Daniel's Forum Replies

November 2021

01. Unto Others – “Heroin” (from “Strength", 2021) [Submitted by Xephyr]

02. Crimson Glory – “Red Sharks” (from “Transcendence”, 1988)

03. Chevalier – “Stormbringer” (from “Destiny Calls”, 2019)

04. Omen – “Bring Out the Beast” (from “Battle Cry”, 1984)

05. Blazon Stone – “Hell on Earth” (from, “Damnation”, 2021) [Submitted by Xephyr]

06. Angra – "The Course of Nature" (from “Aurora Consurgens”, 2006) [Submitted by Andi]

07. Amberian Dawn – “Letter” (from “Circus Black”, 2012)

08. Seven Spires – “Shadows on an Endless Sea” (from “Gods of Debauchery”, 2021) [Submitted by Xephyr]

09. Vanishing Point – “Dead Elysium” (from “Dead Elysium”, 2020)

10. Battlelore – “Doombound” (from “Doombound”, 2011) [Submitted by Andi]

11. Edguy – “Nailed to the Wheel” (from “Mandrake”, 2001)

12. Running Wild – “Little Big Horn” (from “Blazon Stone - Remastered”, 2017) [Submitted by Andi]

13. Gamma Ray – “Land of the Free” (from “Land of the Free - Anniversary Edition”, 2017) [Submitted by Andi]

14. Manilla Road – “The Riddle Master” (from “Crystal Logic”, 1983)

15. Luca Turilli – “Where Heroes Lie” (from “King of the Nordic Twilight”, 1999)

16. Twilight Force – “Gates of Glory” (from “Tales of Ancient Prophecies”, 2014) [Submitted by Andi]

17. Silver Talon – “As the World Burns” (from “Decadence and Decay”, 2021)

18. Lunar Shadow – “And Silence Screamed” (from “Wish to Leave”, 2021)

19. Thornbridge – “Neverwinter Nights” (from “What Will Prevail”, 2016)

20. Vexillum – “Last Bearer's Song” (from “When Good Men Go To War”, 2021) [Submitted by Xephyr]

21. Falconer – “Wings of Serenity” (from “Falconer”, 2001)

22. Trivium - "Silence In The Snow" (from "Silence In The Snow", 2015) [Submitted by Andi]

23. Atlantean Kodex - "A Secret Byzantium - Numbered as Sand and the Stars" (from "The Course Of Empire", 2019)

November 2021

01. While She Sleeps – “Anti-Social” (from “So What?”, 2019) [Submitted by Andi]

02. Papa Roach – “Time & Time Again” (from “Lovehatetragedy”, 2002)

03. Body Count – “Institutionalized 2014” (from “Manslaughter”, 2014)

04. Disturbed – “A Reason To Fight” (from “Evolution”, 2018) [Submitted by Andi]

05. The Gentle Men – “2004 Breakup (Remastered)” (from :The Evolution Of Tears”, 2021)

06. Lacuna Coil – “Closer” (from “Karmacode”, 2006) [Submitted by Andi]

07. Linkin Park – “Pushing Me Away” (from “Hybrid Theory”, 2000) [Submitted by Andi]

08. The Bread Scientists – “!!!” (from “Troposphere”, 2021)

09. Katatonia – “Lethean” (from “Dead End Kings”, 2012) [Submitted by Daniel]

10. Stereomud – “Pain” (from “Perfect Self”, 2001)

11. Sleep Token – “Alkaline” (from “This Place Will Become Your Tomb”, 2021)

12. Incubus – “Take Me To Your Leader” (from “Enjoy Incubus” E.P., 1997)

13. Sugar Ray – “Mean Machine” (from “Lemonade & Brownies”, 1995)

14. Lantlos – “Dream Machine” (from “Wildhund”, 2021)

15. Otep – “The Lord Is My Weapon” (from “Jihad” E.P., 2001)

16. Psiheya – “W.W.W. (Wой Wаленький Wир)” (from “Герой Поколения Бархат”, 2001)

17. Staind – “Mudshovel” (from “Dysfunction”, 1999)

18. Chevelle – “Verruckt” (from “Niratias”, 2021)

19. Beartooth – “The Past Is Dead” (from “Below”, 2021)

20. Anthrax – “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” (from “I’m The Man” E.P., 1987)

21. Linea 77 – “Moka” (from “Ketchup Suicide”, 2001)

22. Boy Hits Car – “As I Watch The Sun Fuck The Ocean” (from “Boy Hits Car”, 2001)

23. 40 Below Summer – “Falling Down” (from “Invitation To The Dance”, 2001)

