MUSIC REVIEWS I - Music - http://maxpages.com/aeazine/MUSIC_REVIEWS

Editors’ note: The following reviews (my original work) have been reproduced with permission from Good Times Magazine.

Deicide In Torment in Hell Roadrunner
The artwork on the cover, inner sleeve and liner notes of In Torment in Hell could be a foreshadowing of the continued maturity that Deicide have undergone as musicians; the implied sacrilege is presented similar to the nightmarishly surreal effectscapes created in H.R. Giger’s paintings. The way their material has progressed since they released Serpents of the Light places them strictly in a class by themselves that can’t be categorized as death or black metal; elements of both are equal parts of the formula besides some hints of thrash and classic power metal in a few places though their origins going back to their self-titled debut exist to this day. In this sense Deicide have achieved the status as a unique band enjoyed by Sodom and Type O Negative, and have done this without it being necessary to expand their horizons or write progressive compositions. Deicide have a sound you can instantly recognize as theirs; as much as to their songwriting this owes to the lyrics of Glen Benton, the Rocky Balboa of death metal (and I mean that as a compliment, for the sake of clarification), which directly attack the intolerant fundamentalist climate that inspired the more blasphemous side of thrash to begin with, and have likewise grown more eloquent, proving that there’s a person behind them who’s as fed up with how society has to demonize those who don’t follow mediocrity, religious or otherwise as the rest of us. The complete duration clocks in at around thirty minutes, in keeping with the tradition of recording albums that don’t overstay their welcome, but Deicide have improved from their previous work, and enough happens in the songs that you get your money’s worth. The intro sample taken from the Bob Larson Ministry that segues into the title cut is worth the price of this album.

Voivod Voivod Chophouse
Voivod seemingly reemerge from out of nowhere with their classic lineup which happens to include a recently added bassist of certain renown. The band sound like they’re following the pattern some thrash bands set in the eighties, doing a 180 degree turn to release albums with slower material, meeting with varied levels of acceptance. The difference is that for Slayer, Celtic Frost, Anthrax, Bathory and Metallica it was an abrupt change, while for Voivod it seems to be a natural progression resulting from years of experimenting on albums that unfortunately didn’t receive the widespread recognition they hoped for in the nineties. Phobos comes to mind; this was a good album for Voivod, but the direction they took their music in didn’t appear to catch since most of the underground media’s focus was on death and black metal. Perhaps this will change since Snake, Piggy and Away have reunited and joined forces with former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted. This rebirth may earn Voivod more aboveground attention, especially when MTV recently reported Jason’s statement that the new Voivod lineup can “kick Metallica’s ass.” What’s the story, Jasonic? Did you and Metallica part on bad terms? I remember Dave Mustaine posing a similar challenge after starting Megadeth. But, I digress. The thrashy and atmospheric aspects of experimental discs like Killing Technology and Dimension Hatross are still present, but channeled far differently here. Voivod’s biggest departure from their “thrash days” is how the songs are crammed into shorter spaces with a feeling of alternative rock accessibility, being more linear without the time changes that were more prevalent. But each song has its own personality, and you hear how comfortable the classic lineup is writing and playing with Newsted. A good portion of this album shows Piggy’s distinctive guitar evoking the futuristic/”spacey” theme he brought to older classics. The same can be said for how Snake’s vocals give the songs a bizarre Pink Floyd-ish atmosphere. I’m still figuring out if his Johnny Rotten imitation in “Gasmask Revival” was coincidence. Listen to the second bridge and you’ll see what I mean.

Benumb By Means of Upheaval Relapse
One of the samples included between the songs says “wanting people to listen, you can’t just tap them on the shoulder anymore; you have to hit them with a sledgehammer.” Benumb probably added the sample after watching complacency increase in society, and it’s harder to make people think about the world, at least from the perspective of a grindcore band who perceive society differently from popular media stars they don’t have as large a window of opportunity to be heard as. The liner notes inside By Means of Upheaval show Benumb understand as well as anyone that to make change in the world, one must change within first. Benumb reiterate this concept through lyrics they establish as being observations on how humans interact from an individual’s point of view, far removed from the masses who swallow whatever the media popularizes. This is why it would have been better for the band to print the complete lyrics from every song in the liner notes instead of just a handful of songs picked randomly, so that fans would know all the thoughts that encompassed the band’s mind set when By Means of Upheaval was recorded. The ideas behind “Oppressing Binds of Silence” and “Swallow Conviction” center on keeping one’s own perceptive while formulating one’s views and holding to it regardless of imposed misunderstanding from outside sources. “Cesspool of Human Sewage” and “That Which is Set in Stone” relate to externalized self-hatred, placing Benumb in touch with the hardcore influences they carried since their days as Bay Area locals and through their growth as musicians that caused Relapse to sign them.

