What a great album. This, along with Burzum's Filosofem marked my return to full-time heavy metal fandom. It may have a few faults, but it's one of the best heavy metal records of the 90's, and a must-have to metal fans in general and Iron Maiden fans in particular.
I call out Iron Maiden fans in particular because frankly, this lp surpasses most Maiden's 90's era releases and is so obviously an influence on this band. But don't get me wrong, this isn't NWOBHM. It's not Black Metal either. It borrows a little from both.
The album's (and the band's) biggest fault are the vocals. Generally I like most extreme metal vocal styles, but often when listening to this I picture the vocals are being performed by my aunt's miniature schnauzer.
Still, the twin guitars on Heaven Torn Asunder and A Gothic Romance really shred and this is one of those rare albums that doesn't have any weak tracks. Highly recommended.
**** out of 5.
Friday, June 1, 2012
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Past Blasts: Sacrifice-Torment in Fire
I remember reading a magazine article about Slayer back in the 80's that basically said while Metallica was the more popular band Slayer was more influential. Specifically mentioned as being influenced by Reign in Blood were Possessed, Onslaught, Legacy (they changed their name to Testament) and Sacrifice. So, when I saw Sacrifice's debut, Torment in Fire in the bin at Record Theater, I bought it.
Recently I bought a new turntable. I've been without one for about six years. My old one broke when we moved and I never bothered to replace it. Finally, after watching a bunch of "Vinyl Community" videos on Youtube, I felt the need to explore the resurgence of LP's and buy a turntable. Torment in Fire is one of my old albums that I've listened to for the first time in over two decades. Did it stand the test of time? Not really.
That's probably a little unfair to say though. Standing the test of time would mean an album that I thought was great 25 years ago but now doesn't seem so hot. I don't think I ever thought Torment in Fire was "great." In fact, it's been so long that I can't really remember how I felt about it back when it was new.
Now? It's a second-tier thrash record from the mid-80's. It's not bad, but it's not great either. There are a few killer riffs on it ("Infernal Visions" and "Burned at the Stake" rock) but overall the album sounds "samey," as in it's hard to tell one song from another. I think a big reason for that is the bad production. But like I said, this is very much a second-tier thrash record from the mid-80's.
In the end, part of me feels "cool" for owning this (on vinyl!) and part of me wonders why I bought it in the first place.
Recently I bought a new turntable. I've been without one for about six years. My old one broke when we moved and I never bothered to replace it. Finally, after watching a bunch of "Vinyl Community" videos on Youtube, I felt the need to explore the resurgence of LP's and buy a turntable. Torment in Fire is one of my old albums that I've listened to for the first time in over two decades. Did it stand the test of time? Not really.
That's probably a little unfair to say though. Standing the test of time would mean an album that I thought was great 25 years ago but now doesn't seem so hot. I don't think I ever thought Torment in Fire was "great." In fact, it's been so long that I can't really remember how I felt about it back when it was new.
Now? It's a second-tier thrash record from the mid-80's. It's not bad, but it's not great either. There are a few killer riffs on it ("Infernal Visions" and "Burned at the Stake" rock) but overall the album sounds "samey," as in it's hard to tell one song from another. I think a big reason for that is the bad production. But like I said, this is very much a second-tier thrash record from the mid-80's.
In the end, part of me feels "cool" for owning this (on vinyl!) and part of me wonders why I bought it in the first place.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Review: Blood Ceremony-Blood Ceremony
It's been a long time since I have so instantly fell in love with a band as I have with Blood Ceremony. Their self-titled debut ranks right up there with Master of Puppets, Powerslave, Reign in Blood, and Sons of Northern Darkness as an album that sounded great to me from the first listen. Usually I have to listen to something a few times to "get into it." It took more than a year of listening to Opeth before I realized how great they are. But I have loved Blood Ceremony from the very first organ and cymbal rolling intro. It's Black Sabbath meets Jethro Tull meets The Satanic Bible, and it's awesome.
