Carcass - Reek of Putrefaction

Reek of Putrefaction is one of those albums classed as legendary or influential due to its proximity to the start of a specific genre or style, or one that’s been copied so widely that the original idea is almost lost within reams of copyists and wannabes. Carcass would later create some essential death metal cuts, such as Symphonies of Sickness and Necroticism, but their debut reeked of grind, and ugly grind as it was. Its sound is truly horrifying, a cauldron of gurgled growls and screams, played over a raw, hurtling soundtrack of grinding riffs and thundering blastbeats. Carcass members have been notably disdaining of their first offspring, Jeff Walker describing it as ‘great for what it is, which is shit’, and you can understand their point; the production is very murky, its a sludgy mess of noise in general and possibly wouldn’t even be released widely in today’s polish-and-play market but yet you can traces its heritage through the racket of modern grind, and anything that gains a bit of cult following because of the so-bad-its-good production style. It almost singlehandedly spawned the goregrind subgenre of extreme metal, and its eerily knowing song titles just add a bit more to the pot to create such a hellish brew. Ultimately it is the grimy, swampy blast of inspiration that creates the magic, creates the inspiration that it has provided to countless bands. We have seen old records produce so much in the scattered and crowded fields of metal bands these days, and many don’t have the shiny production that we are so used to today, and perhaps in that lies the answer. Would this be as revered if its production were clearer? Who knows, but again who cares, as its still a hell of a sound and a hell of an album. If its great cause its shit, then shit it shall be, but I still revere it as a classic, even if the band doesn’t! Plus, its perfect to scare these emo kids off our metal lawns!

Scar Symmetry - Holographic Universe

Now they say a third album is the difficult one. Your debut sets out who you are and what you do. Your follow up should be a reaffirmation of that modus operandi and yet show you have scope for progression and are not merely just treading water. Of course the third can be a marker for the continuation of the career, whether you are destined to be a mediocre band whose releases are met with indifference, or a band that can genuinely be considered as a bringer of good to the metal community. Thankfully, Scar Symmetry appear to have taken the more positive route, crafting a powerful and excellent successor to Pitch Black Progress. Their sound is similar to the melodic death of Soilwork, but Scar Symmetry reach into prog, so called Euro-metal and melodic death and mix it up into a pleasing blend of insanely catchy metal anthems. Huge sing a long choruses infect every song with a commercial quality, and although it may not be good game for the more hardened death heads out there, for those of us who find it difficult to resist some shiny, catchy metal with anthems the size of the sky (see Morphogenesis), there’s been little else this year that’s captured that feeling as well as Holographic Universe.

Dr. Acula - S.L.OB.

Grindcore albums tend to scream past listeners with the force of a glass tornado, tearing apart everything within a two mile radius of it until, generally about half an hour later, it ends. I've tried to get into grind more recently. I read the Improbable History of Death metal and Grindcore, an excellent history of the two most extreme genres of music and after some test purchases of Pig Destroyer, Nasum and Napalm Death, decided to get more. This is a very odd little album. With titles mainly stolen from Goosebumps novels (kiddy horror books which I was a big fan of as a child), Dr. Acula have crafted a truly insane blast, spliced by hilarious movie quotes, ear shredding screams and inhuman gurgles. Monster Blood opens with a charming little ditty before exploding into some truly insane grind, and the maniacal vocal performances continue on How I Got My Shrunken Head and Cuckoo Clock of Doom. This vocalist is clearly a bit out of whack, but instead of being annoying, it adds an element to the music that hurtles between full force grind, slower death metal and occasional clean sections. The addition of the deathcore trademark 'pig squeal' vocal appears to be more ironic than as a serious employment but to be honest, its a bit difficult to tell. Imagine Strapping Young Lad fighting with Pig Destroyer. A bit mad for the uninitiated but ultimately insanely worth it.

Cryptopsy Controversy

I have read a lot about this new Cryptopsy album, and before I write my review I will be determined to properly listen and assess its full merits rather than its online reputation. But I have managed to find two tracks from my online blog friend Cosmo at Invisible Oranges, who has written a great article about the online stramash that this album has created. Some of the comments on its content have, admittedly, made me feel a bit sceptical about listening to this, being a big fan of past Cryptopsy albums. None So Vile is a particular favourite, an explosion of crazed technical death metal that is part astounding, part bewildering, but all incredible. The new tracks I have been able to hear, Bemoan the Martyr and The Plagued, have confused me. Traces of the old, blasting technicality still occur but they've been streamlined into a more, dare I say, 'modern' metal album, with less of the chaotic brutality that made the older albums so vital and an awesome production that brings everything into a sharp focus. And of course the new vocalist employs clean vocals which has been a huge departure from the previous guttaral belchings of Lord Worm. However, these are enjoyable songs for me. Sure the clean vocals appear to be almost of a metalcore variety, and maybe more important Cryptopsy seem to have lost that intensity and chaos in the shiny production that fans have previously enjoyed. But one wonders whether if this was not them, would the album have received such an online slating? If this wasn't a Cryptopsy album, would it have been so derided? I feel not, as Bemoan the Martyr and The Plagued are two strong tracks that give something new to the Cryptopsy bow, and I think i'm gonna enjoy the album when I get a hold of it.

