Lamb of God - VII: Sturm und Drang review

Year : 2015
Genre : Groove / Thrash metal crossover with tints of doom
Label : Epic Records
Origin : United States
Rating : 9.2 / 10

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Following 2012's "Revolution", - here is my review of it, IF - Lamb of God returns with a particularly mature disk that showcases clear commitment towards a set of carefully orchestrated evolutionary choices. While the group was renowned and notorious for putting rabid guitars on eloquently purged chili overdose in an attempt to successfully court Southern registers, the Lamb of God of today showcases an even more refined identity, now complimented and highlighted by a musical interest that dares and manages to successfully embrace newly implemented rhetorics of true creative value and mature musical variation.

In the context of Lamb of God, the riffing never was suspect of non-convincing levels of relentless punching power, and this circumstance is once again stressed by a particularly clever and adept command of throwing the mere dynamics of the riffing around with new and fresh approaches/themes that simultaneously come out of nowhere, yet consort with their adjacent elements via establishing true organic connections with them.

It is not that the band makes sure that no sequence will overstay its welcome, it's more like you are not even given sufficient amount of time to comfortably appreciate the pure awesomeness of a given pattern, because right away they will throw yet another one AND a bloody kitchen sink at you. This was intended as a compliment, mind us, because no matter how brief awesomeness is, its character of being "just it", necessarily remains faithful to itself, once you recognize it as such.

If, once the recognition is present in your soul, and you are invited-, even better: commanded by the music to undergo this process again just to arrive hastily to yet another instance of the same optimum realization, then, Pro Tip - > this is the clear sing that you are listening to a great fucking record. This Lamb of God release puts me on this train of much appreciated sonic massacre, then showcases the brakes of the train, only, they are no longer part of the apparatus, as they have been utterly and competely dismantled. Finally!

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Gojira - L'Enfant Sauvage review

Year : 2012
Genre : Groove Metal, meshuggah Metal
Label : Roadrunner Records
Origin : France
Rating : 7.0 / 10

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Gojira's L'Enfant Sauvage is a solid musical accomplishment that does not exactly seek to reinvent the Tools - pun just might be intended - it relies on, but it does a more than decent job contributing similar patterns you have been witnessing throughout the recent days of modern - meshuggah - metal. The most notable leanings the disc conforms into are aggressive groove warfare, - think along the lines of Lamb Of God, minus the Southern fixation - gloomy black (!) metal that gets presented with the occasional quasi-angst of the alternative side of the parent genre, while the high definition Meshuggah influence is something you will have the chance to witness at work throughout the release, courtesy of the compositional methods the package is exhibiting. Like in the opening track, read more about that later. For now, read on if you want to know the most favored ways and charms of this decent runner-up from French.

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Whitechapel - Whitechapel review

Year : 2012
Genre : Deathcore on groove metal and meshuggah metal pill
Label : Metal Blade Records
Origin : United States
Rating : 8.0 / 10

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The new Whitechapel disc, while supremely assuages the types of cravings the premiere deathcore fan is most likely to exhibit, it also offers pretty admirable and well constructed attractions throughout, courtesy of the narrative tools and the related musical influences being at its disposal. Luckily, the package is not reluctant to rely on its key interests and idols, a set of circumstances that invite the spin to emerge as one that does not satisfy with the act of conforming to your anticipations - it seeks to shape those along the way, too. Any record below that aspiration is automatically "meh", in a sense. On the other hand, rest assured that the spin will be doing everything you want it to do, but it is the "how" and the "what else" that integrate this baby into the - oh, so enthusiastic - flock.

The pastimes of the disc are well varied, not surprisingly. With great delight I experience that the album is not overfixated on sonic ferocity for the mere sake of sonic ferocity, and this is something most notable throughout the colorful, well presented tempo selections. A healthy amount of mid tempo warfare is on display here, reeking Meshuggah from top to bottom, teaming up with a propensity to offer groove metalish leanings- The track "I, Dementia" is a great example for this, with a structure that features whole musical passages that adore the Catch 33 Meshuggah LP via the riffcraft. Catch - ha., ha. - the riffage starting from 2:26 in this song. Picture perfect Meshuggah clone music, but Meshuggah clones are sexy.

Sure, the proceedings deviate from the math metal genre later on, and do a pretty decent job at revealing breakdown-centric metalcore with decent high frequency detail embedded in it. The disc showcases an almost exclusively angry overall temper, and I, for one think it looks pretty good in this mood. Read on to find out more about the disc.

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Vexxus - Binary Reflection review

Year : 2012
Genre : Groove Thrash Hybrid
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Rating : 8.8 / 10

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Vexxus is an independent groove/thrash hybrid hailing from Hell in the way of the United States of America, and, while their debut "Binary Reflection" is a release that comes to you with high octane garage-charisma production values, the notion I just told you makes said contribution one of the most likable pieces of the current year so far, in my opinion. The guitars are smartly limited in their mean intentions to occupy all that much sonic volumetrics, - a production strategy similar in character to that of Pharaoh's - focusing instead on rendering the guitar anatomy "just sufficiently enough" so you are able to make out the spiritual message no problem, IF you are serious about it. Yes, surprise, surprise : sometimes you need to look for the music, and this baby right here delivers it aptly, once you are serious about paying attention to it. Guys, let's talk about this record.

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Demon Hunter - True Defiance review

Year : 2012
Genre : Alternative Metal with Metalcore and Groove elements
Label : Solid State Records
Origin : United States
Rating : 9.0 / 10

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The new Demon Hunter LP arrives with an elegant trick, and that is to consort orthodox metalcore rhetorics with a much more ripe take on alternative metal incorporated into the fabrics than the variant of said element obtainable in the works of the stock-metalcore act. The top-form alternative fascinations of this disc are reeking top-form Stone Sour, and this influence is showing through the deeply melodic choruses. Segments that feature a strong mid-range vocal presence which exhibits only very mild interest in conforming to the OH!, so usual emo variant of the metalcore-chorus. After all, the chorus in emo metalcore "usually is" just a radio friendly example of alternative metal plus suckdom lyrics, share your opinion in the comment section if you think I'm deeply mistaken about this. (Too?) In the meantime though, read on to find out more about this ripped, curvatious sonic delivery.

