Daniel's Forum Replies

Skepticism - "Stormcrowfleet" (1995)

Ben & I became involved with the debut album from this highly praised Finnish funeral doom metal outfit very early on in their recording career however we've always been quite divided on the merits of "Stormcrowfleet". My younger brother claims it to be an unmitigated classic in every respect while I've never been able to see past a few obvious failings that have prevented it from ever eclipsing the status of a passing interest. This revisit hasn't seen that changing as I still struggle with the poor production & performances. The fuzzy guitars sound like they're in another room from the rest of the band while the ultra-lethargic drumming is regularly out of time which makes the album sound more like a cheap demo than a proper release. The fact that there aren't technically many genuine guitar riffs doesn't help either with most of the melodic themes being presented by some pretty cheap sounding synthesizers.

Despite these obstacles though, there's something mysterious about Skepticism's sound that manages to keep my interest in 2023. It's an ethereal quality that's not dissimilar to those found on lo-fi atmospheric black metal releases & it's this element alone that sees Skepticism offering me enough reward to justify my continued attention. The lengthy tracks that bookend the tracklisting are the best examples, particularly the marvellous closer "The Everdarkgreen" which has surprised me enough to see me now calling it a classic example of the funeral doom metal sound. "Stormcrowfleet" may never come close to reaching any of my top ten lists but I'd suggest that it contains an unusual aura that may appeal to fans of Thergothon, Profetus & Pantheist.

3.5/5

Candlemass - "Ancient Dreams" (1988)

Listening back now, I don't think I'd actually heard the third album from these Swedish doom masters' before to tell you the truth which is a shame because it's another ultra-professionally produced & executed slab of epic doom utopia. Iconic front man Messiah Marcolin's vocals soar & the lead guitar work of Lars Johansson dazzles while the riffs of Mats Björkman are as bone-crushingly heavy as any you'll find. Unlike many fans, I definitely prefer the slower, doomier material over the more heavy metal-influenced numbers & that means that the album starts off a little slower for me over the first couple of tracks but from there on it hits a new level of power & atmosphere with my personal favourite "Incarnation of Evil" being right up there with Candlemass' best work. I even really enjoy the Black Sabbath medley that closes the album. "Ancient Dreams" may not quite equal the first two Candlemass records but it doesn't sit very far behind in my opinion & I slightly favour it over 1989's more highly regarded "Tales of Creation" fourth album if I'm being honest. Fans of bands like Solitude Aeturnus, Crypt Sermon & Solstice should be all over this one.

4/5

I consider Metal Church's first 3 to be among the best USPM albums I've heard so far.  I also classify the first 3 as speed metal, but they fell out of the speed sound after that.

It's been a long time since I listened to "Blessing in Disguise" but I'd tag the first two Metal Church albums as below:

METAL CHURCH

01. Beyond the Black                Heavy Metal

02. Metal Church                       Thrash Metal

03. Merciless Onslaught          Thrash Metal

04. Gods of Wrath                     Heavy Metal

05. Hitman                                  Heavy Metal

06. In the Blood                          Heavy Metal

07. (My Favorite) Nightmare    Thrash Metal

08. Battalions                             Speed/Power Metal

09. Highway Star                        Heavy Metal

THE DARK

01. Ton of Bricks                         Thrash Metal

02. Start the Fire                          Heavy Metal

03. Method to Your Madness    Heavy/Speed Metal

04. Watch the Children Pray      Heavy Metal

05. Over My Dead Body              Heavy Metal

06. The Dark                                 Power/Heavy Metal

07. Psycho                                    Speed Metal

08. Line of Death                         Thrash Metal

09. Burial at Sea                          Heavy Metal

10. Western Alliance                   Speed Metal

The current Heavy Metal tag works well enough for the Metal Academy database in my opinion as Ben & I have never agreed with the US Power Metal tag as a legitimate genre. It's more of a catch-all for records that blur the boundaries of heavy, power, speed & thrash metal & these two are good examples of that. Feel free to nominate these releases for the Hall of Judgement if you think they'd be better served by a Speed Metal tag though.

Scanner - "Hypertrace" (1988)

Every now & then I like to push myself musically by experimenting with releases that sit outside of my usual comfort zone & I think it's fair to say that the European brand of power metal sits on the polar opposite end of the metal spectrum to myself. Occasionally though, I've discovered a hidden gem that brightens my spirit & encourages me to continue to push myself with these sort of exercises but I'm afraid the 1988 debut album from Germany's Scanner isn't one of them. "Hypertrace" seems to be referred to as some sort of groundbreaking "sci-fi metal" release by some reviewers but I can't say that I can pick up anything particularly different about it. It sounds exactly like you'd expect a German power metal record to sound really. There are a couple of speed metal numbers & a couple of Judas Priest style heavy metal songs included in classic Teutonic fashion but at the end of the day this is a fairly generic power metal record that sounds remarkably similar to countrymen like Rage, Mania & particularly Helloween who would seem to be the primary source of inspiration here. It's not horrible by any measure but if I'm being honest I'd have to admit that I only really enjoy a couple of tracks ("Locked Out" & speed metal banger "Grapes of Fear" which is my personal favourite) with the rest of the album merely floating past me with very little fanfare.

3/5

Meshuggah - "Contradictions Collapse" (1991)

I feel that I was probably a little fortunate to stumble over Swedish djent phenomenon Meshuggah very early on in their recording career after taking in the first of Nuclear Blast’s “Death… Is Just The Beginning” video compilations & finding their video clip for “Abnegating Cecity” to be very interesting. It was the sheer complexity of the song & riff structures, the incredible ability of front man Jens Kidman to deliver his vocals while playing such obscure time signatures on his guitar & the ground-breaking use of Allan Holdsworth style jazz fusion guitar solos that really got me & I immediately proceeded to pick the “Contradictions Collapse” album up through the tape trading scene. I think it’s fair to say that I found it to be generally entertaining too but the song-writing hasn't proven to be consistently engaging enough to see me making regular return visits over the years & it wouldn’t be until 1995’s “Destroy Erase Improve” sophomore album that I’d become truly convinced of Meshuggah’s credentials as a genuine star of the global metal scene. “Contradictions Collapse” is a very different record to that one though to be fair.

I think one of the limiting factors in just how much appeal a record like “Contradictions Collapse” can offer is the production job as the rhythm guitar tone is quite dry & the snare sound isn’t the heaviest but the performances are nothing short of spectacular for a debut full-length. This music is as complex as metal came at the time with drummer Tomas Haake already proving himself to be an absolute machine. The unusual time signature changes fly past with high regularity but the whole band somehow manages to keep everything sounding tight & precise. The guitar solos I mentioned are exquisitely composed too, despite sounding pretty random at times. That style of lead work requires a lot of training & practice to perfect so I’ve been very impressed with how well it’s been presented for such a young band.

Kidman’s vocals aren’t as aggressive as you’re probably used to from him these days & he sounds a fair bit like a gruffer James Hetfield a lot of the time. He does a reasonable job of it but I definitely prefer his later work if I'm being honest. It’s the instrumental side of Meshuggah’s sound that was the most dramatically different to the signature djent sound they’d create shortly afterwards though & I’m not sure I heard anything that sounds like “Contradictions Collapse” during the early 1990’s. It really was one of a kind. A lot of people tend to tag it as a technical thrash metal release but I’ve always found that to be a little dubious… until now that is. When examined closely it soon becomes apparent that a lot of the riffs are extremely technical variations on themes that wouldn’t feel out of place on a Metallica or Anthrax record so I’ve had to change my tune a bit. That’s not to say that there’s not a lot more to this album than thrash though as I’d suggest that a good portion of it fits comfortably under the progressive metal tag, not the djent variety however as Meshuggah hadn’t yet homed in on that sound regularly enough to warrant the creation of a new subgenre at this early stage of their evolution. There are quite a few odd-timed, groove-oriented riffs scattered across the tracklisting too & this is where Meshuggah’s chances of achieving my higher scores start to diminish as I certainly find the thrashier material to be superior to the chuggier stuff which tends to sound a touch flat in comparison.

It's pretty hard to see why “Contradictions Collapse” is so poorly regarded these days to tell you the truth as it’s a very consistent record that sounds like no one else & contains no genuinely weak moments. It also highlights an inspired, talented & ambitious group of musicians with tracks like opener “Paralyzing Ignorance” (my personal favourite), “Internal Evidence” & “Greed” being very solid examples of where Meshuggah were up to in their evolution. Sure, it may be the band’s least impressive album overall but that’s more of a reflection on what a consistent band they are than an indication of any failure on this record’s part as it still holds up well today & should be of interest to fans of bands like Stam1na, Obliveon & Watchtower.

3.5/5

A very solid progressive metal instrumental from this highly regarded US power metal outfit.

Biosphere - "Substrata" (1997)

A stunning ambient work from Norway. One of my favourite records.