Blood Ceremony isn't doing anything new here, but they are doing what they are doing better than anyone or anything that I've heard lately. And that's saying something since there are so many bands now in this doom metal/70's Sabbath genre. Granted, there's the aforementioned Jethro Tull-like flute playing, but I don't know if combining something else from the 70's in this style of music can be considered innovative.
But to hell with innovation and saying anything negative about this record. When it comes to music the two most important things are the riffs and the attitude behind them. By attitude I mean the degree to which the band believes in what it's doing. Blood Ceremony has both in spades. Very highly recommended.
***** out of 5.
Blood Ceremony isn't doing anything new here, but they are doing what they are doing better than anyone or anything that I've heard lately. And that's saying something since there are so many bands now in this doom metal/70's Sabbath genre. Granted, there's the aforementioned Jethro Tull-like flute playing, but I don't know if combining something else from the 70's in this style of music can be considered innovative.
But to hell with innovation and saying anything negative about this record. When it comes to music the two most important things are the riffs and the attitude behind them. By attitude I mean the degree to which the band believes in what it's doing. Blood Ceremony has both in spades. Very highly recommended.
***** out of 5.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Review: Festung Nebelburg-Gabreta Hyle
I have a confession to make. Sometimes I buy albums because they have cool covers. Gabreta Hyle, the only full-length release by the German band Festung Nebelburg has your typical black metal faded picture of a castle album cover, but the burnt-orange color scheme really works for me. It's what caught my eye when I saw it on the web. The music? It's ok.
Similar to Burzum, Festung is the work of one man, Nattulv. The opening track "Gabreta Hyle" really got my hopes up. Over top of the main riff there's a lead guitar part that really kicks the song off. Sadly, the rest of the album has the lead guitar buried in the mix, like a lot of other bands do. The record never matches the intensity of that opening track.
Festung are a "folk-black metal" act, which mainly shows on "When Autumn Turns to Winter," the only song with English lyrics, the rest being in German. Which leads me to what I think is Gabreta's biggest failing, the vocals. Nattulv can do a very nice black metal rasp, but unfortunately about half of the album is sung with clean vocals, with much of that being spoken-word. Maybe it's because he does it German, but the spoken parts really enter into Spinal Tap territory for me.
Overall I feel that Gabreta Hyle has pretty decent music, but some missteps really drag it down. I think if Nattulv had stuck with black metal vocals, this would be a solid 3. As it is, it's a 2. It's not terrible, but I can't recommend it.
**
Similar to Burzum, Festung is the work of one man, Nattulv. The opening track "Gabreta Hyle" really got my hopes up. Over top of the main riff there's a lead guitar part that really kicks the song off. Sadly, the rest of the album has the lead guitar buried in the mix, like a lot of other bands do. The record never matches the intensity of that opening track.
Festung are a "folk-black metal" act, which mainly shows on "When Autumn Turns to Winter," the only song with English lyrics, the rest being in German. Which leads me to what I think is Gabreta's biggest failing, the vocals. Nattulv can do a very nice black metal rasp, but unfortunately about half of the album is sung with clean vocals, with much of that being spoken-word. Maybe it's because he does it German, but the spoken parts really enter into Spinal Tap territory for me.
Overall I feel that Gabreta Hyle has pretty decent music, but some missteps really drag it down. I think if Nattulv had stuck with black metal vocals, this would be a solid 3. As it is, it's a 2. It's not terrible, but I can't recommend it.
**
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Review: Burzum-Filosofem
Burzum's Filosofem was the first black metal album that I ever listened to. It remains one of my favorite black metal releases and one of my favorite albums of all.
I would classify Filosofem as "traditional" black metal. Traditional as in this recording is more in line with Darkthrone's A Blaze in the Northern Sky than something like Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, or even Emperor (Personally, I wouldn't classify Cradle of Filth or even Dimmu Borgir as black metal all, but I know that some people do).
Burzum is the work of Varg Vikernes, who performs all of the music on the "band's" albums. I feel this album really demonstrates his talent, which is being able to craft simple, but powerful riffs and motifs that can be repeated over and over without losing their impact. This may sound strange, but I've always thought this album was really "catchy." It's got hooks. "Dunkelheit" and "Erblicket Die Töchter Des Firmaments" really groove.