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Wretched - Son of Perdition review

Year : 2012
Genre : Deathcore with Melodic Technical and Groove leanings
Label : Victory Records
Origin : United States
Rating : 8.0 / 10

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Wretched's Son of Perdition is 38 minutes of colorful audio data that primarily is unrelenting - I suppose? - "brutal" deathcore, interrupted and spiced up smartly by groove and instrumental segments throughout its sober length. Conforming to the seemingly untold rules of the trendy-, recent day death metal album production ethos, you are free to skip the first track entirely, because it is the just-so-usual intro section that has absofuckinglutely nothing at all to do with the actual music of the release, and which you probably don't really give a shit for at heart, I know I don't. Dramatic church chorus and organ. Oh really. Reverend! Set yourself on fire and GTFO, I'll video.

The primordial direction the band is keen at taking is death metal bordering on melodic and technical death metal in parts, especially during the highly chaotic segments. Don't expect the disc to maintain the obscenely and beautifully super-complex form with such hardcore persistence as Spawn of Possession or Gorod or Blotted Science demands its unconditioned submission with, but the intent is there to offer a tribute for the more crazed inspirators here and there. Read on to find out more about this decent release.

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Murder Your Gods - debut EP review

Year : 2012 
Genre : Vile Thrash with Death and Groove tastes
Label : Independent
Origin : United States
Official Site : > - here - <

Murder Your Gods is a four piece metal ensemble from Olympia, Washington, and their trade primarily registers as heftily executed classic thrash played with high definition vile intentions kept in top of the heat shape all the way back from the golden era of the '80s, yet, the band also brings with itself a surprising level of aptness to grace the ears with flamboyancy directly borrowed from the flesh - auuuua. - of other subgenres, all this for relentless and much welcomed musical variation. Thrash never expected to be left alone. Thrash always expected to be tinkered with, so it can thrash shit to hell and back.

Murder Your Gods, luckily enough is a group that took the harder-, BUT much more admirable route to flatter and express the desire to administer radical sonic intensity, and decided to sculpt out five songs into intricately detailed musical fabrics, as opposed to come forth with a full length debut with more coarse segments. This debut EP has a formidable amount of work AND musicianship behind it, while the production values are quite efficient-, I kind of dare say super-efficient - at revealing the thrash ethos of the '80s, spiced up by various contemporary leanings the band is not at all afraid to showcase. Go Murder Your Gods then come back to read about the influences and various pastimes of this delivery.


I find myself in a quite pleasant position right now, because there is nothing to me to whine about like a little bitch in pink latex lingerie, as this squad keeps the form I hoped they would all the way to the very end of the release. The leanings I have been telling you about are need to be addressed, so now is the time to inform you of the influences I personally think are notable on the stimuli : while non-mistakenly thrash in character, the data seeks and finds exigent musical interludes to introduce charismatic nods toward a myriad of styles. Among these, the most notable one is a tame obsession cultivated towards Pantera / Lamb of God, but imagine the similar spiritual stance riding on a more pronounced variant of thrash metal, while you are pretty much free to dismiss the anticipation of the southern vibes. This also is one interesting aspect of the delivery : whenever it seeks out the groove, it finds other methods to do that by, than to abuse immediate ACME groove patterns. Like : play around on the first three notes of your deepest blues scale, emphasize the open string like there is no tomorrow, and you are grooving like Hell on Earth, man!!!!!1


With great delight and satisfaction I recognize that the Murder Your Gods members seem to be quite aware of the same kind of motoristic genre-agitations and habitual fixations, and their conscious and successful deviations from these trends are a welcome addition to this EP. Other leanings on the release that need to be pointed out is an invigorated tendency to offer thrashy guitar solos from time to time, most often sticked into the heart of a point to cultivate variation or a turnaround from. The intro section of concluding track, "Dark Protectors" is a good example of how detailed things can get herein : the way the group "comes out" of the introductory theme exhibits traits of black metal, death metal, - blast beat those impertinent psyches away for a while - then flows into a verse structure that strikes a fine balance between ballsy metalcore - yeah, there IS a such thing, WOW. - and groove metal. Yes, metalcore owes a great deal to groove metal, in my opinion. (And to Stevie Wonder.)

The shape of music on the disc, as noted, is surprisingly well varied and I have zero doubt whatsoever that the band would harvest relevant, immediate public success and widespread attention - imagine the usefulness of covert success - if to deliver this stimuli in a live environment. Go soak your ears into their stuff at their official site and invade the places they will be playing at.

Check out the official Murder Your Gods site with the free EP this review is based on.

GyZ at Bandcamp.

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Dissentient - Black Hole Machine review

Year : 2011
Genre : Death Groove Metal Hybrid with Djent elements
Label : Independent
Origin : Canada
Rating : 9.0 / 10

Dissentient's Black Hole Machine LP is a freshly sounding variant of death/groove warfare. While the consorting intent evidently is to eradicate all on spot foolish enough to stand in the way of the organized sonic terror, the form of these rampant tendencies still exhibit a sober tendency to bow down to certain compositional dynamics, primarily taken from the ultimate meaning of raw T-rex meat groove metal, spiced tastily and rather bravely by luscious djent fixations. If you think that a groove metal/death metal hybrid with a djent affection might actually be sexy and worth checking out, then you are not just close to the related truth, but occupy the graceful center of it. Let me assure you in advance that Dissentient's delivery has all the sonic tools in its possession to make your neighbor suffer legendarily, and it is not afraid to use them, either. Read on to find out more about this fine package.


This record, as hinted, is as much groove metal as is death metal, and it remains free of the need to address these influences/agendas on separate rhetorical channels, instead, it manages to come up with audio data striking a delicate-, but relentless balance between death, groove and the madafakin djent. The album, thank God and Affiliates, is angry like a crocodile on wardrugs and won't satisfy until you sport limbs not incorporated in it yet. Talking about "in" and "corpo", track number 3, called "Incorporeal" is a good example, in my opinion, of what the primer elements of the release are : on this particular track, you will hear the band engage various intricate rhythmic deviations from the standard 4/4 rumble without any sign of running out of legit ideas, and the way the riffcraft utilizes artificial harmonics on the guitars, is something even Dimebag Darrell would nod on. No, he did not object against the notion.

