ALEXISONFIRE
OLD CROWS/YOUNG CARDINALS
VAGRANT
Canadian punk hardcore band Alexisonfire has grown considerably from their humble screamo upbringing judging by their latest 11-track release Old Crows/ Young Cardinals. Perpetually altering their sound with every release, this album’s switches may prove the most daunting, as the unit’s unique three-tiered vocal delivery has been radically tinkered with, nearly dropping all the squad’s trademark high-pitched wails for a more common yet genuine (and way less grating) earthier punk rasp. While songs like “No Rest” and “Heading for the Sun” get a discernibly gruffer makeover across the board, Alexisonfire builds intensity with the acumen of a unit who has been around the block a few times with the excellently placed keyboards on “The Northern” delving into considerably more brooding states of mind than previously visited. Alexisonfire seem to have comfortably outgrown their former selves in some aspects, even going so far as to proclaim the change in song on “Old Crows”, a maneuver that undoubtedly insures losing diehards in droves. But for those who choose to stick around, thisToronto troupe’s escalating sense of self and collected post-punk output reminiscent of bands like Thrice solidifies this disc by celebrating the exploring new avenues without pandering to the pressures of commercial success. ----Mike SOS
ANIMALS AS LEADERS
ANIMALS AS LEADERS
PROSTHETIC
One-man progressive metal machine Tosin Abas is the main brain behind Animals as Leaders, a project whose eponymous 12-track excursion daringly thrusts into the far reaches of the metal spectrum, encompassing a progressive metal edge with a slew of decadent fretboard nuances with all-inclusive jazz-fusion tendencies. Doing all the bass and guitar (both 7 and 8-string) tracks himself, Abas creates a world engulfed in lush soundscapes aimed to beguile the listener as a rich array of technical intricacies dually derived from the foundation of both jazz and metal pours out of the speakers. Armed with flurries of enthralling expansiveness, this affair fosters the ambitious musical spirit of a virtuoso player a la Vai and Malmsteen whose first-rate chops never get in the way of its composition’s flow, while displaying a lack of the typecast clinical residue which results in the invigorating feeling of refreshed fluidity this release exudes. ----Mike SOS
ARISE
THE RECKONING
REGAIN
Swedish death thrash outfit Arise provide 10-tracks of straight from the textbook Gothenburg-style metal on The Reckoning. Despite this nimble quintet far from groundbreaking delivery, the spot-on fury ("No Memory of Light") and enormous arsenal of breakneck riffs and melodic breaks they employ are cleverly composed with a well-proportioned mix of familiar twists and meat and potatoes mashings which effortlessly fuses The Haunted and In Flames ("End of Days"). Exhibiting metalcore sensibilities with a reverence for the genre's pioneers in mind, the latest from Arise is a solid and satisfying affair whose unwavering by the numbers approach rings out with sinister sincerity. ----Mike SOS
AXIS POWERS
MARCHING TOWARDS DESTRUCTION
PULVERISED
A revisiting of the Swedish old school death metal style seems to be thriving as of late, and countrymen Axis Powers is making sure the revival stays strong as heard on their sophomore nine-track excursion Marching Towards Destruction. Relying on the wares of the pioneers from the genre for their crushing servings of sinister sonic bliss, this quartet’s retro metal renaissance resonates with the feral fury and devious cadence of early Entombed, Bolt Thrower, and Grave, nailing each ear-splitting guitar riff, rollicking bass line and mangled growl with the menacing malevolence of the originators fully intact. Eschewing metal’s modern virtues for the sake of whipping up a dastardly display of metal the way Mom used to make, Axis Powers provides an unsurprising yet uncompromising listening experience bursting with the distinguished tones of early death metal’s dissonant anguish ----Mike SOS
BEBE BUELL
“AIR KISSES FOR THE MASSES” CD single
SELF-RELEASED
On her new CD single, “Air Kisses For The Masses”, (produced by
Twinomatick), Bebe Buell brings the verve and spirit of the song to life for
a new audience where it’s composer, the late Dean Johnson could not. While
the gay icon’s life has been cut short, his music has not been silenced.
Buell takes the track from the 2004 release Cheap But Not Free, by
Johnson’s band, The Velvet Mafia, and gives it a bit of a twist and kick.
The composition itself is already, lyrically, a scorching piece, but add in
the glammed-up power pop elements and this kitty takes on an entirely new ferocity.
Buell’s vocals have matured but not mellowed, and she gives a delivery
that conjures a strange hallucinatory mix of 1981 “Pull Up To The Bumper”-era
Grace Jones, Marianne Faithfull’s ‘60s “Sister Morphine”,
and Nico doing “All Tomorrow’s Parties” at underground punk
clubs in the ‘80s. And it works. It pops. It crackles. It lives…
----Christine Natanael
BLINDING EYE DOG
PROLOGUE
SELF-RELEASED
Maryland quintet Blinding Eye Dog exhibit a boisterous brand of punk on the troupe’s 18-track offering Prologue. Fueled with an irreverent sense of humor (“Super Action Monster Man”, “Duck Duck Goose (In A)”) that matches the lo-fi high energy vibes (“Assassin”) and pervasive beer-swilling devil may care street punk attitude on cuts such as “Barbara” and “The Line”, this freewheeling act makes it pretty apparent that it doesn't take itself too seriously yet still pumps out a raucous strain of reckless rock (“Shame”). Definitely sounding best after a couple of pints while some of your more mischievous friends plot the ensuing evening’s shenanigans, Blinding Eye Dog reinforce the simple yet effective piss and vinegar punk rock straight from the back alley. ----Mike SOS
BLOOD RED THRONE
SOULS OF DAMNATION
EARACHE
On their latest nine-track endeavor Souls Of Damnation, Norwegian death metal mongers Blood Red Throne pay homage to the US death metal sound, channeling everyone from Morbid Angel to Cannibal Corpse. Solidly delivered with a proper portion of groove and technicality in place (“Demand”), there may not be a wide array of groundbreaking material present, but the band’s vitriolic onslaught is undeniable (“Prove Yourself Dead”). This veteran unit reaps the benefits of staying on a course without much variation, resulting in shaping its murderous musical machine to a well-oiled machine manufacturing enough face-breaking riffs, sinister growls and neck snapping double bass battering to satisfy the most rabid bloodthirsty cravings for death metal glory. ----Mike SOS
BURIAL HORDES
DEVOTION TO UNHOLY CREED
PULVERISED
Greek black metal merchants Burial Hordes employ the primitive approach on their evil eight track sojourn into the abyss titled Devotion To Unholy Creed. Armed with raw production values for an authentic black metal in the basement feel (“Hellborn”), a slew of skewered guitar riffs that range from jarring to muddy, and an unearthly vocal presence that sounds as if it crawled out of the catacombs, tracks like “Infernal Necromancers” beguiles diabolical urges to come to fruition while “God’s Cutthroat” and “Abysmal Goatfeast” carry an impact to stand on their own, yet are forebodingly sandwiched in between a disturbing chant whose ominous tone solidifies each track’s morbid sense of dread and despair. Sinister and sinewy with a vicious bark and venomous bite, Burial Hordes have unleashed a vitriolic album that gives praise to its predecessors while unrepentantly damning the rest of society. ----Mike SOS
CANDLEMASS
DEATH MAGIC DOOM
NUCLEAR BLAST