Municipal Waste - Hazardous Mutation

Leaders in the 'new wave of thrash' currently thundering around the ears of metalheads, Virginia, USA's Municipal Waste possess something that detractors of such a musical rejuvenation as a pointless retreading of classic works cannot complain about; genuinely good songs. The Waste thrash like its only gonna be cool for thrash to be retro for the length of their albums and thus must get all their quality out there before its done. Their latest release, 'The Art of Partying' is probably a better album than this, but there's something fresh and exciting about Hazardous Mutation that appealed to me so much the first time I heard it. Unleash the Bastards is not only a great song title, but a great track, one of many that grab you by the hair, throw you around for a few mins then release you to catch your breath before it does it again. Municipal Waste thrash like titans, the title track and the brilliantly titled 'Thrashin' of the Christ' provide an awesome pairing in the middle of the album and its fantastic to see a genuine sense of humour still apparent in modern metal and not just raging about the ills of the world. 'Mind Eraser' must be given a special mention for its lyrics about the joys of binge drinking, and the thrash-blast of 'Black Ice' is commendable for the quality of a 45 second riff explosion about crashing on, surprisingly, black ice. Long let the Waste continue with this awesome thrash, and I hope that once the fad is over and the retro-thrashers disappear back to 1985 that Hazardous Mutation will still stand high as a pinnacle of 00s metal, regardless of genre.

Morbid Angel Live 24/06/08

This was a performance I'd been looking forward to ever since I became a Morbid Angel fan. It is not often that you can come across what can be considered as a bona fide legend in the music world. The longevity, quality and influence of this band can never be underestimated, and Domination stands as one of my most treasured musical belongings. Arriving rather early by accident to the Garage, I got a chance to properly peruse a merch stand rather than running up at the end going, 'I want XL in that one, ok you have none left, that one!'. A side note and not overly important to the gig but it was great to see a selection of 7 different designs of shirt, rather than the paltry two or three I am used to at concerts these days. Anyhoo, supporting act and local band Achren were a decent support, although yet another whose enthusiasm for the slot wasn't matched by the crowd response. A shame really because they were solid and entertaining.

And so to Morbid Angel. What a performance. David Vincent is every bit a frontman, his witty banter between songs keeping the crowd entertained, such as imploring a young lady not to dive off the balcony because she was too pretty to die. He almost looks like an evil(er) verion of Gene Simmons, surely the only man who can still get away with a skin tight plasticy-leather black shirt with a big silver pentagram on the front, and the usual cliched remarks about how metal fans strength comes from within and it doesn't matter what people think of you take on a new passion when spoken by an elder statesman of the genre. His performance was awesome, belching forth the classics: Maze of Torment, Chapel of Ghouls and Pain Defined were all dropped early in the set, and was followed almost by a greatest hits set, although disappointingly devoid of anything from Blessed are the Sick, which I felt was unfortunate. But it was a small disappointment, minature at best when the band created an effort like this. Tracks like God of Emptiness and Where the Slime Live take on a new level of malevolence in a live setting, Trey Azagthoth's labyrinthine style of riffing creates such a frenzy that he doesn't even need to head bang to create a pit frenzy. An excellent example of how quality musicianship is more important to a live performance than enthusiastic headbanging! Destructhor of Zyklon was an excellent second guitarist and Pete Sandoval's drumming was simply phenomenal. How he doesn't suffer from some form of muscle strain after every song astounds me. A rarely heard outing of 'Bill Ur-sag' from Formulas Fatal to the Flesh and a new track, Nevermore from the upcoming album were also both warmly welcomed. The new track was particularly excellent, a lurching behemoth with a catchy refrain and remiscient of their slower, later work rather than the hurtling intensity of Altars of Madness.

The gig did end rather early for my liking, only an hour and a quarter or so after they first strode onto the stage, but Morbid Angel slayed tonight. If they can create yet another essential album and come back for a longer set, there's going to be more than enough life in the old beast yet. Awesome

The Agony of Reviewing

Well, maybe a strong word for it, but anyone who does this will understand my issue I am having at the moment. In order to create, not a portfolio as such but I suppose it could be described as such, but a balanced way of reviewing music, and especially of such extreme stylings, it is important to me that I don't come across as overly positive all the time. I like to think i could create a review of an album that if people bought they could either agree or at least see where the thoughts came from. But I found, as I looked at my past writings, that almost all have been of an album I have greatly enjoyed and only one was anything that really approached a negative response. My problem is this; that if I don't enjoy an album, a band or a genre of music, than I don't listen to it. I'd much rather sit through a metal album that captured my attention, challenged me and more often than not, kicked some ASS! If an album doesn't grab me within the first, say, 3 or 4 tracks then I start to wonder whether it is worth listening to the rest.