Progressive US power metal from Houston, Texas.

Helstar - "A Distant Thunder" (1988)

Despite holding some mixed opinions on a few of their later releases, I wasn’t terribly impressed with my only significant experience with Houston-based US power metal outfit Helstar’s much talked about 1980’s releases to tell you the truth. It came during my research for the Metal Academy podcast many years ago with Helstar’s 1984 “Burning Star” debut album leaving me cold thanks in no small part to the inadequacies of the vocal & lead guitar performances. You could easily identify the early links to power metal in Helstar’s chunky American heavy metal sound though & I was well aware of just how widely celebrated the band’s late 80’s work was so I always intended on investigating it at some point. Perhaps not as late as has ended up being the case though.

Helstar’s highly regarded third album “A Distant Thunder” sees them returning with a very different lineup to the one I’d heard on “Burning Star”. Front man James Rivera (Destiny’s End/Malice/Vicious Rumors/Seven Witches) is still there although he’s strangely changed his name from Bill Lionel since the debut which would seem to be a good move as his skills have significantly improved since then with none of the pitchiness that plagued that record being evident here. Guitarist Larry Barragan is also back, only this time with a new partner in crime in the little-known Andre Corbin who has replaced original axeman Tom Rogers. The duo seem much more capable too with the theoretical gaps that saw Barragan & Corbin blindly wandering out of key no longer causing an issue here. And finally, the entire rhythm section of Paul Medina & Hector Pavon have been replaced with bassist Jerry Abarca & Frank Ferreira so it really is a very different Helstar from the one that disappointed me many years ago & it certainly sounds it too.

The inconsistencies that marred the song-writing on “Burning Star” have been replaced with a very consistent & blemish-free tracklisting on “A Distant Thunder” & I can honestly say that I enjoyed the whole album to some extent. Helstar’s sound had well & truly embraced the US power metal sound by this stage with the guitar tone possessing a chunkiness that you’ll rarely find in your more traditional heavy metal. The soaring & theatrical vocal delivery is also more in line with power metal while the riffs often verge on speed/thrash metal. In fact, I’d describe the closing Scorpions cover version “He’s A Woman, She’s A Man” as a genuine thrash number that wouldn’t seem out of place on one of our The Pit playlists.

While I generally enjoy all of this material & regard the album as a decent example of its type, I wouldn’t say that it sits all that comfortably with me from a stylistic point of view. The clear highlight tracks manage to get past that obstacle with proggy US power metal anthem “Scorcher” being my pick up the bunch along with the out-&-out progressive metal instrumental piece “(The) Whore of Babylon”. In fact, there’s a fair whack of progressive stuff on the album to tell you the truth with (much like the debut) the riffage possessing significantly more complexity than your average heavy/power metal band was attempting back in the late 1980’s. It’s perhaps not quite enough to warrant a dual tagging but it’s certainly worth noting nonetheless.

If you’re into the US brand of power metal in a big way then I’d suggest you give “A Distant Thunder” the once over as I’m sure you’ll rate it more highly than I do. Fellow US power metal outfits like Liege Lord, Agent Steel & Sanctuary are a good point of reference.

3.5/5

Mgła - "With Hearts Toward None" (2012)

I revisited this popular Polish black metal sophomore album for the first time in over a decade this week & I have to say that, despite finding it to be a generally enjoyable listen, I still think it's been heavily overrated over the years. It's a serviceable enough traditional black metal record to be fair but it certainly lacks the menace of the true classics of the genre. The main reason is the drum sound & performance from Darkside (also of Kriegmachine). His beats simply lack intensity & come across as being fairly unintimidating. The vocals of M. (Kriegmaschine/Owls Woods Graves) are effective although a little generic while his guitar work is pretty simple but suitably melodic & atmospheric, often hinting at an underlying Dissection influence in their accessibility & catchiness. It's not hard to see why "With Hearts Toward None" is so popular as it's obviously pretty easy on the ear & offers significant crossover appeal but it's not a patch on the wonderful 2015 follow-up "Exercises in Futility" which is just so much more substantial in every way. I'd still recommend this album to fans of Plaga, Groza & early Uada though.

3.5/5

Vicious Rumors - "Digital Dictator" (1988)

Although Californian heavy metallers Vicious Rumors have been a fairly significant band in the US power metal spectrum for over four decades now, my exposure to their material has been fairly limited up until now. I think my general understanding of their sound amounted to a few tracks I may have heard on late-night underground metal radio programs in the early 1990’s, possibly taken from their 1991 fourth album “Welcome To The Ball” if memory serves me correctly. Given that I’ve filled a few other obvious gaps in my knowledge of US power metal in recent times though, I thought it might be time to give Vicious Rumors most highly regarded record a few spins with my enthusiasm levels being quite high going into listen one.

1998 “Digital Dictator” sees Vicious Rumors returning from nearly a three year absence following the release of their first album “Soldiers of the Night” in May 1985. The debut had been generally well received but some lineup changes had taken place since then with former Hawaii front man Gary St. Pierre making way for new singer Carl Albert & (perhaps more significantly) guitar virtuoso Vinnie Moore (UFO/Alice Cooper) being replaced by the relatively unknown Mark McGee. Despite not having heard Vicious Rumors’ debut, I’d have to suggest that fans would have been happy with the result because both newbies do a stellar job here. In fact, the vocals & lead guitar work are amongst the highlights of the album for mine.

Vicious Rumors’ sound is much like many other US power metal associated bands in that it tinkers with a few different subgenres. The main one is that of classic heavy metal with most of the ten tracks fitting reasonably comfortably under that tag. There are not quite as many tracks that tick all of the boxes required to be classed as US power metal but the muscular metal riffage is still a major component of the album’s appeal so I feel that a dual tagging is appropriate on this occasion. Speed metal also raises its head here & there, particularly on the pacy “Minute To Kill” which should be of interest to members of The Pit. When taken holistically though, I’d suggest that the best points of comparison can be drawn with bands like Liege Lord, Metal Church & Helstar, all of who tend to tip toe along the same greyed-out lines between the various subgenres.

The tracklisting kicks off beautifully with the Iron Maiden-esque instrumental guitar harmony piece “Replicant” leading into the wonderful title track (my personal favourite) which sees Albert’s vocals possessing a Geoff Tate-like higher register sheen & the song-writing being ably assisted by a production job that almost feels like progressive metal, despite the compositions showing few genuinely progressive elements. The remainder of the A side is pretty good too with only the more commercial “Towns On Fire” failing to deliver but the B side is nowhere near as strong, struggling through the middle with a number of filler tracks appearing in quick succession. It’s these inconsistencies that see a record with huge early potential ending up being just another decent 80’s heavy metal record. This style of music lives & dies by the quality of its hooks & there are too many flat ones here to justify my higher scores, despite the instrumentation being right up my alley for the most part.

3.5/5

The best example is how I consider the best Suffocation release to be Human Waste, because it's likely their heaviest

I would argue that Suffocation have several heavier releases than "Human Waste". It still included quite a bit of thrash influence in comparison to the pure savagery of "Effigy of the Forgotten" where the new tracks all upped the brutality on those taken from “Human Waste”.

Internal Bleeding - "Voracious Contempt" (1995)

The early-to-mid 1990’s were a marvelous time to be alive for budding young extreme metal enthusiasts like myself. I was lucky enough to discover brutal death metal right from its inception at the commencement of the decade & it very quickly became an obsession of mine to find every band on earth that even hinted at a more muscular brand of death metal. The New York scene became a haven for these acts in the wake of the Suffocation boom & my letter box would very quickly start to become a place of refuge for young bands from that part of the world. Amongst those would be Levittown locals Internal Bleeding, originally through their 1994 “Perpetual Degradation” demo & then via this 1995 debut album “Voracious Contempt” shortly afterwards. Both releases gave me a great deal of enjoyment at the time & I can even hear a bit of that influence in the 1995 demo tapes from my old band Neuropath when listening with fresh ears. It’s been a long time since I revisited Internal Bleeding's earlier efforts though so I thought I’d pull out “Voracious Contempt” for a trip down Memory Lane, particularly given my recent dalliances with slam death metal which is a genre that Internal Bleeding played a large part in creating.

Internal Bleeding’s sound (& slam death metal’s too if you want to get technical about it) is built on a fairly limited palate of techniques which are repeatedly utilized throughout the tracklisting. Many of these tools are borrowed from Suffocation’s early works only slam death artists give them a much more thorough working over in order to milk them for everything they’re worth. If we start with the production job you’ll find Internal Bleeding drawing upon a super-distorted & ultra-compressed guitar tone to create an abrasive yet predominantly rhythmic effect. The compositions are made up of a mixture of slow-to-mid tempo slam riffs built on the breakdown techniques popularized on Suffocation’s 1991 debut album “Effigy of the Forgotten”, combining them with faster blast-beat-driven parts that borrow heavily from Suffocation’s 1991 “Human Waste” EP. Drummer Bill Tolley seems to only know the one simple blast beat technique so he tends to repeat it on every track. It’s worth mentioning that Tolley had passed the vocal duties over to newcomer Frank Rini since the “Perpetual Degradation” demo &, while Rini’s death grunts are certainly ultra-deep, they aren’t especially aggressive in death metal terms. I prefer Tolley’s style from the demo tape to be honest but Rini does a reasonable job here nonetheless.