Swedish doom metal pioneers Candlemass return with a refined sense of confidence with their latest offering, the eight-track Death Magic Doom. Comfortably settling into yet another round of changes (most notably on the vocals), Leif Edling and company showcase that they are still able to conjure feelings of dread and despair straight from the Black Sabbath playbook (“Hammer of Doom”) with grace and respect but not without interspersing their own bells and whistles (as well as some kick ass solos) into the mix. This veteran unit maintains mid-paced mauling tempos for the most part, yet at times opt for the upbeat with success (“Dead Angel”) while the powerful tandem of killer vocals and memorable riffs propel tracks like “House of 1000 Voices” into the upper echelon of the slow, deep, and hard. Candlemass snaps back into fine form on their latest affair, exhibiting an unforeseen energy that boldly pushes their brand of doom metal into exhilarating new worlds. ----Mike SOS
CAULDRON
CHAINED TO THE NITE
EARACHE
Canadian metal trio Cauldron provide a traditional slab of metal that conjures up a slew of intertwined influences on the nine-track Chained To The Nite. From the album's Spinal Tap-esque artwork depicting a naked woman bound in chains to the unit's darkened blend of 80's melodic metal and NWOBHM, Cauldron's points of reference are prickly and don't always gel well together, resulting in quite a few instances of clunky cheekiness whose waning flashes of power quickly fizzle out before they can attain any sense of momentum. While displaying moments of promise ("Midnite Hour"), this release takes a while to warm up to, ultimately rendering a confusing listening experience that radiates with an oddball sense of familiarity that keeps only the most ardent of metal purists intrigued. ----Mike SOS
CELAN
HALO
EXILE ON MAINSTREAM
Celan is a noise rock supergroup of sorts, featuring musicians from flu.ID, Unsane, Oxbow, and Einsturzende Neubauten collaborating to form a massive musical force which defies convention yet keeps an hand on the aggression throttle. This collective’s debut offering Halo melds acerbic abrasive noise rock, atmospheric ambience, bluesy melancholy, and clobbering hardcore into 11 engaging tracks custom made for those who demand post-hardcore explorations to plow deeper. With Chris Spencer’s trademark belligerent bark leading the charge, tracks like “All This and Everything” pack a familiar yet ferocious wallop while a judicial keyboard presence float in and out, allowing for an unpredictable array of shapeshifting moods to proliferate (“One Minute”, “Sinking”, “Washing Machine”). Ambitious without alienating its built-in audience, Celan boldly goes into new lands with all of the member’s strengths on full blast. ----Mike SOS
CHARETTA
DEFYING THE INEVITABLE
SELF-RELEASED
Charetta is a NYC-based female fronted hard rock outfit whose latest nine-track effort Defying The Inevitable is adorned with a barrage of heavy-handed and well-composed melodies whose tendencies to work within the confines of atmospheric metal falls somewhere between In This Moment and Lacuna Coil (“On The Line”). Featuring a skull-rattling bottom end crunch that combines Staind and Chevelle (“Stop the Cycle”) alongside a powerful female voice that proudly wavers in between breathy and bad-ass (“Too Far In”), this quartet’s ready for the radio modern hard rock is balanced with nasty riffs (“Love Your Lies”) and angelic vocal anguish (“So Convincing”, “Never”), passionately meshing driving grooves with overwhelming outpourings of emotion to create a refined album ready for mass consumption. ----Mike SOS
CONSPIRACY
CONCORDAT
PULVERISED
Former Melechesh bassist Al Carpathian Wolf’s one-man project Conspiracy rolls out its sophomore effort, an intriguing batch of death-thrash metal entitled Concordat. Inducing melancholic malevolence while seamlessly meshing metal sub-genres, tracks like the Pagan-influenced “Faith” display the range of influence Conpiracy draws from while “Mentally Ill God” and “Last Veteran” dish out the barrage of dastardly riffs and venomous rasps that keep the head banging. Exhibiting a wide range of diversity yet raw as hell, Conspiracy also implements a slew of spicy guitar solos a la Kreator and Megadeth (“Limited to 666”) to prevent the overcast tremolo-picked blackened atmosphere from becoming redundant. This eight-track excursion renders a refined yet relentless listening experience containing metallic melody executed with a handsome dash of diabolic style. ----Mike SOS
CRESCENT SHIELD
THE STARS OF NEVER SEEN
CRUZ DEL SUR
California power metal unit Crescent Shield display a gallant galloping metal
assault on their latest nine-track disc The Stars Of Never Seen. Championing
a traditional metal style bursting with steel-plated melodies, this quartet's
histrionic choruses are contagious ("Temple of the Empty"), rivaling
those at the top of the power metal mountain ("The Bellman", "10,00
Midnights Ago") while the rampant guitar and soaring vocal combination
elicits a much-warranted delight for headbangers of all ages to embrace ("The
Grand Horizon"). This troupe exhibit the versatility to both shred and
alter mood, shifting focus between rousing metal and pensive moments of reflection
for a well-rounded all killer no filler feel. Seamlessly meshing the best of
Blind Guardian, Iced Earth, and Queensryche while contorting elements from metal's
pioneers such as Dio and Maiden, Crescent Shield's formidable flurry of aggression
is fortified with an articulate attention to detail which ties their thunderous
heavy metal roar with a supple dash of passion.. ----Mike SOS
DARK CASTLE
SPIRITED MIGRATION
AT A LOSS
So another two-piece guy-girl band comes to the forefront but before temptation to cry out in protest wins out (even if judging solely on aesthetics) don’t be fooled; Florida duo Dark Castle is the total antithesis to White Stripes in every way conceivable. From swapped-out band roles (whose female vocals are pretty spot-on foreboding, by the way) to the multi-faceted less is more rhythmic attack chock full of echo swirls, caustic distortion, and synth accoutrements, Dark Castle invites listeners to engage in vast levels of morass without a bass to be heard, sprouting an unanchored uneasiness prevalent throughout the eight-track, nearly 40-minute journey. Best taken in its entirety in repeated doses, Spirited Migration is the end result of post-hardcore embellishments and doom metal devices gone awry by way of modern metallic psychedelica beaten into the brain. Almost as if Isis and Crowbar decided to jam out for fun, the combination of this act’s galactic scope and gigantic heft renders a sludge-ridden good time for those who enjoy a hearty helping of abrasiveness layered with ambient passages to help the lava go down smooth. ----Mike SOS
DEAD SWANS
SLEEPWALKERS
BRIDGE NINE RECORDS
Ominous chords and inspired, restless and seeking passion inform the excellent full length debut from my personal favorite UKHC band of the moment, Dead Swans. A huge, sick drum sound with the percussion performance really catapulting this release along, though the rest of the band slays as well. Vocalist Nick Worthington screams like a slightly more legible Wes Eisold and infuses these tales of woe and wishes for a better world with real blood and fire. If you like your hardcore fast and furious but with plenty of interesting detours than Sleepwalkers is your new best friend. Closing track “Tent City” (great title) charges from the speakers with hints of Embrace-infused melodicism combined with a much heavier 90’s-modern heaviness. “Winter Overture” might be my favorite, although it is instrumental. The track really opens up the album spatially with an almost latter-day Cave In feel, though I don’t want to take away from Worthington’s performance by mentioning I love the instrumental best. “Ivy Archway” is sheer Hope Con-esque violence with Worthington reluctantly admitting “Sometimes I think it would be easier to fade away.” Don’t expect that from Dead Swans, though. This relationship seems like it will survive the infatuation stage (they were nominated for a Kerrang! Award for Best British Newcomer after only having a demo and split 7” out!) and evolve into a long term, noisy romance. ----Morgan Y. Evans
DEATH BY STEREO
DEATH IS MY ONLY FRIEND
SERJICAL STRIKE
