ride. And it's good. Clocking in at just under forty minutes with eighteen tracks, The Dead Heros capture the true meaning of punk. Loud, fast and angry. Pissed off hard edged lyrics, greatly intense songs that make you want to get up and slam someone. The Dead Heros are Kirk-guitar-vocals, Doug-drums-backing vocals tom-bass-vocals/ great soundtrack for those driving 110 mph. Or even if you just want to feel it. Estrogenocide Well, how to begin this one. Hmmm, well they claim to be an industrial/goth/pop/metal/grind core band with influences of Depeche Mode and Napalm Death. Whatever the case may be. I can't speak for any of their previous releases, but this one sounds like the prerecorded tracks you get on a kids keyboard with the tempo on high. Each track consists of circus type keyboards with a drum machine. I believe there was a guitar once or twice somewhere in the fold. I'm really not willing to double check. The couple times I listened to this was enough. With a running time of fourteen minutes, the few songs were agonizing. The lyrics are pretty twisted. Deep spoken pornographic, sadism with plenty of decapitations. For fans of the sick and perverse, this is a must. For fans of music. You might want to pass on this. Anima Nera Anima Nera embodies a number of extreme Metal timelines and styles neatly presented in one blissful if bleak package. At the forefront lay pummeling Black/Death screams led by a barrage of power chord progressions, speed riffing, and dual guitar harmonies, all supported by a dense layer of bottom heavy 4/4 and double-kick percussion. They're reminiscent of early age UK greats and more recent Nordic heavyweights like Amon Amarth, In Flames, and The Haunted where extreme brutality meets melody and musicality "Beneath These Skies," "Somber Eyes, "My Razorblade Romance." And then there's a touch of the European class where grim collides with gruesome, smattered with Gothic subtleties, exemplified on tracks "At The Feet Of The Wicked" or the nihilistic terror exhumed by "Flatline," a "Mercyful-ly" dark song that's blindingly fast and loud and incorporates an unexpected acoustic drop for elegance at the center. "The Ashes Of Innocence" is a crooked jaunt through the corridors of the Prog/Death that aims for modernity as one might pass a glance toward fellow American extremists Shadows Fall, Beyond The Embrace, or Lamb Of God. Anima Nera's self-titled debut is an impressive display of excessive aggression and melodic marksmanship, portraying the dim side of the human psyche amid somber wanderings in the dead of night. Outside of dangerous speeds and deafening volume, rarely do these attributes parlay or serve to suggest the musicianship that lay at the core of most Death Metal groups as something of substance. The band proves that songwriting skills and a continued focus on progressive depth and traditional influence will revolutionize the dead weight of yesterday's uni-dimensional design. Their powerful and precise style of play will leave a lasting scar on first time listeners or continued skeptics reared on the Scandinavian scene… none of which proves evident on the three minutes of "Untitled" background effects and their noisy cover of Motley's "Too Young (For Black Metal)" spin-off here. But eight of the ten ain't so bad! Expect to hear more about Anima Nera in the near future. Feverdream An apropos name for the Dutch trio that makes music that's both feverishly energetic and calmly soothing. Yet you don't mistake them for the plethora of Emo-brands hitting the Indie, and lately, major markets. Their sound's still a step or three below the mainstream which adds an element of intrigue, if a degree of independence to the still developing style, which could be classified as "Alternative Rock" had the name not been drubbed and done to death a decade ago by Pop radio. There's a multitude of vibes hitting the air on "Future Directions," making several stops along the way from Indie Rock, Emo and even New Age, but settling at no point of Pop artifice in particular. Songs like "60 Seconds" and "What Pedro Says" offer a one-two introduction into the stressful and subduing a viable combination of droning atmospherics and languid guitar picking that's mysterious as it is melodious. "That Black" is an underwater moment for much of its 4.5 minutes, punches up a few power chords to close, relaxes, then gives way to one of the more jarring moments on the record, "The Story Of Joanna," a rough-edge, punk tune backed by a Gothic progression and torturous vocals; "Tech-no-logical" is a return to the serenity of