The ten-song tracklisting is very consistent with a few of the stronger inclusions being reworked versions of songs that originally appeared on “Perpetual Degradation”. There are also a few that featured on earlier demos that I don’t recall owning as well. The album starts off in very solid fashion for the first couple of tracks before taking a slight dip for the remainder of the A side & rising again for a unanimously high quality B side. Despite the fact that there are no weak tracks included, I’m not sure I’d class any of these songs as death metal classics. My personal favourite “Inhuman Suffering”, opener “Languish In Despair” & “Prophet of the Blasphemes” are probably the pick of the bunch but it can be hard to pick out individual tracks given the similarities in tone & approach. X

There’s a case to argue that Internal Bleeding really created the slam death metal sound with “Perpetual Degradation” & “Voracious Contempt”. If not, then they certainly brought it to the attention of the death metal public. “Voracious Contempt” still possesses many of the calling cards of the early brutal death metal sound as well though which gives it some added appeal for me personally, particularly given that it’s not tainted by modern-day slam traits such as the pinging snare drum or the indecipherable drainpipe vocal gurgle. Fans of bands like Devourment, Repudilation & Soils of Fate should definitely make themselves familiar with it as I can’t see it disappointing too many slam/brutal death metal nuts.

4/5

Here's my updated Top Ten Slam Death Metal Releases of All Time list with Devourment's "Molesting The Decapitated" being the unlucky release to drop out:

01. Pathology – “The Time Of Great Purification” (2012)

02. Abominable Putridity – “The Anomalies Of Artificial Origin” (2012)

03. Devourment – “Obscene Majesty” (2019)

04. Katalepsy - "Autopsychosis" (2013)

05. Internal Bleeding - "Voracious Contempt" (1995)

06. Devour The Unborn – “Consuming The Morgue Remains” (2012)

07. Disfiguring The Goddess – “Sleeper” (2012)

08. Pighead – “Rotten Body Reanimation” (2012)

09. Coprophiliac – “Whining Bitch Treatment” (2012)

10. Devourment - "Butcher The Weak" (2006)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/145

By definition, the term "LP" refers to "Long Play" & "EP" is short for "Extra Play" so it's pretty clear that an EP is essentially intended to be an extended single with an LP being a more significant release. These guidelines seem to have been completely ignored in more recent times since the limitations of the vinyl medium have been cast by the wayside but I can't say that I care too much if I'm being honest. I never concern myself with what an artist's intention was when I'm rating &/or reviewing their music. I simply put the headphones on & keep an open mind. I don't think the length of a release should have any impact on it's perceived quality either. The impact of three five-star bangers is the same whether it's in isolation on an EP or a run of the three tracks through the middle of a double album. Yes, it's harder to create a 50-minute five-star record than it is a 20-minute one but I strongly feel that my ratings should be about the average quality of the material included so it really doesn't matter whether it's an album or an EP in my opinion. Each release should be rated for what it IS rather than what it ISN'T & was never intended to be.

My world has been thrown into complete disarray this week after I was made redundant after 28 years of service at my company. It came completely out of the blue & seems to be complete madness from an operational point of view given that the work that I do is still very much required. The whole business is in uproar over it & I'll receive a very large pay-out which certainly softens the blow a touch but my ego has copped a significant amount of bruising & it hasn't come at a good time for my personal life so I'm doing it a bit tough at the moment.

The two nominations have been posted in the Hall of Judgement.

Proggy Italian heavy metal.

Adramelch - "Irae Melanox" (1988)

I often find myself surprised when I stumble across old bands that seem to have gained such unusually strong underground followings built on decades of word of mouth. I usually find many of these artists to have something in common too in that they generally seem to eschew many of the modern-day production tropes, instead offering a (presumably unintentional) layer of distortion, atmosphere & general naivety that works to draw in an old-school metal audience that’s still hungry to relive the joys of receiving dodgy dubbed cassettes in the mail. Poorly monikered Italian progressive metal outfit Adramelch are a very good example of this concept as I honestly heard bugger-all about them back in the day but their 1988 debut album “Irae Melanox” seems to be regarded as somewhat of an early prog metal classic these days. I had very little idea of what to expect going into it but was quite hopeful given the strong praise I was reading.

The major failing of “Irae Melanox” takes no time at all to show its face upon pressing play with the ultra-raw production making its presence felt immediately. I struggled with this issue significantly throughout my first listen to be honest. It’s mainly about the awfully thin & dry rhythm guitar tone that possesses almost no depth or bottom end & there’s no doubt whatsoever that it should never have gotten out of the demo space. The instrumental work is quite ambitious & expansive for the time though & it soon becomes clear that Adramelch can rightly lay claim to being one of the earlier genuinely progressive metal bands.

Vocalist Vittorio Ballerio delivers a higher register tone that reminds me of Rush front man Geddy Lee crossed with Fates Warning’s John Arch at times but he’s actually more successful than that sounds on paper with his finer moments representing the high points of the album. Unfortunately though, the production issues do limit how much appeal I can draw from this music & the tracklisting is a bit inconsistent anyway. Perhaps the inclusion of some power metal-inspired material across the back end of the album hasn’t helped given my general aversion to the genre with songs like the title track, “Was Called Empire” & “Dreams of a Jester” not doing much for me. More predominantly progressive numbers such as “Decay (Saver Comes)”, “Zephirus”, “Fearful Visions” & “Eyes of Alabaster” are much more to my taste. Actually, I’d suggest that the power metal component is generally overstated on other online resources as there’s a fair bit more to Adramelch’s sound than that so a primary power metal tag is a little misleading in my opinion. I’d suggest that they sound more like the progressive metal of mid-80’s Fates Warning only with a much rawer vibe similar to fellow Italians Dark Quarterer & a bit of the pseudo-power metal of Californian heavy metallers Warlord tossed in for good measure.

Is “Irae Melaox” a good record though? Look, it’s not a bad album overall but I’d suggest that it requires a little patience to get past the production problems. A full three listens were required for me to reach the hooks (which generally come through Ballerio’s vocals) so don’t expect it to open up in front of you immediately & be prepared to give it some time. Diehard members of The Infinite will likely need hear this record but I can’t say that I can see why it’s so highly regarded to be perfectly frank. It does have a timeless quality about it that I suspect is a large part of what makes it so special to many others though.

3.5/5

Paradise Lost - "Shades of God" (1992)

It’s interesting that, although I regard myself as a big fan of the doom/death metal subgenre in general, I’ve never really counted myself as a huge fan of one of the most seminal & highly regarded artists in England’s Paradise Lost, at least not of their earlier & more influential death metal-infused releases. I did quite like their 1989 “Frozen Illusion” demo tape & their widely celebrated sophomore album “Gothic” but I have to admit that neither of them have received much in the way of return visits after I first discovered them back in the early 1990’s. I only really got onboard the Paradise Lost train with their 1993 fourth album “Icon” (my favourite Paradise Lost release overall) & 1995's highly successful "Draconian Times" record which saw them completing their transition away from doom/death into a more polished & accessible gothic metal sound that would prove to be hugely influential for decades to come. So what of the band’s 1992 third album “Shades of God” then, a transitional release that saw the Halifax five-piece right at the mid-point between their two signature sounds?

Despite not classing myself as an obsessive fan of 1990’s “Lost Paradise” or 1991’s “Gothic” albums, I did pick up “Shades of God” on cassette shortly after it was released. I guess I still held hopes of Paradise Lost taking the promise shown in the stronger “Gothic” material to new & more consistent levels but my first few listens didn’t really deliver the desired outcome. I guess I just found the band’s foot-in-both-camps approach to be a little bit middling to be honest. Admittedly, the tracklisting was slightly more consistent than “Gothic” which possessed a more filler material however there are also nowhere near the quantity of highlights that "Gothic" benefited from with only the doomy “No Forgiveness” meeting equivalent heights for me personally. Some of this can certainly be attributed to my personal taste as the album contains three tracks that highlight the gothic metal sound that Paradise Lost were moving towards & these are generally regarded as the centrepieces of the album. They’re all pretty decent songs in their own right too but I can’t ever say that they ever see me being fully engaged. The dreary doom metal of “Embraced” is the only inclusion that I consider to be a genuine failure though as it sounds noticeably flat & lethargic in comparison to the tracks around it.