Orange County hardcore punk bastion Death By Stereo have made a career of taking chances and changing up their sound, so there’s no surprise that the stalwart act’s fifth full-length disc, the 15-track Death Is My Only Friend continues the trend. Pulling further away from their hardcore punk roots (associating itself more with a modern metallic approach a la Atreyu and AX7 these days) yet retaining the simmering intensity regardless how far the group has traveled off the starting line of the journey, their well-tread lead guitar heavy style and fist-pumping group vocal anthem paradigm remains a huge part of the music’s makeup much to the chagrin of old-schoolers (“Welcome to the Party”, “I Sing for You”, “The Ballad of Sid Dynamite”). The disc does include its fair share of clunky head-scratching moments however, as piano ballad “Forever and a Day” and the awkward stab at radio rock on “The Last Song” comes off contrived and out of place, but ultimately Death By Stereo redeems itself by laying down a satisfying smattering of the hurried punky hullabaloo that put this band on the map in between moments of well-earned but shaky attempts of artistic liberty (“We Sing Today for a Better Tomorrow”). ----Mike SOS
DECEIVER
THRASHING HEAVY METAL
PULVERISED
There's nothing deceptive regarding the 10-track lean and mean high-grade meets lo fi old school assault Sweden's Deceiver lays on the ears, as this trio's tumultuous din captures the darker nuances of the golden age of thrash without sounding rehashed or forced. Whether it be the tortured vocals and primitive skin bashing tandem heard on "Dead to the World" and "Machinery of God" or the grimly grandiose feel emanating from "Graveyard Lover" and the instrumental "Legacy", even though Thrashing Heavy Metal yields a strange sensation that you've heard this all before if you own a Priest, Entombed, or Mercyful Fate album or two, this squad's inspired interpretations rise above usual reference points to provide an enjoyable travel back through time. Tacking on a vicious streak laden in vitriolic vehemence, this unit's display of vintage metal will get the job done for fans of the rawer side of extreme metal's first wave. ----Mike SOS
DELAIN
APRIL RAIN
SENSORY
Female fronted symphonic metal fans have a new band to love and their name is Delain. This Dutch quintet’s sophomore effort entitled April Rain contains the standard heavy guitar and angelic vocal combination (“Go Away”) throughout its entire 12-track duration, giving similar bands like Nightwish and Within Temptation (whose ex-keyboardist Martun Westerholt formed Delain) a run for their money. Embracing the recognizable sounds from the aforementioned while bolstering their take with guest vocals by Nightwish bassist Marco Hietala (“Control the Storm”) and some compelling cello work (“On the Other Side”), Delain finds the fine balance between mainstream pop music melodies and progressive metal tendencies (“Start Swimming”) with solid production values, catchy songwriting and a slew of sugary choruses at their command to create this larger than life Goth metal experience. ----Mike SOS
DESTROY DESTROY DESTROY
BATTLE SLUTS
BLACKMARKET ACTIVITIES
Destroy Destroy Destroy's sophomore effort showcases a multi-faceted metal
attack that blends Viking metal might and symphonic black metal grandiosity
with a perpetual classic metal vibe running throughout this unit's 12-track
affair entitled Battle Sluts. Meshing the styles of 3 Inches of Blood,
Manowar, and Children of Bodom within the confines of a war-torn battlefield,
this battle-hungry sextet bash out a histrionic blast of fantasy metal that
goes perfect with a pair of 12-sided dice and a stack of Conan the Barbarian
novels ("Agents of Hypocrisy"). Borrowing a chunk of their style from
the epic and power metal fields (especially referenced via the atmospheric keyboard
presence permeated throughout) while slaying with a convincing twin guitar battering
("Born of Thunder", "The Wretched Forrest"), those who enjoy
metal with a medieval twist will have little problem tuning into this band of
warrior's theatrical offering. ----Mike SOS
DEVILS WHOREHOUSE
BLOOD & ASHES
REGAIN
Devils Whorehouse unashamedly mimic virtually every significant nuance from the Danzig playbook, starting with the rebel punk of The Misfits, bridging into the experimental discord of Samhain before culminating with a hybrid of the multitude of sounds from Glenn's eponymous offerings through the years, so if you're looking for something original, you've been warned. If you want to hear worship and tribute done to perfection (by a band who were once a Misfits/Samahain cover band no less) however, this Swedish squad's admirable affection of the works of the Evil Elvis is spot-on, covering all eras faithfully while producing an uncanny vocal likeness that this lot (featuring members of Marduk) nail down with howling furies intact. In fairness, this crew conveys a bit more than blind Danzig homages, as their admirable death 'n roll packs a wallop here as well, but Blood & Ashes' most glaring point of reference precariously sits as its biggest strength and crippling weakness. ----Mike SOS
DRUG HONKEY
DEATH DUB
SELF-RELEASED
Chicago's Drug Honkey are certainly not for the feint of heart and occupy a limited niche even in the underground world of limited niche filled metal. On the great Death Dub (also a nice summary of their sound) they come off sounding like a cross between Painkiller's Guts Of A Virgin and that scene in Fight Club where Edward Norton is living in the scummy, water filled basement. This CD will make you laugh, especially if you are in a bad mood or have ever abused really low-grade drugs. These guys are not messing around, with songs like "I Can Not." and the excellent churning vomit of 'The Devil Lasts Forever" offering an array of weird sound effects, raw, ripped throat vocal textures that sound like they have been sung through a megaphone into a road cone under the tunnels of the mole people, plus a bevy of low-fi crashing drums and death elements. This band is killer. They give you a real tweaky, evil feeling and there's an element of stoned fun but it never subverts the real dedication to aural assault. To the virgin ear or the unversed it might sound like noise but these guy's are very conscious of what they are doing even when it IS just noise. Smart, fed up and terrifying. Dip your rolling papers in formaldehyde and let's bring it! "All I ever got was loss of pulse", excellent. ----Morgan Y. Evans
EAST FOREST
THE EDUCATION OF THE INDIVIDUAL SOUL
AQUILO
East Forest is NYC by way of Pacific Northwest entity that provides a unique musical endeavor that melds field-recorded nature sounds, pulsating New Age beats, and meditative piano into its framework of The Education Of The Individual Soul. Bolstered with a picturesque soundscape whose airy ivory tinklings and puffy bass lines radiate relaxing hues of transcendental light, this one-man project concocts an ambitious journey into the fragile human psyche, thwarting modern life’s static with a translucent barrage of calming music exposing the duality of the human existence. ----Mike SOS
EBENEZER
A TRIUMPH OF COLOSSAL ACHIEVEMENTS
SELF-RELEASED
Taking the DIY hands-on approach with their music to the extreme, Pennsylvania instrumental duo Ebenezer provide a well-measured blend of style and substance on their six-track offering A Triumph Of Colossal Achievements. Besides teaming jaw-dropping flashes of virtuoso percussion and fretwork with a wise beyond their years sense of composition that channels everyone from Maiden to The Fucking Champs ("Warlock Owl"), this tandem's release comes inside of a hand-sewn fabric case, rendering an exquisite hearftfelt vibe that most run of the mill locals just can't match up to. If you have a hankering for vocal-less music with an eye opening showcase of balls and bite, look no further than Ebenezer's latest affair. ----Mike SOS
EKTOMORF
WHAT DOESN’T KILL ME
AFM