And yet I have come across a number of albums in my time that grow on me over time, or that get better when the later tracks start. Its a conundrum for someone who would really like to do this kinda thing for, well maybe not a living, but certainly as a hobby, because as you know, when you come across an album that truly gets to you, truly speaks to you and influences you to check out a band or a genre, its a great moment. Everyone can remember the albums that got them into certain styles, no matter what it is. Death metal was unattractive to me until I heard Lashed to the Slave Stick from Nile's Annihilation of the Wicked cd (2005). I subsequently heard the rest of the album and was awestruck by the power, ferocity and above all the inventiveness of the band in such a previously unopen genre to me. I then began with their work and moved onto more stuff, and now own a massive collection of death metal cds. Its all about albums that strike you, but if an album doesn't, is it fair to stop listening and declare it shit before you evaluate the whole piece?

I review albums I enjoy listening to because that's what music is about, what you enjoy, what invigorates you, speaks to you, for you, what can brighten your day or simply make you wanna bang your head and jump into a pit with a large group of sweaty folks and go nuts. It doesn't even matter what makes you do it, as long as it does. Maybe I'll be able to put something up soon that was a proper disappointment to me, and that I wouldn't necessarily recommend to people. But in the end its all subjectivity. You may think an album that I love sucks, and vice versa, and therefore opinions almost seem redundant in such a field. On the other hand, most people get into bands due to a recommendation from a friend or magazine, so maybe subjectivity has some life in it yet...

Ihsahn - angL

Ihsahn can comfortably be defined as a musical genius, a virtuoso and progenitor of 4 of the finest metal albums ever to appear on the radar of this writer's musical experience. Every Emperor release was a masterclass in technicality, atmosphere, arrangement and inspiration. In the Nightside Eclipse is a cornerstone of my listening evolution, the black metal album that got me into it, as its scope and delivery was just so impressive to me. But what since Emperor's self-inflicted demise? Samoth and Trym went on to form death metal juggernauts Zyklon who also appear to get better with each subsequent release, showing that there was an excellent creative collaboration in Emperor, but Ihsahn's first solo album, The Adversary was met with mixed reactions and disappointment by many as it appeared to be as if Ihsahn was free to reign, but he was almost unwilling to fully release his visions. And yet it was still an excellent album of potent material, which always begged that question: what if it went further? Well thankfully he has returned with his second proper solo work, and what a work it is. Not only has he fully released his incredible talents, but Ihsahn has that uncanny ability to go into all regions of extreme metal, from harsh black to progressive and yet it never feels disjointed. Opener 'Misanthrope' unleashes with a bombastic roar and Ihsahn's instantly recognisable vocal stylings remind you of prime Emperor album openers like Curse You All Men! Opeth's Mikael Akerfeldt makes a passionate appearance on Unhealer and adds depth to a melancholic, powerful track that could go down as one of the great collaborations in extreme music. It contains beautiful pastoral clean guitar sections, great death vocal interplay between the two men and comes across as an essential mix in the album, not just a showy collaboration intent on bringing in Opeth fans etc. 'Thredony' possesses a vulnerability in its acousticness, and Ihsahn's progressive streak appears in full force in 'The Alchemist'. His hired hands on bass and drums, Lars Norberg and Asegir Mickelson from Spiral Architects, keep the performance tight and and natural, and play admirably. Its important not to forget that contribution but the star as always is Ihsahn. His performance is nothing short of magnificent, his impassioned vocal work on the verses of Emancipation and his technical, flowing guitarwork that punctuates every song on the album is a delight to behold. Finally we have the kind of work anyone who knows what he can create has expected, and it has been more than worth the wait. Long may the Emperor reign...

Children of Bodom Live 12/06/08

Children of Bodom are one of my favourite bands, but I have never got to see them live, since I got into them they only supported Slayer et al on the Unholy Alliance Tour. As much I probably should have been at that gig I couldn't really afford it. No matter, this was Bodom's first headline show in Scotland, and at the Carling Academy which is the best venue in Glasgow for bigger bands in my opinion. Sound always gets kinda lost at the SECC for me, except for Rammstein which was just so fire and explosion filled you wouldn't have noticed. Anyway, after a passable supporting act Anterior, my anticipation for Bodom was great. I've been a big fan of their earlier work for a number of years, and as much as they appear to have lost their melodic death streak to achieve a more streamlined, stadium metal sound, I still like their last two, no matter what anybody said. But if there's been consternation about their sound on record, live they are a finely honed killing machine. Opening with a rousing rendition of Sixpounder, C.O.B. led an eager, but if slightly too young for me, crowd into a frenzy of circle pits, shout along choruses and general all around metal mayhem. To be honest it was fantastic, they create a hell of a show, nailing every harmonic and excellent riffing section and Alexi Laiho is as charismatic a frontman as you'll find these days. They also possess an incredible array of excellent anthemic metal that would be ridiculed for its catchiness if it wasnt so well written and executed. Silent Night Bodom Night, Angel's Don't Kill, Follow the Reaper and Hate Me all hit the spot perfectly and my throat and neck were sore by the end. They also pulled out a magnificent cover, or half cover at least of Journey's Small Time Girl that had the crowd yelling along every word. Who says metalheads don't appreciate the cheesy rock?! Awesome performance, catch them if you can!