There are a couple of general qualms I have with the early Paradise Lost work to be honest & “Shades of God” is a pretty decent example. Firstly, Nick Holmes’ vocals take a both-ways bet on whether they want to be clean or harsh & end up sounding somewhat awkward as a result. Nick’s death growl was one of the most imposing in the early death metal scene so I recall initially finding myself to be more than a little disappointed with his direction on "Shades of God". The other thing that grinds my gears is lead guitarist Gregor Mackintosh’s lack of theoretical understanding as we regularly see him selecting notes that are out of key. In fact, his note selection & phrasing is still really basic at this point & I struggle with that given my musical background. The best moments come when the band get their doom on though with Gregor exceling at providing attractive melodic accompaniments. Actually, I have to say that there’s bugger all genuine doom/death on this record. It's mostly built on more conventional doom metal with gothic metal playing a notable secondary role in the final product. Some of the doomy riffs even possess the groovier feel of the traditional doom metal sound of the 1980’s. The tracks that veer away from doom towards gothic metal generally see more up-tempo & chuggy metal riffs being employed in a way that results in an outcome that’s not dissimilar to Sisters of Mercy.

“Shades of God” is far from a failure but it’s easy to see why it’s not talked about anywhere near as much as the albums either side of it given it’s transitional nature. Fans of My Dying Bride, Anathema & Draconian will likely find enough quality material to keep them interested but I’d be surprised if many regard it as one of Paradise Lost’s best works.

3.5/5

Dark Quarterer - "The Etruscan Prophecy" (1988)

I only recently took my first steps into the expansive world of Italian heavy metallers Dark Quarterer through their 1987 self-titled debut album & found myself quite enjoying it too. The album was very consistent & offered a refreshingly organic timbre that was built on the sounds of 1970’s heavy metal & progressive rock. The main issue was the very raw production job which didn’t do much to highlight the nuances but admittedly gave Dark Quarterer an extra layer of underground street credibility. I wouldn’t say that the album left me completely convinced but it certainly offered enough potential to see me wondering how the trio had fared with subsequent releases so here we find me turning to Dark Quarterer’s sophomore album from the following year in “The Etruscan Prophecy”.

The first thing you’ll notice about this album is the improved production job. The guitars are much more up-front which is definitely an advantage for this ol’ axe-slinger. It gives the inventiveness of guitarist Fulberto Serena a much better platform through which to engage with his audience & is the main advantage “The Etruscan Prophecy” has over the self-titled album. Once again we see a prog rock-infused sound but the guitar tone is a touch more metal than before. Also like the debut, this is a very consistent record with no obvious duds however epically-inclined front man Gianni Nepi does his best to ruin the party on a few occasions with some badly out of key histrionics, particularly on the title track which does well to recover off the back of some excellent instrumental contributions. The clear highlight comes from “Devil Stroke” which is an especially good example of Dark Quarterer’s strengths. The two short acoustic/classical interludes are well executed & quite entertaining too.

As with the debut, I’ve found “The Etruscan Prophecy” to be a fairly rewarding experience overall without it ever threatening to become a regular feature in my future listening habits. In fact, I tend to slightly favour it over “Dark Quarterer” & feel that fans of the more epic & progressive end of the heavy metal spectrum might suffer from the odd drool. US power metal legends Manilla Road, Italian heavy metallers Vultures Vengeance & NWOBHM outfit Omega are a pretty good guide to what you should expect.

3.5/5

I agree with all of that Sonny. "Spreading The Disease" is still my favourite Anthrax album followed by "Among The Living" but "Persistence of Time" isn't all that far away for me these days to be honest.

Anthrax - "Persistence of Time" (1990)

My revisit to New York thrash metal legends Anthrax’s 1988 fourth album “State of Euphoria” a couple of weeks ago left me feeling a little surprised to be honest. That album was my entry point with Anthrax back in 1989 & has subsequently seen me maintaining some fairly significant feelings of nostalgia over the years but this revisit saw reality finally setting in as I discovered that “State of Euphoria” is not everything I’d convinced myself it was. 1985’s “Spreading The Disease” (my personal favourite) & 1987’s “Among The Living” were both undeniable classics but the follow-up saw Anthrax rushing things a bit with the result being that it sounds a little undercooked in comparison. The song-writing & hooks aren’t as strong as we have a right to expect from such an esteemed member of the Big Four with the album relying too heavily on singalong choruses to win their fanbase over. This mission was only partially successful & it resulted in “State of Euphoria” coming across as a decent but inessential inclusion in Anthrax’s discography. This discovery certainly caught me off guard & left me wondering what else I may have been overstating. For that reason, I decided to follow-up with a similar revisit to Anthrax’s 1990 fifth full-length “Persistence of Time”, a release that I purchased on CD on the day of release & played to death over the next year or so.

“State of Euphoria” had seen Anthrax starting to hint at a more serious approach to their music with the lyrics to several tracks taking a much more hard-hitting thematic direction than we’d seen from the band in years gone by. The lack of substance & attention to detail in some of the song-writing & chorus hooks did very little to take advantage of it though which was part of the reason that the album has proven to be less popular than it’s more highly regarded older siblings. “Persistence of Time” sees Anthrax rectifying that failing with a darker & more mature sounding record than we’d heard from the band to the time. The subject matter is confronting & in your face while the song-writing is more developed & less basic. In fact, there’s a level of consistency to “Persistence of Time” that greatly exceeds that of its predecessor with only the very popular Joe Jackson cover version “Got The Time” failing to get me fully engaged. The rest of the tracklisting is rock-solid though &, unlike “State of Euphoria”, we actually get a few genuine Anthrax classics here this time (see “Time”, “Belly Of The Beast”, “One Man Stands” &, to a slightly lesser extent, “Keep It In The Family”).

Perhaps one the reasons that “Persistence of Time” isn’t as highly praised as Anthrax’s mid-80’s classics is the tempo as the band don’t often hit top speed, instead opting for chunky mid-paced chuggers quite often. In saying that though, there’s no hint at moving away from thrash just yet as Scott Ian’s devastating rhythm guitar performance never veers far away from the thrash metal model. Ian’s thick guitar tone doesn’t do him any harm either & shows him to be one of the premier exponents of his craft so I’d have to suggest that these two elements make the album noticeably more appealing than it might otherwise have been. The other major improvement is in the song-writing as it’s clear that Joey Belladonna & co. had worked long & hard on making sure that every transition & drum roll were perfectly placed & executed. Drummer Charlie Benante & lead guitarist Dan Spitz are both in awesome form on this record too which makes it really hard for anyone to question Anthrax’s Big Four credentials in my opinion.

If you only like Anthrax for their silly nature & fast, thrashy moshpit numbers then “Persistence of Time” is possibly not the album for you. If you’re looking for something a little less obvious & with a touch more depth then it might just be in your ball park though. Has nostalgia seen me overrating this record? I actually don’t think so. I think I just have a penchant for a darker & less obvious style of thrash than Anthrax have pushed at times & can appreciate all of the hard work they’ve put into the record. Fans of Overkill, Nuclear Assault & Metallica should not hesitate to check it out.

4.5/5

Napalm Death - "The Curse" single (1988)

While giving The Birmingham grind gods' sophomore record a detailed revisit yesterday, I thought I'd also cover the 7" single that's included as a bonus with the Spotify version of the album these days. It was originally a part of the "Scum"/"From Enslavement To Obliteration" compilation CD I owned back in the day (well, four of the five tracks were anyway) & it sounds very similar to the "From Enslavement To Obliteration" album so I never even realized it wasn't a part of the actual record until much later on. The production job is pretty much identical so I assume that it was all recorded in the one session.

"The Curse" is a short five minute affair comprising of the three-minute title track (i.e. the entire A side), two ridiculously short 4-6 second blasts similar to the band's famous 4-second anthem "You Suffer" & a couple of more traditional sub-one minute grindcore offerings. The title track is a low-tempo, Godfleshy industrial metal piece that's not too dissimilar to the opening track from the "From Enslavement To Obliteration" album "Evolved As One". It may not be as effective but it's still a very solid piece of work in its own right & I find it to be the most rewarding track on the single. The other main point of interest for me personally is the 45-second "Morbid Deceiver" which is a superior reworking of "Deceiver" from the "Scum" album.

I actually really like this single. It may only be short but the more substantial inclusions are solid enough to see me reaching for a higher rating than I've afforded to either of Napalm Death's first two full-lengths.