Hungarian modern groove metal merchants Ektomorf’s latest effort What Doesn't Kill Me is a plodding installment of utterly unoriginal down-tuned new school heavy music. Are they aware that Sepultura and Soulfly have already written half of these riffs and vocal lines? Simultaneously beating the rap-metal horse to death while grinding the nu metal movement to a halt by rendering a virtual line for line reprisal of all things Cavalera, Ektomorf’s uninspired homage properly radiates a solid slab of rage; shamefully it’s not their own. ----Mike SOS
ELWOOD EMISSION
ODE TO THE EGO
A FEW LITTLE NOTES
www.afewlittlenotes.com
NYC’s Elwood Emission is Lucy Kalantari’s one-woman electronic project jam-packed with soul-bearing crooning to a harsh industrial rock soundtrack. The callous vocal and disorted ukuleles that start off “The Invitation”, develop an unsettling sensation furthered by the cross between Alanis Morrisette and Shiny Toy Guns influenced vocals and angst-ridden subject matter (“Despicable”) displayed. Ode To The Ego also throws in snippets of Tori Amos-like catharsis (“Divine”) into the mix, giving this six-track sojourn into Kalantari’s darker side a fair share of lush yet eerie attributes that ambitiously push tracks like the scintillatingly sultry “Run” from the shadowy recesses to the spotlight. ----Mike SOS
EMERY
IN SHALLOW SEAS WE SAIL
TOOTH AND NAIL
Christian rock quintet Emery returns with a bang, rediscovering their former selves with a renewed sense of purposed on their fourth full-length In Shallow Seas We Sail. Fine-tuning their screamo tendencies with an increased sense of incense (“Cutthroat Collapse”) and a streamlined melodic edge (“Dear Death Part 2”), this outfit’s latest 13-track endeavor beefs up Emery’s output in nearly every category. From solid twin-vocal interplay (“Inside Our Skin”) and torrid rhythmic undercurrents (“In Shallow Seas We Sail”) to unabashed heaviness (“Butcher’s Mouth”) and a penchant for hooky yet refined choruses, this squad’s delectable dichotomy of fragility and ferocity fits snugly between Dredg and Thrice, placing Emery in the upper echelon of the new breed of alternative punk while finding its biggest influence from within. ----Mike SOS
EMPIRE OF DUST
PROMO 2008
SELF-RELEASED
Modern metal mayhem comes courtesy of NYC’s Empire of Dust, whose four-song sampler displays a unit who sharpened its teeth on a steady stream of Slayer riffs and Swedish thrash with a discernible New York death metal influence. Logistically laying down a genuine sense of brutality in between setting off an array of pummeling grooves a la Lamb of God at their most seething (“2”), this band, which boasts ex-members of NYHC fixture Indecision as well as Entorturement, steamrolls over the opposition with a healthy dosage of metallic melody for the heavier-minded. ----Mike SOS
ENDSTILLE
VERFUHRER
REGAIN
Warmongering German black metal squad Endstille attack once again with Verfuhrer, a scathing and abrasive nine-track affair. Incessantly blasting your skull with pounding percussion and decaying your ears with blood-curdling vocal rasps, this maliciously militant outfit doles out diabolical doses of mid-paced malevolence ("Symptoms") whose razor sharp buzzsaw guitars cut to the bone ("Depressive/ Abstract/ Banished/ Despised"). Assuredly exhibiting a keen sense of dynamics by implementing slower waves of intensity to its arsenal ("Endstille") while maintaining the band's trademark penchant for administering skull-crushing barrages of monolithic crust-laden fury ("Hate Me...God?"), Endstille 's blackhearted single-minded approach conveys intense waves of blast beated and tremolo picked madness with just the right touches of innovation to shape this release's belligerent battlefield aura. ----Mike SOS
ENSOPH
REX MUNDI X-IIE
CRUZ DEL SUR
Industrial Italian act Ensoph create a chaotic cybermetal experience on the 12-track Rex Mundi X-IIE, setting their apocalyptic visions to a frenetic soundtrack that chillingly juxtaposes harsh electronic noises, Gothic overtones and metallic aggression ("Shame on You!"). Tracks like "Dance High and Shine, Shiva!" shares as much in common with the eeriness of Marilyn Manson as it does the synthetic throb of KMFDM, while "Thir(s)ty Pieces of Silver" sounds like a Dream Theater track defiantly trapped in a Tron-like maze. Championing a futuristic tone chock full of Front Line Assembly-esque mechanical madness leading the charge, this sinister shapeshifting unit's presentation is far from fresh yet it yields enough intriguing moments (their cover of "Would" by Alice in Chains in particular) to keep the middling PVC-donned EBM and darkwave contingent content. ----Mike SOS
EPHEL DUATH
THROUGH MY DOG'S EYES
EARACHE
Experimental Italian outfit Ephel Duath are renowned for developing collections of distinct metallic left turns, but this time this now-reduced down to a trio readily take on a different yet equally daunting task of conveying a canine's perspective of the world to music on their latest disc Through My Dog's Eyes. This ambitious nine-track excursion is chock full of dizzying riffs that part the seas between noisy jazz and avant garde metal ("Guardian") woven into a barrage of non-linear compositions stockpiled with heady interludes and juggernaut vocals ("Bella Morte") set to a warped array of odd-time signatures ("Bark Loud") . Despite the album's preposterous premise, Ephel Duath manage to keep the subject matter blunt and concise. turning out an provocative batch of progressive metal in the process. Challenging to novices, Ephel Duath continue to carve their own unique marks into the metal tree of life. ----Mike SOS
EX-DEO
ROMULUS
NUCLEAR BLAST
Featuring four members from Canadian cripplers Kataklysm, Ex-Deo (rounded out by members of Martyr and Blackgard) focuses on The Roman Empire as the subject matter for this sextet’s incendiary offering ROMULUS. Masterfully harnessing melodic death metal’s majestic overtones, this 11-track affair bids few surprises yet crushes with a menacing mid-tempo pace, recreating the epic history of the events behind the world’s greatest civilization’s rise and fall along the way. Sturdily built from a proper blend of cavernous chugging guitars, purposeful keyboard accoutrements, and ferocious vocals that accurately narrate the gory glories from the beleaguered battlefields, Ex-Deo’s intriguing slant on Pagan metal renders a cohesive metal attack whose distinct cinematic scope and orchestral instrumentation radiates with the freshness that saves this disc from being cast as just another side project and is worthy for those who enjoy metal at its most sweeping and regal. ----Mike SOS
FATHER OF SIN
GREATEST SINS
SELF-RELEASED
Pennsylvania sextet Father of Sin follows fashion and provides the creepiness as if they hailed from Transylvania, as this spooky squad references everything from the thrashing throb of Marilyn Manson to the malevolent pomp of Cradle of Filth on their latest endeavor Greatest Sins. With one foot planted in a freshly excavated gothic industrial plot and the other in an avant-garde extreme metal niche, this troupe does an admirable job of pulling off a strand of heavy music without the services of a drummer, opting to use a drum machine to provide the thunder. Relying heavily on doomy metallic atmosphere cultivated from the Celtic Frost and Sabbath handbooks while making it palatable so the kids in the mall can join the black parade, subject yourself to the modern dread Father of Sins drums up. ----Mike SOS
GRIEF OF WAR
WORSHIP
PROSTHETIC
Japan’s Grief of War embraces a conglomeration of Bay Area thrash signatures, Germanic rapid-fire tempos and Sepultura-esque intensity (“Disorder”) as evident via the trio’s latest endeavor Worship. Despite the squad’s honorable homage to the battering riffs (“Into the Void”), dive-bomb friendly solos (“Built My Brain”), skull-jolting rhythms, and Kreator-esque seething-mad vocal shouts of yesteryear, Grief of War’s retread is sturdy but a bit too unimaginative, ultimately lacking that intangible spark necessary to place them into the realms of thrash metal’s upper echelon, yet maintains a solid undercurrent of visceral aggression that can easily find a spot somewhere between Nuclear Assault and Death Angel along the grand sonic spectrum. ----Mike SOS
HAVE NOTS
SERF CITY U.S.A.
