| MUSIC REVIEWS (November 2006) |
| AGRESSOR - VICTIM OF YOURSELF (10 track CD) DARK SUN LABEL These guys are great! They play Brazilian Thrash Metal music. I loved every second of this disc when I popped it in. The music has an old school Thrash Metal sound with tinges of Death Metal coatings here & there. I loved the way the music is driving really fast & then goes into a chugging Death Metal mixture style. I can't believe these guys aren't bigger than they are, they definitely love this band! I know I did!!! www.AGRESSOR.com.br |
| ALIOTH - CHANNELING UNCLEAN SPIRITS (6 track CD) STARLIGHT TEMPLE SOCIETY This is a CDR promo for the bands upcoming re-release. These guys play some very good Occult music as well. There is a really dark low end old school Death Metal sound to the music too. At times, especially in the guitars you can hear some influences of Thrash Metal. The vocals are done in a mid to low ranged Death growl style. I think fans of old school Death Metal & Thrash metal will dig these guys, if they like theirs with a darker vibe to it!!! |
| (3 track CD) Self Released I picked this free promo disc up @ a local show in Philly. These guys play a great mixture of Death Metal & Grindcore music. There are some really intricate & technical sounding work mixed in with all the heavy mayhem & brutality. There are some all out spastic Grindcore parts mixed in as well. I liked the combination of the two vocals styles. One is a mid to high Grindcore growl/scream style & the other is a mid to low Death growl. These guys are really good & remind me a little of old DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN mixed with some NASUM. I'd like to hear more from these guys in the future. Hopefully I can find more stuff!!! www.myspace.com/AMORPHICFORM |
| CENTRIFUGE - DESOLATE (5 track CD) PARADISE NOISE RECORDS CENTRIFUGE is a Metal band out of France. These guys play a mixture of Metal styles to create their sound. There are elements of Traditional, Heavy Metal, Power, Thrash & even a little meets Thrash Metal style. These guys have a great sound I hear from a lot of Stoner Metal bands MAGNET. |
| (13 track CD) DOWN PORT MUSIC / TRA MUSIC & heavy fast brutal parts. I liked the mix of the male & female vocals as well. The music is well Metal sound, which definitely helps make them stand out form the rest of the bands in their field. This is the fourth release from Taiwan's biggest Black Metal band. These guys are amazing! They This is probably the best Black Metal release I have heard this year & the year is just about over! This is a must for any fan of Metal to check out, no matter what style your into! You need this! www.CHTHONIC.org |
| (8 track CD) TUNES OF TORTURE paced & there are some slower more grooved parts too. The vocals are done in a mid to low ranged Death raspy growl style. These guys remind me of old CARCASS, NAPALM DEATH & a little |
| (13 track CD) SOLID STATE This is the debut CD release from these guys & what a release it is. These guys play a style of aggressive hard hitting grooves, rhythms & more. I really liked the adrenaline that is pouring out this band & it shoves their music right in your face. The change ups is what really help keep this band interesting & really stood out for me. I also liked the mix of the harsh screaming growls & the more melodic & smooth vocals styles. This band would be great for fans of AS I LAY DYING, BURN IN SILENCE, SHADOWS FALL & IN FLAMES. This is another must have CD!!! |
| DOOMSDAY MACHINE SCHEMATIC - SELF TITLED PROMO (8 track CD) Self Released I got this CD from the guys in the band @ a local show in Philly. These guys are a new young band in the scene, which they will surely shoot to the top of the scene. These guys play some type scream with some lower Death growls mixed in. They remind me of band in the scene, which they will surely shoot to the top of the scene. These guys play some MORTAL DECAY, INSATANITY INSATANITY && INTERNAL BLEEDING INTERNAL BLEEDING with lots of Grindcore blended in. Watch these guys! with lots of Grindcore blended www.DOOMSDAYMACHINESCHEMATIC.com |