earlier, this time riding a tormented verse and dissonant riff; "The Project Of '78" impresses as among the best of moments here, featuring a catchy opening groove led by a lurking bassline, it falls back, leaps forward and with a resounding chorus demands full volume; and at over four minutes, definitely qualifies for "epic" status among the generally three and out average of the rest. "Future Directions" is Feverdream's third recording and boasts eleven songs that are flighty, slightly fancy and a tad obscure for mass consumption. Envision the elementalism of post-Punk groups like Sonic Youth or Drive Like Jehu and the minor key dissonance of Interpol or Anathema where tension and tranquility intertwine and disperse a dynamic yet soulful effect. Iron Maiden "Dance Of Death" sees the band in the unenviable position of following up their successful "Brave New World" comeback; a transcendental album that signaled the end of not only the Blaze-era band but also one that found Iron Maiden as more a progressivist band; one looking forward and furnishing a deeper, broader style of play that incorporated the work of three guitarists and dramatic movements of epic-length proportions. "Dance Of Death," like its predecessor, takes a few listens to fully absorb and once it does, it will find its way among their more respected works. Beginning with two of the more immediate and quick tracks, "Wildest Dreams" and "Rainmaker," the band features plenty of heavy guitar work and melodies, while pushing personally-relatable lyrics beneath uplifting choral arrangements like following dreams and accepting change. In following, "No More Lies" combines a creeping instrumental, familiar to most from their "X-Factor" and "Virtual XI" days, before ripping into a powerful "Afraid To Shoot Strangers" style chorus, while tracks like "Montsegur," "New Frontier," and "Age Of Innocence" are classic Maiden, full with pummeling riffs and quick pace. Overall "Dance Of Death," not dissimilar to "Brave New World," is a best of both worlds record that embodies the evolution of styles from the earlier power recalling the likes of "Piece Of Mind" or "Powerslave" with the more technically intricate and adventuresome found on later works, prominently "Fear Of The Dark" and the aforementioned Bailey-led duo. Thematically, the band cuts characteristically through the centuries, glancing back and looking forward one or two hundred years, with boldness and sincerity, covering topics as governmental abuse, the legitimacy of religious freedom, war, power, and human frailty framed in relevant issues and imaginary tales. Historical references as indicated by "Montsegur" or the wondrous epic, "Paschendale," another age-old Maiden trademark which takes place on the body-riddled fields of the fallen as an eight minute crusade of sharp instrumental breaks and time shifts that measure the might of Manowar's metal hammer and battle hymns. Here, a defining moment and one of their strongest works to date. The same can be said for its follow up, "Face In The Sand" which after a mysterious, orchestral opening lays the hammer down with a rare double bass entry, terse vox and dark harmonies. One might question the Maiden's ability to break away from the typically long, languid greetings that have marked many a song entry since the foreboding days of "Fear Of The Dark" as well as concluding an otherwise potent yet polished record with the astral-like acoustics of "Journeyman," a Pink Floyd-ish ballad better left for B-side status. Outside of this, "Dance Of Death" is both immediate, involved, ambitious and generally energetic. It's another sophisticated success story amidst a collection of many and worthy of long-term appreciation. The Crown "Possessed 13" is a statement of endurance for the Swedish extremists. Now in their 13th year, they've created 13 new tracks of fresh blood and blasphemous rage the way we've come to expect. The name's the same, only the Lindberg has changed. The Crown tore through the gates of Death Metal back in '98 with their impressive "Hell Is Here," the first release for Metal Blade. But early last year, having added renowned At The Gates vocalist Tomas Lindberg and recorded the acclaimed "Crowned In Terror" release, the band was lauded by fans and critics alike as having created a true masterpiece that functioned fully on all fronts of the Death Metal and musical extreme. It is therefore understandable that the band roars back with a vengeance in the wake of their short-lived union with Lindberg, and the reunion with the original vocalist, here doubling as