This release, 38 seconds shy of 1 full hour in its program length, comes to you more as integral sonic data that exhibits major regularities and relative similarities, and not as a release that seeks to deviate from its favorite, honest affection to punish silence ASAP in ultraviolent fashion. I personally tend to think that this disc looks utterly good with its relentless hyper-aggression engaged full paua 90% of the time. That remaining 10% still is intense music, yet, with a more tame character rendered as the core of the related data. This readiness to deviate - in thought - from sonic aggression at the climax, signifies musical maturity.

It is very easy to join in at any time to this spin, and appreciate the great variation it is ready and able to subject you for an hour. A great deal of this variation, fortunately enough, comes to you via the djent leanings of the record. The djenting, for the most part, sounds to be more melodically sculpted than what you most often hear, and that might be the result of the fact that seldom are the times that you are subjected to less than 3 guitars playing at a time. There is something extra, too : if you listen very carefully, then you will notice that the band often features a Faith No More synth in the background, but, its volume is more tame than that of the synth of Faith No More. A safe, immediate recommendation with a whole lot of quality stuff going on, and you need to be very bitter to be disappointed by this fine release, in my opinion.

Rating : 9.0 / 10

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Lamb of God - Resolution review

Year : 2012
Genre : Groove Metal
Label : Epic / Roadrunner Records
Origin : United States
Rating : 8.0 / 10
(score evolved from 7.0 / 10 on 2012, September 13)

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With its 2012 LP Resolution, premiere Pantera clone Lamb of God declares that it still is the devoted follower of the T-Rex. The name of the game herein is traditional groove metal with minimal - if any - deviations from and/or additions to the well established primer formulas of the testosterone Heavy! Met'll! subgenre, and, if one tiny thing could be added that seems to draw somewhat of a promise of an identity to this ancient clone band right now, - that is more pronounced than "that" of other lambs of the large clone flock - then it is the album's much welcomed raw-meat heaviness, which utterly rejects the recent day sterile plastic sound. The robust meat-charisma sonic data of this release comes to you as the primordial benefit, and, as result of its relentless abuse, as the primordial hindrance of the stimuli, as well. Because, trust me, this LP has no novelty other to offer than the legitimacy of the new autonomous pattern - which is a splendid offering on its own merits - AND the character of the sound, which kicks your ass to hell and back. If you have expected anything else than highly traditional groove metal from this band, then you are obviously deluded, and in for a gentle awakening. Read on to find out more about this super-orthodox release, if you want.


Resolution is a risk free groove metal pill with a huge dosage of decently engineered T-Rex content, and tints and tints of brilliant variants of the exact same thing. It would be unfair and unnecessary to criticize this record for what it tries to do, as the band's intent once again is to duplicate - reinvigorate, ripof... TUKK! - that which does not need any of these operations, as the thing we are talking about, still is the groove metal of the early '90s, established by Pantera. Only (much more) neurotic. Check out this great Pantera clone with no (t that much) neurotic tendencies at all.

This new Lamb of God release, one must admit, at least exhibits the characteristic of being entertainingly and semi-convincingly angry on a comic book register, and also poses the question : what is the best age of your life to cultivate and resonate your primal rage in a fashion that you look the least laughable while at it? This is a tough question. The Lamb of God dudes are quick to address the peaking of their engineered product-(r)age herein to serve out "Y"ours with a capital reverse-"WHY??" , and, as such, this LP reaches its full potentiality in superfast fashion. The release no doubt is honest like a cartoon asskick by a cartoon electronic bull in this regard, yet I have a personal percept that the mere raw charisma of the grooving rumble oftentimes is utilized as a method to escape the need to deliver a new-, autonomous groove of reality punishment for. The best moments of the album demand immediate recognition, though. I especially like the track "Desolation", with its relentless minigun grooves and capricious shifts. I love the song, OK? But what is up with the timber of the guitars? Am I the only who thinks that they would sound better with a little bit more mid-and high frequency let through? Share your input, and please know : I do not want to give you the concern troll, nor the snob with this question. My question is honest.
 
I'm not too happy with the vocals on the album, but I don't have so much against them as if I had twice as much against them then I actually have. They mostly sound "just" neurotic to me, and the only instinctively perceivable emotion of the LP is the constant fucking nervous breakdown. Sure, some of you are in for that, exactly. The vocalist's Anselmo imitation became less raw and believable, in my opinion, and I'm relatively shocked to report that his delivery sounds to exhibit metalcoresque vocalfry screaming here and there. On the other hand, one can not take away from the band that they are sounding more "real" and aggressive than the latest album of them that I am familiar with, - here. The production values of this decent groove metal release are more than enough to call it a SAFE recommendation. And that is the problem with Lamb of God - Resolution, too.

Rating : 8.0 / 10
(score evolved from 7.0 / 10 on 2012, September 13)

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Sherlock Brothers - Black Cat Tango review

Year : 2011
Genre : Alternative Rock with a Groove Metal temper
Label : Ninetone Records
Origin : Sweden
Rating : 8.6 / 10

Sherlock Brothers gives you a fronter with a condition that is not too rare to behold, and it is called TIPAF. The Immense Philip Anselmo Fixation, my love. This man tries to sound exactly like the Phil, as it could be evident to you if you decide to listen to the chorus of LP opening track "Rollin'". There is a video available for that song, too, which you can check out here, and you can hear that I'm no lie. Oh my. (YouTube this then : "pale kid raps fast".)

Black Cat Tango is all about the hefty hookhunt, and, about accessibility, in which the top moments are signified by the fronter's Philip Anselmo imitation, because he especially likes the tazmanian devil variant of the style. As result of this dormant decision, almost all songs on this LP have the tendency to revolve around a chorus with supremely heavy vocals on top. Not a tragedy, because, the Philip Anselmo clone of the release actually does a pretty solid job, and it is worthwhile to scrutinize how this style of vocal delivery is capable to sell itself on top of music that is tamer in character than the relentless rumble of groove metal. Read on to find out more about this friendly, energetic alternative rock release that dares to cultivate sex-only type relationship with groove metal.