SELF RELEASED
purevolume.com/havenots
myspace.com/havenotsboston
Featuring John Cauztik,ex-member of Stray Bullets, Have Nots are here to keep the torch burning for socially aware punk rock. Boston has been putting much of the U.S. to shame in the underground for years and Have Nots are yet another example of the enthusiasm and dedication to punk culture that comes out of Mass. This is great, to the point, ska-influenced punk (and I mean ska-punk in the cooler, Op Ivy, less obnoxious sense). "Frozen heart" is infectious yet paints vivid portraits of poverty while "Army of One" and the title track up the ante further. All this and their current DIY tour is called "The Drunken Handgun Tour"! What's not to love? This band sounds very united in purpose and spirit. if you like in-depth lyrics you can cling to and dirty recording with just the right amount of crispness and flavor crystals, this band is for you! ----Morgan Y. Evans
I SEE STARS
3-D
SUMERIAN
Young Michigan troupe I See Stars have melded elements of modern hardcore and screamo with electronica on their debut 3-D to create a catchy but disheveled 11-track affair. Haphazardly cut and pasting modern dance synths into power punk rock songs, this quintet's ready for Warped Tour juxtaposition of styles comes off forced and even clumsy at times (especially during the heavier moments) yet renders momentary flashes of triumph when the vocoder-enhanced vocals meeting chugging choruses that alt rock radio crave come a knockin' ("3D", "The Big Bad Wolf"). Throw in a cameo from one of the rappers from Bones Thugs N Harmony and instant street cred gets applied, yet this troupe's tepid attempt to get to the top of the Hot Topic list falls flat, especially when redundant breakdown parts from screechy melodies rears its worn head. ----Mike SOS
ICONICIDE
BOUT FUCKING TIME
SELF-RELEASED
NYC underground mainstays Iconicide celebrates 20 years of causing a ruckus from below with their subversive mix of NYHC chaos, anarchistic rock tendencies, lo-fi metal belligerence, and caustic punk abrasiveness on Bout Fucking Time. This 10-track affair explores this nonconformist squad’s dastardly mix of snarling guitar riffs, furious drums, and rabid vocal rants, sounding as if unearthed from the catacombs of the abyss (“Name Your Price”, “Biochipped”). Crustily non-PC and completely unapologetic, Iconicide’s slanted sociopolitical stance and unadulterated utter reckless abandon is intentionally sloppy at times and drips with every undesirable nuance of the Big Apple, rendering a welcomed reprieve from the cleanliness and clarity of modern music that sonically socks you in the jaw with the shock of a suckerpunch from behind. ---- Mike SOS
IGNOMINIOUS INCARCERATION
OF WINTER BORN
EARACHE
UK death metal mavens Ignominious Incarceration’s truncated technical torrents of dastardly death metal is bound to garner the quintet the well-deserved attention and accolades from those who appreciate bands who exercise the difficult task of balancing ferocity and brevity. Manning a full-on ambush with all of the expected death metal tactics and weaponry in tow, the path this neophytic unit follows seems a bit too well tread on the surface, but upon closer inspection this squad manages to expertly compose elements of old school devastation and beatdown deathcore together to coexist in utter disharmony (“In The Face of Absolution”), working in symbiosis in fighting the same battle to destroy at all costs. Explosive yet refined for such a young act, if you've ever pined for a cross between the brain-rattling dynamics of Suffocation and the warmongering malice of Amon Amarth (“Of Winter Born”, “Elusion of Mortality”), this band delivers. ----Mike SOS
IMPIETY
TERROREIGN
AGONIA
As brutal as a Singapore cane shot to the skull, Impiety does their homeland proud once again with another blistering blackened thrash release entitled Terroreign. Laden with a diabolical attitude which assists the impending decent into hell (“As Judea Burns”), this 10-track sojourn into the chasm of evil melds crass old school death metal ideologies a la Hellhammer and Morbid Angel with a genuine sense of hatred fueling the apocalyptic one-two vocal assault and divebomb friendly guitar combination (“Bestial to the Bone”). Maintaining a frantic pace throughout while summoning the minions of the underworld to rise and fight the light to the death (“Goatfather”), Impiety’s caustic delivery and over the top metal wares catapult this veteran unit back to the head of extreme metal’s most sadistic acts.----Mike SOS
INCOMING CEREBRAL
OVERDRIVE
CONTROVERSO
SUPERNATURAL CAT
Italian quintet Incoming Cerebral Overdrive’s eight-track endeavor complementarily exhibits this audacious outfit’s well-versed variety of avant-garde hardcore a la Dillinger Escape Plan and Poison the Well. Exuding mighty metalcore premonitions laced with a cathartically scream-y set of vocals, spastic time signature shifts, and a hodgepodge of hellacious guitar tones ranging from ear-splitting to bottom-scraping, this band’s slanted sensibilities yield a dizzying array of volatile tunes armed with spiky transitions, sludge metal tendencies and a dash of cosmically-induced prog-rock noodling for a daring and daunting listening experience. ----Mike SOS
LANDING PROJECT
HERE GOES EVERYTHING
SELF-RELEASED
NYC poppy punk rock troupe Landing Project return with Here Goes Everything, a solid seven-track excursion that exhibits the unit's versatile array of angsty anthems bursting with melody ("Yea, Exactly"). Taking cues from acts like Against Me, this quartet writes hook-laden tunes sizzling with barbed lyrical bite, opting to sing about more personal topics instead of social messages ("Turn Up Your Stereo"). Tapping into the sound of punk rock's bare essentials with a flair for dramatics ("Butterscotch"), Landing Project inject their simple yet effective approach with an honest heaping of soul, giving the slightly undercooked production with punchy delivery a raw emotional rush that copiously spills from the speakers. ----Mike SOS
MILE MARKER ZERO
MILE MARKER ZERO
SELF-RELEASED
Connecticut progressive metal mavens Mile Marker Zero display a unique smattering of familiar influences on their eponymous 10-track affair. While footprints from acts like Queensryche, A Perfect Cirtcle, Dream Theater, and Fates Warning are scattered throughout the album, this quintet manage to forge their own sound from the same rich prog launch pad thanks to exhilarating musicianship and tantalizing composition twists within a shadowy atmosphere sandwiched somewhere between Opeth and Porcupine Tree (“Passive”). Showcasing the capacity to both wail away on a dime as well as show restraint (especially on the vocals) when needed (“Crimson Red”), this group of classically trained musicians make the most of their pedigree by portraying an impressive array of delicate melodies and ethereal dramatics without losing basic hard rock insight, taking songs like “Peril Aerial” to new and exciting places without falling prey to usual prog rock excessive pomp and superfluous trappings. ----Mike SOS
MINSK
WITH ECHOES IN THE MOVEMENT OF STONE
RELAPSE
Minsk’s third full-length offering serves up a transcendent smorgasbord of post-metal garnished with a masterful blend of styles and flavors. This Chicago, IL quartet channel the spirit of early Genesis, Voivod, and Mastodon to form sonically rich music laden with a cosmically charged left of center progressive metal edge, thrusting this fearless foursome’s pummeling pops of sinister sludgery and episodes of ethereal abrasiveness into realms reserved for the elite of the metal adventurers and the ensuing tolerant followers. Issuing an aura of uncanny uneasiness via the help of exotic compositions and intoxicating instrumentation, With Echoes In The Movement Of Stone wields a power derived from a blend of Minsk’s multitudes of non-metal influence, unrepentant waves of oppressiveness and foreboding musicianship, captivatingly holding attention spans with a mix of skull-splitting scintillation best heard under black light. Epic and intense, Minsk delivers huge here. ----Mike SOS
MOTHRA
DYES
SELFMADEGOD
Polish metalcore quartet Mothra present a succinct seven-track excursion on Dyes. This offering blends a potpourri of extreme styles together to form a math-y, sludgy monster that channels death metal aggression and hardcore abrasiveness with hints of grindcore madness ("Squant") and dastardly dissonance for an extra bite ("Hooloovoo"). Creating a sonic atmosphere where brevity and brutality go hand in hand, this unit fuses a slew of off-kilter elements from all corners of the extreme metal paradigm forming a brash offshoot of band reminiscent of the likes of Poison the Well, Entombed, Gojira, and Botch, making this act essential for those who champion a heavy hybrid spirit. ----Mike SOS
NAPALM DEATH
TIME WAITS FOR NO SLAVE
CENTURY MEDIA
Pioneering grindcore unit Napalm Death continue their trademark trail of wreckage, willfully destroying everything in their way with lethal rounds of speed and a rabid sense of aggression on Time Waits For No Slave, the British troupe’s 14th studio endeavor. Exhibiting the ravenous thirst for domination they’ve built into every face-splitting blast beat, crossover metal interchange, and skull-caving breakdown lovingly churned out since their inception in 1981, Napalm Death is one of the few bands that have a broad enough scope to pull off balancing finite consistency with experimental growth spurts, flat out refusing to rest on a decorated extreme metal pedigree or glories of their blueprint back catalog. Instead, this incendiary foursome opts to kick up the intensity and lunge at the jugular with a vintage voracity fueled by the danger and dread they’ve carried since their salad days. Look no further for an album that will blow your head clean off, as Time Waits For No Slave provides a tantalizing mix of grind, death, thrash, and punk as only Napalm Death can deliver. ----Mike SOS