the customary "Satan from Hell," Johan Lindstrand. Lindstrand's intense howls and growls pierce the night sky with a horrific effect that couldn't be more graphic if the bringer of death himself were to come calling. Something to prove? The band may never admit it, but the proof's irrefutable in the playing. Had they never recorded the famed "Crowned In Terror," The Crown had already consistently developed as one of the premiere players in the Death industry. "Possessed 13" is an artfully drawn creation wrought of extreme excess. The band's integrity and intensity is fully fit and the songs remain chilling and coarse as ever. Divided among three parts, "Initiation," "Exaltation," and "Annihilation," or beginning, middle, and untimely end, it's everything we've come to expect from The Crown and a whole lot more. Tracks like "No Tomorrow," "Deliverance," and "Are You Morbid?" which features some of the most dynamic fretwork on a record wrought with dual guitar-playing prowess, display the hard, cold side of the band, with their tuned low riffing and efficient killing speed, ably supported by the machine-like behind the kit, kicking exploits. The devastation, however, is met with reflective moments of melody and gothu-drama as indicated by the tuneful instrumentals of "Dream Bloody Hell" and the closing "In Memoriam," further setting apart The Crown as conscientious musicians at the core of the mayhem. While the first seven tunes are forcibly drawn speed-driven works of extreme aggression designed for maximum damage, The Crown's procurement of the traditionalized Metal structure that recalls the "darker age" of merging melody and evil, "harmony and blasphemy" if you will, which peaks through the black on tracks like the tunefully catchy "Bow To None," Thrash and groove of "Kill 'Em All," and pure chill-effect on the epic pre-closer, "Dawn Of Emptiness." The Crown's created another true masterpiece in the vein of early Entombed, Carcass, and recently bands like Soilwork or Kataklysm. "Possessed 13" also features ghastly splatter film-style front cover work and for those lucky enough to score the limited edition deluxe black set with bonus disc, there'll lie a pleasant surprise as the band revisits and reduces their earliest original demo and studio recordings to ashes for all the world to witness. The Last Year I have an album by a band that really had no business making music. When it comes to bad music...and I mean really bad music...this band could very well win top prize. The production was crap, their performance was exceptionally bad, they were out of tune and the vocalist couldn't hit a decent note to save his life. I also know someone who was a guest musician on this release and when I brought it up to him, he was ashamed to admit he even took the time to help 'em out because, in all honesty, there was no hope for this band. If you could find one person on the face of the planet who would have anything nice to say about the music, well, it would be a miracle. You'd have a better chance of seeing God. But, you know what...as poor as this release was, the band at least took the time and effort to do it up right. It was a totally professional package. The music itself wasn't worthy of this honor, but, it was still done. So, what does that have to do with this release? Well, let's get to that right now. First of all, I didn't ask for a copy of this release, it was sent in for review. Can't say that I ever heard of this band and, when that's the case, you want to make a good impression. You want to present yourself in a manner that would best suit the band. You DO NOT wanna send in your material on a CD-R with your band name written on the disc with a black marker. You want to INCLUDE the name of your tunes, don't leave me guessing. According to the press material, this band has accomplished quite a lot and they've done some amazing thing in their short career. They're making quite a name for themselves. Hell, they even did a show with Anthrax. Yet, they present themselves in a manner such as this? Sorry, it just doesn't work for me. This shows a real lack of professionalism. I wouldn't go out and buy a CD from this band for the simple reason that I wouldn't know if I would get my money's worth. If I wanted to buy these tunes, I wouldn't know what to ask for because I don't know the song titles. My question is, how can a band that's doing so much do so little when it comes to promotional material. That would be like writing a review without actually talking about the music. I wonder what that would be like. Royal Anguish