Jonathan Hill

Category: Music

  • Front Line Assembly Echogenetic Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Front Line Assembly
    Album: Echogenetic
    Genre(s): Electronic, Electro-Industrial
    Subgenres(s): Dubstep
    Released: 2013
    Length: 58 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Dependent Records, Metropolis Records

    Track List:

    01. Resonance
    02. Levelled
    03. Killing Grounds
    04. Blood
    05. Deadened
    06. Ghosts
    07. Echogenetic
    08. Exhale
    09. Exo
    10. Prototype
    11. Heartquake

    Front Line Assembly Echogenetic Cover
    Front Line Assembly Echogenetic Cover

    Front Line Assembly Echogenetic Review

    With Echogenetic, Front Line Assembly has fully embraced their dubstep influences that first came about on the Airmech soundtrack from the previous year and they’ve made it central to their sound this time around. It’s a natural progression to what they were already experimenting with so this development shouldn’t come across as that much of a shock to most fans.

    The electric guitars featured in many of their other albums are absent entirely and while Front Line Assembly have retained their grotty industrial aesthetic that conjures up scenes from a decaying dystopian city, the direction that the music has taken is accessible without having to latch onto the “brostep” style of artists like Skrillex or Excision so hardcore fans can rest assured that the band are still very much themselves.

    A new dynamic within the group has clearly influenced their direction. Along with Bill Leeb and long-time collaborators Jeremy Inkel and Jared Slingerland, they reunited with Craig Johnsen and Sasha Keevill who both contributed to the Airmech soundtrack. For Echogenetic they worked in 2 separate groups consisting of Jeremy Inkel and Sasha Keevill in the first and then Jared Slingerland and Craig Johnsen in the second with Bill Leeb jumping between them. Every few weeks all 5 contributors got together to go over the material to critique it and add new elements to the songs.

    Killing Grounds exemplifies what Front Line Assembly is capable of doing within dubstep as this song in particular has plenty of momentum and memorable moments. Some other songs lack the immediate appeal that you easily recognise here so they take a bit more time to grow on you. On the other end of the spectrum is Prototype, an instrumental that could have been accurately retitled Archetype. It’s packed full of interesting twists and turns while avoiding any and all accusations of being comfortable background noise because it is something that commands your attention.

    Echogenetic is a focused effort that should have been shook up with more varied tempos or even by bringing back the guitars for a few songs to avoid this pleasant plateau that the band seems to have found themselves on although this unlikely fusion of genres also makes for an interesting album beyond any novelty you could associate with it.

    Performers:

    Bill Leeb: Vocals, Electronic instruments
    Jeremy Inkel: Electronic instruments
    Jared Slingerland: Electronic instruments
    Craig Johnsen: Electronic instruments
    Sasha Keevill: Electronic instruments

    External Links:

    Front Line Assembly Homepage
    Front Line Assembly on Wikipedia
    Echogenetic on Wikipedia

  • New Model Army The Ghost of Cain Review

    General Information:

    Artist: New Model Army
    Album: The Ghost of Cain
    Genre(s): Rock, Folk Rock
    Subgenres(s): Post-Punk
    Released: 1986
    Length: 35 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): EMI

    Track List:

    01. The Hunt
    02. Lights Go Out
    03. 51st State
    04. All of This
    05. Poison Street
    06. Western Dream
    07. Lovesong
    08. Heroes
    09. Ballad
    10. Master Race

    New Model Army The Ghost of Cain Cover
    New Model Army The Ghost of Cain Cover

    New Model Army The Ghost of Cain Review

    The Ghost of Cain is the third studio album by British post-punk outfit New Model Army. Unlike a great number of other rock bands, New Model Army has a big emphasis on narrative-driven lyrics that touch on serious themes of justice, politics and social issues.

    This is outlined right from the get-go with The Hunt, which deals with street justice in a town overrun by drug dealers and thugs that are untouchable due to corruption and fear. 51st State is an irony-soaked acoustic song about American exceptionalism while Master Race reflects on countries acting like the world police because of their arrogant sense of superiority.

    Western Dream is perhaps the most serious in terms of lyrical content when Justin Sullivan pessimistically looks at “the bitterness of failure and the dirt of success” in the western world. He goes on to sing about how sometimes it looks like there are only two choices; know your place or “trample over everyone” to be successful while living with the dirt of doing so.

    Every instrument has been mixed with a high degree of clarity so that they are all represented equally on The Ghost of Cain. This means that the bass can not only be heard clearly, which is a rarity in rock music, but it proves to be an integral part of the New Model Army sound. There is also a noticeable influence from folk music on 51st State, All of This and Lovesongs while Poison Street and the dusty sounding Ballad feature the harmonica courtesy of Mark Feltham.

    All of these inclusions play perfectly into the post-punk ethos of expanding beyond punk rock’s simplistic 3 chords of fury to explore more artistic possibilities while maintaining the same energy and passion.

    Performers:

    Justin Sullivan: Vocals, Guitar
    Robert Heaton: Drums
    Jason “Moose” Harris: Bass
    Mark Feltham: Harmonica (Poison Street and Ballad)

    External Links:

    New Model Army Homepage
    New Model Army on Wikipedia
    The Ghost of Cain on Wikipedia

  • The Devin Townsend Project Ki Review

    General Information:

    Artist: The Devin Townsend Project
    Album: Ki
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Progressive Rock
    Released: 2009
    Length: 107 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): HevyDevy, Inside Out

    Track List:

    01. A Monday
    02. Coast
    03. Disruptr
    04. Gato
    05. Terminal
    06. Heaven’s End
    07. Ain’t Never Gonna Win
    08. Winter
    09. Trainfire
    10. Lady Helen
    11. Ki
    12. Quiet Riot
    13. Demon League

    The Devin Townsend Project Ki Cover
    The Devin Townsend Project Ki Cover

    The Devin Townsend Project Ki Review

    Ki (pronounced key) is the first of a planned 4 part series by Devin Townsend following a 2 year hiatus from recording music after he found himself uncomfortable with the fact that he had difficulty writing music without drugs. During the hiatus he wrote music that he found fitting into 4 different styles and wanted to create an album for each of them.

    To help him realise this ambitious goal he enlisted a different group of musicians for each album. For Ki he chose long-time collaborator and multi-instrumentalist Dave Young, who provides much of the ambiance as well as drummer Duris Maxwell (Heart, Jefferson Airplane and Skylark) and bassist Jean Savoie who is a member of a Beatles tribute band called The Bobcats as he thought that they would bring a fresh perspective to Ki’s quieter aspects. Devin Townsend himself takes on lead vocal and guitar duties as well as some bass playing and ambiance.