24. Green Carnation – “The Quiet Offspring” (from “The Quiet Offspring”, 2005) [Submitted by Andi]

25. Mushroomhead – “Solitaire/Unraveling” (from “M3”, 1999)

26. Metallica – “Frantic” (from “St. Anger”, 2003)

27. Atreyu – “Baptize” (from “Baptize”, 2021)

28. Mass Hysteria – “Furia” (from “Contraddiction”, 1999)

29. Love & Death – “Down” (from “Perfectly Preserved”, 2021)

30. Architects – “Meteor” (from “For Those That Wish To Exist”, 2021)

31. Reveille – “What You Got” (from “Bleed The Sky”, 2001)

32. Spiritbox – “Holy Roller” (from “Eternal Blue”, 2021)

Novermber 2021

01. LLNN - "Imperial" (from "Unmaker", 2021)

02. October Tide - "Grey Dawn" (from "Grey Dawn", 1999) [submitted by Ben]

03. Skepticism - "The March of the Four" (from "Comapnion", 2021) [submitted by Sonny]

04. Paradise Lost - "Elusive Cure" (from "Draconian Times", 1995) [submitted by Daniel]

05. Tankograd - "Nie Dać Się Zarżnąć" (from "KLĘSKA", 2021) [submitted by Sonny]

06. MonumentuM - "Consuming Jerusalem" (from "In Absentia Christi", 1995)

07. Nadja - "Fruiting Bodies" (from "Luminous Rot", 2021)

08. Eyehategod - "Take As Needed for Pain" (from "Take As Needed for Pain", 1993)

09. Amenra - "Het Gloren" (from "De Doorn", 2021)

10. Coffins - "Into the Coffin (Oppression)" (from "Mortuary in Darkness", 2005)

11. Forest of Shadows - "Eternal Autumn" (from "Where Dreams Turn to Dust EP", 2001) [submitted by Ben]

12. Un - "Sentiment" (from "Sentiment", 2018) [submitted by Ben]

13. Elder - "Spires Burn" (from "Spires Burn / Release EP", 2015) [submitted by Daniel]

14. Reverend Bizarre - "Caesar Forever" (from "III: So Long Suckers", 2007) [submitted by Daniel]

15. Warning - "Footsteps" (from "Watching from a Distance", 2008) [submitted by Sonny]

Scion - "Tresor.200 - Arrange & Process Basic Channel Tracks" (2002)

A lovely 55 minute DJ mix from this German DJ & producer who also goes by the name of Substance & Vainqueur. The tracklisting is comprised entirely of material produced & released by seminal German dub techno legends Basic Channel. It offers a warm, dubby analogue feel & is deeply cerebral but also offers more dancefloor appeal than its peers. Great stuff!

Yeah it might be a case of it having had its licensing removed for certain countries which isn't ideal. Let's go with the Trivium track instead.

I'm very pleased to announce that our darkest, most blasphemous & generally very naughty administrator Ben will be programming & managing the monthly Metal Academy Radio "The North" Spotify playlist moving forwards (starting with the November playlist). 

Thanks for the kind words everyone. It's always been our intention to have our clans being more like self-sufficient communities but it's taken much longer than expected to take the plunge on this particular item. I guess I was expecting our contributing membership to grow a little faster than it has but I'm now at the point where my work & family commitments simply don't allow me to continue giving the playlists the time they deserve. I'll be maintaining The Horde (my comfort zone) & The Sphere (no one's comfort zone) but I'll be speaking with some of you about the other playlists over the coming days.

I'm very pleased to announce that Saxy will be taking over the programming & management of the monthly Metal Academt Radio "The Infinite" Spotify playlist beginning with the November list. I have to admit that I've always struggled a little bit with the direction of this playlist so it'll be good to have someone as knowledgeable & passionate as Saxy overseeing it to see if we can take it to another level. Looking at his initial tracklisting, I'd suggest we're off to a good start too. :)

It's been a full 30 years since another yet death metal classic was released today. I picked this one up upon release after their 1989 sophomore album "Symphonies Of Sickness" had made such a major contribution to me veering off towards death metal from my thrash roots a year or two earlier. "Necroticism - Descanting The Insalubrious" was more ambitous, more sophisticated & more melodic than its older sibling but, despite the fact that Carcass had dropped their grindcore roots almost entirely, they'd lose none of their underground credibility. The dual vocal attack was more potent & the lead guitar work had taken a good couple of steps up too. It's still one of my all-time favourite death metal records & is easily Carcass' best work in my opinion.