Cannabis Corpse - Tube of the Resinated

Ah the side project. Next to reforming older bands eager to cash in on a revival of their particular style, 10 years after it failed the first time, possibly the most easy to deride form of band. Side projects are usually an excuse for musicians in our more favourite bands to create music that is totally different from their main band, using other influences in their musical cauldron and can produce very strange and poor results. But not this one. Featuring Landphil from Municipal Waste, awesome retro-thrashers from Virgina that have properly kickstarted an old school thrash revival, not the metalcore one that Trivium can lay claim to, Cannabis Corpse wear their two main influences very much in their name alone. Weed and Cannibal Corpse might be an interesting combination, and I'm sure many a metalhead can back me up that it works. But musically, these boys have absolutely nailed their Cannibal Corpse impression. Its a fantastic album, one that the Corpse boys themselves would have been proud of, but of course with hilarious parody song titles (see Gallery of Stupid High and Addicted to Hash in a Tin as my personal favourites) and lyrics based on getting high and weed monsters instead of brutal forms of murder and perversion. Its brilliantly tongue in cheek and fantastically well written, and is another example that old school death metal is still alive and essential. Powerfully refreshing in the modern deathcore climate, the only problem is that they've left their deathly forefathers quite a task in creating a follow up as ball busting as this. But knowing the Corpse, they will.

Bloodbath - Unblessing the Purity

Oh welcome back to the full force of Mikael Akerfeldt's death metal growl! As much as I love the winding paths of Opeth's magnificent progressive death metal, I always wanted that inhuman growl, almost like a hurricane wind on its longer roars, to last longer. Luckily Bloodbath can provide me with this! Put together in the early 00s as a side project for Akerfeldt to create a properly old school death metal band, they released two awesome albums then split, as Opeth was to become Mikael's main focus. Any death metal fan worth his salt has at least one of Nightmares Made Flesh or Resurrection Through Carnage. So it was great news to hear that they are back and Akerfeldt is back too. This four track EP is hopefully only a taste of what to come, but it comes across more as force fed rather than a delicate sampling. Blasting the Virginborn comes hurtling out of the gates like a tidal wave of awesome riffs and roars, a thunderous drumming performance only adds power and Akerfeldt's voice displays a more malevolent side to his Opeth work. The other 3 tracks are of a similar quality, with Weak Aside highlighted by an awesome solo and Mouth of Empty Praise ending with a choral flourish to really ensure that you don't forget it. An excellent release, if a little short, but hopefully it will leave enough anticipation for a new studio album, apparently released in October. I can't wait...

Deicide - Till Death Do Us Part

Ah Deicide, a true metal legend. That word can be thrown around a lot these days and have lost its proper meaning, and I will admit I use it a lot for no real reason, but with Deicide it is very apt. Anyone who knows death metal knows about Glen Benton's antics as the cross-branding, Satanic warlord overseeing his band's particular brand of ultra-blasphemous death metal from their awesome beginnings with their self titled debut up to this new disc. Deicide the record was a landmark for ferocity, unbridled religious hatred and birthed a genre star. And yes, they suffered a mid period slump where we began to wonder where the Deicide we all knew and loved had disappeared to. But with the removal of the Hoffman brothers and more than adequate replacement guitarists, Deicide have been reborn. The Stench of Redemption (2006) was one of the most threatening and brutal death metal records I've ever, and I became hooked on it for a number of months. Even now I will still claim Homage for Satan as one of my favourite tracks of that year without a doubt. But to the new record, can the new-look Deicide deliver again or was Stench just a glowing one off? Well the band have not disappointed. Till Death Do Us Part is awesome. Simply awe-inspiring death metal that shows that the masters still can outdo their young pretenders when they put their mind to it. Its as if they thought to themselves, well Stench was good, so lets double it. Its faster, its harder, its devastatingly heavy in parts and yet retains the grace melodic edge that Ralph Santolla's work as guitarist in Iced Earth and others undoubtedly stamped on the previous album. That gave Stench that dash of the unexpected that made it such a modern classic, and here it comes into play once again, Santolla pealing off fluid solos left and right that allows new Deicide not to be the classic blasting machine it always has been but a more measured, complicated animal. The epic, brooding instrumental opener The Beginning of the End is an unexpected highlight, as most intros of such ilk tend to be almost unnecessary, and tracks such as the title track and Horror in the Halls of Stone show that Deicide are as essential now as they were when they first tore Jesus a new one all the way back in 1990.