God Dethroned Into the Lungs of Hell Metal Blade
On their site God Dethroned say they composed all the material for their last album Ravenous in a month, recording it with Angel Corpse percussionist Tony Laureano, who’s now playing with Nile, after drummer Roel departed from the band following their Japan tour with Ritual Carnage. The band also say Laureano pushed them to play faster and heavier than their past catalog, and Ravenous was their finest moment yet. Into the Lungs of Hell shows the band surpass themselves yet again. Their speed and heaviness has progressed beyond the boundaries of Ravenous; with new drummer Arien they build on the momentum that album achieved, pushing themselves to be louder, more aggressive and in your face. Recent world events including the crisis in the Middle East appears to have greatly affected vocalist Henri, judging by the lyrics he penned for “The Warcult,” “Soul Sweeper” and “Gods of Terror,” the latter being a particularly venomous attack on those who throughout history have used the name of God to justify waging wars and slaughtering by the thousands; this places lyrics like “Your god is dead/the devil is you” in a clearer context despite the idea being misunderstood more often than not. “Subliminal” and “Enemy of the State” are likewise old school traditional, describing a society akin to the one depicted in Orwell’s 1984, as is “Slaughtering the Faithful” which is about the killing of animals for mass consumption. A bonus CD is included here featuring rare covers and live videos taken from the band’s 2000 tour with Cannibal Corpse.

Dark Fortress Profane Genocidal Creations Red Stream
Corpsepaint, spikes and weapons of war embody what Dark Fortress get across visually, maintaining the cult theme of black metal bands like Satyricon and Dark Funeral championed in the nineties. Dark Fortress is the brainchild of guitarist Asvargr, who previously played in a death-thrash band named Carnage and formed this one just before black metal broke into the American industry in 1994. Through their history Dark Fortress have been known to incorporate death metal into their music, as on 2000’s Valley From Eternal Dusk. On Profane Genocidal Creations, the music is undeniably black metal though easily discernible shades of other styles are heard in quite a few places. This opens with a grandiose introduction establishing the concept the band tie the album together with, immediately followed up by “Defiance of Death,” an eight-minute epic furnishing the characteristic rawness and atmosphere of cult black metal with strong classical shades in the guitars. In “Passage to Extinction” there is a greater influx of melodic death-thrash and doom metal in the music, the latter brought to light with the keyboards and the guest vocals by Katrin Neoral that surface midway through the song. The band also use acoustic guitars to underscore their music in many places. The atmospheric hints at doom metal the guitars bring to “In Morte Aeternities” and the thrashy time changes in “Through Ages of War” are other high points of this album.

Fangorn Fangorn G.U.C.
Released on an independent thrash label based in Germany, Fangorn’s third full-length has been out for longer than a year, and helping build the band’s growing cult following from what I gather from the official G.U.C. (German Underground Crossection) website. The biography sheet the label provided says this album is the culmination of an intensive process of practicing and redefining themselves over the five years since Non-Rhapsodian garnered strong press and radio support in 1998. Fangorn comprise one fifth of the complete roster of G.U.C., which appears in its early stages of development so far, judging by the DIY packaging this came in. But this is a solid recording showing professionalism on the band’s part. I think it’s admirable the band and the label have established a foothold in the German scene from the ground up, with little external exposure. Fangorn are described as “gothic death metal,” though I believe their music is more melodic than goth and will appeal to fans of the Swedish sound for in some ways this band have similar attributes. One thing setting Fangorn apart from the Swedish band is they have two lead singers, one male and one female, who share vocal duties evenly. The contrast between both presences is very distinct as the female vocals retain their haunting siren-like quality through all the changes that take place in the music, while the male vocals deepen and increase in pitch to fit the many time changes.

Honey For Christ Honey For Christ Independent
This is the third release of Honey For Christ, who have been financing their material on their own since forming in 1998. Their music is as bizarre as their name; their compositions are basically a mixture of thrash and melodic black metal with traditional metal vocals though by looking at the cover you’d expect a doom-black metal fusion. Musically it’s decent as far as self-produced EPs go; these three songs sound solid enough for the production; but for me the contrast between the mournful mood of the vocals and the angrier themes of the music seem to go in two different directions. The exception is when the more somber sections of the songs come about, as in ”Movements Below the Surface” which sounds ahead of the other two songs recorded for this release. The band have a website where you can read about their history and listen to mp3 tracks from both EPs they have out. If interested visit www.honeyforchrist.co.uk or email hfc@heavymetal.co.uk

Emperor Scattered Ashes: A Decade of Emperial Wrath Candlelight
As a compilation album spanning Emperor’s career beginning with their earliest releases, Scattered Ashes stands as a testimony to a band with the courage to challenge the underground status quo and changed it forever as a result. Anyone who immersed themselves in black metal’s evolution knows In the Nightside Eclipse became a landmark in extreme music providing an example of how black metal can and should expand beyond its roots. Mortiis, who was a member of Emperor in the beginning, did the same on his own terms after parting ways with them. But for Emperor it wasn’t only the music’s narrow boundaries to grow beyond, but the turbulence the scene experienced through all the negative press it received. “I Am the Black Wizards” and “Wrath of the Tyrant” seemed to be given additional menace by what made the news in black metal. But by the time their debut came out there was a sense they were poised to break their mold. The sudden leap forward on “Ye Entrancemperium,” “Thus Spake the Nightspirit” and “The Loss and Curse of Reverence” on Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk confirmed how much Emperor matured before it became fashionable or logical for others to follow in terms of technical ability and innovative writing. “Curse Ye All Men” and “An Elegy of Icaros” from IX Equilibrium continued this while Emperial Live Ceremony proved how well they deliver onstage. Emperor didn’t disband because they reached a creative peak as much as they headed in different musical directions as founding members Ihsahn and Samoth involved in Peccatum and Zyklon, and Prometheus: The Discipline of Fire and Demise, was dominated by the element of mystery that Peccatum brought to their music. This compilation serves as a powerful reminder of the legacy Emperor left behind, including their finest moments besides rare remixes and covers like their blistering reworking of Mayhem’s “Funeral Fog.”