    There are 2 distinct sides to Ki. The first is the moody and introspective music that would be the perfect soundtrack to a quiet winters evening. This is introduced immediately with the minimalist A Monday, which focuses on simple and undistorted guitar playing with some keyboard work to fill in the spaces around it. Other songs like Terminal, Winter and Lady Helen are particularly close to this blueprint in terms of the mood and stripped back musicianship while Coast is slightly more up-tempo, especially towards the end when the music intensifies with layers of voices. Ain’t Never Gonna Win is a loose jam song that never loses the feeling of the other songs mentioned but sounds distinct from everything else in its own right.

    Unfortunately there is also the other side to Ki which is made up of irate songs like Gato, Heaven Send, the title track and the aptly named Disruptr (yes that’s how it’s spelt). They all contain the softer side as well but Devin Townsend’s latent aggression starts to seep through in a controlled way. The loud chugging guitars come in, Devin Townsend shouts and snarls in his distinct way as the songs intensify like at the end of Coast before dissipating into soft ambience once again.

    There are 2 problems with this. The first is that the anger seems to be allowed out in controlled bursts which prevent it from really taking hold of the music and going somewhere of significance. The second is that the different styles are divisive because the moods that they create rub shoulders in an awkward fashion instead of complementing each other. It would have been a much wiser idea to split Ki into 2 separate albums for the sake of consistency if nothing else.

    There are other anomalies such as Quiet Riot, an optimistic sounding folk song that turned out to be a real highlight of the album and I can’t help but wish there was more of this on Ki. Then there’s Trainfire, a tongue-in-cheek rock and roll song with more of the wrath-filled heavy metal segues that eventually gives way to the introverted night time music. This is one of those songs that you’ll either accept as a particularly odd progressive rock song that blends 3 styles of music together or you’ll sit back and think that it’s a train wreck of conflicting ideas. Demon League is another low key song that closes the album while bringing Ki around full circle by revisiting the themes found at the start of the album on A Monday.

    Ki gives the impression that Devin Townsend was fighting with himself over what kind of music he wanted to create and ends up with an odd combination of styles that would have been better suited to 2 separate albums. It’s a bumpy ride because of this but if you are either a fan of Devin Townsend or want to hear something different without having to jump into the deep end it would be an ideal place to start.

    Performers:

    Devin Townsend: Vocals, Guitars, Fretless Bass Guitar, Ambience
    Duris Maxwell: Drums
    Jean Savoie: Bass guitar
    Dave Young: Keyboard, Piano, Ambience

    Additional Musicians:

    Ché Aimee Dorval: – additional vocals
    Ryan Dahle: – additional vocals on Gato
    Bjorn Strid, Peter, Christopher, Grant, Corey, Jeremy, Ryan: additional vocals

    External Links:

    Devin Townsend Homepage
    Devin Townsend on Wikipedia | Ki on Wikipedia

  • Disturbed The Sickness 10th Anniversary Edition Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Disturbed
    Album: The Sickness (10th Anniversary Edition)
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Nu Metal
    Released: 2000
    Length: 54 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Giant Records, Reprise Records

    Track List:

    01. Voices
    02. The Game
    03. Stupify
    04. Down with the Sickness
    05. Violence Fetish
    06. Fear
    07. Numb
    08. Want
    09. Conflict
    10. Shout 2000 (Tears for Fears Cover)
    11. Droppin’ Plates
    12. Meaning of Life
    13. God of the Mind (Bonus Track)
    14. A Welcome Burden (Bonus Track)

    Disturbed The Sickness Cover
    Disturbed The Sickness Cover

    Disturbed The Sickness 10th Anniversary Edition Review

    The Sickness is the debut studio album of American rock band Disturbed. Released at the height of the nu metal trend, it skyrocketed to success on the back of catchy yet simplistic guitar riffs that descended from the groove metal sound, which the band played under the name Brawl before singer David Draiman joined the band.

    The lyrical themes of anger and violence as Brawl seeped over into the bands new incarnation as Disturbed and can clearly be seen just from the song titles. On the other hand, the musical abilities of each band member are played down severely when put next to the Brawl demos which had guitar solos, intense heavy metal drumming and much more audible bass.

    So what did Disturbed gain from this seemingly one-sided trade off? The most obvious answer is David Draiman, a skilful singer with a knack for writing melodies that will always catch your ear whereas original singer Erich Awalt had a gruff voice that is reminiscent of Pantera’s Phil Anselmo. Other than that, guitarist Dan Donegan and drummer Mike Wengren also contributed different programmed sound effects to many songs, most notably on Voices, The Game, Fear and Meaning of Life.

    David Draiman goes on to provide some unorthodox vocal performances that range from barking noises on Voices, Violence Fetish and Conflict to a Hebrew chant on Stupify and a questionable depiction of domestic abuse that takes the form of a shouted monologue in which he portrays himself being beaten by his mother before taking his revenge on her in the bridge of Down with the Sickness (“why did you have to hit me like that, mommy/don’t do it, you’re hurting me/…/you stupid, sadistic, abusive fucking whore/how would you like to see how it feels mommy/here it comes, get ready to die”).

    There are 2 minor differences between the original release and the 10th anniversary edition. The first is the inclusion of the bonus tracks (although God of the Mind was included on the 2002 international reissue) and the second is that a few of the sound effects on selected songs have been altered. The significant difference is that the volume of the recording has been increased massively and it might result in ear fatigue because of this.

    As Disturbed, the band forged their own sound within the popular nu metal scene which would deflect any comparisons to Pantera. The success that they capitalised on from their transformation led to them selling over 4 million copies of The Sickness which is probably due to the albums highly accessible sound while ignoring the tendency for nu metal bands to incorporate rapping and turntable scratches.

    Performers:

    David Draiman: Vocals
    Dan Donegan: Guitars, electronics, programming
    Steve Kmak: Bass guitar
    Mike Wengren: Drums, percussion, programming

    External Links:

    Disturbed Homepage
    Disturbed on Wikipedia | The Sickness on Wikipedia

  • Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Nine Inch Nails
    Album: The Downward Spiral
    Genre(s): Industrial, Industrial Rock
    Subgenres(s): N/A
    Released: 1994
    Length: 105 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Nothing Records, Interscope Records

    Track List:

    01. Mr. Self Destruct
    02. Piggy
    03. Heresy
    04. March of the Pigs
    05. Closer
    06. Ruiner
    07. The Becoming
    08. I Do Not Want This
    09. Big Man with a Gun
    10. A Warm Place
    11. Eraser
    12. Reptile
    13. The Downward Spiral
    14. Hurt

    Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral Cover
    Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral Cover

    Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral Review

    The Downward Spiral is a volatile beacon of industrial music by Nine Inch Nails. Released 2 years after the break through Broken EP, it seems as though Trent Reznor forsook a lot of his rock influences in favour of raw industrial aggression which actually led to a more sonically diverse album.