Job for a Cowboy - Genesis

Now this is an album I've been meaning to get round to for a while. JFAC are best known as a Myspace phenomenon, with umpteen thousand friends and a sickeningly young average age. But this impressive following, youth and admitted technical ability has left them derided as a metal flash in the pan that couldn't possibly have the longevity of older death metal bands who did it the old tape trading, touring way. Now the whole merit of Myspace debate is one I care not to get involved in, as I see both sides of the argument having valid points. Yes it allows any old group of kids with the Internet, some instruments, and the spare time to crack out any old guff but it is also key in the creation and spread of new music, regardless of the genre. The debate will rage on, but as long as music can be spread this way, there's always going to be great finds. Back to the album, there's nothing particularly offensive about it, it has its moments of impressive beatdowns, excellent guitar play and some crushing chugging sections, especially in the opening 'Bearer of the Serpent's Lamb' and 'Martyrdom Unsealed', but such high points are tempered by two completely throwaway instrumental parts that must have seemed important to include because they were a bit 'different', calmer and more eerie. Unfortunately it breaks up the flow and would have been better cast down on the cutting room floor. JFAC are certainly a competent band, there's no doubting the musical ability or the enthusiasm for the product, but its a shame that its not a great product. Job for a Cowboy have some good ideas and there's plenty of potential here for improvement, the players are adept but you can find better modern death metal in the hands of All Shall Perish and Dead Beyond Buried. One for the curious and general listener of death metal, but nothing too captivating for the hardened death-head.

Gorgoroth - Under the Sign of Hell

I finally managed to pick myself up a Gorgoroth album recently, after being only able to listen to a promo version of their last release, Ad Majorem Sathanas Gloriam. I went for Under the Sign of Hell, their 1997 tour de force featuring the first full vocal performance of then vocalist Pest. ...Hell is a icy cold blast of grim, Norwegian black metal, drenched in that unmistakable northern atmosphere that so many black metal albums from such luminaries possess. It's an intense album, with a tracklist that includes some of the more cherished Gorgoroth tracks. Their name, incidentally, comes from a dead plateau of evil from Mordor in Lord of the Rings, and you can just imagine this blast flowing over a desolate and melancholic place. The mix is powerful and earthy but only adds to the rough ferocity of tracks like Profetens Åpenbaring and Revelation of Doom. Pest's vocal performance is strong and raw, his vocals tearing out over the thunder of Infernus' riffs, although it would not match current vocalist Gaahl for pure vehemence and malevolence on later albums. A fantastic black metal blast, which would stand tall over its successors Destroyer and Twilight of the Idols and probably only be better by the devastating explosion of hate-fuelled metal found on Ad Majorem..., if you love your black metal, you should already own this. If you wanna get into it, there are certainly worse places to start. A milestone for one band still keeping the controversy in black metal. Blast on.

Vicious Art - Pick Up This Sick Child

Well, this could have gone very wrong couldn't it? A 'supergroup' of sorts, Swedish death and black metal stalwarts from such metal icons as Entombed, Dark Funeral and Grave, come together to put out a 'proper' old school Swedish death metal album. You can almost hear the critics rampaging to the front of the pit, ready to storm the stage and yell 'nay' to this idea. Well hold on a second, because this is rather special. The Entombed/Grave sound comes through straight away, and Vicious Art put most of their effort into writing solid death metal tunes that are straightforward in their structure and yet supremely brutal. The black metal fury of Dark Funeral is also thrown into the mix, and creates a death/black hybrid that creates a solid foundation for the album. Tombstone Grind, the album opener, is an absolute stormer of a track and it goes to show that if you want top quality death metal, you can always rely on the old guard. You don't necessarily need to go to the new deathcore squadrons for proper heaviness. Pick Up This Sick Child is a great slab of old school death metal that doesn't require too much brainpower, only neck power to properly bang your head to. Sick or not, you should definitely pick this bad boy up if you like your death brutal, straightforward and classic.

Arsis - We are the Nightmare

Arsis have released quite a death/thrash beast here. Newly moved to Nuclear Blast, it shows a band invigorated and ready to jump out there and take up the mantel of thrash for the 21st century. Singer James Malone's vocals possess that vitriolic bark that matches up with the awesome riffing he and Ryan Knight throw out all over this record. It drips with musical quality, solos fly from left and right and the technicality of some of the riffs is most impressive. However therein lies a problem with this album, the technicality. Of course, fretboard wankery is all the rage these days ever since Dragonforce appeared with their 3000 notes-per-second 'extreme power metal' and unfortunately it has moved into other genres. Its not necessarily a bad thing, as the title track and Servants to the Night show with wonderful ability, but the ironically titled Progressive Entrapment throws lots of ideas at you without coming up with a particularly coherent result. Myself being a fan of a myriad of technical metal found it an impressive listen but only after a few runs through it. Its not for a casual metal fan, its work can feel a bit overpowering and certain tracks lack that 'easy to headbang to' section that appeals to the mainstream metal public. Overall though, its solid enough, an enjoyable thrash through 10 tracks of melodic death with many bursts of technicality for the fretboard watchers in us out there, but some may find it a bit too messy. Maybe a bit less on the notes-per-second, and more on a streamlining of their attack for their next album and these guys could definitely put together an excellent work.