I've never noticed anything "post" about Mastodon or much "sludge" in Solstafir to be fair Andi.

I'm pleased to announce that Andi will be programming & managing the monthly Metal Academy Radio "The Revolution" Spotify playlist moving forwards (starting with the November list). Andi has been our only regularly contributing member of The Revolution since our inception & I'm excited about the prospect of having someone more dedicated to the clan being responsible for unearthing new & exciting sounds from all eras & subgenres.

I'm very excited to announce that Vinny will be taking over the programming & management of the monthly Metal Academy Radio "The Pit" Spotify playlist moving forwards (starting with the November list). I think this will be a real win for the site as it was always hard to me to ensure the highest quality standards when programming nine two-hour playlists every month. I'm very excited to see what Vinny will pump out each month too as our tastes are pretty well aligned & he's consistently shown himself to have his finger on the pulse as far as underground releases go.

I'm very excited to announce that Sonny will be taking over the programming & management of the monthly Metal Academy Radio "The Fallen" Spotify playlist moving forwards (starting with the November list). I think this will only work to improve what is already one of our strongest & most consistent playlists in my opinion.

Laurel Halo - "DJ-Kicks" (2019)

A really cool, quirky & interesting single disk techno mix from this American ambient, pop & electronic producer. Thoroughly enjoyable stuff.

Classic gothic death/doom from the masters of the subgenre. For fans of Saturnus & early Paradise Lost/Anathema.

My Dying Bride - "Turn Loose The Swans" (1993)

It's been many years since I revisited this old favourite so I was interested to see if it would still leave me lying in a pool on the floor in the same way as it did during my formative years. Well the answer to that question is that it certainly does but not quite as much as it once did which is mainly due to the overly-theatrical clean vocal moments like we hear in the opening track "Sear Me MCMXCIII" where Aaron is consciously trying to be the most dark, emotional & generally gothic person on earth. When the band hit their straps though (as they do in the classic three track run that includes "The Snow In My Hand", "The Crown Of Sympathy" & the title track) there are very few doom-related bands that can compete with them & the growly vocal stuff is always much appreciated. There are occasional moments when the violins get a little too cheesy but these are generally balanced out by some super-dark riffs of pure doom & order is well & truly restored. I guess my musical radar just isn't quite asin tune with the more gothic end of metal as it once was but I still think this is My Dying Bride's best full-length & it remains in my top three for the doom/death genre overall although it may have  slipped back into third position now.

For fans of Saturnus & early Paradise Lost/Anathema.

4.5/5

Here's my updated list:

01. Morbid Angel - "Altars of Madness" (1989)

02. Death - "Human" (1991)

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

04. Immolation - "Close To A World Below" (2000)

05. Dragged Into Sunlight - "Hatred For Mankind" (2009)

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

07. Carcass - "Necroticism: Descanting The Insalubrious" (1991)

08. Dead Congregation - "Promulgation Of The Fall" (2014)

09. Morbid Angel - "Blessed Are The Sick" (1991)

10. Death - "Individual Thought Patterns" (1993)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/125

Here's my revised list:

1970: Black Sabbath – “Paranoid”

1971: Black Sabbath – “Master Of Reality”

1972: Black Sabbath – “Vol 4”

1973: Black Sabbath – “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”

1974: Budgie – “In For The Kill”

1975: Black Sabbath – “Sabotage”

1976: Judas Priest - "Sad Wings Of Destiny"

1977: Quartz – “Quartz”

1978: Judas Priest – “Killing Machine”

1979: Judas Priest – “Unleashed In The East”

1980: Diamond Head – “Lightning To The Nations”

1981: Motorhead – “No Sleep Till Hammersmith”

1982: Ozzy Osbourne – “Speak Of The Devil”

1983: Slayer – “Show No Mercy”

1984: Metallica – “Ride The Lightning”

1985: Exodus – “Bonded By Blood”

1986: Slayer – “Reign In Blood”

1987: Bathory – “Under The Sign Of The Black Mark”

1988: Metallica – “…And Justice For All”

1989: Morbid Angel – “Altars Of Madness”

1990: Slayer - "Seasons In The Abyss"

1991: Death – “Human”

1992: Alice In Chains – “Dirt”

1993: diSEMBOWELMENT – “Transcendence Into The Peripheral”

1994: Darkthrone – “Transilvanian Hunger”

1995: Suffocation – “Pierced From Within”

1996: Burzum – “Filosofem”

1997: Exodus – “Another Lesson In Violence”

1998: ISIS – “The Mosquito Control” E.P.