| FORLIS - THE PALE MESSENGER (7 track CD) Self Released FORLIS is a very dark sounding Metal band with lots of Gothic music blanketing it. There is a really strong dark & almost mystical vampiric type sound to their music as well. There is very strong song structures & technical sounds at times too. Lots of keyboard work sets the atmosphere of this band. The vocals are done in a mid ranged Goth almost Black metal type clean vocal style. There is a weird almost X-FILES type eerie sound to the music too. I really dug this a lot & it's a lot different from most of the stuff I get. Check this out, you'll be quite pleased! www.FORLIS.cjb.net |
| (25 track CD) APATHIC VIEW PRODUCTIONS 13 tracks playing raw & dirty Crust/Grindcore styled music. The music is very fast tight, noisy & aggressive as hell. The vocals are done in a groggy screaming Grindcore style mixed with lower Death/Grind growls. The last 12 tracks are from the great AGATHOCLES. These tracks are live songs from 1997. These guys play hyper intense Grindcore music as well. Their sound is a bit heavier & more spastic than most. I like the low end Death growls mixed with higher Grindcore ones. Everyone in the scene should know of these guys already. If you don't get one of their CDs! www.H407.band.pl www.AGATHOCLES.com |
| SOURCE OF DEEP SHADOWS / KBA3AP (11 track CD) ENDLESS DESPERATION This is a 4 way split CD release. The first 4 tracks are from LAKE OF DEPRESSION. These guys play some really dark & somber sound Death/Black Metal music. There is a coldness & haunting sound in their music. The next 2 tracks are from CRESPUSCULARIA. These guys play type music. The next 4 tracks are from SOURCE OF DEEP SHADOWS. This band also plays some dark, funeral depressing music with some Doom & Gothic elements mixed in. The last track comes from the band KBA3AP. This is a also a dark Black Metal type band with some elements of Death & Doom mixed in. These are some great bands & fit together well on this split release. |
| (13 track CD) Self Released They have a very cool sound that mixes Nu-Metal with touches of old school Thrash, Death sound. The vocals are done in a mix of clean & rough Metal vocal styles. The thick heavy bass & drum sound was my favorite thing about these guys. If you were to ball up bands like KORN, COAL CHAMBER, SYSTEM OF A DOWN, STATIC-X, POWERMAN 5000 & DEVIL DRIVER then you would get LOKJAW. These guys are well worth checking out, so do it!!! www.LOKJAWlive.com |
| (7 track CD) PARADISE NOISE RECORDS These guys play some very thick & chaotic sounding Grindcore music. There are elements of at times & at others it's all out fast spastic & crazy sounding. The vocals are done in a mid ranged screaming & growling Grindcore & Death Metal mixture style. There is an old school Grindcore type vibe happening in their sound too. All Grind freaks will love these guys!!! |
| PANZER CHRIST - BATTALION BEAST (9 track CD) NEUROTIC RECORDS The German masters are back with an assault of some great music for our ears. These guys have German Death Thrash Metal music & play it better than most. The music is super tight & aggressive as hell. There are blast beats, fast riffing & strong solid vocals. The vocals are done in a thick hallowed haunting Death growl style with some higher pitched Death screams. These guys made me exhausted just listening to them! They are an amazing band that every Death Metal fan should have something by them in their collection! Start with this one, because it's their best release so far!!! www.PANZERCHRIST.com |
| RESECTION - ZENITH (9 track CD) UNMATCHED BRUTALITY RECORDS What else would you expect from a band on UNMATCHED BRUTALITY RECORDS. That's German band delivers & they deliver it with much force. The music has a high speed technical sound & strong thick rhythms. There are lots of fast stop & starts, tempo changes & even a few grooves. The vocals are done in a mid ranged Death growl style with some lower more throaty Grindcore grunts. This young band is going to quickly build a following in the scene, so watch out for them before they kick the shit out of you. You Have Been Warned!!! www.RESECTION.net |
| SAW III - MOVIE SOUNDTRACK (20 track CD) ARTIST ADDICTION / WARCON RECORDS new one was very gory & very good. There is a soundtrack that finally accompanies the film greatly. There are 20 songs on the soundtrack & 20 bands featured. Some of the best in the Metal movie soundtracks to a horror film to come around in a long time!!! www.SAW3.com |