Thank You Trent Reznor

I have been a big fan of Nine Inch Nails for a number of years now, not just for the rock club floor filling stomp of Closer or Head Like a Hole but more for Reznor's less accessible works, like The Wretched or Me, I'm Not. Of course, NIN's appeal is obvious; a somewhat dark and twisted outlook on life married to an undeniable pop sensibility and the ability to write some damn fine pieces of music has lead to critical acclaim for Trent Reznor. But after the release of Year Zero, an excellent concept album about the collapse of a dystopian future, I was worried that we would have to wait another year or so for new NIN material, especially since I'd just begun to collect the EPs, remix albums and extensive back catalogue, and since I'd been lucky enough to unwittingly choose the 2nd show of his double header in Glasgow, where they played the less popular but arguably better material such as Heresy, Burn, Eraser and Help Me I Am In Hell.

And yet, Reznor will never let down his fans, more of the viral marketing that I found so appealing about Year Zero crept in and we have two new albums worth of material from Reznor this year alone, Ghosts I-IV and The Slip. Both originally offered as free digital downloads for fans, Ghosts has been released on a double CD format and vinyl, and soon The Slip will see the same release. Ghosts was recorded in a 10 week period in 2007 after the end of NIN's record deal, and was critically acclaimed for the way it was released: no advertising, no promotion, and released in such a format where anyone can remix and re-interpret the songs as long as they don't use it for commercial value. The Slip was preempted by a new song being released through the official NIN site, with a comment in the mp3 details saying May 5th. Subsequently, the album was released in a fully free downloadable form on Monday, and it is excellent. Makes you wonder why bands can take years between records when Reznor can create two full albums in little over 8 months. Admittedly Ghosts is all instrumental but that is arguably how NIN's music can be best appreciated. We know that Trent's lyrics of anguish and self destruction made him a poster boy for disaffection but his attention to detail in his music is second to none. Instrumentally, you can pick up subtle nuances in his work, sounds that you would never notice under vocals, moods, atmospheres, that affect songs in a way you can't understand, but in a way you know is good.

So thank you Trent Reznor, I appreciate all that you have ever done for rock and industrial, and I hope this new found productivity continues and you keep making music the way you do, because in this day of identikit metal bands, it's good to have a true maverick and genius among our ranks. Meet your master indeed...

Never forget the favourites

I've had a bit of a reawakening recently. I went to Poland for a few days with my girlfriend, and while I was there I went in search of Polish metal, as I've got a bit of a thing for finding the most obscure releases from the strangest countries you see. My collection is full of Ukrainian pagan metal, Israeli black metal, Taiwanese symphonic black metal and even Kazakhstani power metal (rock on Holy Dragons!). But for some reason I decided to make a conscious decision to listen to nothin but work by the classic bands of metal while I was there. My foundations must've been feeling a bit weak or something. Anyway, that was me, the plane journeys out and back, train and bus journeys were full of Maiden, Slayer, Megadeth, Metallica, Sabbath, Pantera, Venom and Morbid Angel. I discovered that I can't now stop listening to that, even since I've got back. I've had Powerslave, in my opinion Iron Maiden's best album, on repeat for a few days. Its so damn good, its got all of what makes Iron Maiden the greatest metal band in existence (Sabbath technically don't exist properly anymore). The galloping riffs, a massive prog workout (Rime of the Ancient Mariner), my all time fav Maiden track (2 Minutes to Midnight), and of course, the combination of Bruce Dickinson's classic voice and Steve Harris' excellent song-writing. Something of an irony I found when I got home and sat and read the inner cover book of the album is that the World Slavery Tour kicked off IN Poland, the first time a band had ever taken an arena-sized tour to the Eastern bloc. Must've been a sign. Anyway, my point this post is that go out, search for the obscure stuff, keep metal bands going all around the world if you can, and explore as much as you can because you never know when you can dig up a gem hidden in the underground. But also, never forget the classic bands and recordings. Powerslave, Reign in Blood, Black Sabbath, Altars of Madness, Black Metal, Rust In Peace, Master of Puppets; they all influenced everyone you'll ever listen to. They also all deserve to be kept in the loop, listened to and appreciated frequently to make sure that they're never forgotten, and so you always can know how we got to where we are.

Math Metal/Mathcore: The Most Impressive Genre?

Now I know thats a bit of an overreaching statement, and one that will receive some dismissal as mere opinion, but if you're a math metal fan you'd find it hard to deny. I first got into math metal when I heard 43% Burnt by the Dillinger Escape Plan. It blew my head off, I had never heard such a mind bending blast of technicality before and I'll be honest, I didn't get it to start off with. It seemed to be a literally representation of noise for noise sake. But a close friend of mine got me into DEP with their Miss Machine album, and I've not looked back, and I thank her sincerely for that! DEP had pretty much defined mathcore with Calculating Infinity, their 1999 album, and at the same time took it to its most extreme conclusion. Miss Machine was a more sideways move than progression, incorporating more melody and singalong ability without losing any of their roots and skill. But of course DEP are not the only purveyors of such mind altering metal. Meshuggah are the kings of odd time signatures, polyrhythmic riffs and head caving groove. Behold...the Arctopus, a personal favourite, are the instrumental equivalent, again a wonderful cocktail of technicality and brutality. Other bands like Psyopus, British underground heroes Sikth, Daughters, Fear Before the March of Flames, Norma Jean and of course, the bands that laid the foundations for such a discordant, spazzed out genre, Botch and Converge, have managed to keep this genre flourishing which is always so surprising considering its obtuse style and severe lack of mainstream ideas. Well, except for the infectious choruses of some DEP songs from their latest, Ire Works. So if you're a metalhead who finds even some of the more technical thrash, death or black metal just not quite enough, or if you're just looking for something a bit mental, keep an eye out for mathcore.