NECROPHOBIC
DEATH TO ALL
REGAIN
With song titles like “For Those Who Stayed Satanic” and “Celebration of the Goat”, it’s pretty evident what to expect from Necrophobic’s no-frills eight-track audio sacrifice to Satan, Death To All. Blistering black metal a la Dissection exalting Beelzebub is precisely what’s on tap from this veteran Swedish squad, complete with a garden variety permutation of dastardly vocal rasps, abrasive dynamic shifts, belligerent blast beats, and tremolo-picked demonic guitars propelling the entire offering (“La Santisima Muerte”). Supercharged with a sinister spirit brazen with an apocalyptic attitude holding tight at the core, chalk up another dark mark in the black book of blasphemy for Necrophobic, as this band continues to spread its message of disdain while providing a fitting soundtrack behind it all. ----Mike SOS
OCEANO
DEPTHS
EARACHE
Chicago-bred quintet Oceano stake a claim of being the most pissed-off band on the planet, and if you could decipher the cavernous musings of vocalist Adam Warren and what he was screaming and growling about, they may be right, as the viscous racket adorning cuts like the slow-churned "Disgust for Your Kind" and the frantic fury of "District of Misery" do work as evidence for a lively debate. Make no mistake, the vocals (despite hard to comprehend) are a strongpoint, solidifying this outfit's abrasive viciousness with a twist to rival peers like Emmure, Misery Signals, and All Shall Perish for the new heavy crown. The 13-track debut Depths firmly stands its ground with a batch of rote yet bombastic low-end grooves, keeping things both excruciatingly bottom-heavy and brutal, yet resonate with an all too standard delivery within the deathcore paradigm. Luckily, Oceano picks up momentum as the album rolls along, managing to venture a bit off the threadbare path of palm-muted breakdown bliss in key spots to implement nuances such as symphonic black metal texture and crisp solos, yet ultimately fall flat in relying on prototypical old hat genre maneuvers that undoubtedly score big in a moshpit of dayglow shirts and bad haircuts yet yield overwrought results on disc. ----Mike SOS
OLD MAN’S CHILD
SLAVES OF THE WORLD
CENTURY MEDIA
After a four-year slumber, Dimmu Borgir guitarist Galder resumes his prolific solo project Old Man’s Child with the release of Slaves Of The World. This Norwegian’s nine-track aural assault contains an obligatory dose of symphonic metal complete with keyboard flourishes and dastardly vocal growls, yet there’s also strong elements of death and thrash metal (“Unholy Foreign Crusade”), allowing songs like “On The Devil’s Throne” and “Saviours of Doom” to delve into more sadistic and sinister territories. Maintaining a grandiose vibe that simultaneously spews epic and evil visions (“Ferden Mot Fienden's Land”), those who despise high-end production will shun this disc immediately, but for those who don’t mind some cracks of light seeping through black walls of despair, Old Man’s Child steadfastly delivers another well-manicured collection of black metal blasphemies. ----Mike SOS
OLDE YORK
EMPIRE STATE
COUNTDOWN
Maintaining the classic NYHC sound
and a no frills DIY mindset from the days of yore, Olde York comes barreling
down the lane with an authentic 12-track tour de force entitled Empire State.
Embodying the spirit of hardcore’s CBGB Sunday matinee glory days while
skillfully blending the styles of acts such as Cro Mags, Warzone, Sick of It
All and Leeway (whose singer Eddie Sutton makes a cameo here) into one big gang
chorus pile-on, this Big Apple quartet makes no bones about their roots or their
allegiance to the underground by pumping out anthemic pit pleasers like “Five
Year Plan” and “Still Believe”. Think hardcore died after
CB’s shut its doors? Olde York will make you think twice. ----Mike SOS
ORCUSTUS
ORCUSTUS
SOUTHERN LORD
An authentic blast of malefic black metal arrives from the depths of depravity courtesy of Norwegian troupe Orcustus, whose eponymous full-length debut comes some seven years after this troupe's initial introduction. Serving a barrage of vintage buzzsaw riffs ("Jesus Christ Patricide") and hellacious vocal rasps that wouldn't sound out of place from lauded black metal affairs of yesteryear ("Of Sophistry, Obsession, and Paranoia"), this unit (who can't seem to keep a lineup intact) project grim ideals direct from the bowels of the abyss. Featuring ex-members of groundbreaking outfits Gorgoroth and Enslaved, this squad's display of volatility and viciousness renders a bleak and raw old school assault ("Conversion"), conjuring an ominous sense of hatred and dread with every drum blast and bombastic bass reverberation ("Death and Dissolution"). Perfect for those who flock to the darkness, Orcustus has made a simple yet effective album cloaked in chaos and evil to the bone. ----Mike SOS
PRONG
POWER OF THE DAMN MIXXXER
13TH PLANET
Tommy Victor turned the original mixes from Prong's latest disc Power Of The Damager over to some of his technically-advanced musician friends to remix and Power Of The Damn Mixxxer is the end result. This 13-track endeavor showcases the behind the boards prowess of metal peeps such as Jon Clayton (Pitchshifter) and Greg Puciato (Dillinger Escape Plan) whose cosmetic cleansings and synthesized twiddlings give tracks like "The Banishment" (a song covered by two different mixes here) a throbbing makeover that pulsates with a bastardized concoction of industrial metal heft and electronic bounce ("Changing Ending Troublng Times"). Providing a ton of opportunities to take the rage to the dance floor ("Looking for Them") while laying a virtual perfect soundtrack down to a dark and futuristic action-adventure flick, Prong's latest is not only is a show of respect from the artists who contributed their own spin to Prong's genuine rawness but supplies a great deal of industrial strength metal to take the party into the morning light. ----Mike SOS
PROTAGONIST
THE CHRONICLE
PAPER AND PLASTICK
"It's not the places that you go. It's the people that you meet." Florida's Protagonist have a lot going for them. For starters, they are from Florida. Secondly, they pack substance, skill and passion into a record full of songwriting well schooled in the best lessons learned from Bad Religion, Pennywise et all. It's the basics, but the best of the basics. The singer is straight edge and the band isn't, but what's important here is the unity. Right off the bat the group sing about playing "hard, fast and together" with a sense of purpose and dedication that shines through. It's about the brotherhood of rock, not the tough guy repressed homo-eroticism that hardcore can often devolve into. Twelve songs of awesome riffs and great multi-vocal approach (which works to great effect live, just a wall of melody). I saw these guys at the Upstate,NY Punkbuttons fest and it was searing. Protagonist has to be one of the best unused punk band names I've heard in ages, also. One of those names you kick yourself for not thinking of. This is one of the best punk influenced records I've heard all year (along with A Day To Remember's latest Homesick, which everyone already knows about). Protagonist remind us about commitment with passionate yet legible screams. "I Am The Ghost" and the previously mentioned "Play Hard, Play Fast, Play Together" are probably the best tunes overall. The lyrics are poetic yet working class and the album title manages to straddle that fine line , evoking that sense of an 'epic quest' many, more 'emo' bands seek (and usually fail to live up to), while also underscoring that the music is about the band's own lives, fears, cares and dreams. Grab this. If you can silence your inner cynic, it'll remind you why music isn't supposed to be about 1-10 album rating systems, just how it melds with your life. ----Morgan Y. Evans
SAMAEL
ABOVE
NUCLEAR BLAST
Decisively leaning towards the black metal roots of their early endeavors, Swiss metal veterans Samael return with a pummeling 11-track offering entitled Above. Toning down the industrial elements commandeering the band's more recent discs (although a protruding electronic drum trigger is seamlessly inescapable) while amping up the vitriolic black metal velocity to previously unheard levels ("God Snake", "Virtual War"), Samael's brazen assault is adorned with layers of symphonic keyboards and bludgeoning tremolo guitars ("Illumination") fortifying a listening experience laden in scorn. Realizing their sojourn back to the glories of their early days while carrying over a handful of the strongest nuances from their latter-day releases for a modern twist on old themes ("On the Top of it All"), by manipulating metal's darker side and embracing their past, Samael snaps back to a furious form that leads the quartet back into the depths of the abyss. ----Mike SOS
SKUM CITY
SKUM CITY
SELF-RELEASED
NYC quartet Skum City keep the Big Apple’s punk rock fires burning bright with an authentic blast of contagious chaos straight from the LES gutter on the unit’s latest six-track 7”. Keeping the guitars crunchy, the tempos fast and dirty, and the singing sneering, tracks like “Don’t Worry About Nothin’” and “Hungry and Dirty” display a love of the hardcore punk spectrum a la DRI and Black Flag while the band’s self-titled anthem “Skum City” provides a visceral kick to the cranium as a divine group vocal chorus leads the charge. Raucous and in your face, Skum City’s colorful and confrontational punk rock stomp is certifiably scraped up from NYC’s grimy underbelly and delivered with the confident cadence of a band with the chops and aggression to pull it off. ----Mike SOS
SLOUGH FEG
APE UPRISING!