1999: Botch - "We Are The Romans"

2000: Immolation – “Close To A World Below”

2001: Tool - "Lateralus"

2002: ISIS – “Oceanic”

2003: Boris – “Boris At Last -Feedbacker-“

2004: ISIS – “Panopticon”

2005: Deathspell Omega – “Kenose” E.P.

2006: Celtic Frost – “Monotheist”

2007: Wolves In The Throne Room – “Two Hunters”

2008: Pig Destroyer - "Natasha" E.P.

2009: Dragged Into Sunlight - "Hatred For Mankind" (2009)

2010: Deathspell Omega - "Paracletus"

2011: Inside The Beehive - "Drink Bleach; Live Forever" E.P.

2012: Deftones - "Koi no Yokan"

2013: Gorguts - "Colored Sands"

2014: Dead Congregation - "Promulgation Of The Fall"

2015: Akhlys - "The Dreaming I"

2016: Mick Gordon - "Doom (Original Game Soundtrack)"

2017: Fen - "Winter"

2018: Saxon - "Thunderbolt"

2019: Altesia - "Paragon Circus"

2020: Oranssi Pazuzu - "Mestarin kynsi"

2021: Altarage - "Succumb"

Here's my updated list:

25. Carcass - "Necroticism: Descanting The Insalubrious" (1991)

24. ISIS - "Panopticon" (2004)

23. Suffocation - "Despise The Sun" E.P.

22. ISIS - "The Mosquito Control" E.P. (1998)

21. Dragged Into Sunlight - "Hatred For Mankind" (2009)

20. diSEMBOWELMENT - "Transcendence Into The Peripheral" (1993)

19. Neurosis - "Souls At Zero" (1992)

18. Botch - "We Are The Romans" (1999)

17. Rosetta - "The Galilean Satellites" (2005)

16. Slayer - "South Of Heaven" (1988)

15. Immolation - "Close To A World Below" (2000)

14. Esoteric - "The Maniacal Vale" (2008)

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

12. Boris - "Boris At Last -Feedbacker-" (2003)

11. Alice In Chains - "Dirt" (1992)

10. Death - "Human" (1991)

09. Morbid Angel - "Altars Of Madness" (1989)

08. Metallica - "...And Justice For All" (1988)

07. Mick Gordon - "DOOM (Original Game Soundtrack)" (2016)

06. Akhlys - "The Dreaming I" (2015)

05. Sunn O))) - "Black One" (2005)

04. Pig Destroyer - "Natasha" E.P. (2008)

03. Deathspell Omega - "Kenose" E.P. (2005)

02. Burzum - "Filosofem" (1996)

01. Slayer - "Reign In Blood" (1986)

Insanely intense deathgrind meets ultra-abrasive sludge metal. For fans of Lord Mantis, Coffinworm & Autokrator.

Dragged Into Sunlight - "Hatred For Mankind" (2009)

OK, so this is a fucking awe-inspiring masterpiece of extremity right here. I'd dare say that I'm probably the only member that will think so though as it sits in an ultra-abrasive realm that's rarely touched upon. I already rated it extremely highly back at the time of release however this revisit has seen me elevating it into a space that only the death metal gods dare wander. You honestly won't find a more extreme record than this. It's completely over the top! The production has been tailor made to make it as noisy as possible too with the crash cymbals searing themselves into your cranium. I've never heard anything quite like "Hatred For Mankind" in all honesty. I'd describe it as blasting deathgrind crossed with the most abrasive sludge metal & an insane pig-squealing vocalist ranting about serial-killers. The intensity is almost unbearable at times & the long track lengths only work to prolong the highlights as there's never a dull moment with another serving of fucked-up brutality being only seconds away at any point across the tracklisting. It's an utterly superb record that's made me rethink my top five death metal records of all time this afternoon.

For fans of Lord Mantis, Coffinworm & Autokrator.