Right out of the gate death metal assault. Belting double bass drums and slamming guitars. As quick as it starts, a deep drop into darkness. From deep growling vocals to that of a shimmering, melodic operatic female voice. Powerfully working the melody back into a progressively trashing pace. This direction runs throughout the disk. Plenty of acoustics, piano and inner-twined vocals leave you in an almost dream state, while the heaviness of the songs keep you in check. Royal Anguish draws many comparisons to that of Enslavement to Beauty, Dark Tranquility, After Forever, The Gathering and Opeth. As with these bands, this release will enlighten the listeners of many a metal genre. Their gothic/black/death/thrash fusion of hybrid metal is second to none. 'Atmosphere, My own Despair, Haunted Whispers'. These are just a couple of song titles off the disk. All ten are excellent. Extremely high levels of musicianship and song writing here . Do what you can to get this one. You'll be thanking me later. Very, very impressive. http://www.royalanguish.com Son of Eric Backed by Bryan Erickson-guitars/vocals, Mike Jezmer-drums and Mark Jezmer-bass, the twin cities based hard rock band Son of Eric give you eleven rocking tracks on their latest release. The Son of Eric project was started in February of 2003 and was complete in September of the same year. Obviously. Throughout the disk you can hear the heavy influences of Led Zepplin, Badlands, Audioslave, Foreigner and Whitesnake ring true. The track ' 1000 Reasons ' is already receiving regular airplay on many regional radio stations. Some others to look out for ,'Something Fierce, Burn and Song of Sin.' There are some fairly descent tracks on this disk if this genre is what your into. We'll have to see what the future of this project holds. http://www.torokmusic.com HESS Two guitar virtuosos are featured on this opus, Tom Hess and Mike Walsh, backed up by bassist Mark Carozza and drummer Scott Hess. The album is all instrumental, and the two guitarists show off their talents throughout, each possessing his own style, although the music is distinctly in the neo-classical vein, akin to Satriani, Vai, and Malmsteen, with a Dream Theater-like progressive rock/metal foundation. They play in a variety of styles on the album, from metal to rock to progressive to classical. Sometimes they rock out full throttle, sometimes they chill out and slow down. The classical style guitar they often use is a good contrast to the lightning speed electric playing. Some songs have a dark somber mood, some are more lighthearted, some vary between moods. The guitars go non stop, the two players' styles complimenting each other, which adds to the intensity of the music. Tom and Mark are quite a pair, a dynamic, guitar slinging duo, with a lot of talent. They are brilliant guitarists and songwriters, and they have turned out a work of art here, that guitar fanatics should love! I, personally, wouldn't mind hearing some singing on their future albums, but this is still a fine piece of work! Herod As far back as I can remember, New York Metal has always been associated with the 'tough guy' image. Years ago I would compare NY bands to Pro-Pain or Biohazard. Lately there has been a lot of Hatebreed style stuff around, but Herod is different. Not to say this album is completely void of that tough guy image but they amazingly enough incorporate a melodic value that reminds me of early Iced Earth. It's always refreshing to notice more guitar solos & vocal harmonies in Metal. Recently, the old stylings have resurfaced and Herod has jumped aboard the 'bandwagon' if you will. For more go to http://www.herod.cc if this sounds like it's up your alley. Anathema I don't know about a natural disaster, because disasters are at least exciting. This CD is not. I'm not saying it's terrible, but I found it pretty damn boring. Just about all the songs are slow, mournful, shoe staring numbers, sung by guitarist/vocalist Vincent in a mournful voice. The music is a mix of different styles; electronic, rock, emo, progressive, and new age, with the use of keyboards, programming, sound effects, sampling, rock guitars, and piano. Acoustic guitar is used on a few of the songs, such as "Childhood Dreams" (an instrumental, with "baby talk" samples in the background) and "Flying" (a Stone Temple Pilots/Pearl Jam type tune). On the title track, a woman named Lee Douglas sings lead She sounds a bit like Jewel, and has quite a nice voice. The one song on this album that rocks a little bit is "Pulled Under At 2000 Meters A Second". This is a driving