    Songs like Ruiner, I Do Not Want This and Eraser are all characterised by thumping industrial drum patterns, layers of processed sound effects that are incredibly hard to identify and have enough distortion and noise meshed together to make you think that you’ve blown out your speakers. The guitar is still present in these songs at times but the rock influence is significantly less pronounced when compared to Heresy or March of the Pigs, both of which have an easier structure to follow because a lot of the time the songs don’t follow a particularly strong verse/chorus format.

    While challenging sounds are a given within the industrial music scene, one can’t help but question the need for or motive behind some parts of the album. Particularly the minor noise music influences heard at the end of Mr. Self Destruct, which becomes unlistenable when it devolves into a formless mess at the end, or the chaotic end to Big Man with a Gun that is so layered up and loud that the only thing that can be picked out clearly is Trent Reznor’s frenzied shouting.

    This isn’t to say that the processed sounds and distortion don’t always work because for the most part it is done well and it plays a major part in making The Downward Spiral what it is. In contrast to the dense noise, Big Man with a Gun is followed up by A Warm Place which will keep you on edge the first time you hear it because you can’t help but expect a loud burst of noise to chime in out of nowhere. This doesn’t end up happening and it makes this short ambient piece the most reserved part of The Downward Spiral.

    Despite the length of The Downward Spiral, it rarely feels as though anything gets dragged out and if anything should have been cut out the first thing that comes to mind are the inflammatory lyrics revolving around rape on Big Man with a Gun (“held against your forehead/I’ll make you suck it/maybe I’ll put a hole in your head”). Reptile and Hurt both have crass lyrics as well but aren’t comparable to Big Man with a Gun and aside from that, the rest seems to focus on inner turmoil one way or another and are delivered through shouts, whispers and singing – all of which get at least partially buried under the uncompromising music which was a surprising commercial success. The vocal highlight of The Downward Spiral has to be the cheerfully sarcastic singing on March of the Pigs when the piano is introduced briefly.

    The technology used to produce this album has dated surprisingly well and without knowing beforehand, you can’t pinpoint it to a certain decade like you can with a lot of other electronically produced music. The Downward Spiral is the musical equivalent of a torrent of verbal abuse that encapsulates self-loathing surrounded by a relentless gourmet of industrial rhythms which makes it an ideal introduction to the genre.

    Performers:

    Trent Reznor: Vocals, all other instruments
    Mark “Flood” Ellis: Hi-hat (Closer), synthesizer (The Becoming)
    Chris Vrenna: Drums (Hurt), programming, sampling, additional drums (Burn)
    Adrian Belew: Guitar (Mr. Self Destruct and The Becoming)
    Danny Lohner: Guitar (Big Man with a Gun)
    Andy Kubiszewski Drums (The Downward Spiral)
    Stephen Perkins: Drum Loops (I Do Not Want This)

    External Links:

    Nine Inch Nails Homepage
    Nine Inch Nails on Wikipedia | The Downward Spiral on Wikipedia

  • The Autumn Offering Embrace the Gutter Review

    General Information:

    Artist: The Autumn Offering
    Album: Embrace the Gutter
    Genre(s): Heavy Metal, Metalcore
    Subgenres(s): Melodic Death Metal
    Released: 2006
    Length: 35 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Victory Records

    Track List:

    01. Prologue
    02. Decay
    03. The Yearning
    04. Embrace the Gutter
    05. Ghost
    06. Misery
    07. This Future Disease
    08. One Last Thrill
    09. No End in Sight
    10. Walk the Line
    11. The Final Cut

    The Autumn Offering Embrace the Gutter Cover
    The Autumn Offering Embrace the Gutter Cover

    The Autumn Offering Embrace the Gutter Review

    Embrace the Gutter is the second album by The Autumn Offering. It features a fluid blend of metalcore and melodic death metal, a style that had gained a lot of traction by its release in 2006, but Embrace the Gutter is far from a run of the mill bandwagoning effort. There are plenty of guitar leads and tasteful solos without many of the typical hardcore breakdowns or drawn out guitar chugging sessions that can be found on albums by many of their contemporaries.

    Vocalist Dennis Miller has improved a lot since the bands 2004 debut Revelations of the Unsung and while he still utilises a throaty shout, it is more accessible and easier to understand than before. His lyrics revolve around personal struggles so the mentions of decay and disease are metaphors for these things instead of being over the top and literal like in other bands.

    Aside from the excellent blend of metal guitar soloing and hardcore bridges, The Autumn Offering has some tasteful clean guitar interludes on No End in Sign and One Last Thrill that would have been a brilliant third side to the band’s sound if it was utilised fully. This third side is only brought to life properly on the instrumental closer The Final Cut and features classical piano playing over the drums and guitars. This then transforms into a cinematic interlude complete with wind effects that take up about half the song before closing with one final dramatic guitar chord and drum beat.

    Embrace the Gutter is an overlooked album but it is a worthy addition to the collection of melodic death metal or metalcore fans. Its short length works to its advantage and prevents it from ever becoming stale or tired and instead offers a great deal of replay value.

    Performers:

    Sean Robbins: Bass
    Nick Gelyon: Drums
    Matt Johnson: Guitar
    Dennis Miller: Vocals
    Tommy Church: Guitars

    External Links:

    The Autumn Offering on Wikipedia | Embrace the Gutter on Wikipedia
    The Autumn Offering on Metal Archives | Embrace the Gutter on Metal Archives

  • Behold the Arctopus Horrorcension Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Behold the Arctopus
    Album: Horrorcension
    Genre(s): Heavy Metal
    Subgenres(s): Progressive Metal
    Released: 2012
    Length: 28 minutes
    Language(s): N/A
    Label(s): Black Market Activities

    Track List:

    01. Disintegore
    02. Monolithic Destractions
    03. Horrorsentience
    04. Deluge of Sores
    05. Putrefucktion
    06. Annihilvore

    Behold the Arctopus Horrorscension Cover
    Behold the Arctopus Horrorscension Cover

    Behold the Arctopus Horrorcension Review

    Horrorcension is the second round of auditory carnage by progressive metal outfit Behold the Arctopus. The songs found on their debut, Skullgrid, are mere pop songs in comparison to the 28 minutes endurance test of Horrorcension. Normally an album should be reviewed on its own merits without more than a quiet nod to another album or band but to express how far-out Behold the Arctopus have swam, drawing some comparisons with Skullgrid is hard to avoid.