5/5

The late 80's birth of war metal from the Canadian godfathers of the subgenre. For fans of Archgoat, Proclamation & Black Witchery.

Blasphemy - "Blood Upon The Altar" demo (1989)

After reading Sonny's list above, I got the inspiration to go back & revisit this old demo which I'd originally encountered through tape trading in the very early 1990's. I remember quite liking it but don't think it ever made quite the impact on me that it did on many others & this still seems to be the case. I was really into the South American extreme metal scene at the time & Blasphemy seemed to draw from the same sources of inspiration (i.e. Sodom, Bathory, Hellhammer, Slayer,  etc.) which poses the question as to whether this combination of thrash, black & death metal really created an entirely new subgenre or not. I tend to think not as it doesn't sound all that different to a band like Sarcofago. "Blood Upon The Altar" definitely falls under the war metal banner by definition but I'm just not sure that "blackened death metal" doesn't cover this sound adequately enough without the requirement to create new descriptors.

Nocturnal Grave Desecrator & Black Winds' vocals aren't particularly strong & could have had a lot more aggression behind them but there's a truck load of youthful energy spread across the twenty minutes. I tend to enjoy the sheer blast-fests more than the tracks that go for chuggy thrash bridges as I don't think Blasphemy were particularly good at the thrashier stuff. They were at their best when they were simply blasting away uncontrollably & there's enough of that stuff here to keep me interested throughout the 21 minute duration. The eerie intro tracks are pretty effective too & add an additional element to an unblemished tracklisting.

"Blood Upon The Altar" may not be essential listening for all extreme metal fans but it does offer a raucous ride & a pretty fun experience throughout. 

For fans of Archgoat, Proclamation & Black Witchery.

3.5/5

Doomy old-school death metal from the Netherlands. For fans of Autopsy, Cianide & Grand Supreme Blood Court.

Popol Vuh - "Affenstunde" (1970)

The 1970 debut album from this legendary German krautrock outfit is often overlooked within their star-studded back catalogue but it actually represents the earliest full-length example of ambient music that I'm aware of with a strong tribal component being incorporated in conjunction with the early synthesizer experimentation. "Affenstunde" is comprised of four tracks across forty minutes with the nineteen minute title track being the centrepiece. It's certainly not as immediate as a lot of their other material & subsequently requires a little more commitment. Second track "Ich Mache Einen Spiegel: Dream Part 5" is a misguided failure but the other three inclusions have a lot to offer & I've always thought this was an underrated record to be honest, despite the fact that it doesn't really challenge Popol Vuh's more classic material.

4/5

For this weekend's "top ten of all time" list I've decided to go with power metal which is a subgenre that I've often struggled with over the years but have now found enough releases that I like to put together a list like this one. Check it out & feel free to post your own.

01. Kamelot - "The Black Halo" (2005)

02. Iced Earth - "Alive In Athens" (1999)

03. Unleash The Archers - "Apex" (2017)

04. Lost Horizon - "Awakening The World" (2001)

05. Blind Guardian - "Imaginations From The Other Side" (1995)

06. Lost Horizon - "A Flame To The Ground Beneath" (2003)

07. Blind Guardian - "Nightfall In Middle-Earth" (1998)

08. Blind Guardian - "Live" (2003)

09. Blind Guardian - "Somewhere Far Beyond" (1992)

10. Gamma Ray - "Blast From The Past" (2000)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/139

Intense New York thrash metal for fans of Morbid Saint, Dark Angel & early Sadus.

Demolition Hammer - "Tortured Existence" (1990)

The debut album from New York thrash metallers Demolition Hammer is very highly regarded in the underground scene & for good reason. This four-piece from The Bronx take no prisoners whatsoever in their no-holds-barred approach to pummeling their audience into submission. This is certainly thrash metal in its purest & most intense form with bassist Steve Reynolds' vocal delivery being full of spite & vitriol & sounding closer to hardcore punk than your traditional thrash front man. There are certainly plenty of great riffs on offer here but there's not the consistency of the band's classic sophomore release from two years later "Epidemic Of Violence" which is a definite step up from "Tortured Existence" & I think that sums up my feelings on this record pretty well. It's a very strong first up effort but it's not quite the finished product. Also, the production lets it down a bit too with the brutal rhythm guitars being a bit muffled & often overpowered by a bass guitar that's a touch too high in the mix. The lead guitar work slays though & is the definite highlight of a very enjoyable thrash outing for me. I have to say though, I don't hear the death metal influence that people like to throw at this record. The guitar tone is about the only link that I can see because this is pure thrash in my opinion & there's nothing wrong with that. Horrible cover artwork though!

