Originally published in ‘zine issue #22, 1999
Agalloch Pale Folklore
(The End)
Another completely indescribable logo, for starters. This reminds me of Rotting Christ, particularly the single-guitar melody. I really like Rotting Christ and this band reflects some of their better traits with a tendency to go into Sadist flavored parts. Good start!
(by R. Mason) ■
Bolt Thrower Mercenary
(Earache)
I was somewhat underwhelmed by this release, which comes up short following the awesome …For Victory record. This might have something to do with the change in the drums department after that album. I’ve read an interview with the band in which they pointed out that they wanted to concentrate on the heaviness aspect of their music on this record, but I think they were always stronger when they mixed the heavy parts with the fast parts on their releases and didn’t just concentrate on one or the other, again the latter Bolt Thrower having apparently leaned towards on Mercenary. The record is just plain dull.
(by Editor) ■
Bolt Thrower Who Dares Wins
(Earache)
Who Dares Wins contains the Cenotaph 12″, the Spearhead 12″ and finally their tracks from the Rareache compilation. This material is from ’91, ’92, and ’94 respectively so of course it’s pretty old, but if you’re a diehard who has to have all their shit, then pick it up.
(by Editor) ■
Capitalist Casualties ’99 album
(Slap A Ham)
A collection of 7″es, splits and comp. tracks. 74 slabs of fast and faster hardcore that can only be described as the first D.R.I. album on crack. They’ve been thrashing since I was about 11 years old and they still rip the assholes out of just about every band before or since.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Cathedral Caravan Beyond Redemption
(Earache)
The latest album from Lee & the Boyz leaves me with a smile. It’s a Jong record—12 tracks, and while I don’t think all the tracks are strong (I’ll be honest: the only songs I listen to are “Voodoo Fire,” ”The Unnatural World,” and “Captain Clegg”), the music is generally good, and once in a while there’s a twist. I think that The Carnival Bizarre and Supernatural Birth Machine are song-for-song better records, but if you want some straight-up Cathedral, pick this one up.
(by Editor) ■
Crushed ‘99 album
(911 Entertainment)
Whoa, I haven’t heard drumming this listless since Bachman Turner Overdrive. This is a classic case of a band that wants to be heavy but still wants pretty girls to come to their shows. There’s a little Alice In Chains here, a little Stick there, even a light dash of Korn to keep the yawns comin’ steady. I don’t want to give the impression that this CD is diving-over-the-couch bad, but only the most sheltered Pearl Jam fan would have to wash his slacks after this limp platter.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Deicide Serpents of the Light
(Roadrunner)
Let me preface this by saying that I love Deicide. But for some reason I found this newest release quite boring, so I decided I would make a little checklist to see if I cound pin down the source of the sucking. Here goes: Glen Benton’s sick vocals—check. Steve Austin’s relentless double bass—check. The Hoffman brothers’ psycho lead breaks—check. Satan in the lyric sheet—check. Good riffs—OOPS! I knew they left something out.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Divine Regale Ocean Mind
(Metal Blade)
If you can imaging Geoff Tate singing for a slightly more aggressive Yes, then you’re on the right track. Ambitious arrangements, exceptional musicianship, and a versatile vocalist make this a very worthy exercise in progressive metal. Those who absolutely must have aggression in their metal should steer clear, but open-minded metalheads who respect musicianship and well-written songs should give it a try.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Entombed Monkey Puss (Live in London)
(Earache)
Why Earache put out a live Entombed record from 1992, especially one which was as poorly performed as this one and has nothing to do whatever with what the band is regrettably playing now, is beyond me. The musical performance is so bad that it’s distracting away from trying to enjoy the songs. This also came out as a video, so maybe that’s better somehow.
(by Editor) ■
Gnob ’99 tape
Gnob, interviewed last issue, is back with another recording, which is another creation of totally spastic music. It seems as though the three members of the band all meet in a head-on collision in each song. There’s plenty of fastcore parts and “powerviolence style” vocals, good musicianship, and song arrangements that sound like they were arrived at with the employ of a Cuisinart machine. Gnob really knows how to mix it up and they’re a lot of fun. (USA)
(by Editor) ■
Godflesh Us and Them
(Earache)
As usual I was quite excited to receive this new record. After the last album’s use of a live drummer I was anxious to find out where these guys where going to go with the next album, especially since I heard Ted Parsons was gonna play drums, so I was disappointed to find that they went back to the fucking drum machine on Us and Them. Don’t get me wrong, I think it sounds great—it has darkness, heaviness, a more pissy attitude and less “atmosphere” than on some of the past records, that slight hip-hoppy influence, all that good shit—but I wasn’t looking for “another Godflesh album” this time around. Consider that my friend, whose usual comment on Godflesh is that they can do no wrong, didn’t like this record, which I was surprised about.