rock tune, and as I said, the only one of its kind on this disc. I think there should be more like it! The song I found to be the most interesting, however, is closing track "Violence". It is also an instrumental song, which starts off mellow on piano, then advances into being a rocker with guitars and pounding drums. Then these fade out, and the piano and keyboards come back again, until the song ends. This is the album's longest song, clocking in at over ten minutes. To be fair, the musicianship and songwriting on this album are quite good, and the musicians themselves are talented enough, but I just didn't find it all that exciting. All the songs, except "Pulled Under...", are really slow and sleepy, and who wants to hear a whole album of slow songs, unless you're having trouble sleeping? There needs to be more rockers on here! All slow just doesn't cut it for me! These guys are a capable bunch, they just need to step on it more often! Terror 2000 A wicked live recording from this thrash band. The recording is good and the music is sort of Panterish in spots, but is way more faster. The vocals are gruff and the music is razor sharp riff after fast riff. Driver 13 This a one of those new metal bands that play their metal with lots of groove. I hate 99% of those bands, but this band stands out. The vocals make the difference as he has a nice set of pipes and he mixes up his style and he fits the modd with his vocals. The music is metal with lots of groove and catchy riffs with a strong production behind it. Very good for what it is. Cadaveria This was ok, it was just too much groove and I didn't like the female singing and the band just seemed to like a lot of other bands doing the same tired formula of death metal, the nu metal jump type think. Conspiracy AD Fast pouding death metal in the vein of say Vader. The vocals are almost black metal like at times. The music is mostly fast slashing death metal, that while is not original is still enjoyable. The production is good and the band is keeping the death metal flame high. Chaosbreed At The Gates style of swedish death metal. This is fuckin fast and brutal, and yes it is overused words, but this is. Great powerful vocals and this is old school played with deep feeling and emotion. This is what death metal should sound like. Info: http://www.crashmusicinc.com Various Artists Remember Zodiac Mindwarp & The Love Reaction? The "tattooed beat messiahs" who gave us a "back seat education" back in the day? They were a leather-clad bunch of Hell's Angels type ruffians who played the raunchiest and sleaziest of rock and roll, with a touch of punk and goth to their music, similar to Guns'N'Roses, Alice Cooper, the New York Dolls, and the Cult. At the time, Zodiac and crew made many other of the rock/metal bands on the scene look like boy bands in comparison! Unfortunately, ZM were a bit of a flash in the pan, fading into obscurity almost as soon as they came, due, I'd say, in large part to that pesky grunge invasion! Frankly, ZM are not a band I would have expected to be given a tribute album. But I guess most of the famous bands have been given tributes at this point, so here we have it...A Zodiac Mindwarp tribute! It contains twenty three songs - that's over two album's worth of Mindwarp material! I'd never heard of any of the bands that appear on "Snakeoil...", but all of Zodiac's best known songs (and then some!) are here: "Backseat Education" (Cracktorch), "Prime Mover" (Isabelle's Gift), "Tattooed Beat Messiah" (Speedfreaks), "High Heel Heaven" (The Lanternjacks), "Bad Girl City" (The Humanoids), etc. Most of the covers here don't sound much different from the originals, played in the same Zodiac Mindwarp, sleaze rock/metal vein, but there are a few bands who give a different twist to the Mindwarp songs they cover. Two bands, Punish Yourself and Superdeformed, do industro-goth versions of "Elvis Died For You" and "High Priest Of Love", respectively. These sound in the vein of Danzig's "Blackacidevil" album. There are also a couple of female fronted (perhaps all female?) bands on here, who give "sex changes" to two Mindwarp tunes; Queen Bee with "Untamed Stare" and The Dollyrots with "There's A Barbarian In The Back Of My Car". The final song on this album is "Meanstreak" by Gideon Smith. This is a very Beatle influenced song. I don't know if this is how the song originally sounded because I've never heard the original. To be honest, I've never bought a Zodiac Mindwarp album, I just heard their main songs and saw the videos on MTV back in the day. But maybe I should think