For fans of Morbid Saint, Dark Angel & early Sadus.

4/5

Huge anniversary for me today... Death's Human turns 30!

1991 was such an exciting year in my life. I was 14, with all the freedoms and experiences that come with that age. I think it was the year that I really started moving beyond my Metallica / Slayer / Iron Maiden roots, and into the formerly scary world of extreme metal. This album, along with Morbid Angel's Blessed Are the Sick, Sepultura's Arise, Carcass' Necroticism, Entombed's Clandestine, Pestilence's Testimony of the Ancients and Bolt Thrower's War Master set me on an extraordinary journey of extremity, darkness, and dare I say beauty. It's a journey I'm still on today, and there have been very few destinations on the way that are as perfect as Death's Human.

I want to take this moment to thank my big brother Daniel for guiding me down this path. I'm fairly certain I would never have found it without him.

R.I.P. Chuck! I still genuinely feel like crying when I think about the loss. I'm not ashamed to say that I did cry on the day I found out that he'd passed away. I'd be shocked if Daniel didn't shed a tear too.

Aaaaawwwww shucks..... This was an absolutely life-changing record for me. Death's sophomore album "Leprosy" was my introduction to death metal back in 1989 & I thoroughly enjoyed exploring "Scream Bloody Gore" & "Spiritual Healing" too but none of those records ever managed to break Death into my favourite bands. "Human" changed all that. It was comfortably the most sophisticated & ambitious record the death metal scene had produced to the time & asked a lot more questions than Chuck's previous work had. I still rate it as my second favourite death metal release of all time behind Morbid Angel's "Altars Of Madness" & death metal is kinda my thing so you can't get much higher recommendation than that.

I'll never understand how you can say that you don't enjoy a band as much as you used to & then award them the full five stars Andi. I would have thought that by awarding "Restoration" full marks you're essentially saying that it's everything you could ever want in recorded music, a perfect representation of your musical taste.

A beautiful progressive rock outing for fans of Leprous, Caligula's Horse & Dream Theater.

Haken - "Restoration" E.P. (2014)

I really dug London-based progressive rock/metal outfit Haken's 2013 album "The Mountain" back at the time of release & always intended on investigating more of their back catalogue but somehow managed to get completely side-tracked & have only just gotten around to doing it now. I'm very glad that I have though because 2014's "Restoration" E.P. is every bit as strong as "The Mountain", possibly even more so. The three tracks included are actually revamped versions of the band's old demo tracks which is pretty fucking impressive to say the least given how fully realised they are. There's more progressive rock on offer than there is metal but it's all beautifully executed with strong Yes influences raising their head during some of the more ambitious & fiddly moments. The least metal track "Earthlings" is actually my favourite with the legendary 19 minute "Crystalised" being a little too wanky during the middle & subsequently falling a little short of the other two tracks in my view. Opener "Darkest Light" is comfortably the most metal track & sounds closer Dream Theater & Leprous. "Restoration" is a solid flexing of the muscles from a very talented & creative group of progressively minded musicians.

For fans of Leprous, Caligula's Horse & Dream Theater.

4/5

Andi, Xephyr & Saxy, I highly recommend that you check this one out.

Classic old school US death metal for fans of Deicide, Cannabis Corpse & Monstrosity.

Another example of why I can't deal with most Folk Metal.

A Bathory-inspired Viking metal anthem with only hints at Moonsorrow's folkier tendencies. For fans of Falkenbach, Finsterforst & Månegarm.

Moonsorrow - "Voimasta ja kunniasta" (2001)