    While Skullgrid is certainly a difficult album, it did have some strong moments thrown in the mix along with a semi-sense of structure – a motif or reference point that the band went back to before taking the music in another direction. With Horrorcension there isn’t any of this and the music if far more outlandish than whatever you might think the ridiculous song titles allure to.

    The songs twist and turn in every way imaginable and make it nearly impossible to follow anything, leaving you with nothing more than a senseless cacophony of guitar screeches and percussive slaps that won’t mean anything to you. There are very few breaks from the status quo and the most noticeable are the short, merciful interludes found on Horrorsentience and Putrefucktion. The most memorable moment can be found on Annihilvore when Behold the Arctopus exchange their progressive metal frenzy for a relatively straightforward black metal sound mid song.

    While Horrorcension lacks emotion due to its intense focus on the technical skills and performance of the band, it is still guaranteed to give the listener an emotional reaction, albeit it will most likely be one of disgust.

    Performers:

    Mike Lerner: Guitars
    Colin Marston: Warr Guitars
    Weasel Walter: Drums

    External Links:

    Behold the Arctopus Homepage
    Behold the Arctopus on Wikipedia | Horrorcension on Wikipedia

  • Judas Priest Nostradamus Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Judas Priest
    Album: Nostradamus
    Genre(s): Heavy Metal
    Subgenres(s): Heavy Metal
    Released: 2008
    Length: 56 minutes (CD 1 tracks 1-13), 47 minutes (CD 2 tracks 14-23)
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Sony Music

    Track List:

    01. Dawn of Creation
    02. Prophecy
    03. Awakening
    04. Revelations
    05. The Four Horsemen
    06. War
    07. Sands of Time
    08. Pestilence and Plague
    09. Death
    10. Peace
    11. Conquest
    12. Lost Love
    13. Persecution
    14. Solitude
    15. Exiles
    16. Alone
    17. Shadows in the Flame
    18. Visions
    19. Hope
    20. New Beginnings
    21. Calm Before the Storm
    22. Nostradamus
    23. Future of Mankind

    Judas Priest Nostradamus Cover
    Judas Priest Nostradamus Cover

    Judas Priest Nostradamus Review

    Nostradamus is the 16th studio album by heavy metal icons Judas Priest. After testing the waters on their 2005 album Angel of Retribution with a 13 minute doom metal song, Loch Ness, it seems as though Judas Priest have gotten a real taste for pushing their artistic boundaries by ambitiously crafting a concept double album revolving around the life of the French seer Nostradamus.

    The most immediate thing you’ll notice, aside from the colossal length, is the inclusions of keyboards as a lead instrument. Sometimes they outshine or even bury other instruments (most notably Ian Hill’s bass) and are the foundation of no less than 9 interludes which are often accompanied by acoustic or soft electric guitar playing. While they work well to emphasise some of Rob Halford’s singing talents, they make up a combined running time of 17 minutes and can feel overdone by the end the album. It is worth mentioning that the interlude music is eventually fleshed out into a full song, the ballad Lost Love, which is presumably about the loss of his first wife and 2 children to the plague but the lyrics are vague enough to be interpreted in different ways.

    Death is another successful foray into doom metal and it’s a shame that the band only flirt with the subgenre since they prove to be rather skilled in this realm. War turns out to be one of the more experimental songs as it breaks away from heavy metal altogether and sees Judas Priest trying their hand at martial industrial music with surprisingly good results. In another twist, Pestilence and Plague is sung in both English and Italian but unless you understand Italian, it will be hard to say how accurate Rob Halford’s performance is.

    Between the interludes and experimentation we are left with much of their traditional heavy metal sound that is often played at the same mid-paced tempo which doesn’t do much to help the flow of the album. The title track, found near the end of the second CD, starts out like any of the other interludes before breaking into a speed metal frenzy with Rob Halford’s trademark wail to make you think that it has been ripped right out of the Painkiller album. Nostradamus would have benefitted greatly from more songs like this one, if for nothing other than the tempo to shake things up a little.

    Nostradamus would be more digestible if the material was condensed into a single album no more than an hour long but it is always good to hear a band expanding their horizons instead of running around the same hamster wheel endlessly even if the results aren’t perfect.

    Performers:

    Rob Halford: Vocals
    Glenn Tipton: Guitars and Synthesizes Guitars
    K.K. Downing: Guitars and Synthesizes Guitars
    Ian Hill: Bass Guitars
    Scott Travis: Drums

    External Links:

    Judas Priest Homepage
    Judas Priest on Wikipedia | Nostradamus on Wikipedia

  • Jay Reatard Watch Me Fall Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Jay Reatard
    Album: Watch Me Fall
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Garage Rock
    Released: 2009
    Length: 32 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Matador Records

    Track List:

    01. It Ain’t Gonna Save Me
    02. Before I Was Caught
    03. Man of Steel
    04. Can’t Do it Anymore
    05. Faking It
    06. I’m Watching You
    07. Wounded
    08. Rotten Mind
    09. Nothing Now
    10. My Reality
    11. Hang Them All
    12. There is No Sun

    Jay Reatard Watch Me Fall Cover
    Jay Reatard Watch Me Fall Cover

    Jay Reatard Watch Me Fall Review

    Watch Me Fall is the second and final album solo album of the late Jay Reatard. Consisting of rough cut garage rock anthems, he carefully blends it together with contrasting pop sensibilities and bleak lyricism that focuses on angst, depression and apathy.

    Most of Watch Me Fall is centred on fuzzy guitar hooks and Jay Reatard’s under produced echo-laden voice, which actually compliments the sound rather than hindering it. Between the jagged guitar work there are some songs in which he flex his sonic pallet. I’m Watching You is the closest that you’ll get to a ballad as he brings the acoustic guitar, keyboard and organ to the front while Wounded favours the acoustic guitar and an overly sweet wordless chorus.

    Still within the realms of rock music, another interesting development is found on My Reality when it channels brief climatic build ups and the post rock sound of Explosions in the Sky. Whether this is a case of independent invention or not, we will never know. The album closes with There is No Sun, a grim premonition of Jay Reatards own untimely death if there ever was one.

    Watch Me Fall is the perfect blend of bleak lyricism, pop sensibilities and the garage rock aesthetic which have secured Jay Reatard a well-earned legacy.