| (9 track CD) DARK HAVEN RECORDS Hailing from Washington state comes this new Power Thrash Metal band. These guys have a very classic old school Thrash Metal sound with lots of touches of new school Power Metal mixed with in. They have a strong technical sound with lots of intricate changes through out their songs. I liked the crunchy guitar sound a lot. It keeps chugging away the music & pushing it forward like a locomotive out of control. The vocals are done in a strong mid ranged Power Metal style with some higher pitched & more melodic ones blended in. These guys will be riding the top of the heap that is the New Wave Of US Power Metal! www.SHADOWDEMON.us |
| STIFF DONUT - I DID IT ALL FOR THE COOKIE This is another crazy band from Mr Rhymson out of New York. This band like his others play some weird Electronic Metal sounding music. The music is heavy, but has an Industrial / Techno sound mixed in with some Metal & Death Metal type music. I like the Techno a lot, because it has an old school synthesizer type sound to it with the Metal flavoring. The songs are done some what comical with titles like "We Love Fat Chicks" "Kill Everyone Who Has A Cell Phone", "You're Really Hot But Your A Nut" & "Emo Guys Like To Fuck". Give this band a shot, because they are not like anything else I've heard out there before!!! |
| THE HANDFUL - SECOND HAND SMOKE (14 track CD) TRUE ROCK / BOULEVARD RECORDINGS THE HANDFUL come to us from New Jersey & play some real decent sounding Rock & Roll. They blend in some elements from Classic Rock, Hard Rock & Pure Rock music. There is a bit of a Southern Rock vibe happening in their sound at times too. The music is really tight & solid sounding. These guys could be played on a lot of the Rock music radio stations today. The vocals are done in a mid ranged throaty Rock style with some more Classic Rock melodic styles mixed with in. If you like good old Rock & Roll then look no further, these guys have what you need. www.THEHANDFUL.com |
| TWISTED INTO FORM - THEN COMES AFFLICTION TO AWAKEN THE DREAMER (10 track CD) SENSORY / THE LASER'S EDGE This album was five years in the making. Originally a side project, but now a full on band featuring x-members of SPINAL ARCHITECT & EXTOL. These guys have broken any boundaries that make up different categories they use in their sound so as they do not fit in one style. They do take many elements of Jazz Fusion, Metal, Power, Thrash, Speed & Progressive Metal & twist into form they style they have created. These guys are very tight, technical & complex. I really dug this a lot as it's not like a lot of bands out there, especially ones trying to play this style. The vocals are done almost like Serge from SYSTEM OF A DOWN, when he';s melodic singing & lots of Power Metal styles. This is another must listen to fully appreciate the ingeniousness of what they have created!!! |
| VENUSIAN DEATH CELL - THE DEVILS LAND (11 track CD) Self Release now. They play a very old school style of Death Metal music with elements of Black Metal mixed with in. The CD contains 11 unreleased tracks that span the bands entire history. Some of the This is a new release from this band out of Ireland. These guys have been in the scene for awhile songs sound like they are live & are quite hard to really hear & truly appreciate, because of the recording. The music has a raw aggressive old school vibe with some slight touches of new school thrown in. If you like this bands other releases then your gonna like this one as well. |
| (7 track CD) SENSORY / THE LASER'S EDGE This is the fourth album from this very good & well respected Progressive Metal band. The guys have come back with a great new disc & a new vocalist in Chris Salinas, formerly of POWER OF OMENS. The music has a strong atmospheric sound with some Classic Rock mixed with the Progressive Metal sounds. I kept thinking of old RUSH a lot when listening to these guys. There are a lot of complex & deep structures, tempo changes, & rhythms all through out. The vocals are done in a mid ranged Power/Progressive Melodic Metal style. This is by far the best release these guys have unleashed thus far> If you don't believe me, then pick this one up & hear for yourself!!! |
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