I absolutely hated Finnish folk metallers Moonsorrow's 2001 sophomore album "Voimasta ja kunniasta" when I first encountered it well over a decade ago now but thought I'd better give it another chance after hearing one of its more Viking-oriented tracks "Hiidenpelto" & quite liking it earlier this week. I guess you could say that I was doubting myself after discovering that I'd only awarded the album a miserable two stars previously & wanted to see if absence had made my heart grow fonder. So did it? Well..... I guess it must have made some sort of a difference as I've managed to bump my rating up by a half star but let me stress just how much of an internal battle I had to overcome before deciding on that arrangement. It was literally a line-ball decision. In the end I couldn't deny that the first three tracks may have painted my impressions of the rest of the album with an unfairly brown tinge as they pretty much represent everything I hate about folk metal but the second half of the record is noticeably stronger which is in a large part due to the influence of the previously mentioned Viking Metal anthem & the stronger Viking component in general. That's generally been the deciding factor in how much I like a Moonsorrow record too. They're always impeccably executed & produced but I'll always favour those releases where the Viking Metal vastly outweighs the Folk Metal. Here we have roughly a 50/50 equation but the cheese factor is ramped up to infinity & the Black Metal component has significantly diminished since their debut which causes me to regard "Voimasta ja kunniasta" as the least appealing Moonsorrow record I've encountered to date. 

For fans of Falkenbach, Finsterforst & Månegarm.

2.5/5

LATEST HEADLINES: Metalcore band in unintelligible lyrics scandal!! Fans shocked by references to violence in hardcore songs!

*Sorry. I couldn't help myself.*  :)

Fantastic review Sonny. I can very much relate to it.

While those lyrics are in English, it seems like they're a little high in the accent of their native country at some points. If they wrote original, more suitable lyrics that aren't frequently accented, I would've given my review at least 3.5 stars and make it longer than this post, but unfortunately....NAH.

Is it even possible to have an accent when screaming your guts out like this? I wouldn't have thought so. If you can pick up a French accent or any clear language at all in that indecipherable vocal performance then you're a better man than I am Andi. Also, isn't the fact that you find the intentionally extreme lyrics to be a dealbreaker evidence that they're actually quite original within the context of the metalcore scene?

Beatdown hardcore-inspired French metalcore for fans of Hatebreed, Sunami & God's Hate.

I wouldn't say that October was one of our stronger months for feature releases but I still got plenty of enjoyment out of the vast majority of the nine releases on offer, even if there wasn't anything too mind-blowing in the way of new discoveries for me personally. "Extreme Aggression" has always been a huge part of my life so it was no surprise that I ended up rating it so highly. "Portal of I" has just slightly slipped back in my affections a touch over the years as my taste profile has developed however it's still a wonderful example of its type. I'll definitely need to check out the rest of Reverend Bizarre's back-catalogue if this release was any indication of their skills & I have a feeling you'll be hearing more from me on that particular band. I was across Necrophagist's & Panopticon's work prior to this revisit so I knew that Necrophagist would be right up my alley & that Panopticon would likely take a little more effort to get into. "Kentucky" did offer some reward for my efforts in the end though. I quite enjoyed the Kickback & Lard records but they're unlikely to be regular inclusions in my playlist moving forwards while I would suggest that I probably get a little more enjoyment out of "Night On Brocken" than it has any right to command. Unfortunately for Linkin Park, I just couldn't quite connect with "The Hunting Party" despite having really enjoyed their previous feature release "Meteora" some months ago now.

Here were my results in order of preference:

THE PIT: Kreator - "Extreme Aggression" (1989)  4.5/5

THE INFINITE: Ne Obliviscaris - "Portal Of I" (2012)  4/5

THE FALLEN: Reverend Bizarre - "III: So Long Suckers" (2007)  4/5

THE HORDE: Necrophagist - "Epitaph" (2004)  4/5

THE REVOLUTION: Kickback - "Les 150 Passions Meurtrieres" E.P. (2000)  3.5/5

THE SPHERE: Lard - "The Last Temptation Of Reid" (1990)   3.5/5

THE NORTH: Panopticon - "Kentucky" (2012)  3.5/5

THE GUARDIANS: Fates Warning - "Night On Brocken" (1984)  3.5/5

THE GATEWAY: Linkin Park - "The Hunting Party" (2014)  3/5

I quite enjoyed this one. It certainly doesn't attempt to do anything drastically different but it does possess an honesty & authenticity that I find a fair bit of appeal in. The beatdown hardcore influence is plain to see in the sheer violence of this music & that's kinda the point of the whole exercise so if that description doesn't sound like something that you'd enjoy then you're not gonna dig a release like this one. Kickback's riffs are simple, chuggy & uncluttered with the rhythm section giving them plenty of room to breath. Front man Stephen Bessac is hardly a vocal maestro with his aggressive screaming being par for the course with this style of music but he certainly adds to the already muscular framework of what is a essentially a very up-front & straight-forward metalcore release. Overall I found "Les 150 Passions Meurtrieres" to be a well executed (if slightly generic) piece of hardcore-inspired metal.