    Performers:

    Jay Reatard: Vocals, Guitar
    Stephen Pope: Bass guitar
    Billy Hayes: Drums

    External Links:

    Jay Reatard Homepage
    Jay Reatard on Wikipedia | Watch Me Fall on Wikipedia
    Jay Reatard on Discogs | Watch Me Fall on Discogs

  • Sick of it All Death to Tyrants Review

    Artist: Sick of it All
    Album: Death to Tyrants
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Hardcore Punk
    Released: 2006
    Length: 37 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Abacus Records

    Track List:

    01. Take the Night Off
    02. Machete
    03. Preamble
    04. Uprising Nation
    05. Always War
    06. Die Alone
    07. Evil Schemer
    08. Leader
    09. Make a Mark
    10. Forked Tongue
    11. The Reason
    12. Faithless
    13. Fred Army
    14. Thin Skin
    15. Maria White Trash
    16. Don’t Join the Crowd (European Bonus Track)

    Sick of it All Death to Tyrants Cover
    Sick of it All Death to Tyrants Cover

    Sick of it All Death to Tyrants Review

    Death to Tyrants is a testosterone fuelled rage fit by Sick of it All. After the first few songs you’ll come to realise that Sick of it All are content with playing short, snappy bursts of hardcore punk and aren’t trying to do anything else. While the passion is clearly there, the lack of desire to diversify their sound leaves each song on Death to Tyrants sounding all too similar to the ones before it.

    However the biggest grievance on Death to Tyrants has to be vocalist Lou Koller, who insists on spluttering over what could have been some well-crafted songs without his constipated gorilla cries. Instead, Death to Tyrants turns into nothing more than an endurance test to get to the end of it.

    Death to Tyrants is best left to the hardcore punk enthusiasts as it will leave the rest of us feeling sick of it all before the album is halfway done.

    Performers:

    Lou Koller: Vocals
    Pete Koller: Guitar
    Craig Setari: Bass Guitar
    Armand Majidi: Drums

    External Links:

    Sick of it All Homepage
    Sick of it All on Wikipedia | Death to Tyrants on Wikipedia
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  • Beat Tornados Pole Position Review

    General Information:

    Artist: The Beat Tornados
    Album: Pole Position
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Surf Rock
    Released: 1998
    Length: 20 minutes
    Language(s): N/A
    Label(s): Amigo

    Track List:

    01. Oppa Fjellet
    02. Throttleman
    03. Pole Position
    04. El Nino
    05. Kon Tiki
    06. Pihen T Dalen
    07. Reinlender
    08. The Cruel Sea

    The Beat Tornados Pole Position Cover
    The Beat Tornados Pole Position Cover

    Beat Tornados Pole Position Review

    Pole Position is the debut album by the Norwegian surf rockers The Beat Tornados. Pole Position is almost entirely instrumental with the exceptions being the subtle wordless voices on Oppa Fjellet and a quiet yell followed by a much louder one on El Nino. This works to the albums advantage because there isn’t much space for actual singing as the songs take on new directions quickly and aren’t structured with a singer in mind.

    While all of the songs are up tempo with reverb drenched guitars taking the lead, there is plenty of variety in the song-writing department over the course of this short album. The lazy sounding Kon Tiki is the only slow song on Pole Position and it follows on from El Nino, a song that builds itself into a flurry of cymbal crashes and drum rolls before launching into the optimistic Phin T Dalen that is guaranteed to make you smile.

    Clocking in at 20 minutes, it’s hard to consider Pole Position to be a full length album but The Beat Tornados offer the listener a great deal of replay value with some excellent musicianship that does everything right without the need for any excess.

    External Links:

    Beat Tornados on Facebook
    Beat Tornados on Discogs | Pole Position on Discogs

  • Spiritual Beggars Ad Astra Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Spiritual Beggars
    Album: Ad Astra
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Stoner Rock
    Released: 2000
    Length: 60 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Music for Nations

    Track List:

    01. Left Brain Ambassadors
    02. Wonderful Word
    03. Sedated
    04. Angel of Betrayal
    05. Blessed
    06. Per Aspera Ad Astra
    07. Save Your Soul
    08. Until the Morning
    09. Escaping the Fools
    10. On Dark Rivers
    11. The Goddess
    12. Mantra
    13. Let the Magic Talk

    Spiritual Beggars Ad Astra Cover
    Spiritual Beggars Ad Astra Cover

    Spiritual Beggars Ad Astra Review

    Ad Astra is the fourth Spiritual Beggars album and the last to feature original singer Christian “Spice” Sjostrand. It is a fitting final album for him that sets the standard in terms of his own performance and that of his band mates which have all improved leaps and bounds in the time since their debut album, Spiritual Beggars, was release in 1994.

    There is no build up or easing off with Ad Astra. Spiritual Beggars go in at full throttle and after the third song, Sedated, you’re already half expecting the group to throw in a ballad but we’re in luck – there aren’t any. Ad Astra is almost an entire hour of face melting guitar riffs, authoritative percussive blows, dense bass and lively keyboard work to fill in any semblance of quiet.

    The first parts of Until the Morning and Mantra would have you thinking otherwise before you get floored by brooding doom metal force on the former and flashy solo work on the latter. Given that Spiritual Beggars don’t slow down on Ad Astra and focus primarily on the guitar, it is hard to call it sonically diverse. What they lack in this department is more than made up for with their finely honed song-writing skills and stunning musicianship that will blow your mind straight out the back of your head.

    Ad Astra is a staple of the Spiritual Beggars discography with the single-minded, full throttle approach to the song-writing actually being the Spiritual Beggars greatest asset that doesn’t fail them for a single moment.

    External Links:

    Spiritual Beggars Homepage
    Spiritual Beggars on Wikipedia | Ad Astra on Wikipedia
    Spiritual Beggars on Discogs | Ad Astra on Discogs

  • Black Sabbath Black Sabbath Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Black Sabbath
    Album: Black Sabbath
    Genre(s): Blues Rock
    Subgenres(s): N/A
    Released: 1970
    Length: 38 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Vertigo

    Track List:

    01. Black Sabbath
    02. The Wizard
    03. Behind the Wall of Sleep
    04. N.I.B.
    05. Evil Woman (Don’t Play Your Games with Me) (Crow Cover)
    06. Sleeping Village
    07. Warning (Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation Cover)

    Black Sabbath Black Sabbath Cover
    Black Sabbath Black Sabbath Cover

    Black Sabbath Black Sabbath Review

    Black Sabbath is the influential self-titled blues rock album that was underrated and even shunned by critics on its release in 1970. It subsequently played a large role in shaping the face of modern rock and even heavy metal before many critics warmed to it.

