| MUSIC REVIEWS (October 2002) |
| ABORYM - FIRE WALK WITH US (9 song CD) WORLD WAR 3 RECORDS/MERCENARY MUSICK This is the second release from this amazing Black Metal outfit. This band really adds lots of twists to the Black Metal music we've all come to know & love. These guys have a strong Industrial Noise like sound that coats the Black Metal through out. The guitars are super fast & is where I hear most of the Industrial influences coming out. The vocals are performed by former MAYHEM vocalist Attila Csihar. They are done in a mid ranged Death growl to a higher hallowed sounding Black Metal scream. There are some very chilling sounds in the background of the music all the way through. This album will surely become a great release with in the Black Metal music scene ADNAUSEAM - LIVES OF LIES, DESPISE AND DEMISE (12 song CD) INDEPENDENT SICKNESS This is one of the first bands I ever made contact with & collaberated with when I first got into the underground scene. I am glad to see these guys are still going strong & better than ever. These guys play straight forward brutal Death Metal & better than most! The music has a solid deep old school Death Metal sound with some touches of new school tossed in. There is a very cool mixture of low dark Death growls mixed with some higher Grindcore type screams. The music combines fast paced blasting Death & some slower chugging Death Sludge sounds. I'm glad this band is still tearing up the scene & harder than ever. If you haven't checked these guys out yet, you should! ( Then you shall be punished!!!) - P.O. BOX 9450 / DENVER, CO. 80209 / yeast66@qwest.net ALICE COOPER - DRAGONTOWN (12 song CD) SPITFIRE RECORDS It's ALICE COOPER people!!! Do I really need to explain here??? ALICE has had lots of good albums in the past & this album can now be added to the list. On "Dragontown" we get a mix of old classic ALICE with newer ALICE. There is avery dark feel to this ALICE COOPER disc that reminds me of his album "Welcome To My Nightmare". Then there is some heaviness that reminds me of his last album "Brutal Planet". All in all this is a great concept of ALICE's whole music career, that will surely please older fans as well as newer ones. There is no wonder why he has influenced so many people in the music world!!! - www.ALICECOOPER.com / ALICECOOPER@ALICECOOPER.com APHOTIC - UNDER VEIL OF DARK (4 song CD) This is the second release from this Wisconsin band made up of the memebers of DUSK. This is slightly different from what they did in DUSK. The music played here is very dark, atmospheric & very well constructed. There is a strong fantasy feel to the music with lots of depth & originality. There is a drum machine used on this disc, but there is now way you can tell. The vocals are done in a few different musical styles. There is a very raw throaty Death Metal style mixed together with a melodic Black Metal vocal style & a real dark Goth vocal style as well. I used to love these guys when they were DUSK, but APHOTIC blows that away. This is another band that deserves much attention & hopefully will get it! - P.O. BOX 8236 / GREEN BAY, WI. 54308-8236 / kpowers-APHOTIC@new.rr.com BODYJAR - HOW IT WORKS (12 song CD) NITRO RECORDS Coming out of Melbourne, Australia, BODYJAR release their American debut album. These guys play some very good old school meets new school styled Punk Rock. The music is done in a sort of up beat, but highly energetic style of Punk. The vocals are done in a more melodic Punk style with the occassional raunchiness Punk tossed in here & there. They remind me of an updated version of the best Punk band ever, THE RAMONES! If you add a little of FUGAZI, BLINK 182, THE DESCENDANTS & even some EXPLOITED you'll get a decent idea of what these Aussie's have to offer! - P.O. BOX 2113 / FITZROY, VICTORIA / 3065 AUSTRALIA / info@BODYJAR.com.au / www.BODYJAR.com.au BURIAL DREAMS - PERCEPTIONS (9 song CD) OZ RECORDS Wow! These guys really blew me away! They hail from Mexico & play some extremely good Death