4/5

Napalm Death - "From Enslavement To Obliteration" (1988)

I can still vividly recall my reaction to hearing Birmingham grindcore godfathers Napalm Death for the first time when I was just an innocent & naïve early teenager. I was sitting in my bedroom in the dark listening to a late-night underground metal radio program & recording it with my cassette deck so that I could give it some repeat listens throughout the coming week. It was late in the show & I was getting very tired when a track from the brand new “Mentally Murdered” E.P. was given an airing. I believe it was the closer “No Mental Effort” & it made me stand straight up with new life having been breathed into my weary body. I simply couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The music coming out of my headphones was the most savage thing I’d ever heard in my life &, even though I found it to be awfully confronting, I also found myself captivated & intrigued. It would only be a matter of weeks before I’d head into the city with all of my pocket money to purchase a copy of a compilation CD that included both of Napalm Death’s first two records (i.e. their 1987 debut full-length “Scum” & 1988 sophomore album “From Enslavement to Obliteration”) as well as four of the five tracks from 1988’s “The Curse” single. Upon returning home I’d very quickly find that the sound of Napalm Death’s earlier material leaned noticeably closer to the crust punk side of the grindcore equation compared to what I’d heard from “Mentally Murdered” which had a more familiar & relatable death metal edge. It wasn’t as instantly appealing if I’m being honest but I persisted as this music simply sounded so vital & important to my young ears, not to mention dangerous & exciting.

The debut album “Scum” was very rough in its execution & production & relied heavily on raw energy & the battering blast-beats of Mick Harris (Scorn/Defecation/Extreme Noise Terror/PainKiller/Unseen Terror) for its appeal. It was very much a tale of two halves too with the A side (featuring Godflesh/Jesu/Fall of Because mastermind Justin Broadrick on guitar & Scorn bassist Nik Bullen) being noticeably stronger than the B side (which featured Carcass guitarist Bill Steer & future Prophecy of Doom bassist Jim Whitely). It presented a young band that was clearly still fine-tuning their style while “From Enslavement To Obliteration” sees them offering up a sound that takes all of those initial elements & pushes them to even greater extremes, only it does it with a little more maturity than “Scum” could muster. Whitely & Bullen had both left the scene by this stage, being replaced by Napalm Death’s longest term member in Shane Embury (Unseen Terror/Lock Up/Brujeria/Meathook Seed/Venomous Concept). Broadrick had also departed in order to focus on a string of his own industrial projects so Embury would join Harris, Steer & vocalist Lee Dorrian (Cathedral/Teeth of Lions Rule the Divine/With The Dead) to create a more stable lineup that could focus on delivering what they hoped would be the most extreme recording ever produced at the time. Did they succeed? Shit yeah, they did!

“From Enslavement To Obliteration” takes a very similar stylistic approach to “Scum” in that it’s built on a base that’s been borrowed from crust punk. It’s only very short for a full-length album, featuring 22 songs with an average duration of around a minute in length. The opening track (my personal favourite & somewhat of a classic for me as a youngster) “Evolved As One” can work to present the listener with a false sense of security as it sounds nothing like the rest of the tracklisting, instead opting for a much slower & more industrial approach that sounds uncannily like Broadrick’s Godflesh project that was recording it’s self-titled debut E.P. at around the same time. It’s hard to imagine that this was coincidental given the close ties there. The other 21 songs are short bursts of blindingly fast & outrageously aggressive grindcore with Dorrian going completely nuts over the top. This is a tighter & more organized Napalm Death than we'd heard on “Scum” with Steer’s guitar technique having come one quite a bit in the time between the two recording sessions.

This all sounds very positive for the album’s chances of eclipsing the 3.5 star rating I awarded to “Scum” now, doesn’t it? So why is it exactly that I’ve found myself opting to go with the same rating for “From Enslavement To Obliteration” when it’s generally regarded as the more classic release then? I guess it comes down to taste & personal preference really. You see, I’m simply not that big a fan of the punkier end of grindcore, particularly when it’s presented in such a primitive form. Dorrian’s psychotic, rabid-dog style barking can be pretty tough going at times & (opening track aside) there really aren’t too many tracks that stand out as genuine highlights. “Impressions”, “Blind To The Truth” & “Sometimes” come the closest & I don’t think it’s too surprising that they’re the most relentlessly blasting tracks with the smallest punk components. Despite the fact that there’s not a single weak song included across the 22 on offer, I do think that the rest of the album sounds a little samey with a lot of the material being based on the exact same concepts.

So, I guess the outcome of all of this is that (much like it’s older sibling “Scum”) “From Enslavement To Obliteration” served more of a novelty role in my childhood than anything else. Even though it's the better record of the two, I’ve never seen it as essential listening (even for grindcore) & prefer Napalm Death’s later material which I find to be more creative & engaging. It did however give the underground metal scene a major shot in the arm & saw the extremity levels going up a few notches very quickly so it deserves a lot of credit for that & fans of bands like Brutal Truth, Repulsion & Nasum will definitely want to make themselves accustomed with it, if only for its importance in what was to come.

3.5/5

OK, so I've given my Top 100 Metal Releases of All Time list a crack:

https://metal.academy/lists/single/227

Revenge - "Triumph.Genocide.Antichrist" (2003)

After quite enjoying my revisit to Canadian war metallers Revenge’s 2015 fifth full-length “Behold.Total.Rejection” several weeks ago I’ve been feeling like repeating the dose through another short, sharp bludgeon to the face with a blunt instrument & found myself reaching for Revenge’s 2003 debut album “Triumph.Genocide.Antichrist” which offers a very similar experience. You really do know what you’re going to get with a Revenge record as even the front covers look almost identical but there’s something to be said for consistency in terms of war metal & Revenge continue to deliver.

“Triumph.Genocide.Antichrist” delivers another fairly samey but undeniably brutal collection of eight songs that spread the word about hatred, war & nihilism in a way that may see the average listener saying a categorical “No thanks” to their message but still finding it very hard to look away from the carnage on display. Revenge is really the work of one man in drummer James Read (Axis of Advance/Blood Revolt/Conqueror/Kerasphorus) who has made a habit of surrounding himself with some presumably angry individuals in order to achieve a sound that’s pretty much the epitome of what the war metal subgenre is trying to achieve. It’s raw, savage & unrepentant with Read rarely resorting to anything other than a barrage of shrieks & blast-beats. The performances are (perhaps intentionally) fairly sloppy but the energy levels rarely dip below ball-tearing velocities & precision is not really the point of this niche subgenre anyway.

Since Revenge’s first two E.P.'s we’ve seen Read recruiting an additional full-time band member in American bassist Pete Helmkamp (Kerasphorus/Abhomine/Angelcorpse/Order From Chaos) & the two have brought in guitarist Vermin (Axis of Advance/Blood Revolt/Sacramentary Abolishment/Weapon) to assist with the sessions. It’s very clear that Read runs the show though as Revenge seem to maintain a similar sound regardless of which personnel he has supporting him. The strong grindcore influence that so many of the Canadian war metal bands present is in full force here. In fact, it feels even stronger than with many others on this occasion & so does the involvement of early Carcass in Revenge’s sound, particularly in the guitar flourishes & occasionally vocoded vocals. Comparisons can certainly be drawn with war metal contemporaries such as New Zealand’s Diocletian, fellow Canadian war metal godfathers Blasphemy & Read’s own Conqueror collaboration too.

Overall, I find “Triumph.Genocide.Antichrist” to be a very consistent war metal release that ticks all of the boxes but is noticeably lacking in highlights with every track being of roughly equal quality. This also contributes to the tracklisting feeling a little too samey for its own good. The album is definitely lacking in the ambition department too as the band seem to be happy to simply reinvent a similar theme over & over again. In saying that though, “Triumph.Genocide.Antichrist” will no doubt serve the purpose that most fans of the subgenre are looking for when they reach for a Revenge record so it’s hard to be too critical. “Behold.Total.Rejection” is still my favourite Revenge full-length but this one isn’t all that far behind in all honesty & it certainly hasn’t let me down in any way.

3.5/5

Vio-lence - "Eternal Nightmare" (1988)

San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal five-piece Vio-lence were first brought to my attention when a close school mate handed me a dubbed cassette copy of their debut album “Eternal Nightmare” some time in 1989. I’d certainly seen their name around in metal magazines, often in articles that linked them to the Bay Area scene that I already loved so much so I think it’s fair to say that I was well & truly open to being dazzled by whatever it was that was in store for me. What eventuated wasn’t altogether different to that either in all honesty but it did require a little effort before I got through Vio-lence's tough exterior to reach the creamy centre. Anyone that’s familiar with Vio-lence will do doubt know what I’m talking about too.

You see, Vio-lence sported (& still sport) quite an unusual front man in Sean Killian whose voice invariably sounds like a yelping dog that’s just being runover to the unprepared new listener. As with most people, I struggled with him initially but he’s very much an acquired taste & it didn’t take all that long for me to come round to his psychotic (& admittedly pitchy) style of artistic expression. Would I prefer a more well credentialed & capable singer? Well yeah, I’d be lying if I tried to convince you otherwise but I do think he also gives Vio-lence a unique differentiator that is at least partially responsible for their longevity.