    Most of the album is focused on blues rock with some standout moments being The Wizard, which features a harmonica played by Ozzy Osbourne while Evil Woman (Don’t Play Your Games with Me) is a cover version of a song originally written and performed by the short lived American blues rock band Crow.

    There are some exceptions to the focus on blues rhythms however. Sleeping Village starts out as a soft, almost psychedelic tinged song with a Jew’s harp courtesy of producer Rodger Bain that is set to peaceful lyrics that contrast with the themes already mentioned before turning into a frantic instrumental jam. This sets you up for Warning, a cover of an extended jam session by the Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation that lasts for a little over 10 minutes.

    The main influence taken by future bands comes from the distinctive downtuned guitar tone and for laying the foundations for both stoner rock and the doom metal subgenre of heavy metal before the genre was even conceived. Ozzy Osbourne also proved that you don’t need to be a great singer to be a success though it is worth mentioning that his distinct voice is very fitting for the Black Sabbath sound.

    Horror films and fantasy stories are the focus of Black Sabbaths lyrics as they worked under the mentality of “if these themes can be used in books and films to scare people, then why not in music as well?” From the innovative title track to N.I.B. you’ll fantasy themed lyrics referencing witches, wizards, magic, the devil and more. These themes were controversial for the time and had a knock on effect with the lyrics and imagery of many future heavy metal bands.

    Black Sabbath is written around blues rock with the band members letting their own creativity and inspiration expand their sound beyond the confines of said fusion genre which let them unknowingly lay the foundations for new subgenres of music with a single 38 minute album.

    Performers

    Ozzy Osbourne: Vocals, harmonica
    Tony Iommi: Guitar
    Geezer Butler: Bass
    Bill Ward: Drums
    Rodger Bain: Jew’s harp

    External Links:

    Black Sabbath Homepage
    Black Sabbath on Wikipedia | Black Sabbath on Wikipedia
    Black Sabbath on Discogs | Black Sabbath on Discogs

  • Opeth Pale Communion Review

    General Information:

    Artist: Opeth
    Album: Pale Communion
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Progressive Rock
    Released: 2014
    Length: 56 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Roadrunner Records

    Track List:

    01. Eternal Rains Will Come
    02. Cusp of Eternity
    03. Moon Above, Sun Below
    04. Elysian Woes
    05. Goblin
    06. River
    07. Voice of Treason
    08. Faith in Others

    Opeth Pale Communion Cover
    Opeth Pale Communion Cover

    Opeth Pale Communion Review

    Pale Communion is the eleventh studio album and third progressive rock outing by Opeth. Following on from the Damnation and Heritage albums, Pale Communion sees Opeth once again exploring their progressive rock influences without any traces of their death metal side which thankfully excludes the grunts and growls too. There is also some jazz fusion influence creeping in, which could be due to co-producer and guest backing vocalist Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree, solo) following his own taking to the genre in the last few years.

    After appearing in a guest role on Heritage’s title track, keyboardist Joakim Svalberg has now joined the ranks of Opeth as a fulltime band member following the departure of Per Wiberg (Spiritual Beggars). The overall sound of Pale Communion is most easily described as a continuation of what is heard on Heritage. The big differences are that Opeth are more confident in embracing their progressive rock roots and the songs are more fine-tuned with many of them having a longer running time to reflect this.

    Like many of the songs on Pale Communion, Cusp of Eternity has a myriad of passages woven together seamlessly but for no reason it ends with a fade out. Given how many directions some songs on Pale Communion take, it almost comes across as Opeth brushing it aside for the ambitious 11 minute Moon Above, Sun Below, which does not feel like it’s half as long as it is.

    Still not content with their new sound, Opeth takes a breather on Elysian Woes by introducing elements of folk music and keeps a steadier pace to bring Michael Akerfeldt’s voice to the front. River is written in the same vein with a stronger emphasis on vocal melodies (which is another major addition to the album that gets its biggest spotlight on Faith in Others) and has a bit of a jam session part way through to mix things up even further.

    Goblin tips its hat to the Italian progressive rock outfit of the same name and is the only instrumental track on Pale Communion. It centres around a steady build up and drummer Martin Axenrot throwing in plenty of short and sharp fills to keep you on your toes. With all the songs before Voice of Treason being much lighter by comparison, it takes an uncharacteristically tense twist that is reminiscent of the song Closure from Opeth’s 2003 album Damnation. The atmospheric keyboard work at the end bridges it with Faith in Others to create a 16 minute 2 part song.

    The complete lack of heavy metal will be a disappointment for long-time fans that haven’t embraced Opeth’s progressive rock side but for the rest of us, it’s another exciting chapter in Opeth’s discography as well as the modern progressive rock scene as it seems that Opeth has its collective heart set on this path for the time being.

    Performers:

    Fredrik Akesson: Guitars, backing vocals
    Mikael Akerfeldt: Vocals, guitars
    Martin Axenrot: Drums, percussion
    Martin Mendez: Bass guitars
    Joakim Svalberg: Keyboards, backing vocals
    Steven Wilson: Backing vocals

    External Links:

    Opeth Homepage
    Opeth on Wikipedia | Pale Communion on Wikipedia
    Opeth on Discogs | Pale Communion on Discogs
    Opeth on Metal Archives | Pale Communion on Metal Archives

  • Fleet Foxes Helplessness Blues Review

    Fleet Foxes Helplessness Blues Review

    Artist: Fleet Foxes
    Album: Helplessness Blues
    Genre(s): Folk, Folk Rock
    Subgenres(s): Progressive Folk
    Released: 2011
    Length: 50 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Bella Union, Sub Pop

    Track List:

    01. Montezuma
    02. Bedouin Dress
    03. Sim Sala Bim
    04. Battery Kinzie
    05. The Plains/Bitter Dancer
    06. Helplessness Blues
    07. The Cascades
    08. Lorelei
    09. Someone You’d Admire
    10. The Shrine/An Argument
    11. Blue Spotted Tail
    12. Grown Ocean

    Fleet Foxes Helplessness Blues Cover

    Helplessness Blues is the second album by American folk band Fleet Foxes. While having many of the hallmarks of their self-titled debut, Helplessness Blues show some growth in the Fleet Foxes repertoire that proves they aren’t afraid to branch out. The song-writing has gotten more adventurous with half of them averaging 4.5 minutes compared to their debut which only has 3 songs over the 4 minute mark. Elements of progressive music have also trickled in with the influence being most noticeable on The Plains/Bitter Dancer, Helplessness Blues and The Shrine/An Argument.