Metal. There is some nice tight arrangements going from hyper fast into a slower more melodic style. There is a strong technical & classical sound to their form of Death Metal. I hear this mostly in the guitars, but it is present every where else as well. The vocals are done in a harsh higher pitched Death Metal growl that reminded me a little of EMPEROR merged with a little CARCASS. There are also some lower end backing Death growls intwind in there too. This was a great addition to my already full CD collection. - APARTADO POSTAL #4 / LA FLORIDA, ESTADO DE MEXICO / C.P. 53160 MEXICO / BURIED@writeme.com / http://welcome.to/BURIED-DREAMS CATCH 22 - ALONE IN A CROWD (14 song CD) VICTORY RECORDS Here is yet another band that I am surprised to find on VICTORY RECORDS. I guess they are signing Punk & Hardcore bands now, cause these guys play a highly energetic style of Punk Rock. These New Jersey guys have strong old school Punk feel, but add some flavor by tossing in a trombone, sax & trumpet to the sound. This I guess would really make them a Ska-Core band then, huh? I really liked the driving up beat sound they have. They reminded me of a big mix of the bands MURPHY'S LAW, THE MIGHTY MIGHTY BOSSTONES, RANCID & THE RIVER CITY REBELS all together. This is a great new Punk band, which i hope sticks around for a long time! - www.njCATCH22.com COCK AND BALL TORTURE - OPUS(SY)VI (21 song CD) SHREDDED RECORDS If there ever was an ultimate Gore Grind band, I'd have to say it was these guys!!! This is some of the heaviest stuff I've ever heard. Extremely heavy & extremely brutal! The music is very low end Death Grind with some very thick ass sounds. I really liked the throbbing bass sound through out. The vocals are done in a sick low end Death gurgle, which reminded me of old MORTAL DECAY! With songs like "Anal Sex Terror", "Big Tit Slappers" & "Whorrorbitch", you know this will soon become a classic!!! - HEINRICHSTR 12 / 83352 ALTENMARKT / GERMANY / COCKANDBALL@gmx.de / www.COCKANDBALL.de COLOURFAST - THE ART OF ONE (7 song CD) (Available through BEOWOLF PRODUCTIONS) This is a one man project band put out by Akim Naito. He has written, programmed & performed all the music on this release. The music is a very fast paced & aggressive Industrial Metal style of music. The music has a good groove, cold Industrial feel & lots of hooks & breakdowns. The vocals are rough & angry almost Death growls mixed with more melodic vocals. This reminds me almost of the bands FEAR FACTORY & CARDIOVASCULAR SUB-HYPOTHERMIA. - 2-4-7 KAMITAKAIDO / SUGINAMI-WARD / TOKYO 168-0074 / JAPAN / a-COLOUR@excite.co.jp COMADOSE - RE UP (7 song CD) SCREAMING FERRET WRECKORDS "Re Up" is the debut releaseon SCREAMING FERRET from this Boston, Ma. based band. These guys play a style of music that is very popular right noew, known as Metal-Core or Nu-Metal. This band is much heavier than most of the acts playing this style today. These guys run the gambet from Hardcore to Metal & grab influences from every thing in between. The vocals also run from Metal melodic styles to more harsh Hardcore screams. the bands that kept coming to mind were SLIPKNOT & SYSTEM OF A DOWN! If your into either of these bands then you'll love COMADOSE! - www.COMADOSE.com EVIL BARDS - PRELUDE TO SADNESS (9 song CD) This is one CD I was anxious to get to for review! I've heard a lot of good stuff on this band within the underground scene. This band really mixes it up a lot. They run from Thrash Metal through Death Metal & smack right into Black Metal. There is a lot of atmospheric & melodic sounds through out their music. They also have both male & female vocalists. The male vocals being done in a groggy Black Metal style & some darker Goth sounds, while the female vocals are done in a more angelic ambient style! There are a lot of complex arrangements with lots of power & aggressiveness. This is a band for any fan of any style of Metal!!! - C. NA GRATIROLA 15 / 20050 TRIUGGIO / ITALY / EVILBARDS@hotmail.com / EVILBARDS@libero.it |