CRUZ DEL SUR
Veteran underground traditional metal outfit Slough Feg have been known to walk a bit on the wild side throughout the course of their twenty plus year proto-metal existence and this unit’s latest release bares no exception. Interspersing the squad’s patented eccentricities with a confident swagger straight out of 1978 for all to see, the triumphant and tumultuous eight-track endeavor Ape Uprising takes it back to a time when metal was still in its gestation stage, slugging it out with punk rock rebellion and glam rock excess. Customarily springing from an impenetrable foundation of Sabbath, Maiden, and Thin Lizzy, Slough Feg have comprised a sci-fi concept album based around a simian overtaking of the world to a pulsating old school metal soundtrack laden with the sort of killer vintage tones and stellar musicianship that marvelously melds the dazzling twin guitar and pounding rhythmic wares of UFO, Judas Priest, and other luminaries from the seminal NWOBHM days. Slough Feg’s most recent disc renders a durable and dependable lesson in metal with a smorgasbord of exhilarating twists and turns along the way. ----Mike SOS
SPHERIC UNIVERSE
EXPERIENCE
UNREAL
SENSORY
French progressive metal quintet Spheric Universe Experiment put their love of Dream Theater to the test on the unit’s latest nine-track endeavor Unreal. Despite the band following a tried and true prog metal template and their obvious influences falling a bit on the cautious side, this squad delivers an enjoyable nine track excursion that exhibits an array of top notch musicians whose massive musical acumen, technical aptitude (special shout out to drummer Christophe Briand’s durable chops) and jam-ready know-how (“O.B.E.”) gets the job done with a slew of memorable moments that carry melody yet don’t skimp on the metal to boot (“Lakeside Park”). Solid yet not very groundbreaking, it’s unlikely that Spheric Universe Experience has the tools necessary to break into the mainstream, but Unreal demonstrates that they can decisively hold their own amongst their prog metal peers ----Mike SOS
SWORN ENEMY
TOTAL WORLD DO MINATION
CENTURY MEDIA
www.centurymedia.com
After sticking it out for over a decade, NYC hardcore metal troupe Sworn Enemy return in top form with a ripping thrash-heavy monster of an album that pulls no punches entitled Total World Domination. Again choosing to work with Tim Lambesis, this quintet’s relentless assault on the ears is bolstered as always by Sal Lococo’s gargantuan vocals yet this time twin guitar work that digs deep from the Exodus and Destruction songbooks accompanies the pummeling to mercilessly take you down and out for the count (“On the Outside”). Imagine the intensity of Municipal Waste without the frivolity colliding with the clobbering tactics of Madball and Earth Crisis and you’ve got the template for this NYHC-bred unit’s latest barnburner, as choice cuts such as “Still Hating”, “Ready to Fight” and “Run for Shelter” provide the adrenaline necessary to demolish everything in the way throughout the course of the day and showcase that this band proudly holds onto its roots with an unwavering aggressive as ever mindset leading their charge. -----Mike SOS
THE ANTIKAROSHI
CRUSHED NEOCONS
EXILE ON MAINSTREAM
Crushed Neocons is an eclectic nine-track presentation by German trio The Antikaroshi that straddles the line between post-hardcore and post-rock with oodles of jazzy edges. Jaded guitars drenched in delay (“Cruiserwait”), mighty bass rumblings and adroit percussive work converge to form hypnotic rhythms with a pervasive free-from jam sensibility flowing in and out of the rollicking jolts and rest stops on cuts like “Fistful” and “Contradiction”. An abstract non-singer stream of consciousness vocal delivery and a general flair for the off-kilter assist unorthodox arrangements like “Baskerville” and “Pes” to contort into weird and wondrous soundscapes that borrow as much from the DC hardcore scene standouts as they do forward thinking bands that go above and beyond constraints of the norm a la Refused and Sunny Day Real Estate. Championing an angular and hard to pin down yet easy to sink into style, this exercise in experimental rock may prove to be too far-reaching for some, but for those who enjoy a space shuttle mission to the Moon should heed this prime opportunity to get on The Antikaroshi’s rocket ride. ----Mike SOS
THE BAKERTON GROUP
EL ROJO
WEATHERMAKER
Bonafide 21st Century bluesmen The Bakerton Group unleash their second experimental musical adventure the 10-track offering El Rojo. Yielding a galactic listening experience chock full of heady jams and wicked instrumental breaks, this alter ego outfit of alt metal kingpins Clutch (with vocalist Neil Fallon trading in cunning lyrics and clever vocal deliveries for rhythm guitar) perfectly displays the sound of world class musicians collectively digging deeper, unearthing a smorgasbord of styles that implementing dub rock ("Work 'Em"), funk ("Chancellor"), and freewheeling jazz rock laden with '70s keyboard explosions (thanks to Opeth's Per Wiberg ), and alto sax flourishes. Taking their main band's patented left of center approach off to uncharted territory, The Bakerton Group's odyssey is undeniably constructed from Clutch's impenetrable foundation, yet El Rojo independently stands as a next level triptastic delight for fans of groovy improvisational rock to imbibe and enjoy. -----Mike SOS
THE BOY WILL DROWN
FETISH
EARACHE
Ambitious UK upstarts The Boy Will Drown dazzle with a tenacious technical prowess on their debut 10-track offering Fetish. This group maintains a disjointed heaviness without relying on breakdowns, opting instead to steer their compositions with sharp dips in dynamics (“Akura Class”) and blistering speed-freak tempos (“Epilpleptic”). Elastic bass lines and coarse guitar riffs do battle while staccato percussion patterns flail away underneath a barrage of gruff and guttural death metal grunts, creating a stirring yet bit redundant metallic undertaking whose constant cacophonic clobbering becomes grating and repetitive, yet when interspersed with brief flashes of unorthodox musicality (“Dead Girls”) takes on as an admirable offshoot of Dillinger Escape Plan meets Psyopus by way of Poison the Well. ----Mike SOS
THE CAVE CANEM
MINI EP
XCROCS
myspace.com/cavecanemprod
xcrocsrecords.free.fr
Like a battle cry, France's the Cave Canem roar onto the world scene with post-punk guitars and screaming saxophone, expertly straddling minimalist tendencies with bombastic energy. There's a sort of No Wave/James Chance meets Girls Against Boys groove thing going on here that hands down rules and this French band is extremely talented. Fred DeBenedetti is best know for his work with the vastly under-rated yet critically acclaimed industrial influenced avant-noise band Kill The Thrill and Sax man Julien Lemonnier for his role with Dodescaden. The Cave Canem finds the pair stretching their boundaries further and delivering sonic deconstruction with strange twists and veering sharp turns like "Against Religion" which has top notch tempo shifts while allowing you to groove the fuck out . These guys could scare demons! This is a hot and sweaty series of songs, like the best of Morphine if it was way more bleak and violently scratching nails down your back. Poetic and adept. Available as two Xcrocs records mini-cds. Order this online right now. Some of the nicest yet forward thinking musicians out there today. ----Morgan Y. Evans
THE HUMAN QUENA ORCHESTRA
THE POLITICS OF THE IRREDEEMABLE
CRUCIAL BLAST
Patience is required to properly
experience the latest offering from The Human Quena Orchestra, as this Bay Area
drone duo upkeep a sordid and suspenseful atmosphere throughout the duration
of The Politics Of The Irredeemable. Immersed in dark waves and dissonant
swirls of industrial feedback, this six-track excursion’s calculated slow-crawl
accentuates an overall foreboding tone, intensified when scattershot screams
of terror and dread rise from the abyss. Yielding a vacuous apocalyptic din,
this tandem successfully serve up a sluggish soundtrack to the final days of
mankind.