    While the title Helplessness Blues could allure to an influence from blues music this isn’t the case. It would be more accurate to say Fleet Foxes are singing the blues as many of their lyrical themes deal with reflection, finding your place in life, sadness and nostalgia. Nature is still a recurring theme though it is less central than it was on their debut.

    In all of the diverse instrumentation found on Helplessness Blues, the only low point to mention is the trumpet on The Shrine/An Argument. It sounds like it is being sexually assaulted by a feral badger when Fleet Foxes summons the worst of Neutral Milk Hotel on an otherwise standout song.

    Fleet Foxes push themselves creatively and come out on top so if you can overlook the trumpet incident there’s no reason not to pick up Helplessness Blues.

  • Melvins A Senile Animal Review

    Melvins A Senile Animal Review

    Artist: Melvins
    Album: A Senile Animal
    Genre(s): Heavy Metal, Rock
    Subgenres(s): Doom Metal, Hardcore Punk, Sludge Metal, Stoner Rock
    Released: 2006
    Length: 41 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Ipecac Recordings

    Track List:

    01. The Talking Horse
    02. Blood Witch
    03. Civilized Worm
    04. A History of Drunks
    05. Rat Faced Granny
    06. The Hawk
    07. You’ve Never Been Right
    08. A History of Bad Men
    09. The Mechanical Bride
    10. A Vast Filthy Prison

    Melvins A Senile Animal Cover

    A Senile Animal is the 15th album by sludge metal pioneers Melvins. Playing alongside founding members Buzz Osborne (guitar) and Dale Crover (drums) are bassist Jared Warren and drummer Coady Willis of Big Business. Having 2 drummers might sound redundant or gimmicky even for a band that pioneered the unlikely fusion of hardcore punk and doom metal but any sense of doubt is buried deep under an avalanche of marinated distortion and mayhem.

    All 4 band members share vocal duties but you’ll be hard pressed to single out who’s who with their uniformed ghoulish wails. Aside from the odd line, the lyrics are hard to make out even at the best of times. In a way that can only be pulled off in rock music, the lack of clarity here adds a certain murky charm to A Senile Animal.

    The blend of hardcore punk and unassuming doom metal plods with the aesthetics of stoner rock rings true to the sludge metal sound. Most songs on A Senile Animal lean heavily in favour of the hardcore punk influences as well as the unique styling of the Melvins. The major change comes with the last 3 songs; A History of Bad Men, The Mechanical Bride and A Vast Filthy Prison. They are on average 6.5 minutes long (whereas most other songs are about 3 minutes) and the tempo all but dies so that the Melvins can let the doom metal inspiration ooze out.

    Their flexible song-writing and genre-bending styles add a wealth of depth that is rounded off by how fluidly drummers Dale Crover and Coady Willis play together. The Melvins will give you a real tour de force on A Senile Animal that you won’t find anywhere else.

  • Ulver Shadows of the Sun Review

    Ulver Shadows of the Sun Review

    Artist: Ulver
    Album: Shadows of the Sun
    Genre(s): Ambient
    Subgenres(s): Ambient
    Released: 2007
    Length: 40 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): The End Records, Jester Records

    Track List:

    01. Eos
    02. All the Love
    03. Like Music
    04. Vigil
    05. Shadows of the Sun
    06. Let the Children Go
    07. Solitude (Black Sabbath Cover)
    08. Funebre
    09. What Happened?

    Ulver Shadows of the Sun Cover

    Shadows of the Sun is an ambient album by Ulver. By this point in their career, anyone familiar with Ulver should know that you can’t predict what direction they’ll take on their next album and to live up to their reputation, they followed up their noisiest album in about a decade (Blood Inside, 2005) with one of their softest albums to date.

    Unlike the swirling keyboard sounds that are common to ambient music, Ulver utilises live instruments to make up the bulk of the album and go as far as including a theremin on Eos and Funebre while hiring a string quartet that appears on many of the songs. If sombreness could be personified by any musical work it would be Shadows of the Sun.

    If you listen to Shadows of the Sun casually a lot of the music can blend into a long soundscape but if you pay attention you will hear thoughtful piano melodies and dramatic strings that make Shadows of the Sun an exceptionally cohesive, low key album perfect for the small hours. Kristoffer Rygg’s voice remains within the baritone range for most of Shadows of the Sun, which suits the theme of the album perfectly and happens to be one of his strongest performances with Ulver.

    Ulver shakes off the hazy atmosphere by weaving glitchy noises and thudding percussion together on songs such as Like Music, a calm piano ballad that turns into an eerie dark ambient soundscape and Let the Children Go, which builds up to a dramatic martial industrial anthem with another appearance of the trumpet to avoid any accusations of monotony.

    Another standout moment is the cover of Black Sabbath’s Solitude, which holds true to the original but Ulver manages to make it their own song by making the bass more prominent and replacing the flute with the trumpet. It holds the same feeling as the original and surprisingly, it fits in with the rest of Shadows of the Sun despite it being the only rhythm based song on the entire album.

    The cover art for Shadows of the Sun is actually a good reflection of the album once you’ve heard it and although music doesn’t fit neatly into a single genre, ambient is the closest you will get given the texture heavy nature of the songs.

    Shadows of the Sun is a creative set of soundscapes that continue to explore the prevalent melancholic themes Ulver revel in to create (and reinvent) their unique musical vision with.

  • Miles Davis Kind of Blue Review

    Miles Davis Kind of Blue Review

    Artist: Miles Davis
    Album: Kind of Blue
    Genre(s): Jazz
    Subgenres(s): Modal Jazz
    Released: 1959
    Length: 46 minutes (55 minutes with bonus material)
    Language(s): N/A
    Label(s): Columbia Records

    Track List:

    01. So What
    02. Freddy Freeloader
    03. Blue in Green
    04. All Blue
    05. Flamenco Sketches
    06. Flamenco Sketches (Alternative Take)

    Miles Davis Kind of Blue Cover

    Kind of Blue is a seminal jazz album by Miles Davis. The original release consisted of 5 songs that where improvised in the recording studio but with restrictions on what scales each musician could use to shape how they played. This influential yet unorthodox technique laid the foundations for the modal jazz subgenre and became synonymous with it.

    Miles Davis collaborated with other high profile musicians from the era, some of whom he had worked with before or where longstanding bandmates. This included Julian “Cannonball” Adderley (alto saxophone), Paul Chambers (double bass), Jimmy Cobb (drums), John Coltrane (tenor saxophone) and Bill Evens on piano for all tracks except Freddie Freeloader, on which the role was taken up by Wynton Kelly.