I admit I was kind of an initial douché towards the lead singer, because, as the record progresses, you will notice that he has the propensity to deliver in his own voice AND sounds good doing it, - !!totally like Dave Grohl from Foo Fighters!! - and he relies on the Philip Anselmo Tazmanian Devil register only when the music submits to more radical shapes. Suffice it to say that the Sherlock Brothers frontman has put respectable efforts to imitate his idols, and has significant talent to approach the original efficiency level of the respective arch-forms of these registers, too. Now that this recognition is out of the way, the character of the music can be addressed, too.

Black Cat Tango is an interesting bird in the sense that it has an equal leaning towards a heavier side of chuggy mid-paced pummeling that borders on groove metal in character, and a risk free accessibility that, at heart, enjoys full family friendliness like Foo Fighters. Foo Fighters is your bestestest online buddy's favoritestest band like : since forever!!. This band, Sherlock Brothers though, no doubt represents an interesting take on the BLEND of its most important influences, and, needless to say, the "mere" act of blending these primer impacts is what the record's ultimate value graces your awareness as. The record commits only a few mistakes, and those mistakes are fun, too. Like a segment in track number 6, called "Down". (Is the name "Down" another Anselmo tribute?) In this particular track, a ripost-backing vocal goes Boyz 2 Men on you mercilessly, and it withdraws viciously when you already have grown yer' Them Men Boobs on yourself. Aua.

The record is a rather flamboyant, and, I dare say, strong collection of easily decipherable alternative rock that is able to reveal apt composition work and elegant thought. Sure, it is reminscent to Foo Fighters, but, hell, it is WILDER and much less saloon-, much less well-mannered, which I think is funny to watch, funny to listen to. This deviancy from the Foo Fighterish "somepartofmealwaysisyours, and lamdidamdadoo" telltale-bonefire rhetorics is the result of the groove metal gas tank the release does not relent refilling from, thankfully preventing it from going "don't wanna beeee your monkeeeey wreeee eeench".

TUKK!

This release also seems to have a rather conscious strategy to prevent itself. See how important one letter can be? Of course I meant "s". With 41 minutes of showtime divided amidst 12 sonic moodflares, only one particular track rises above the 4 minutes mark, and 9 clocks in during the 3 minutes domain. This is not accidental, trust me. This delivery openly-, and efficiently SEEKS to be an easily accessible collection of 12 hefty-, short-and-sturdy alternative rock fixes, and, to tell you the truth, it is pretty serious about it, too. A record of dignity, strength and energy that is not afraid to deny its influences, quite the contrary : it embraces them and builds something meaningful and relevant out of them. This is not only acceptable, but advisable. Album totally recommended.

Rating : 8.6 / 10

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Gurd - Never Fail review

Year : 2011
Genre : Groove Metal
Label : NoiseArt Records
Origin : Switzerland
Rating : 8.0 / 10

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Switzerland's Gurd - which reads "drug" backwards, boy, do I have the Sherlock going on! - unleashes the avid groove metal animal on high octane convince power, and, funnily enough, the lead singer on this debut does a pretty fine job at imitating the vocal style-, even the mere vocal timber of Pantera's Philip Anselmo.

The LP, thank God & Co. and related creators, has a relentless, insatiable urge to hammer you into the nearest wall with the constant sonic rumble it summons and maintains during its eventful 44 minutes, so, if you are looking for the radically intense side of the groove, then this here piece of aural rocket powered bomb is just the one you want to hop on to. The lady sitting on it already is not too hopeless to tolerate, either. Read more to investigate how this release seeks to communicate its massive agenda.


Gurd's debut is heftily produced old school - diffo not a term to wield as weapon in a rant - groove metal with very limited urge present in it to go for the melodic chorus noodle-hooks, and, even when it does that for a minute or two, the disc's propensity to turn commandingly rabid again at any moment without warning, is kept intact in the instant vicinity. This album looks pretty good being in a constant rampage mode, and it is noticeable that the more "gentle" structures of the builds are mainly there to prepare the road for yet another rumble that is about to express its radical character.

There are some key hindrances to this release, as well, and pretty grim ones at that : track number 5, Higher Meaning features some supremely terrible backup vocalist, - backup tormented soul with a coffee addiction and no coffee?? - who obviously managed to escape from the studio people who tried to fill him up on sedation pills. This entity of unknown origins - and let's hope it remains THAT way - truly gives out signals from his throat that immediately register as successive pop-ups of highly illegal space-time rifts that makes the most renowned metalcore plastic hellspawn crumble through all floors to feel embarrassed along the whole way back to toy-hell.

The album also makes some quite strange decisions along the way to smuggle half a smile on your face, like track number 7, called Blame Someone Else : the minor issue herein is not too bad, and it gravitates around the vocal contribution. The Anselmo imitation sometimes sounds relatively forced - nevertheless somewhat efficient - herein. Tame accent issues : imminent. But, on top of that, an authentically "sick", vile mid-tempo build with a vibe that rides on a near-psychotic rant of threats, - Pantera's Walk, anyone? - is interrupted by a super-tepid - is this an oxymoron? - metalcore chorus that diligently sucks mummified camel tits and I don't like it.

It is safe to say though that the album has only minor blemishes to encounter along the way, and even those do not conflict with the oh!, so peaceful institute of instant tolerability. It is worth mentioning that the album wraps things up nice and relevant with a groove metal quasi-instrumental epic clocking in at 6:40. It is a relative rarity to hear a groove metal epic, as far as I know. A tight, angry, authentic contribution fueled by proper love towards the genre. And, coming to think of it, the metalcore action figure lich in track number 5 is more priceless than hideous.

Rating : 8.0 / 10

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Machine Head - Unto the Locust review

Year : 2011
Genre : Groove Metal with Metalcore allures
Label : Roadrunner Records
Origin : United States
Rating : 7.5 / 10

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Machine Head unleashes the ancient, stone-authentic groove lingo of Pantera, igniting its tremendous engines to bring you valiantly varied groove metal which though is in a relentless hurry to seek the catchy chorus in the vicinity as an extra service to the ears. Ah! What? You did not order that??