Yattering Genocide Candlelight
After releasing two albums, dropping their former label and signing with Candlelight, Yattering seem to have progressed toward a greater technical and experimental degree than their fellow bands from the Polish death metal scene. Since the British label has produced the largest amount of “futuristic” death and black metal, giving extreme music the computerized overtones of the latest releases by Zyklon and Kaamos that bands don’t even need synthesizers for it’s likely this could be the beginning of a new age for Yattering. Their new direction may take some growing accustomed to while they develop it. Genocide gives the impression of the band getting settled into new material being recorded and released for the first time, but if I hadn’t heard anything by them previously I’d be nonetheless impressed by the way their music fluctuates between brutal death with heavy guitars and the more stop-start groove elements and vocal effects they write into their songs. This new style of theirs is something they should definitely expand on, possibly with more electronic sounds and effects added.

Immemorial Monologue Conquer
Some reviewers who listened to Monologue have compared Immemorial to Deicide because of the influence drummer Przemek Sek drew from Steve Asheim as he mentioned on the liner notes. Besides his use of blast beats, Sek underlines the guitars with double bass in a likened fashion. But in a general sense, Immemorial have more of a melodic death metal sound though the technical overtones manage to hold the instruments together. This is one of those bands that change tempos in between verses with every song, going from blast to midtempo thrashing and then to triplet beats, now and then replacing the death metal themes with dissonant chords giving Monologue the kind of feeling that black metal bands bring to their work. As vocalist Marta Meger evokes a powerful presence, sustain any given words for emphasis, although some lines come across as too slurred for the tight musicianship backing it. Most of the lyrics are very cerebrally oriented, as if you’re reading about a nightmare Meger had with a feeling of experiencing it with her creeping from behind, but in contrast “A Monologue” and “Wander Through Life” offer some solace amidst the chaos. Funny I mentioned nightmares as the one aspect Immemorial speak of so strongly, for a video track is included of “A Nightmare” that reinforces those impressions, starting with Blair Witch like imagery that morphs into surreal, avant-garde images that toy with your mind.

Captivus Diaboli The Colours of Silence Independent
From the similarities in approach to Cradle of Filth, by first impression I may have guessed Captivum Diaboli are based in the United Kingdom, though there hasn’t been a major influx of U.K. bands building on Cradle’s formula for the past few years. Captivum Diaboli originate from Italy and consider themselves melodic death metal; while most of the music I heard from Italy is more forthright without relying on as many trappings, the classical fundamentals I initially interpreted as being comparable to Cradle are performed with the regal ambiance I recognize as distinctive to Italian bands, essentially for the persistent classically inspired piano and keyboards besides the continuous time changes. From Captivus these factors are on a wavelength apart from British black metal, and when hearing the complete range of moods the band cram into each song you’ll wonder how they manage to avoid overdoing it as this entire album is less than forty minutes altogether. There is also a greater sense of the despondency of centuries past, as if you’re journeying into rememberance of what was, and feeling a longing for a restitution that never comes, unlike the promise of vengeance most black metal bands personify.

Prophecy Our Domain Forever Underground
I’m offended! No, I’m not… haha. But when it comes to being offensive and writing lyrics to fit the music accompanying it, Prophecy rank with the sickest of them on ”All You Can F—k and Eat” and “Gurgling Menstrual Phlegm” (I hear the faint groan of countless stomachs turning as I write this). The ideas these songs center on are drilled in your head relentlessly among the verses providing their exposition so there’s no mistaking the unsavory activities the band are describing to you. Spending three years playing thrash/speed metal and four subsequent years of no longer being an entity, Prophecy was reawakened by founding member James Parks II who decided to relocate from Louisiana to Texas and take the band in a death metal direction, during which time he recruited a new lineup. As far as I’m concerned the strongest hints of the band as they were appear in the lyrics of other songs on Our Domain including the title cut and “Keep It F—kin’ Brutal.” Penned by Parks, the first is an open invitation to the scene in his Texas hometown introducing you to the biggest bands who are making names for themselves along with the handful of deejays at local station KNON, and the second is a statement of encouragement to remain true to the scene in the face of pressure to sell out to the mainstream. The style they’re written in reminded me of those hardcore bands of yesteryear like Warzone and Bad Brains who offered similar sentiments.

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Page Updated Thu Jul 22, 2004 8:40pm EDT