    In contrast to the frantic bebop sound that Miles Davis is also known for, Kind of Blue is a laidback recording despite the nature of modal jazz. The structure of the songs becomes a hindrance as the entire album sounds like one long piece due to the structure making everything flow as subtly as it does. Most of the instruments only play small pieces before another one jumps in to do something else. Eventually it feels like trying to answer the question “at what point does the mouth of a river end and the ocean begin?”

    There are some noticeable recording problems on Kind of Blue. The trumpet bursts with hissing feedback during the build-up on So What and instruments only come through one speaker (saxophone and piano on the left and drums and bass on the right). This feedback issue only seems to be at the start of So What whereas stereo sound is abused throughout Kind of Blue.

    The spontaneous approach Miles Davis selected (apparently only hours before going into the studio) along with the emphasis on music theory pushes Kind of Blue into a corner in terms of who the album will appeal to. It is most likely going to be jazz enthusiasts or those with a working knowledge of music theory. The latter of which is required to “get” the music as the theory behind it (which was first written about by pianist George Russell in 1953) is in fact the focal point and the reason for it being regarded as a cornerstone of jazz music. For the rest of us it is the equivalent of throwing buckets of paint at a wall and expecting to pick out well defined shapes and patterns.

  • Green Carnation The Acoustic Verses Review

    Green Carnation The Acoustic Verses

    Artist: Green Carnation
    Album: The Acoustic Verses
    Genre(s): Rock
    Subgenres(s): Art Rock, Progressive Rock
    Released: 2006
    Length: 43 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Sublife Records, The End Records

    Track List:

    01. Sweet Leaf
    02. The Burden is Mine… Alone
    03. Maybe
    04. Alone
    05. 9-29-045
    06. Child’s Play (Part 3)
    07. High Tide Waves

    Green Carnation The Acoustic Verses Cover

    The Acoustic Verses is the 5th and final album by Green Carnation. It shows a drastic shift in sound by taking the soft art rock/progressive rock sound that could be heard on parts of their previous album, The Quiet Offspring, and letting its influence seep out to create an entire album based on that sound. The Acoustic Verses is full of low key melancholic vibrations and unstrained, almost delicate singing from Kjetil Nordhus to match the theme. The Burden is Mine… Alone only consists of an acoustic guitar, keyboard ambiance and straightforward lyrics but it manages to neatly summarises this theme over its short duration.

    While the title of album allures to acoustic instrumentation, there are still some electric instruments used including the bass, keyboard and theremin. The acoustic guitars often take centre stage with the biggest exception being Child’s Play (Part 3). It is the only instrumental piece on The Acoustic Verses and only involves the piano and keyboard. Songs such as Alone and High Tide Waves see Green Carnation go as far as bringing in a string trio (consisting of a violin, viola and cello) to add another dimension to the rich sound of The Acoustic Verses.

    In a throwback to Green Carnation’s knack for writing long songs back in the early stages of their career, they wrote a 15 minute, 3 part suite called 9-29-045 (Part 1 My Greater Cause, Part 2 Homecoming and Part 3 House of Cards). This is at odds with the other songs being that they are between 3 and 5 minutes. Placing it in the middle of the album was certainly a bold move as it could throw off some listeners but Green Carnation pulls it off and melds all the elements of The Acoustic Verses together to make a fluid sonic journey out of it.

    Drummer Tommy Jacksonville deserves a special mention for being able to play a diverse and often subtle role that could have easily gone against the soft nature of the music. The drums haven’t been mixed too loudly which prevents it from overshadowing anything which leaves Green Carnation and your own ears with the best results.

    Long-time fans could be disappointed by the change in sound, or even the lack of distorted heavy metal guitar riffs, but Green Carnation proves to be adept enough to dive headfirst into their new sound that lets the band end their career on a well-deserved high note.

  • Reverend Bizarre Return to the Rectory Review

    Reverend Bizarre Return to the Rectory Review

    Artist: Reverend Bizarre
    Album: Return to the Rectory
    Genre(s): Heavy Metal
    Subgenres(s): Doom Metal
    Released: 2004
    Length: 66 minutes
    Language(s): English
    Label(s): Spikefarm Records

    Track List:

    01. The March of the War Elephants
    02. The Festival
    03. The Goddess of Doom
    04. Aleister
    05. For You Who Walk in the Land of the Shadows
    06. Dark Sorceress (Autumn Siege) (Barathrum Cover)
    07. The Wrath of the War Elephants

    Reverend Bizarre Return to the Rectory Cover

    Return to the Rectory is the second EP by Reverend Bizarre. The title is an obvious throw back to their first album, In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend. At 66 minutes long it is hard to consider In the Rectory an EP by any stretch of the imagination. In either case the music follows the same format as In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend; atypical song structure, sparse guitar plods, dramatic baritone singing and a guitar tone so thick that you can almost see it.

    This time around the longest song is 12 minutes and Reverend Bizarre have managed to throw in a couple of new tricks to try and keep their sound fresh. This includes a lengthy acoustic guitar intro to The Festival and more mid-paced parts which sometimes become genuinely fast. This is definitely a welcome addition to their sound.

    The subdued keyboard sounds heard on In the Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend have been given a second chance on Return to the Rectory. While used sparingly, they do get stand out moments on For You Who Walk in the Land of the Shadows and The Wrath of the War Elephants. They work well to build up their foreboding atmosphere to make the songs stand apart that bit more.

    Opening song The March of the War Elephants features the usual lengthy guitar drones and some excellent drum work that makes the song promising enough in its own right. The song suddenly bursts into a full on gallop and then rapidly fades out to leave you miffed. Reverend Bizarre might have spent time throwing in more variety but it doesn’t mean much when you forget to finish your opening song.

    On the other hand there is strong continuity to be found elsewhere. The spares lyrics on The March of the War Elephants seem to follow into The Wrath of the War Elephants which then reprises elements of the music found in The Goddess of Doom.

    The dramatic baritone voice still presides over most of the song but with more enunciation while their cover of Dark Sorceress (Autumn Siege) by Barathrum makes a U-turn by extensively using the vomiting voices found in black metal. The Goddess of Doom name drops several influential and current doom metal bands with Reverend Bizarre appointing actress Christina Ricci the title of The Goddess of Doom. This at least shows that there is a sense of humour mixed in with Reverend Bizarre’s prolonged agony.

    When a band has all the ingredients for making great music it is hard to hear them miss the target if for nothing other than forgetting when to stop playing a song. Return to the Rectory shows a small expansion on their sound but it will most likely appeal to existing Reverend Bizarre fans before anyone else.