Instrumentally though, Vio-lence’s debut absolutely rips! The band were very clearly on a mission to create the fastest Bay Area thrash record released to the time & I’ll be damned if they didn’t get close to achieving it too. There are thrashtastic riffs galore here with the dual guitar attack of Rob Flynn & Phil Demmel (both of Machine Head fame) absolutely going for broke for the majority of the short but blemish-free tracklisting. The faster the band got, the more I was into them with the short, sharp shock of “Serial Killer” & the powerful “T.D.S. (Take It As You Will)” being unmitigated Bay Area classics in my opinion. These moments often see me reaching for comparisons with Dark Angel’s classic 1986 “Darkness Descends” album which can only be regarded as a feather in Vio-lence’s cap now, can’t it?

Vio-lence would never again match the sheer potency of their debut which is a shame. I certainly played the shit out of my cassette copy of their 1990 sophomore album “Oppressing The Masses” too but it always seemed like a step down from “Eternal Nightmare” if I’m being honest. I’m not gonna lie, Killian’s vocals do prevent the album from reaching the classic status it had the potential to achieve but there’s still more than enough quality, high-energy thrash metal on offer to tick my boxes & your average Forbidden, Exodus or Sacred Reich fan will be doing themselves a huge disservice if they’re not all over this band.

4/5

Stars of the Lid - "And Their Refinement of the Decline" (2007)

After struggling with the Tim Hecker record I was left feeling that my ambient itch had been left unscratched so I reached for a sure-fire winner from one of the true gods of the genre. Marvelous stuff!

Tim Hecker - "Virgins" (2013)

Many of you would probably be aware that I'm a big fan of ambient music but if there's one artist that I've always struggled with it's Canada's Tim Hecker. His music just doesn't seem to gel with me & this revisit hasn't managed to enlighten me on what it is that I'm missing either. Tim's vision simply isn't musical enough for my liking, instead opting for noise & experimental noodling where I struggle to grab onto anything of worth. "Virgins" is arguably his most well-known release these days but I'm afraid it's not for me.

To clarify our position on that, technical death metal isn’t a Metal Academy genre. It’s a subgenre of death metal in the same way that dissonant death metal is. It’s our belief that dissonant death metal doesn’t necessarily have to be technical & vice versa so have made them seperate tags in their own right. It’s also worth noting that we’re not led by RYM when making decisions on our genre-tagging structure. We prefer to run our own race.

My list is based on Metal Academy genre tags only which excluded a few of the releases on your list from consideration.

Here's my updated Top Ten Technical Death Metal Releases of All Time list after revisiting Suffocation's "Pinnacle of Bedlam" this week:

01. 7 Horns 7 Eyes - "Throes Of Absolution" (2012)

02. Death - "Human" (1991)

03. Suffocation - "Pierced From Within" (1995)

04. Suffocation - "Despise The Sun" E.P. (1998)

05. Death – “Individual Thought Patterns” (1993)

06. Gorguts – “Colored Sands” (2013)

07. Cynic - "Focus" (1993)

08. Ulcerate – “Everything Is Fire” (2009)

09. Ad Nauseam - "Imperative Imperceptible Impulse" (2021)

10. Death – “Symbolic” (1995)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/148

Here's my adjusted Top Ten Brutal Death Metal Releases of All Time list following this week's revisit of Suffocation's "Pinnacle of Bedlam" album:

01. Suffocation – “Pierced From Within” (1995)

02. Suffocation – “Despise The Sun” E.P. (1998)

03. Suffocation – “Effigy Of The Forgotten” (1991)

04. Suffocation – “Human Waste” E.P. (1991)

05. Hour Of Penance – “The Vile Conception” (2008)

06. Hour Of Penance – “Paradogma” (2010)

07. Suffocation – “Pinnacle Of Bedlam” (2013)

08. Suffocation – “Suffocation” (2006)

09. Deadly Remains – “Severing Humanity” (2012)

10. Pyrexia – “Sermon Of Mockery” (1993)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/144

Suffocation - "Pinnacle of Bedlam" (2013)

New York brutal/technical death metal godfathers Suffocation have been my favourite band since way back in the mid-1990’s so when I finally returned to the metal scene from my decade-long sabbatical in 2009 I wasted no time at all in catching up on their three 2000’s albums with the quality ranging from pretty decent (2009’s “Blood Oath”) to very solid (2004’s “Souls To Deny”) to fucking superb (2006’s self-titled). I’d have to wait four more years until I’d hit another new Suffocation full-length in real time though so when 2013’s “Pinnacle of Bedlam” finally landed I got all hot & bothered & waxed lyrical about it to anyone that’d listen. It’s been quite a while since I revisited it though so I've been quite keen to reassess it, especially after awarding the self-titled album an impressive 4.5 star rating only a month or so back. To be open & transparent, I’ve long suspected that my initial five star rating for “Pinnacle of Bedlam” might have been a touch ambitious so a reassessment to firm up its positioning against an album of the undeniable strength of the self-titled was well overdue.

Now let’s get one thing straight right from the get-go, if you don’t like Suffocation’s previous work then this record isn’t going to do anything to change that as it’s very much an example of the bands signature sound. The difference here however is the stunning production job & polished performances which ooze of class & enable the listener to achieve maximum reward for the aural battering they’ve subjected themselves to. “Pinnacle of Bedlam” is everything that Suffocation aspire to be. It’s unwaveringly brutal although perhaps not as relentlessly blasting as some of their other works. It might be one of their more technical releases though as it sees the instrumentalists confidently & powerfully working their way through a string of ambitiously structured riffs that will no doubt see your average extreme metal fan bowing down in worship of the greatest brutal death metal band of all. I’d also suggest that this might be one of Suffocation’s most melodic releases with guitarists Terence Hobbs (Criminal Element/Deprecated) & Guy Marchais (Internal Bleeding/Pyrexia) & bassist Derek Boyer (Criminal Element/Decrepit Birth/Deprecated) working their way through some quite challenging & angular runs & harmonies while returning skinsman Dave Culross (Malevolent Creation) completes a flawless example of high-precision extreme metal drumming. Legendary front man Frank Mullen doesn’t let the team down either with a stellar display of how to create monstrous yet still completely intelligible death metal grunting. He’s certainly one of the all-time greats in his field for mine.

“Pinnacle of Bedlam” gets off to a magnificent start through “Cycle of Suffering” & “Purgatorial Punishment” which are classic Suffocation tunes if I’ve ever heard them but I’m afraid the tracklisting doesn’t stay at that level consistently enough to warrant full marks if I’m being honest. Album highlight “Rapture of Revocation” is right up there with the bands very best work & “Sullen Days”, “Inversion” & the title track aren’t far behind it either but then we also see a few less-inspired hardcore riffs & slightly lethargic beats seeping into songs like “Eminent Wrath” “As Grace Descends” & “My Demise” which leaves them struggling to overcome the “very solid filler track” tag. The re-recorded version of “Beginning of Sorrow” is equally solid but doesn’t add a lot to the album from a creative point of view in my opinion, despite being an improvement on the already reasonably enjoyable original that opened 1993’s “Breeding The Spawn” sophomore album. I mean, there’s nothing that I’d rate as any less than four stars included here as this is an undeniably classy death metal record but I’m not sure that it challenges the elite of the elite. In saying that though, I do still rate it just slightly ahead of the massively underrated self-titled album which puts it right up there with my favourite releases of the decade. If you’re a fan of bands like Dying Fetus, Cryptopsy & Nile then you owe it to yourself to indulge in this wonderful example of the genre leaders flexing their muscles. "Pinnacle of Bedlam" is yet another classic release from my favourite band of all time.

4.5/5

Interesting thoughts Sonny. The vocals were certainly challenging for me initially but I managed to see past them over time & now find "I've Seen All I Need to See" to be a really solid power electronics/drone metal record.

"Sonic Excess In Its Purest Form" has been my favourite Crowbar record for eons now. In fact, I'd suggest that it's their only genuinely essential release overall.

I would say that progressive metal would have been the next best option outside of neoclassical metal as tracks like "Saturation Point", "Evil Thrill" & "Forbidden City" all fall into that category. That's not enough to claim it as a primary genre though in my opinion. The speed metal component really only amounts for parts of "Evil Thrill" & "Anvils" too. There's not even a complete song in that style.

Here's my review:

The nomination of New York avant-garde/technical death metal outfit Sarmat’s brand new debut album as the August feature release for our The Infinite clan has come at an opportune moment given that I was considering giving “Determined To Strike” a spin over the next month or so anyway. My interest had been tweaked by the descriptions I’d been reading online which indicated that the album is one of the more pure examples of the jazz/metal hybrid you’re likely to find &, in hindsight, that seems like a fair call. You see, Sarmat are a collaborative project that has ties to both fields. There can be no denying that their target audience is the extreme metal crowd on the evidence here but jazz fans shouldn’t find themselves in completely foreign territory either as the loose song-structures, melodic & rhythmic freedom & commitment to improvisation are drawn directly from jazz. It sounds great on paper but ambitious undertakings like these don’t always hit the mark so I was prepared for the outcome to go either way.