about adding one their opuses to my collection. This is a fun, rocking tribute to a fun, rocking band, and with twenty three songs, you sure get your money's worth! The Streetwalkin' Cheetahs "Maximum Overdrive" continues the road rage put to record initially drawn upon with '97s "Overdrive," and features 18 blazing tracks of adreno-rock classics to pump your blood and burn your bike tires to! In addition to "Overdrive," the new record's filled with outtakes, rare cuts and cool uncloaked collaborations with former scenesters like Radio Birdman's guitarist Deniz Tek on the opening "Do The Pop," and "More Fun" plus Cherie Currie of The Runaways for the age old "Cherry Bomb." The 'Cheetahs began life in the mid '90s and were at the forefront of what would become the "Garage Rock" revolution that's since made Pop stars out of many would-be underground pioneers. Some hit, some didn't. But The 'Cheetahs have remained faithful to the cause, commercially outcast, if only by a string of poor luck than the ability to write catchy, memorable Rock anthems with a revving motor and revivalist ambitions. The 'Cheetahs capture the essence of Hard Rock's dirtier days, circa '73 '77 when the likes of The Dolls and Iggy's Stooges ran rampant as well as the sleeker stylings of showmen like the outback's 'Birdman or occasioning a Power Pop collective fronted by the likes of Cheap Trick. They've borrowed and followed the true blue style of packing power chords, sharp hooks and live rage into rebel anthems and were conceived to be all of those things and have excelled at them; outlaw rock for the outdated and outcast with a voice of discontent and dirty fingers or comparatively speaking today, The Supersuckers, Zeke… "Maximum Overdrive" builds on the original and goes heavy on the additives to rope in plenty o' screaming 'Cheetahs fans while amping up the hard rocker rebel in general from dead generation, glam and gutter, to modern day wind-aided glory on the street punk level or Scandinavian scale. Brides Of Destruction The heart of Rock n' Roll has an irregular beat. With this recent influx of water/oil mixture of styles housed on so-called Rock radio, there's little left to latch onto for the true Rock fan. How many can still admit to even listening to the radio? So here come "The Brides" armed with bullets and fresh blood tainted though it may be, we'll not digress into the members' past lives that's been gone so long since the advent of lyrical seriousness and lack of star quality. B.O.D. has designs on reintroducing the dangerous elements to Rock n' Roll that initially rose to the surface in the '80s when bands like the Crue were Motley and names like Axl and Slash and Hollywood and Hell lived hand in hand. The band features Nikki Sixx and Traci Guns, joined by fellow scenesters Scot Coogan, Bad 4 Good and bad again, and London LeGrand, he of the previously low profile, fits well on vox good voice, decent range, clever name, recalls singers like David Glen Eisley and James Christian, both of whom you would know if you knew Motley and the rest of the Ratt pack, but if not, LeGrand's got a deeper tone than yer Izzy's and Jizzy's of the day; or more Corabi then Neil on the ol' Crue scale. B.O.D. recently forged a formidable foursome with the funky name that's far and away fiercer than that which they'd been afforded fronting their more recognizable fellowships. While it can be argued that L.A. Guns and Motley Crue each created some of their best work when their original vocalists returned to the fold, they remained socially isolated in a frigid listening environment. But timing is everything and while the one time supergroups swap status to become struggling side bars for the moment, "Here Come The Brides" barbaric debut, the first of a three album deal with Sanctuary, merges strong song crafting and a just escaped freshness that stands well in an arms folded, always in attack mode harder edged clime of today. Featuring nine tracks, the group combines ill-mannered likeness of aggression with beefy riffs, raspy screams and the big chorus that gave rise to one time gutter cats of the glam scene. "Shut The F**k Up" stands out as the strongest cut of the bunch with a very ol' school Punk'd up dynamic fed frequently by Guns' fast-riffing; ditto for "I Don't Care," a close second, and second in sequence, which rides a familiar "Cocked n' Loaded" style chord progression reminiscent of the 'Guns in their prime. "I Got A Gun" begins drearily before pulling the trigger and seconds later, its splatter day at St. Mary's. It doesn't take long for "Here Come