Unto the Locust shows no notable aspiration to reinvent the proper steel or the proper wheel, and the only derivation/addition you are likely to spot when you attempt to relate this album to its originator at heart Pantera, is the relentless and frequent addition of the aforementioned-, acceptable melodic choruses, supported by tasty, calm, guitar centered melodic intermessos to catch a breath or two on. The mid-tempo melodic choruses, while seemingly represent no particular interest in metalcorish suffering narrative, the look itself does not prevent the album from submitting to metalcore-panic on a healthy amount of dire occasions. Unto the Locust, though rarely if ever manages to command you on an immense melodic hook from which there is no escape, brings you the intact kind of groove-based full power variation that sells out the show no problem, and the choruses are not as long as they would be if they were twice as long as they actually are. Still here? Splendid. Read on to find out more on these briskly varied elements.


The name of the game herein, obviously enough, is the act of summoning the heft that may have the chance to stop an incoming bulldozer or two, and the thoughtful addition of re-occurring segments that radiate a more restrained musical stance, serve as efficient anchors to establish a soberly balanced field of operation amidst the sequences of intense sonic engagement.

The album has two primordial vibes it feels itself most confident with : the rumble itself it produces leaves no place to form a complaint on. It is summoned via a well researched, tight, at heart traditional sound, delivered by fat and mean guitars full of bad intent that dwell only a story above the direct depths of hell as far as their tuning. As hinted, melodic, misery-fixated mid-tempo is equally a key factor of this spin, and not the factor that me, myself and I have found themselves awesometacularly blown away by, but there is no doubt that the mid-tempo sequences are tightly realized, too. The only qualm one might give a voice to regarding this matter, is the impression that the mid-tempo-, chorus related approach of the album sounds to seek to put way too much of semi-metalcorish panic narrative into the builds, regardless how the first third of the release tells everything about the vibe that sounds worth to be told.

The Special Edition of this contribution comes with three bonus tracks on board. Let's address two of those. One of these is a nicely realized acoustic version of highlight delivery Darkness Within, while the bonus track called The Sentinel consorts groove metal with power metal on an adrenaline rush, and, if you think this will kick your ass to hell and back, you are pretty close to the truth.

Machine Head's latest is a safe bet to invest your listening time in, and, if you show propensity to find and omit the two, maybe three - and not more - tracks you think the record declares itself more muscular without, then it emerges as a groove metal affair worth revisiting.

Rating : 7.5 / 10

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Anthrax - Worship Music review

Year : 2011
Genre : Groove Metal Hard Rock
Label : Megaforce (US) Nuclear Blast (EU)
Origin : United States
Rating : 6.5 / 10

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Anthrax's latest affair is in great haste to reveal its primer aspiration, that which is to bring you an almost tender level of hard-rockish accessibility, resonated through a mildly rabid set of instruments. These guitar-dogs are kind enough to pretend that they have the skills and the eager propensity to shred you to pieces, but don't be afraid, there are no true risks involved on Anthrax's latest : when music is supposed to engage the real deal slaughter mode of avid inventiveness, - like Deceased does without end on their latest LP to date - this band instead throws in your everyday average catchy chorus, casually informing you that there is no proper meal served right now, please be so kind and eat the bloody - semi-spoiled - dessert, thank you, come again. As for the dogs themselves : they sit on command, and this is what they mostly do herein. But look : they grin!!

In other words, despite the band's known notoriety to administer profound audible punishment, this latest release clearly shows a sharply defined shift towards instant accessibility, and not necessarily for the truly strong kind of that. It might be a staggering development to reckon, but here is the thing : a good amount of this LP communicates along the metal core vibe, - without the fake-screaming, luckily - combined with the aforementioned hard rock overtone, which always hurries up to you with its crystal clear, and frankly, terribly cumbersome agenda to pour a sense of engineered instant epicness into the builds ASAP. These supposed-to-be-epic choruses tend to register as a blend of acceptable power metal and acceptable hard rock, but note that none of these ingredients will rip your mind out nice and clean via their raw charm of musical appeal and convince power. As noted, they are engineered choruses, without all that much unalloyed emotional motivations noticeable in them. Read on to find out more about Anthrax's latest spin to date, but know that what you will get is a largely risk free ride in a convertible that does not have more than 4 gears installed. What? The side thrusters? Oh, those are mainly for decoration. They will engage a couple of times, but that is that.


It would be unfair to state that the album lacks especially strong sequences in CHARACTER, but even those portions are burdened by the record's unbalanced presentation traits. The strong tracks on the release, like In the End, or Giant, - and there are others, too, see later - are practically begging for some ornaments to be embedded into them to flatter the single rhythm guitar/bass/drum structure, but these tracks remain no doubt solid as they are. The more massive regions of this album though are consisting of declarations that sound more to be shameless fillers than the truly legit stuff you signed on for. The track called Judas Priest, for example. What the hell is this? This sounds like Motley Crue's Dr. Feelgood to me, from 19fucking89. Oh God! Zoo Metal! Glam Metal ineptitude being taken to the next level that you so hoped it did not even exist. But it does, and you will be subjected to it. On multiple occasions. Mercilessly. But it also must be told that Anthrax assuages the fright with another strong track, called Crawl, to kill the pain administered by its instant predecessor mentioned above.

The release, surprisingly enough, shows notable shi(f)ts - MIND the f!! - in presentation values. The guitars sometime sound like they have been castrated out and been beaten half to death as extra courtesy, while, at other times the album packs a truly proper bite, despite the relatively conservative, simplistic arrangements it largely relies on. Of course, there is nothing wrong at all with the simplistic - nevertheless great - structure of drum/bass/rhythm guitar, but hell, you need to deliver a real deal theme to remember to flatter the legitimacy of this classic formation.

If the albums' primer focus would be centered around to unleash the muscular musical grinding it emerges most impressively at, this would be a doubtlessly fine, slick release. But that propensity to engage in serious and legit fashion, also is the one you will have the least of, and, saved for some - and not more - delicious mid-tempo themes here and there, Anthrax's Worship Music ultimately registers as an inconsistent spin filled with portions prone to trade their charms in for much less efficient variation. The track called Constant is a good example of this, in my opinion. This song has some absolutely great elements, and also it is afflicted, unfortunately, by the Glam Metal/Zoo Metal nonsense. Boosh!

Fortunately, the vocal contribution of the album is totally solid, the singer dude has a proper set of lungs, and he exhibits his melodic Philip Anselmo influence in intact fashion. He does a good job, without doing anything out of his comfort zone. Note : doing anything out of the comfort zone, of course, is not a necessity to deliver a good performance. The point simply is that the vocalist manages to render a solid and likable vocal presence, even when he needs to ride a horse made of materials of questionable origins.