----Mike SOS
THE NEW BLACK
THE NEW BLACK
AFM
German quintet The New Black purposely channels a hard rock from North America appeal on their eponymous debut disc. Sounding like a hybrid with Nickelback’s hooky choruses and commercial flair, Black Label Society’s fretboard gymnastics, and Hellyeah’s sinewy swagger, this outfit’s mammoth whiskey-fueled guitar chugs and piledriving bottom end is solidified with a metal cowboy appeal that fans of Shinedown will appreciate (“Why I Burn”) and a modern hard rock sound tailor made for action sports highlight reels (“Wound”). While some derivation from the blueprint would knock this disc out of the park, all of The New Black’s ass-kicking elements are in place and uncoil at the right times to offer a listening experience for the gym or the pub that won’t disappoint. ----Mike SOS
THINNING THE HERD
DEVIL MASK
SELF-RELEASED
Scraping the seedy underbelly of the Big Apple with enormous rock riffs,NYC trio Thinning the Herd return with another batch of stonerriffic hard rock chock full of grit and substance on the five-track Devil Mask. Bridging the gap between the heavier side of grunge and the groovier side of metal, tracks like “Kitchen Sink” summon a ‘90s power rock vibe kind of like Monster Magnet meeting up with Soundgarden while “Uninformed” strikes with the subtlety of a punch square in the gut and “Simple Job” rocks like the best song your favorite Swedish stoner rock band never wrote. If you enjoy in your face music with an exhilarating rock ‘n roll aura, Thinning the Herd is a bonafide choice for a hellacious good time. ----Mike SOS
TIM RIPPER OWENS
PLAY MY GAME
SPV
After providing vocals for the most notable metal bands in the world for well over the past decade, Tim “Ripper” Owens finally steps out as a solo artist on his 12-track debut Play My Game. Bringing a mind-blowing cross-section of the metal friends he’s made along the way to the party (an impressive list that reads like a who’s who in the metal realm), Owens and associates dole out a lesson in traditional metal excellence with a modern edge (“No Good Goodbyes”). Channeling his former band Judas Priest and Dio as main sources of inspiration for his powerful vocals, the harbingering aura of “The Shadows Are Alive” and the wild caterwauls accompanying the extra-terrestrial pounder “The Cover Up” help Owens decisively cement his own identity while a surprisingly cohesive considering the vast array of hands in the mix multidimensional metal attack utilizes British metal swagger and American hard rock grit to get the job done (“Play My Game”). Despite the over the top six-string bravado of the likes of Craig Goldie, Doug Aldrich, and Carlos Cavazo leading the rhythm section towards a studio session feel, Owens’ powerful pipes and old world compositions ground this all-star affair long enough to strike a balance between sound like a musician’s clinic and a metal album with mass appeal. ----Mike SOS
VANMAKT
AD LUCIFERI REGNUM
PULVERISED
Far from reinventing the wheel yet
capable to drum up some scare with their competent yet common strand of evil
blackened metal, nefarious Swedish troupe Vanmakt blast their way through nine-tracks
of misanthropic misery on Ad Luciferi Regnum. Dispersing a maelstrom
of tremolo-picked madness (“Reincarnation Hatred”, “The Ascension”),
this band employs a large sum of tried and troo genre tactics and nuances to
hammer its menacing message through unsuspecting skulls, yet it should be noted
that if you already pledge allegiance to the most sadistic from the Nordic states,
there’s nothing here you haven't experienced before. Nonetheless, Vanmakt
does an acceptable job of conjuring the spirits of the underworld and should
appeal to those who like a mix of symphonic death metal with a bit more bite.
----Mike SOS
WARBRINGER
WAKING INTO NIGHTMARES
CENTURY MEDIA
Los Angeles metal troupe Warbringer churns out an authentically replicated form of the best from thrash metal’s guilded age on the squad’s sophomore effort Waking Into Nightmares. Emulating the fury and power of every Testament riff, Overkill tempo acceleration, Baloff vocal pattern, and Slayer drumbeat as if their own, this quintet’s tried and true array of speed and heaviness (“Shadow of the Tomb”) coupled with a rousing ability to stay the course yet still knock out their own unique blend of searing compositions and rebellious subject matter that gloriously screams 1987 Headbangers Ball all the way. Complete with a snarling Kreator-esque guitar tone (“Scorched Earth”) yielding only to the rich classic metal influenced breaks and interludes peppered throughout (“Nightmare Anatomy”), Waking Into Nightmares is an excellently rounded 10-track disc laden in apocalyptic atmosphere and chock full of unquestionably volatile thrash metal virtue. ----Mike SOS
VARIOUS ARTISTS
DOOM (TRANSITIVE VERB)
SELF-RELEASED
A triple slab o’ doom oozes from your speakers courtesy of a three-way split disc from a caustic mix of bands rising up from the recesses of the deep sure to give little children nightmares and keep neighborhoods on lockdown. Up first is Evoken, a veteran New Jersey funeral doom troupe whose chilling offering “In Solitary Ruin” masterfully sets the bleak tone for this collection with a firm handle on down tempo despair. Oak take the reigns next with an understated touch of death metal sprouting up in between the detached devastating riffs heard on “Gates Are Open”. Rounding out the triad of tragic triad, Black Roller Crop Rotation takes the affair to a whole new level of grim thanks to “Prayers From the Rotten Soil”, featuring a bevy of experimental leanings forming a cacophony of undistinguishable vocal squeals, jet-propeller-esque swirls of dissonance, and hypnotic industrial noise. You've been warned. ----Mike SOS
WE INSIST!
THE BABEL INSIDE WAS TERRIBLE
EXILE ON MAINSTREAM
The French avant-garde rockers We Insist return with another ceiling-shattering collection on the 11-track The Babel Inside Was Terrible. Inhabiting the edge shared by like-minded boundary breakers like Tool, System of a Down and Queens of the Stone Age, this eclectic unit consistently pushes its music into strange and wondrous territories without sounding crammed in or forced. Thanks to a vast musical acumen and distinct overall sound highlighted by a raucous rock ‘n roll delivery spearheaded by a saxophone played through a guitar amp, this veteran squad embraces the luxury of total musical freedom without losing its backbone. Implementing a barrage of left of center rock hovering around the headier sphere of influence a la King Crimson and Mr. Bungle, We Insist will keep those who crave convention defiant music pleasantly occupied. ----Mike SOS
WRENCH
WRENCH
SELF-RELEASED
Brooklyn, NY quartet Wrench tear through speakers with the finesse of an old school Bay Ridge brawler, showcasing an abrasive amalgamation of the sheer sonic furies of Carnivore, Madball, and Pro-Pain on their six-track release. Subtle as a blunt object to the skull yet bouncy enough to keep the head bobbing, Wrench comes equipped with a vicious vocal bark reminiscent of Helmet at their most caustic, a gutwrenching 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea bottom end that rattles fillings and a procession of slamming Biohazard-esque grooves all working as one to hammer this crew’s brawny bullet points home. This recharged veteran unit’s creates a viscous wall of 90s crossover metal perfect for throwing a fist in the air or throwing down in the pit to. ----Mike SOS