Granted, "Rundgang Um Die Transzendentale Säule Der Singularität" might not be for everyone (this is a 25+ minute ambiet track that is almost entirely the same few synth notes repeated over and over) but if listened to as a whole I don't think you will find many black metal albums better than this one. And a big part of that is "Rundgang."
Overall I feel this is one of the best black metal albums of all time. As such, I'd rate it a solid 5 out of 5. Not only is there no weak spots on this album, but I feel that it's a real standout in the genre. Highly recommended.
*****
I would classify Filosofem as "traditional" black metal. Traditional as in this recording is more in line with Darkthrone's A Blaze in the Northern Sky than something like Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, or even Emperor (Personally, I wouldn't classify Cradle of Filth or even Dimmu Borgir as black metal all, but I know that some people do).
Burzum is the work of Varg Vikernes, who performs all of the music on the "band's" albums. I feel this album really demonstrates his talent, which is being able to craft simple, but powerful riffs and motifs that can be repeated over and over without losing their impact. This may sound strange, but I've always thought this album was really "catchy." It's got hooks. "Dunkelheit" and "Erblicket Die Töchter Des Firmaments" really groove.
Granted, "Rundgang Um Die Transzendentale Säule Der Singularität" might not be for everyone (this is a 25+ minute ambiet track that is almost entirely the same few synth notes repeated over and over) but if listened to as a whole I don't think you will find many black metal albums better than this one. And a big part of that is "Rundgang."
Overall I feel this is one of the best black metal albums of all time. As such, I'd rate it a solid 5 out of 5. Not only is there no weak spots on this album, but I feel that it's a real standout in the genre. Highly recommended.
*****
Saturday, April 14, 2012
First Impressions: Cannibal Corpse - Torture
Death metal has never been one of my favorite genres. I listened to Morbid Angel's Altars of Madness back when it was first released and liked it, and Carcass' Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious is one of my favorite albums of any genre, but outside of that the only death metal band that I've listened to regularly is Nile. I own most of their albums but I'm not really sure why.
Back in 2009 I bought Cannibal Corpse's then new album, Evisceration Plague, mainly because it was Cannibal Corpse, legends in their own time. I thought it was good death metal. But since I didn't really care much for death metal... It was ok.
So in 2012 I started this blog, and was sitting at home thinking about what I should write about first. Never would have imagined it would be Cannibal Corpse, but I was sitting here at my computer with Torture playing on my stereo, and Jesus Christ this is good. Favorite tracks so far are Followed Home Then Killed and Sarcophagic Frenzy. Not sure how it compares with their older stuff but this album does a great job of mixing it up with super fast blast-beats and pounding, grinding grooves. That's what I like, this album has riffs that I can not only discern but actually remember. Great stuff, highly recommended.
Back in 2009 I bought Cannibal Corpse's then new album, Evisceration Plague, mainly because it was Cannibal Corpse, legends in their own time. I thought it was good death metal. But since I didn't really care much for death metal... It was ok.
So in 2012 I started this blog, and was sitting at home thinking about what I should write about first. Never would have imagined it would be Cannibal Corpse, but I was sitting here at my computer with Torture playing on my stereo, and Jesus Christ this is good. Favorite tracks so far are Followed Home Then Killed and Sarcophagic Frenzy. Not sure how it compares with their older stuff but this album does a great job of mixing it up with super fast blast-beats and pounding, grinding grooves. That's what I like, this album has riffs that I can not only discern but actually remember. Great stuff, highly recommended.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Beginnings...
I've created this blog to write about music, mostly heavy metal. My inspiration was TheNeedleDrop on Youtube (check him out).
Mainly I will review albums, both old (mostly) and new (sometimes). Also, I want to write up little "histories" of certain bands that I'm most familiar with.
Please enjoy and listen responsibly.
Mainly I will review albums, both old (mostly) and new (sometimes). Also, I want to write up little "histories" of certain bands that I'm most familiar with.
Please enjoy and listen responsibly.
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