This is not a bad album at all, it just has this persistent tendency of taking you for an accomplished idiot on strong sedatives. Well, you can fool some of the people some of the time, and that should be sufficient. Anthrax does way too much fooling around this time though, and that is a 6.5 - only because I'm kind as a fairy on an Ecstasy pill.

Rating : 6.5 / 10

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Solsikk - Solsikk review

Year : 2011
Genre : Groove Metal
Label : Femme Metal Records
Origin : UK
Rating : 9.0 / 10

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Solsikk brings you hyper-complex groove metal with a chick on top who has a tremendous amount of a certain influence going on. In fact, the whole function of Solsikk's female fronter seems to be a continuous attempt at mimicking the vocal style and deeply emotive allures of one particular artist. That artist is none other than the - utterly and completely - female fronter of industrial psyche observation unit Kidney Thieves.

Here is the thing : whenever it is possible, - and it always IS - I close out the "I" from a review, because a review should gravitate towards notions, percepts and mental constructs solely relating to its effective subject matter, and the "I" is not important, only the experience that ensued in the "I" is important and deemed as deliverable. But now I apply a short pause on this behavior, the gesture being a necessity to tell you about Kidney Thieves from my current perspective.

A relatively - and frankly, perplexingly - little known band, Kidney Thieves first hit me while I was playing the video game Deus Ex - Invisible Wars and there was this insanely elegant, and, at the same time, insanely rabid music playing in a bar that was modeled in the gameworld. A woman was singing on top of raging industrial guitar music, and her voice touched me at parts I did not know I have. I immediately searched for intel on which band that might be, and that is how I became aware of the oh!, so fruity existence of the band Kidney Thieves.

Kidney Thieves have put out top of the heat sci-fi music all the way back from 1998 that to this very day sounds and registers galaxies more relevant than your everyday average row of current random metalcore monkeys can ever HOPE to fail to dream of in their current miserable spiritual state. In other words : Kidney Thieves kicks tremendous monolith butt, their fronter is a spectacular human specimen, and sure, this here indeed is a review of Solsikk's self titled debut, a debut that REEKS the influence of Kidney Thieves. That is not a bad thing at all, at all. That is a good thing. Suggestion : first check out the female fronter of Kidney Thieves, Free Dominguez, via inspecting this video of a high quality unplugged studio performance. Then read on to be confronted with a deep analysis of Solsikk's self titled debut.



This is a full chrome musculature release that has a huge amount of love and the supremely admirable intent to seriously entertain incorporated in it. You are not taken for a fool here at all, because groove metal music gets the holy shit - and everything else, for that matter - played properly out of it on this spin, and, as such, the revealed and delivered complexity/efficiency of the effort reigns far beyond criticism. Here is why : the music on Solsikk's debut is not only complex, but it also packs legit power all the way through. Top tier, rampant riffage, manic drum work, a true feast even for the most snob pairs of ears.

The release has the super-rare ability to unravel the beauty of "organized randomness", so to speak, since everything you hear exhibits a very finely constructed balance between the formless, limitless potentiality of chaos and the expressed intent that declares a glorious path to thread diligently along, never disrespecting the potentiality of rabid chaos it actually is threading in, it actually is drawing patters in-, drawing patterns from. Regardless of the genre, this clearly is the most demanding kind of music to construct, and here is why : because, to put it as simply as it is humanly possible, it takes fucking WORK to realize. You can not employ shortcuts and other similar tricks to come up with presentable results while on this agenda of contributing music that exhibits this commanding level of complexity and legitimacy. You need to worship the mere nature of rhythm, pitch, dynamics and similar entities to be able to come up with something that compares to the delicate sonic data contained on this exquisite release.

Solsikk's debut is one superbly fresh and brisk delivery, giving you 42 minutes of top quality audible intricacy to immerse yourself in. The compositions are exceptionally efficient in the regard that they are totally free of a need to relate to a certain comfort zone, they instead declare their indisputable right to exist by raw sonic willpower, and this also is something you can not mimic if the consorting, true awareness of the musical field you want to channel from is off limits to your current musical intent. This album is formed of very luscious and well defined intents, about that, you can - paradoxically enough - have your zero doubts in a comfy manner.

The only reason the album does not shatter into the well-above-9 category on this here music review website Noise Shaft, is the vocal contribution of the female fronter of the band. She is a Free Dominguez wannabe, and not herself, not on this release. She is decent. But far from great. Her simulated "I just had my 123rd nervous breakdown and you're about to be my painkiller, baaaabbbybear" stance wears out twice as quickly as you hope it would, her bluesy rasp is simply artificial and is subject to constant abuse, and her pipes simply lack the emotive power and crystal clear rendition of female fragility/female strength so evident in the voice of Free Dominguez. She does not sound to be coming from the heart, she sounds to be coming from the agenda of mimicking Free Dominguez at all costs. I - oops, I did it again - do not think that it is impossible to mimic the style of Free Dominguez efficiently, but, to accomplish that, that female performer definitely has to have this fragile, tender vibe in her voice along with the Animal, Rampant. Free Dominguez packs both the damsel in distress and the vamp. The fronter of Solsikk, on the contrary, packs both the desire to pack the damsel in distress and the desire to pack the vamp. Hell, that IS a start.

One simply can not spiritually afford to end this review on a lower note than almost unalloyed praise though, because Solsikk's debut is certainly one of the most pleasant surprises this current year has brought to us so far. In fact, it is entirely possible that the fronter will be able to cultivate that extra "it" factor into her voice later on. If you see her with that cleaver asking for me, please tell her that the ideal hitman is on my lousy ass already.

Rating : 9.0 / 10 If you liked this article, check out my music

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Trendkill Method - Affective Arousal review

Year : 2011
Genre : Groove Metal
Label : Sonic Blast Media
Origin : Latvia
Rating : 8.5 / 10

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This Latvian groove metal formation with the name "Trendkill Method" either tries to hide its immense Pantera influence without all that much noticeable avail, or embraces it instead by admitting it in a perplexedly violent and super-submissive fashion. Wait, wait, wait - you don't get it, man! The cover art of this release has a buzzsaw-wrapped female body with an ear as a head, man, surely, I MUST love THIS?!