The Brides" music to make its impact felt. Most of the nine tunes are of an extreme measure, both in attitude and amplification; the bark and bite the bandmates sought and found with the consummation of this unforced union. While Guns' riffability's never in doubt, his was a free expression that found limited liability in the ranks of an L.A. Guns band struggling for identity and eventual survival. B.O.D.'s tunes are darker, creepier, dirtier, chunkier and punkier than many of their trash and glam school brethren and day old diesel mechanics making the scene; and also quite soulful and pretty in places. As a tune like "Brace Yourself" would indicate in its troubling yet evocative delivery or the caustic but catchy "Life," they can also do pure teen drama with a Pop twist and courtesy hook befitting of many an Emo-product currently popularizing the WB's prime time lineup in spite of their darker wanderings. The Brides Of Destruction are a broad focused bunch of black panted bad guys with bad looks and semi-big hair going back to their untreated roots to redden the rose and return a little of the raunch and randomness to the red eye of Rock n' Roll… look out! Funeral For A Friend The Welsh fivesome's already made huge waves in the UK barely two years after they started. Having hit the ground running, they've shared the stage with acclaimed American Emo-acts like Boy Sets Fire and The Juliana Theory, posed for Kerrang's cover page, made countless radio and video spots, and are preparing to launch their major label debut later this spring! Right, so please put away any precept about Elton John, Tom Jones or Charlotte Church. FFAF's hit the scene like a house of fire, scorched the earth and undoubtedly drawn plenty of ire from seasoned scenesters who've logged a lot more studio time and stage. The band seems plenty hungry though. It can be heard in their sound; one that's equal parts confrontational and computational as well as easily digestible for malevolents and musicians alike. Think of the tempered aggression and skillful technique of bands like Avenged Sevenfold, Shadows Fall or In Flames and the superior attributes that set the standard and set them apart; Then there's the level of dynamism that A.F.I. brought to the Punk scene, furthering themselves with an element of risk amidst unexpected time changes, offbeats and match to gas mix. FFAF combines the preceding extremes, pulling apart and piecing together while lending their own degree of identity, strong and subtle, whether to do with a menacing Death riff, Maiden-drawn scale, or Pop hook see track five, "This Year's Most Open Heartbreak" for prime example. Other tracks like "Amsterdam Conversations" and "Red Is The New Black," are polar opposite in tone, time and melody, yet uniquely theirs; "The Art Of Amercian Football" is a blinding rendition of Speed Metal and Emo-core; All told, "Seven Ways…" sees FFAF blending elements Post-Hardcore, Emo, Punk, Nu-school bitterness and traditional Rock riffs, runs and reverb. This seven tune EP is a gap-bridging, growth marker, old to new, featuring the combined work from their earlier UK-only jaunts, "Four Ways To Scream Your Name" EP and "Between Order And Model." Employing the popularized smooth to scathing vocal approach with plentiful backing and two guitar dominance that packs plenty of punch and melodic charm, played at varied speeds, each song becomes a stand out example of artful aggression without combusting into a blur of confusion and lapsed time. Chigger Red Get your motor running and head out on the hard road of rock and roll with Chigger Red! THIS is rock and roll! Perfect music to rev your Harley to! This trio plays some bad ass bluesy, Southern fried, 70s influenced hard rock that kicks major booty! No frills, no additives, just pure, rough, raw, raunchy rock and roll! Singer/guitarist Mike Stansberry is a hell of an axe slinger, and really smokes on his guitar! His bass playing brother Chris and drummer Leo Cuevas back him up well, making up a hard as nails rhythm section! With songs like "Hangover Hotel", "Whole Lotta Woman", "Death By Alcohol", "F*cked Up In Vegas", and "That's A Crazy Bitch", these guys pull no punches, although they do throw in a couple of ballads here, those being "Till I Die" and "White Line Blues", something they didn't do on their last album, so it shows they're branching out musically a little bit. Chigger Red are a hard rocking band with talent, who just let loose and rock out, the good old fashioned way! That's how rock and roll's supposed to be! Kraised "Kraised" and "Haywire" indeed! This