For fans of Hatebreed, Sunami & God's Hate.

3.5/5

it seems like their "inspirations" are mainly rip-offs. There may be some lyrical copying from Whitehouse and De Sade, especially in the title track, all mangled in the French tongue. 

Andi, I just had a read of your review & was very surprised to find that you're across the works of both UK power electronics artist Whitehouse & 18th Century French erotic writer Marquis de Sade (particularly the latter). I do think your statement about the lyrics being "all mangled in the French tongue" is a bit deceptive though as the vast majority are in English.

Californian technical death metal for fans of Obscura, Spawn Of Possession & The Faceless.

I really enjoyed revisiting this one. While I'm well onboard with some of the thoughts above in that I've more often than not found that the modern brand of super-technical death metal values style over substance & rarely gets the balance right with regard to memorability, Necrophagist definitely tip toe along that line but have enough of a pedigree in the early 90's greats of the genre (see Death) to know how to utilize their ridiculously overthetop skill sets in a consistently engaging way. The vocals of guitarist Muhammed Suicmez are dark & brutal in an Immolation sort of way & this works to juxtapose some of the more melodic guitar work which may normally have seen my score dipping a bit. There's little doubt that the sweeping fiddly-diddly neoclassical solo work is overdone a bit & can veer towards practice exercise territory at times but it's the incredibly precise drumming of human-metronome Hannes Grossmann that ensures my attention never wanders as you'll rarely hear a time-keeper that's more in control of his craft. 

The consistency of this record is probably it's strongest quality as there's nothing here that dips below a very solid standard but Necrophagist manage to take things to another level altogether with the back-to-back highlight tracks that kick off the B side (i.e. the title track & "Only Ash Remains"). Anyone that knows me well won't be surprised that these are probably the two most consistently brutal offerings on the tracklisting but I also enjoy the moments where the band hint at more progressive horizons & I feel that this is a direction that they could have explored further.

To put it simply though, any tech death diehard worth his salt will be absolutely all over this album. It's beautifully executed & the production job is crystal clear so you can hear every nuance of the very complex arrangements. In saying that, it falls a little short of classic status as I can't help but crave a little more of that sinister graveyard atmosphere in my death metal while the stop-start nature of ultra-technical metal ends up being a bit too jerky to command the deeply physical reaction that I inevitably receive from the greats.

For fans of Obscura, Spawn Of Possession & The Faceless.

4/5

A gorgeous post-rock collaboration with Rage Against The Machine's Tom Morello from an album that should appeal to fans of Evanescence, Breaking Benjamin & Red.

I unexpectedly really enjoyed our last Linkin Park feature release in 2003's "Meteora" album so I went into "The Hunting Party" with some optimism but that proved to be overly hopeful as I struggled to connect with a lot of this material. Don't get me wrong, this is by no means a horrible record. It simply spends a little too much of it's run time traversing areas of the musical spectrum that I'm not particularly comfortable with.

I guess you can technically classify this as a metal record as five of the twelve tracks included utilize metal tools however they present them in a fashion that will likely appeal more to a pop audience than a metal one & occasionally even hint at trance metal through the use of cheesy synthesizers. The rap sections were a challenge for me on "Meteora" but here I found them a little harder to deal with as they're generally smothered in commercial pop production techniques that often leave me feeling pretty cringy. Bennington's vocal skills aren't highlighted as well here either & there's an up-beat punky component to some of the song-writing that hints more at pop punk than it does at hardcore punk.

On the positive side though, Linkin Park have always known how to right a catchy hook & you'll find a few of those here. The instrumental post-rock collaboration with Rage Against The Machine's Tom Morello "Drawbar" is sheer genius & I really enjoy the more mature alternative rock stylings of "Mark The Graves" & the building interlude "The Summoning". Energetic alternative metal opener "Keys To The Kingdom" is also pretty good & leaves me wishing that Linkin Park wouldn't resort to poppy commercialism as often as they do here. I'd lay off the synths altogether too.

So overall, you can see from my score that this isn't be any means an awful record. It just doesn't even attempt to tick any of the boxes I crave from my metal music.

For fans of Evanescence, Breaking Benjamin & Red.

3/5

Here's my submission for the November playlist. I thought I'd go with something a little different to break the list up a bit.

Skycamefalling - "10.21" (from "10.21", 2000)