(by Editor) ■
Grip Inc. Solidify
(Metal Blade)
With this album Grip Inc. has proven to me that it is one of those few metal bands that actually improve with age. They have taken me by surprise with a record that is filled with interesting riffs, thoughtful arrangements, strong vocals and (of course) absolutely watertight drumming. This is a classy, well-crafted album of modern power metal that I like more and more every time I hear it.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Hecate Enthroned Dark Requiems …
(Death/Metal Blade)
Every review I’ve ever read of any Hecate Enthroned’s three albums makes reference to the band as a Cradle Of Filth ripoff. Now I understand. This is fucking silly as hell. Listen up: maybe the British buy your pansy-ass excuse for black metal, but as far as I’m concerned, you can eat it.
(by R. Mason) ■
Iggy And The Stooges Raw Power
(Columbia)
Having been originally released in ’73, this album is to punk rock what the first Black Sabbath album is to metal. This remastered edition proves that it is possible to improve upon perfection. Everything is clearer, heavier, and yes, more out of control than a fat woman in a candy bar factory. The Iguana himself oversaw this reissue and he has made sure that a little bad production will no longer inhibit his pummeling of your poser ass.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
In Ruins Four Seasons of Grey
(Metal Blade)
One of Metal Blade’s more recent signings, I could’ve sworn that these guys were either of Greek or Swedish origin, with a sound somewhere between more recent Rotting Christ and those flooding out of Gothenburg. The songs are good, if occasionally wandering, and actually this band would be quite at home on a label like Holy Records, with its emphasis on atmosphere rather than go-for-the-throat riffing. I’ve listened to it twice and find it memorable and enjoyable, despite the way overplayed goth/vampire subject matter, especially considering they’re from Pennsylvania, land of the Amish. How bout a concept album about something a little bit closer to home, like butter chums and the evils of electric ovens? Anyway, it’s pretty good.
(by R. Mason) ■
Konkhra Weed Out the Weak
(Metal Blade/Die Hard)
The music itself, while as well executed as you might expect with James Murphy of Testament involved, is of the “death groove” variety—criminally simplistic riffs obviously inspired (by the money raked in) by bands like Biohazard, Machine Head and other useless “90s metal” bands with absolutely no interest in songcraft. It’s disturbing to see obviously talented individuals squander their abilities via completely trendy shit. Hopefully good sense will prevail and this piss poor excuse for a metal record will bomb.
(by R. Mason) ■
Labyrinth Return to Heaven Denied
(Metal Blade/Pick Up)
After having read about Labyrinth in Sentinel Steel awhile back, I was anxious to hear the stateside debut of a band that’s been dubbed as Italy’s answer to Helloween. This is well-constructed, wonderfully executed metal in the vein of Angra, Destiny’s End, and the aforementioned Helloween. Unfortunately much of the potential here is lost due to meandering, melodramatic acoustic passages, but when the Kiske/Hansen and early Fates Warning influences begin to shine through, it makes this LP worth while for any fan of the genre. Nice to see Metal Blade giving a chance to bands like this, as ifs the type of stuff that Europe eats up and the U.S. completely ignores. Hopefully that won’t be the case with Labyrinth.
(by R. Mason) ■
Mistiggo Varggoth Darkesteg The Key to the Gates of Apocalypses
(The End)
This is an ambitious black metal release composed primarily of ambient sounds sounding like a cross between Aphex Twin and Hammer horror movie soundtracks. Occasionally they break in a more traditional black metal song with a rudimentary drum machine rhythm and plenty o’ pipe organs. Interesting. I personally think it kinda sucks, but I’m not a big fan of “atmospheric black metal.”