band packs quite a punch! The first song, "Impact", kicks off with some "NIB" style talking bass, then kicks into high gear, becoming a boot-in-the -ass, Pantera/Prong type tune, with James Hetfield type vocals. The last song on this disc, "Microburst", is also in this vein, another skull crushing, fist pumping, mosh pit inciting number, along the lines of Prong's "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck". As for the other two songs, "Close My Eyes" is a heavy ballad, heavy both musically and emotionally, with acoustic guitar, styled similarly to "Cemetery Gates" or "One", and "Not You" is like Pantera meets Pearl Jam. Pantera is definitely a big influence on these guys. The guitar playing is very Dimebag. Of course, there are tons of Pantera clones around these days, but these guys do a good job, and they have other influences too. Their singer (sorry, no names given) sounds a great deal like James Hetfield (it's nice to hear someone actual sing once in a while, rather than just screaming and abusing their tonsils!), while bands like Sabbath, Pearl Jam, and Prong have also rubbed of the band. Kraised are quite a good band, playing tight, heavy, and aggressive, with some musical prowess and plenty of whoop ass! Feel like getting "crazed"? Then put on Kraised! DTA 4 killer tracks of some prime deaththrash metal that simply crushes the weak. The riffs are total slay like as they had my head banging. The vocals are solid growls of death. The band sound tight and if these 4 songs are anyhting to go by, we are in for a treat when they do a full length release. Info: http://www.dtaband.com Total Devastation This sounds a lot like Fear Facotry and in some parts Godflesh at times. I am not into all this groove metal stuff and even though the band can play fast, this just bored me. The vocals are in the Fear Facotry vein too. Not bad for what it is, but just not for me. Info: http://www.arcticmusicgroup.com" Torture Killer A very solid old school death metal band here. Think old Obituary, Autopsy, etc with those killer low tuned down guitars. The vocals are classic death metal throaty vocals that just ozze death so to speak. A raw production too, nothing too fancy. This is the way death metal should be for sure. Buy this. Info: http://www.manicmusiconline.com Mutliated The name of the band and title of the cd pretty sum this up. Pounding death/gore group. The band pretty much play fast, but slow it down to keep things honest. I love the guitar solos and they are not trying to become the next Suffocation thank god. The wirlwind riffs will have you neck snapping to the bone. The vocals are low, but thankfully not that low and not just grunts. A solid production to boot. One of the better bands out there now. Info: http://www.foreverunderground.com Mindsnare A blistering fast death metal not to be missed. Riff after head slicing riff of death metal that will tear arms and slash limbs. The band mix a nice combo of old and newer death metal that sure packs a wallop. The voclas are strong as is the production. The band doesn't sound like any other band I can think of and I think you should do a smart thing and pick this up. Info: http://www.foreverunderground.com Seasick Below average death metal with tired riffs and vocals. The songs aren't strong and did not hold my attention for a long time. The songs just gonna plod along and there is nothing of value in my eyes. The band blast the tunes out with intesity, but it just lacks that killer punch. Info: mingo@gmx.at Ronin Well, here's a term that I never thought I could come up with. But, after giving this release a listen, the first thing that came to mind was to describe it as a college radio/indie-alternative Black Sabbath. Then I thought, well, maybe that's not the best way to describe it. So, I gave it another listen and, again, that's what I came up with. The band is doing their own thing, which is something I admire. I may tend to favor musical styles that you've heard a million times over. But, that does get boring and you find yourself wanting to hear something different. Well, that's what you'll get with this band. I was also suprised to find that Captain T is a member of this band. He did an album way back when where he did a killer cover of "We Are The World," which I actually still have. At first, I was a bit disappointed that this release wasn't in the same musical style as his former material. But, he grew as a musican and, as I said, there's something different going on here and that's what's really cool about this release. It's worth checking out. |