Granted. Coming to think of it, it really does not matter that much at all, because, apart from the pretty damn close to z-grade exploitation - nevertheless, as noted, also pretty damn efficient - cover art Affective Arousal initially punishes you with, the music of Trendkill Method - regardless of its shape, its orientation and its mass density - kicks your ass to hell and back, and that is sufficient.


Affective Arousal is a record that uses the intrinsic worship of the groove to bring you rampant energies unalloyed, showing zero regard to the recent and - in my opinion - misplaced "tradition" of incorporating melodrama on occasion, so an acceptable pair of grooves could affect you again upon comeback. Once the grooves you offer are great and pack the legit bite, there is little if any need to deliver profound intermissions between them.

The main attraction on Trendkill Method's latest is the vulgar display of love for the rumble, and hell, that is all you want from groove metal at the first place. The primordial factors that give Affective Arousal's rendition of the rumble all the chance in the world to convince you to give a head to bang, are the brute elegance of the grooves, paired up with the rhythmic intricacy they come to thrash you into the wall with. Keen and exigent sense to respect, to summon and to properly worship the infinite faces of the aggressive groove is on constant display here, seeking AND finding the equally infinite faces of the rumble the groove expresses its ultimate nature through. There is no doubt at all that the favorite fixation of the release is the lowest possible note that is producible by the stringed instruments, but one must ask : if it sounds good, then who gives a sear shit if it is?

Structurally, the compositions are consisting of organically connected elements of high octane rampancy, each having their own agenda and rhythmic flavor, yet always keeping their sober touch with the surrounding components to follow them up. Melodic choruses that flatter the feel of stoner rock and well presented metalcore, - aua - are offered, as well. Luckily enough, these choruses tend to manage to entertain the ears with legit musical stimuli, as the singed melodies look pretty muscular on the cleverly structured wall of sound chords that hurry to back those up on these occasions. As such, these melodic sequences do find a way to emerge both as accessible and dignified. Just to give an example : the track called "Reason to hate" has one of the most relevant melodic choruses this release has to state, one that seems to be similar in nature to the chorus of Stone Sour's "Mission Statement". Both of these hooks are great, yet they feed from the same musical scape, a scape not easily expressed if the attempter has zero access to it. Casting an evident light on this scape is a great accomplishment on its own.

Trendkill Method's vocalist surely has the Philip Anselmo going on, yet, this time around, the imitation is acceptable, because the scream register has just the right amount of rawness and presence associated to it, and it sits in the mix in a very well researched place. The aforementioned melodic sequences with clean vocals are equally tight, ultimately. The singer, though clearly lacking the display-worthy animal of a Corey Taylor, does a decent job at delivering the melodies with dignity, humanity and badasness, and it is very respectable that the band decided to refrain from the use of various magical effects to pump up the voice artificially.

Affective Arousal is a delivery even the members of Pantera would probably give the nod on, and this is not something you could frequently say and keep an inner face intact. If you know what is good for your neighbor's spiritual integrity, give this album a spin. And one more. And one more.

Rating : 8.5 / 10

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Hokum - The Creation of Pain review

Year : 2011
Genre : Groove Thrash Metalcore
Label : GoodDamn Records
Origin : Germany
Rating : 6.0 / 10

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Though confusing it may sound, - pun just might be intended - German group Hokum thrashes emo metalcore with a groove. The record, though presenting the results of this experiment with such intense of a stare fixed on its own body that it very well could destruct a statue in a staredown contest, finds itself in a more and more difficult position to bring you elements worth scrutinizing as the spin approaches its middle grounds, having shown everything by that point that it is capable to show. Having shown everything it aspires to show.

Based on initial impressions you could form by watching the group's earlier - and great - work, one must suspect that the this time around extremely slimy metalcore component of this outing is incorporated into this otherwise gritty fabric to appeal to a wider audience, one fond at feeding on romantic angst, bitterness-comfort and routine-disillusionment, but the emo screaming and song structures demand a steep price now. They arrive and afflict, and tend to smuggle a bad taste in the mouth of the follow up full-paua groove that attempts to kick nearby asses nice and proper. With an introductory ado, this here record sounds to be tainted with over-emoted elements seeking to bow down to shortcuts not necessarily worth bowing down to. Read on to find more about the operational field of this relatively compromised, but doubtlessly decently presented delivery.



Hokum takes a Philip Anselmo mimicry, puts a pepperoni rocket in his ass, ignites the thing, and makes the host scream on top of well thought out and solidly presented grooves, riffs and whatnot. Grooves and riffs that, unfortunately, sound to have little connection with each other, a flaw that sounds to haunt this record persistently. The Creation of Pain indeed is worthy of its name, as you are forced to attempt to put a cautious foot on the musical fabric that does not sound to have any more agenda than to address its own urge to exhibit constant fluctuation. Your awareness is subjected to persistent bribery throughout this effort, as the band shoots doubtlessly well constructed, but, at heart, random musical stuff after random musical stuff at you, yet exceptionally strong riffs or grooves are nowhere to be found. They are not invited. All is administered so it is suitable to scream lines on top of, yet the one particular feeling the tracks are excelling masterfully at invoking, is that of a quiet state of secretive, bored confusion : one that makes you wonder what should you do with the well presented, but directionless masses of grooves and riffs that have no other evident function than to connect two emo sequences, while the exact, "verbatim", copied Philip Anselmo melodic lines are echoing in your head. Because you just have heard them being stolen. Again. Note-to-note, bend-to-bend theft, dude.

Groove gets traded for a riff, a riff gets squashed by a groove, then a slimy pile of emo metalcore snot-covered ball of contagious radioactive urine - which is not good for your health at all, mind you - bitchslaps you silly and you are forced to reset your awareness before reaching the point of no return. The instrumental elements easily are the best aspects of this spin, as the record produces a wide, weighty sound, and the riffs and grooves have the noticeable will to try and render life, but they do not know each other, and, as such, they remain riffs and grooves with autonomous, respective charisma and dignity, seeking partners, but they never quite seem to find one, on this spin. Hokum gives you musical idea on top of musical idea, and the common denominator of these is NOT a well structured conception to connect those, but Philip Anselmo's mimicry, addressing his favorite frustrations to date. Not a bad album. Worse : mediocre.