Essential Releases:
Botch - American Nervoso - buy here
Dillinger Escape Plan - Calculating Infinity - buy here
Psyopus - Our Puzzling Encounters Considered - buy here
Behold..the Arctopus - Skullgrid - buy here
Daughters - Hell Songs - buy here
Meshuggah - Catch 33 - buy here
Sikth - Death of a Dead Day - buy here

Dillinger Escape Plan - myspace page
Psyopus - official website
Sikth - offical website
Behold...the Arctopus - myspace profile
Daughters - myspace profile
Botch - myspace profile
Mesuggah - offical website

Immolation - Close to a World Below

Immolation are veterans of the death metal industry, releasing solid and generally magnificent death metals since their ferocious debut Dawn of Possession in 1991. They've refined their brutal technical and unwavering blasphemy spewing music into something we can rely on. Unfortunately I feel they can be regarded as rather underrated, even though they rarely put a foot wrong musically. When you think of death metal, they're not in the top 5 that instantly pop to mind, but in terms of consistent quality, they probably should be. After reading a review and hearing a promo version of their newest release, Shadows in the Light, I decided to invest in their back catalogue. The first record I decided to pick up was 2000's Close to a World Below, an excellent slab of death metal with appropriate Christ baiting cover with a crucifixion scene in the fires of hell and a crowd of damned souls. Musically Immolation were firing on all cylinders here, the twisted riffing of Robert Vigna is instantly recognisable, a thunderous chugging section that winds Lost Passion to a close is perfect for a bang of your head, and the blasting starts to both Furthest from the Truth and Put My Hand in the Fire show that Immolation can still blow most death metal bands out of the water. Overall Close to a World Below is a great record, one that kept Immolation at the top of their game and solidified their position as one of the flagbearers of extreme metal to this day. Lets hope their newest can finally get them the worldwide recognition their individuality and style warrant. If this is the soundtrack to the world below, count me in...

Links: www.everlastingfire.com (Official Website)

Power Metal: Yes Please or Too Much Cheese? (This One's For Neil)

Confusing title you may think, but it will become clear. My friend Neil is not a metal fan, in fact he's much more Belle and Sebastian than Cannibal Corpse. But he and I found a strange connection in our love for uber cheese power metal. You know the kind: Rhapsody, Lost Horizon, Dragonforce and the like. He became a fan when I listened to Rhapsody's Symphony of Enchanted Lands II: The Dark Secret album in his presence. With Christopher Lee providing the narrative to tales of ancient kings, wizards and dragons, its a perfect example of what I want to talk about; is the super cheesy, dragons and wizards style power metal really to be looked upon as ridiculous, or is it actually a flag bearer for 'true' metal? I believe that it definitely incorporates parts of both arguments. Yeah it can be ridiculous, just one look at the cover of Lost Horizon's Awakening the World, above, will show that there is much to deride. The chains, the facepaint, the swords and shields, dragons, magic, mystical times and places, its all very Warcraft/Dungeons and Dragons and of course bears little or no resemblance to problems that the real world face. And surely, as grown men or women, why wouldn't you have grown out of such things? The other side of the coin answers this entirely. Power metal is there to be the lighter side of metal, it's normally a guilty pleasure for most metal fans, they like to hide their Blind Guardian or Rhapsody albums from their more kvlt friends. But we all love a bit of fantasy now and then, we can't all go through our lives dealing with real issues without some form of escape. Why do you think Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean were so hugely popular? Because its escapism. Plus probably Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom as well. But mainly escapism.
The point is that power metal albums are normally brilliantly over the top, and reminds you that metal is still allowed to be fun. Many of them are classic additions to metal, such as Blind Guardian's Nightfall in Middle Earth. So me and Neil will keep listening to our Rhapsody, our Luca Turilli, our Dragonforce, and we will be proud of it. And all other power metal fans should be proud of it too, because lets be honest, its THE most metal genre of them all!