“Determined To Strike” is a relatively short six-track affair that wastes little time in presenting its full array of qualities. You can expect to hear some extremely chaotic riff construction that’s often based on ideas that sit closer to Mahavishnu Orchestra than they do Nile. They don’t always work for mine but when they do it’s generally when Sarmat hit on a more traditional death metal riff to offset the madness going on around it. Front man Andrew Gonzalez possesses an extremely guttural death growl that almost rivals Demilich main man Antti Boman for sheer depth. He does sound a little out of place when layered over such complex & sophisticated instrumentation if I’m being completely honest & he would definitely have been better suited to a more traditional brutal death metal band but he does a reasonable job of it nonetheless. Imperial Triumphant bassist/pianist Steve Blanco puts in an impressive display that highlights his undeniable chops but I’m afraid drummer James Jones (also of New York heavy metallers TOWER) struggles to keep up. To be fair on him, he’s had to cope with a pretty ordinary drum sound that lacks power & highlights every misstep. Still, he’s pretty clearly the weakest link here & I feel that “Determined To Strike” could have been a more appealing release with a more accomplished performance behind the kit. The strongest contribution though comes in the form of some very exciting & melodically adventurous jazz fusion guitar work from the dual attack of Cotter Champlin (Artificial Brain) & Matt Hollenberg (Cleric/John Frum/John Zorn/Simulacrum). I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the two tracks that I enjoy the most are the ones with the most melodic & expansive guitar solos in “Formed From Filth” (my personal favourite) & the title track. Also, the regular use of a brass section is a surprisingly successful addition, often in conjunction with blasting death metal riffage too thank you very much.

The production job is a bit of an issue for Sarmat to be honest. It’s not just the drum sound although it’s probably the worst component. I feel that a cleaner sound production was essential in order to get the most out of an extremely complex metal release like this one but what we’ve received is a little too murky to do the album justice. It’s not a deal-breaker by any means but it certainly has an impact on my overall enjoyment. There are times when Sarmat seem almost on the verge on of the sickly, veering out of control through loose structures that hint at complete collapse. It’s only the class of some of the instrumentalists that manage to right the ship just in time to prevent a catastrophe. Perhaps this element might be appealing to some our members but I personally prefer a touch more precision in my extreme metal.

You likely won’t have heard a metal record that sounds much like “Determined To Strike” before which is a definite feather in Sarmat’s caps. Imagine the avant-garde, jazz-infused sound of Imperial Triumphant mixed with the complex dissonance of Gorguts & toss in the chaos of Defeated Sanity & the absolute insanity of some of John Zorn’s jazz projects & you’ll come close to imagining what’s in store for you. It won’t be for everyone but I have no doubt that there will be some that absolutely worship it. I have to admit that I find “Determined To Strike” to be more of an interesting listen than a consistently enjoyable one but it’s served its purpose quite well in leaving me feeling somewhat refreshed at its completion.

3.5/5

 Jazz fusion-inspired avant-garde/technical death metal from New York, USA.

Slayer's "Reign In Blood" is my favourite metal album of all time but the release that best reflects my taste & preferences is Suffocation's "Pierced From Within" as I've always been most inclined towards the more brutal end of death metal & it simply doesn't come more professionally executed than that record. I'm generally more inclined towards death metal vocals where you can actually understand what they're saying & Frank Mullen makes the adjustment towards greater intelligibility on that particular release too.

Here's my review:

I’ll always remember the early 1990’s as a truly magical time in my life with the extreme metal scene being the catalyst for a whole new world of discovery for me. I’d already gotten into thrash/death/black metal in the late 1980’s but the new decade would summon forth an explosion of riches for any budding young metal enthusiast. The Norwegian black metal scene would become one of the protagonists in that movement & I count myself as being very lucky to have been across it from its very inception. I was already familiar with Darkthrone’s death metal debut album “Soulside Journey” as well as being well versed in “First Wave” black metal bands like Bathory, Sodom & Hellhammer by the time Darkthrone’s life-changing sophomore album “A Blaze in The Northern Sky” dropped in 1992 & I think that really helped me to be prepared for what was a seriously imposing release for the uninitiated. Bathory’s “Under The Sign Of The Black Mark” was a definite favourite of mine at the time (& still is too) & I think that record was as good an entry point as you were likely to find. Over the course of the next 3-4 years though, Darkthrone would create a legacy that few can touch in black metal circles, not only through what’s gone on to become known as the “Unholy Trinity” (a trio of classic records that people like to group together) but also through 1995’s very solid “Panzerfaust” album. After that amazing period of activity though, Darkthrone have released a long string of divisive records, most of which I’ve checked out at some point but few of which I’ve found to offer anything close to the devastating atmosphere of records like “Transilvanian Hunger”. There’s even been a couple of albums that I let pass me by completely (including Darkthrone’s last full-length “Eternal Halls……”) so I wasn’t quite sure of what to expect from the duo’s latest release “Astral Fortress”, particularly given that awfully tame cover image.

Loyal fans really talked “Astral Fortress” up online last year though (particularly on Twitter) & I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that it tweaked my interest. I decided to give the album a quick once over shortly after release but went in with a level of hesitation & self-preservation. I mean, I was still harboring a level of resentment after recalling my disappointment with a record like 2010’s “Circling The Wagons”. Upon sitting through “Astral Fortress” though, I had to admit that it offered a lot of potential. I had a feeling that it might be a grower so I penciled it in as one to revisit in the near future, a venture that has ended up being triggered by Vinny’s nomination for our August “The Fallen” feature release.

Darkthrone have traversed pretty much all of the genres they treasured so much during their formative years across their long career. They obviously started their recording career as a death metal band before transforming themselves into one of the great black metal artists & then dabbled in heavy metal, doom metal, thrash metal, speed metal & even a bit of punk at times. “Astral Fortress” sees them dipping their toes into most of those pools & producing an album that is almost uncategorizable. There’s a definite black metal aesthetic here but (apart from the opening track) it never quite “feels” like a black metal release. There are plenty of doomy riffs & tempos but I’m not sure it sits comfortably alongside the bands that influenced them like Trouble either. There are thrash & death metal riffs that pop up from time to time too, as well as some obvious heavy metal characteristics like the use of guitar harmonies in closing track “Eon 2”. None of those terms seem appropriate to tag “Astral Fortress” though to be honest. It’s really a combination of all of those components & I have to say that the way Darkthrone pull this off in such a cohesive manner gives the album a freshness that’s greater than the sum of its parts.

Perhaps this shouldn’t surprise me as the main influence on display is another band that combined all of the more extreme subgenres of their time in Celtic Frost. In fact, most of the album sounds like a tribute to the Swiss legends if I’m being honest but, rather than simply emulate their idols, Fenriz & Nocturno Culto have used their influence to not only pay homage to them but also to celebrate everything that was great about them. You see, Darkthrone simply get it. They understand what it was about the music of the 1980’s that laid the platform for what was to come. It didn’t need relentless blast-beats or super-gutteral & unintelligible growls to create a dark & mysterious atmosphere. Those bands understood how to use space, tension & restraint. They knew the power of good song-writing over simply creating a series of riffs. “Astral Fortress” is all about harnessing those elements in a modern way & the result is an honest, authentic & organic record of genuine depth. It’s one that I admire & respect more than I do adore but at the completion of each listen I find myself feeling like I’ve experienced something of meaning, like I’ve seen inside the souls of these two men.

The tracklisting is very consistent with just the pointless two-minute experimental piece “Kolbotn, West of the Vast Forests” being a failure. I wouldn’t say that I regard any of the six proper songs as being genuine classics but all of them have their inspired moments. Unfortunately most of them also have one or two riffs that see my interest being placed on hold too (mostly the thrashier or more traditional heavy metal parts) but I can still very clearly see the passion in what Darkthrone do so I simply find myself waiting for those parts to pass by so that I can once again dig into the meat on these bones. Nocturno Culto’s vocals are nothing like the grim & croaky black metal style he built his name on these days, instead opting for a grunt that sounds uncannily like the great Tom G. Warrior which can hardly be a coincidence, can it? I like them though & think they serve the record well.

There’s a feeling of control about “Astral Fortress” that I have no doubt to be intentional & it reminds me of modern day Enslaved & Satyricon in that way. The tempos rarely ascend to much above mid-pace & they keep enough space in the compositions to maximize their accessibility. The more successful examples can be found in opener “Caravan of Broken Ghosts” (my personal favourite), the doomy “Stalagmite Necklace”, the epic (& humourously titled) “The Seas Beneath The Seas Of The Sea” & the more melodic “Eon 2”. If you’re a big Celtic Frost, Hellhammer or Gallhammer fan then I can’t see you not enjoying this record & it’s certainly drawn a renewed interest in the band from me. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that “Astral Fortress” should be essential listening for anyone with ties to the 1980’s underground metal scene. It holds its own against more widely celebrated Darkthrone albums like “Under A Funeral Moon” & “Panzerfaust” too in my opinion.