Rating : 6.0 / 10

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Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake review

Year : 2004
Genre : Groove Metal
Label : Epic
Origin : United States
Rating : 6.5 / 10

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Lamb of God has all the chance in the whole wide world to emerge victorious when the fabric of the Universe organizes the annual Who Has the Most Notable Pantera Influence Embedded in Thy Souls? contest.

There is nothing wrong at all with being influenced by Pantera, a band reigning beyond doubt as one of the most influential forces that, to this day, define the field contemporary metal tends to present itself upon. The only thing you really want to give this Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake affair a spin for, is the bitter chance you will have at listening how the T-Rex of Pantera sounds with its balls miniaturized. Wait. Are you SURE you want to hear that? Okay, read on then.



Ashes of the Wake, for a start, AND for a precisely aimed conclusion, at least submits to its own aspirations, and delivers the everyday average Pantera cloning as solidly as the band could in 2004. The face of groove metal is not a face that necessarily has to depend on intricacy to sell its raw charisma : it simply needs to depend on the sole weight and/or catch of the groove, and there seems to be a difference between individual grooves with autonomous rhythms being shot at your direction, and grooves that have organic connections and common feelings that they playfully circulate between each other. Lamb of God doubtless knows how to deliver a relatively solid groove, yet their readiness and urge to make the grooves flirt with each other, so you have no chance but to scrutinize their fun closely, sounds to be modest on this 2004 effort.

The sections tend to get thrown away rather easily, without them being given the attention their rhythmic and sonic structures do sound to exhibit. Instead of taking a pattern apart to see what actually is inside, the band hastily brings another build out of thin air. The vocalist sometimes addresses the depths of his Pantera influences by giving away two or three lines in a narrative fashion, as Philip Anselmo likes to do. The vocalist's speaking voice packs way less drama and charisma than Anselmo's, but the he probably has managed to eradicate his own capacity to notice this evident potentiality of reality. Connection between the patterns, sometimes DOES get established on the spin, and those are the moments the LP is at its top form - but these moments are relatively scarce to come by, and the basic character of the spin remains that of a diligent presentation of doubtless muscular groove metal loops the band developed during the production, yet loops that exhibit mild organic connection with any other.

As just hinted above, the LP sounds to have a clumsy tendency of mistaking the abrupt termination of a solid direction for flamboyant variation. The intensity has a hard time reaching moments you must remember or rewind to, - there ARE such moments, though - regardless how the band ventures into metalcore territory on occasions, just to resonate some miserable fake fry screams you can laugh a round male-ass off. The performance of the vocalist is probably the most disappointing contribution of this spin. He sounds to have a rather time, and general wisdom suggests that as soon as it is hard for you, then it will be no fun to you, and probably it won't be fun to listen to, either. The vocalist tries to get the job done, but trying is way less than sufficient when you can subject yourself to legit vocal performances you can hear from number 1 real deal screamers like Pantera's Phil Anselmo or Slipknot's Corey Taylor.

From a musical point of view, - without the vocal contribution, that lacks notable unique character beyond its over-abused aspiration to imitate Anselmo - this is a decently produced, prolonged sequence of quite acceptable Pantera tribute, but, as with most tributes, this one, too, lacks the promise of a chance of approximating its mighty inspirator. In 2004, Lamb of God had no capacity to offer anything else of-, or sufficient enough of what its definer, Pantera delivered as a timeless navigational beacon of metal. Ashes of the Wake is not a bad album, it simply is an effort at cloning its own robust ideal.

Rating : 6.5 / 10

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Consfearacy - Consfearacy review

Year : 2011
Genre : Thrash / Power / Groove
Label : Independent
Origin : United States / Germany
Rating : 8.6 / 10

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Consfearacy's self titled affair spins for 42 energized minutes of continuous and rather inventive attempts at blending the trademark traits of various metallic sub-genres into colorful autonomous declarations, each sticking though to a cleverly raw and muscular character the album cultivates as a prime direction to project itself as.

By giving you the palpable basic sensation of thrash metal utterly failing to give a shit about what you think or do not think of it, Consfearacy utilizes this commanding feeling to pull playfulness and groove out of its rabid body from time to time, just to hide all the pleasantries and unleash the intense nihil - aua - of thrash once again in the next bar.



The 10 tracks have a pair of common denominators they secretly and soothingly assuage in the background without a stop : Consfearacy, first of all, is not at all afraid to unleash an output that simply has no concept of subtraction from intensity. Everything here is happening for a wide, thick, weighty experience, one which though never quite crosses the border of death metal type musical brutality that may exhibit the tendency of being a bit hard to approach towards.

Consfearacy delivers compositions with rock-solid ideas behind them, each realized with raw, nevertheless carefully sculpted and highly efficient musical musculature. Addressing these attributes in a clear and easily decipherable fashion is a focal method of how this album throws its fingers towards the throat of your propensity to appreciate.

The last track on the spin, "You're dead to me" is a fine example of the dormant workings herein : while the anatomical structure of the background compliments the mere power of the chug during the chorus, the vocal melody mounts true catch and elegance on top of the monster, addressing even the "our hair against the wind" power metal vibe for a tint of a second. And not for a tad more, and that is why the moment in question seems and sounds to be a great one.

The LP, while brings forth a keen readiness to engage the thrash metal cannon, also keeps an eye and an ear out for lush compositional routes to take, systematically and luckily arriving at choruses and interludes that speak a non-theatrical, pretty much unorthodox and wild power metal register, one which refrains from giving the traditional nod for the so easily abusable pathos, and, instead, expresses its endless affection towards the mere catch and weight of the groove.

This is a furious, superbly controlled and elegantly presented album with meticulous production work, making use of a wisely limited selection of sonic war-wielders. Consfearacy's musicians had zero doubt about what they wanted to do with this spin, and what they wanted to stay safely away from. These clear intentions are flattered further by the audible results they have produced. Consfearacy's latest to date confronts your musical awareness with an album that manages to reign strongly throughout tasteful tints of great variation, maintaining this great attribute not by trying to do so, but, simply by doing so, instead.

Rating : 8.6 / 10

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