(by R. Mason) ■
Mortification Triumph of Mercy
(Metal Blade)
Anytime you tear the ass out of a Christian metal band, everybody seems to think that you’re slagging it simply because it’s a Christian metal band. Well, ideology aside, this is one of the worst metal albums ever, and trust me, if Jesus were alive today, he would throw this on to laugh at on his way to a King Diamond show. The riffs are far, far beyond incompetent, the production is wire-thin and the lyrics … dear god, the lyrics … all I can say is, check out this little passage from the title track: “But if I could find a donor with identical stem cells, I could have a 25-40% chance of cure / Survival, 78% of sufferers never find a donor.” Yawn! What does he do for an encore? Grunt the fucking phone book? After listening to this record, I have formulated the following conclusions: this record is shit, anyone who says otherwise is a liar, anyone who spends money on this is an imbecile, and there is no god, because if there was, this terrible album wouldn’t exist.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Napalm Death Words From the Exit Wound
(Earache)
There are two records to go over this time, starting with the new album, Words From the Exit Wound, which I was quite looking forward to hearing, partly just out of interest. At first I figured it was pretty good because I was pleasantly surprised to find that they got fast again. Well, faster. But now I’ve decided after repeated listens that I’m only half happy with this LP. The first thing that strikes me after the speed factor is the clean vocals Barney Greenway has employed here, to more of a degree than on previous records, and also in odder places within the songs than in the past. But I think the main problem with this record is that the band to my ear has tried unsuccessfully to mix in their traditional full-throttle grindcore passages with their Sonic Youth-esque guitar parts and “indie” sounding drum beats, which in the past they kept quite separate. At the same time, some of the grind passages have more of an old-school Napalm air to them, which in practice here is a regression in a stage of their career which is spearheaded by progression. This adds up to the only a handful of rockin’, memorable songs.
(by Editor) ■
Napalm Death Bootlegged in Japan
(Earache)
The next record to cover is Bootlegged in Japan which as the name suggests is a previously unauthorized live record from two tours ago (namely the Diatribes tour), sort of the same situation as Unleashed’s Live in Vienna record. The live mix isn’t all that hot, but the track selection is pretty good. All the bases are covered except for the Mentally Murdered mini album.
(by Editor) ■
Prophanity Stronger Than Steel
(Metal Blade)
A competent-yet-unspectacular offering from this melodic death/thrash metal band. They are definitely going for that “Gothenburg” sound, trying to mix the full-tilt speed of early Kreator with the harmonic guitar work of Helloween. A great idea in theory, but unfortunately Prophanity does not mix the two as well as, say, At The Gates for example, so they end up with a rather mutt-like mixture in which the two extremes cancel out rather than compliment each other. There is, however, a lot of talent in this band, so I’m not writing them off yet.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Pulkas CD single
(Earache)
This band wants to sound like the Deftones. I know it, they know it, Earache knows it, and now you know it too. Of course, what you do with this newfound information will depend upon whether you have any taste or not. If you have none, then you will probably begin convulsing like a retarded child in the realization that you have yet another shitty trend band to worship. If you have any taste whatsoever, you will join me in lynching the worm responsible for wasting the mighty Colin Richardson’s time on this pile of shit.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Sam Black Church That Which Does Not Kill Us …
(Cringe Productions)
Although I’m ashamed to admit it, I must confess that a fair amount of head bobbing transpired over the duration of this album. I will also concede that SBC wields some pretty huge grooves and definitely has its own sound going on. However, the vocals, while unique and quite acrobatic, get irritating, and at some points just down right cartoonish. Lyrically, they’re about as heavy as an after school special and I think it’s important that you’re made aware of the line “shotgun justice and a buckshot squirrel supper,” as well as a completely serious usage of the word “holler.”
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Society 1 Slacker Jesus
(Inzane)
Yes, the music on this CD is terrible. But what really distinguishes Society 1 from the rest of their tenth-rate Korn-emulating peers is their determination to suck in every way they possibly can, not just musically. If becoming the all-around most terrible band I’ve heard all year was their intention, it appears they have succeeded, because from the cover art all the way down to the fucking thanks list, this record is a veritable tour de force of bad news. Yes indeed, ladies and gents, from their lyrics to their haircuts, Society 1 is truly the last word in atonal goon metal. For christ’s sake, they even sent their porno film along to us so we can see and hear them make asses out of themselves. Now that’s thorough.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Various Artists High Radiation 3
(Independent)
A compilation of metal and hardcore bands from all over the world. Although none of the bands on here are terrible, none of them really strike me as anything special, either. Dissaray does bust out a decent crossover tune reminiscent of early Crumbsuckers, and Japan’s Barriada get iton with the corpse of Death Angel, but other than that, there’s not much here to blow my skirt up.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
Various Artists White: Nightmares in the End
(The End)
An excellent compilation of atmospheric death from The End Records. Standouts include Mental Home (that possesses the only singer in metal history who I can honestly say sounds like Snake from Voivod!) and Odes Of Ecstacy, who kick out a first rate goth opera tune. Oh, and the “most pretentious art-metal song title” award goes to Scholomance for “Toy: A Primrose Path to the Second Circle.” Yuck.
(by J.R. Hayes) ■