4/5

Oh, totally Ben. I was gonna raise that one too.

Thorsten "Toto" Bergmann's performance on German speed/thrash metallers Living Death's 1984 debut album "Vengeance of Hell".

Steve "Lips" Kudlow from Anvil in general.

Iron Maiden's Blaze Bayley albums.

I agree. I've never gotten on with "Crystal Logic" & his tone is a contributing factor.

Grouper - "A I A: Alien Observer" (2011)

The sixth album from this talented Californian ambient producer.

The most recent one I've encountered is Mike Muir from Suicidal Tendencies for his terrible performance on albums like "Join The Army" & "How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Can't Even Smile Today".

Here's my review:

How good are favourite bands then? In fact, I’d go so far as to say that I quite often enjoy my favourite bands more than other bands which is interesting, isn't it? They just seem to appeal to me a little more for one reason or another & New York death metal legends Suffocation have been the long-time leader of that pack as their sound & technique is simply so in tune with my own view on what extreme music should be. I’ve made no secret about the fact that Suffocation’s classic period is about as good as metal gets for me personally but what makes them sit in such a prominent position in my affections is the quality of lesser known releases like this one, the second full-length after their solid return to the scene through 2004’s “Souls To Deny” album.

The general consensus around 2006’s self-titled record has always baffled me to be honest. Sure, it doesn’t try anything terribly new & tends to reside primarily in realms that Suffocation had built for themselves more than a decade earlier but it just does what it does so fucking well guys. I truly believe that the only difference between a merely decent Suffocation release & a truly mind-blowing Suffocation release is the quality of the production job because I don’t think they’re capable of writing anything that’s not ridiculously strong. They sit way too far above the competition for that.

And when I say “they” I’m really talking about chief song-writer Terence Hobbs & front man Frank Mullen because they’re the only band members to have stayed the entire course yet Suffocation continue to churn out records that… well… sound exactly like Suffocation. Unlike the AC/DC’s of the world though, I find that I can not only handle another helping of exactly the same shit as Suffocation have dished up several times before but I go back for triple helpings. A lot of the reasoning behind that can be attributed to the fact that bands of this ilk simply don’t come around very often. There’s a class about Suffocation that literally no one can touch, including the highly regarded peers that they’re generally compared with like Dying Fetus, Cryptopsy & Nile. The incredible knack for balancing brutality & complexity within their riff structures could have come from no one else & those twisted yet highly expansive chromatic guitar solos are a clear trademark (check out the lengthy one that makes up the entire mid-section of "Abomination Reborn" for an example of one of Terence’s best). Despite my close affiliations with the brutal death metal scene, I've always preferred a bit of intelligibility in my death grunts too & Mullen is the best example you'll find as he somehow manages to achieve monstrous savagery while still allowing the listener to understand the message behind some pretty imposing lyrical content (see "Entrails of You" for example).

If we take a look at the self-titled album in a little more detail though, the first thing that’s worth mentioning is that (unlike “Souls To Deny”) they’ve got the production right this time. As soon as I heard that I knew that I was in for a devastating journey & indeed that’s what I received. Short, hellish intro track “Oblivion” is perfectly suited to introducing the annihilation that’s to come with opener “Abomination Reborn” being one of the band’s most brutal offerings & highlighting powerhouse drummer Mike Smith’s incredible strength & endurance in no uncertain terms thanks to an ultra-heavyweight drum sound. It’s a great way to kick off the record. Things settle down for a few tracks from there with some solid & muscular outings that don’t disappoint but can’t quite match the dizzying heights of their opener. By the time we hit the midpoint of the tracklisting though, order has been well & truly restored with four of the next five songs being elite examples of the brutal death metal subgenre, particularly “Translucent Patterns of Delirium” (my personal favourite) & “Regret” which are nothing short of perfect in my eyes. The album closes with the now obligatory rework of a song taken from Suffocation’s poorly produced “Breeding The Spawn” record in “Prelude To Repulsion” which easily manages to eclipse the original version. It does sound just slightly out of place here though as it’s both a lot more consciously technical & a touch less chunky & brutal than the other nine proper songs.

At the end of the day, I can’t imagine why any true Suffocation or brutal death metal fan wouldn’t completely flip out for this stuff to tell you the truth. Some tracks have less impact than others but the highlights are so strong that I’ve found it hard not to continue to return to this release repeatedly over the 14 years since I first encountered it. Does it compete with the band’s classic period releases? You know what, it might not be a match for Suffocation’s most accomplished & ultra-premium works (“Pierced From Within” & the “Despise The Sun” E.P.) but I wouldn’t place it too far behind classics like “Effigy of the Forgotten” & the “Human Waste” E.P. if I’m being completely honest. I think some of that comes down to the fact that those releases don’t sound quite so fresh these days due to the unmitigated flogging I’ve given them over the years as well as the slightly more polished & modern sound that the self-titled benefits from but don’t let this one pass you by if you have even a passing interest in this band or in brutal/technical death metal in general.

4.5/5

This is what I wrote about this album at the time:

Where the fuck did this short thirty minute gem of an album come from?! I think I might just have found my new AOTY right here. Imagine the super dark & crushingly heavy sludge metal of Primitive Man combined with the mechanical industrial beats of Godflesh & the cold production of Uniform & you won't be far off the mark. Throw in some death metal riffs too just to stroke my comfort zone a bit more too. I just fucking love this shit!

4.5/5

Here's my review:

I first encountered the 2001 debut album from Swedish black metallers Armagedda back in 2009 after quite enjoying their 2003 sophomore album “Only True Believers” & subsequently giving the band’s other two albums a quick once over. There can be no denying that “The Final War Approaching” offers a very familiar formula. The question is really about whether you NEED your black metal to reach out a little further than to simply emulate the greats of the genre or not. I generally find that I don’t personally. I can easily tolerate a band that creates a very similar sound to a band that I love as long as it’s done really well. So just how well does Armagedda do it here then? Let’s find out.

Armagedda have quite clearly been studying hard at the Fenriz School of Black Metal because “The Final War Approaching” sounds pretty much exactly like Darkthrone’s classic “Transilvanian Hunger” album which is admittedly one of my all-time favourite black metal records. Front man Graav (LIK/Lönndom) summons forth a suitably grim variation on Nocturno Culto’s blackened snarl while his predominantly tremolo-picked riffs consistently manage to conjure up that 1990’s Scandinavian atmosphere without ever really achieving the x-factor that the Norwegian black metal gods seemed to able to come up with upon demand. I’d suggest that the production has been left intentionally variable which was a feature of some of Darkthrone’s unholy trinity & it works pretty well here too although bassist Andreas Petterson (Stilla/Leviathan/Lönndom) may disagree with me as it depends on which song you’re listening to as to whether you can make out his basslines or not. Drummer Phycon (Leviathan) doesn’t exactly benefit either as his kit sounds pretty awful & highlights his limitations as a musician pretty obviously, although this is admittedly in line with the aesthetic that Armagedda were going for anyway.

Despite the obvious plagiarism, I find myself enjoying most of “The Final War Approaching”. The A side is unanimously successful in its quest to keep the listener engaged through a simple formula of hypnotic & melodic tremolo-picked riffs, simplistic & uncluttered drumming & blasphemous & demonic vocals. Things start to fall apart at various stages during the back end of the tracklisting (see “Unholy Sacrifice” & “Död och pina”) but there’s certainly enough quality on offer to make the album a satisfying listen for those with a penchant for other Swedish bands who make a similar attempt at the Darkthrone model like Craft or Pest. Armagedda’s best moments invariably come when they slow things down a little on tracks like “Skogens mörka djup” (my personal favourite) & “My Eternal Journey” but they can also be quite effective when they hit top speed as they do during the faster sections of “Transilvanian Hunger”-worshipping opener “Deathminded”. Where they fall in a heap is when they opt for punky one-two style beats as they inevitably work to detract from some potentially strong song-writing & leave me feeling a little disappointed at the completion of each track they're employed on.

At the end of the day, I feel that I can be reasonably confident in saying that “The Final War Approaching” will appeal to those black metal fans that crave atmosphere over originality but will leave many a bit cold through its blatant genericism. Personally, I fall into the former camp & have subsequently found a fair bit to like about the album without any risk of it becoming a long-term favourite. I guess I just love the purist black metal model & always have. It’s nice to be able to indulge in music that makes you feel nostalgic at times though, isn’t it? Especially when it’s executed with a clear understanding of what made the original masters so great to begin with.

3.5/5

P.S. The irony of this release sounding much more like Darkthrone than this month's Darkthrone feature release has not escaped me either.