Today's Purchases

Now I'm an avid cd collector. As much as I have downloaded in the past, I am much more of a fan of the actual CD, the overall package you get with it, and of course, I understand that extreme metal needs the sales to thrive. I remember when I saw Dead Man in Reno support Sikth in 06 in Glasgow, I bought their album and got the guys to sign it after a great discussion at the merch table. Now I'd never heard them before, but I was impressed by their energy and their music, and I felt they deserved their modest £8 for their album, which turned out to be rather good. But I'm getting away from my point. Today I went to my local and favourite record store, Avalanche, to make some cd purchases. They've got an excellent selection of new metal, and their second hand collection is second to none. That was where I managed to find three of my four purchases today. Tool's magnificent 10,000 Days was only £5.99, and for a progressive metal album of such unbelievable quality, thats amazing. I was an instant fan of Vicarious when I heard it for the first time last year, and the rest match the quality of this. Essential. I also managed to find Napalm Death's Smear Campaign for the same price, and the self titled debut from Melencolia Estatica. The former, everyone reading this should know, are the legendary death/grindcore band from Birmingham who are as essential on their latest as they were when they first tore the metal genre a new arsehole all the way back. ND are always reliable, I find, at just hammering the fuck out of you, and yet leaving you totally satisfied. The latter is a black metal band from Italy, an interesting prospect of being a one woman project dealing in sadness and depression (as if you couldn't get that from the title). It's great undergound black metal, laced with icy, melancholy atmospheres that surround the riffs and drag you down with them. Finally I got Suffocation's Despise the Sun EP. Suffocation are veterans of death metal, with their Effigy of the Forgotten album a bona fide classic of the genre, and this EP doesn't disappoint. It is their trademark mix of brutality and head spinning technicality, along with seriously deep growling. It'd be a perfect starter to their sound, short and sharp but head cavingly heavy.

My death metal week

Well following on from my last article on my favourite recent death metal finds, I went on a big spree of death metal listening. Normally I like to vary my metal styles, keep it fresh but just for the past few days it has been solid death metal. Carcass, Death, Bolt Thrower, Immolation, Cryptopsy, all have passed through my ears and more. Overall I think I've made it through 20 death metal albums in the past 4 days:

1. Decapitated - Winds of Creation
2. Vader - Litany
3. Hate Eternal - King of All Kings
4. Death - Leprosy
5. Nile - Black Seeds of Vengeance
6. Obituary - Slowly We Rot
7. Morbid Angel - Covenant
8. Bolt Thrower - Realm of Chaos
9. Immolation - Here in After
10. Deicide - Once Upon the Cross
11. Cryptopsy - Whipser Supremacy
12. Vital Remains - Into Cold Darkness
13. Carcass - Necrotism
14. Suffocation - Souls to Deny
15. Immolation - Harnessing Ruin
16. Fear Factory - Soul of a New Machine
17. Death - Human
18. Hypocrisy - Virus
19. Cannibal Corpse - Kill
20. Nile - Ithyphallic

Thats just going my iTunes recently played list. I tried to make a mix, old and new, technical with all out brutality, satanic to gore, and I have to say my overwhelming favourite has been Black Seeds of Vengeance by Nile. It combines wonderful technicality with suffocating atmosphere to a devastating effect. I once heard Nile being described as 'like being pummelled repeatedly over the head with a pyramid'. Can't think of any description more suited. But the thing I loved most about Nile's masterpiece is the impressive use of ethnic instrumentation. It creates a great originality and signature sound for the band. It would be a style perfected on Annihilation of the Wicked and Ithyphallic, but probably never bettered than right here.
I can't wait to see them when they tour here soon!

Unsung death metal

Well I decided after taking a sweep through my album collection, to try and raise the profile of some of my favourite and less vaunted death metal albums. My first choice is Hate Eternal's Conquering the Throne, the debut album from Erik Rutan and his horde. I have read a number of reviews saying that it suffers from a level of sameyness throughout, but personally I feel the album shows off a promising start for a band which would later release one of my favourite death albums I, Monarch. It thunders along, propelled by a rain of blastbeats and Rutan's bellowing growl. There are some great guitar interplay sections and Nailed to Obscurity is probably the best track. Up next would have to be Into Cold Darkness from Vital Remains. This was one of the early VR albums, well before they were dragged into the limelight by the infamous bark of Glen Benton, and outside the opening track most are of a shorter length than the later albums which would occasionally slip into the 'a few minutes too long' category. Into Cold Darkness is a great album, where the band began to develop their epic leads, but appear to have left a lot of their slower, more mid pace material. The album's name is also suited to the music, as inputs of keyboards at crucial moments to create an icy cold atmosphere. Sweden's Grave is our third band, with their Into the Grave debut from 1991. It contains the traditional Swedish guitar sound, a thundering buzz with the same technique and style as we can see from Entombed and Dismember. Into the Grave is a great debut, its raw, its filthy, its violent, and it's classic early 90s death metal. Finally, I chose Vader's Litany. These Polish death metal veterans have rarely disappointed me since I first heard Xeper a few years ago. Like their countrymen Decapitated, Vader provide a powerful, bass drum heavy attack and propulsive riffs that I simply love. Xeper still reigns as one of the catchy death metal tracks I have heard, and definitely in my top ten. So there you have, any more unsung death metal classics out there?

Mayhem live in Glasgow

Well I've just got back, breathless and confused and yet hugely impressed, from the Mayhem gig in Ivory Blacks in Glasgow. If you've heard the newest Mayhem album, Ordo Ad Chao, you'll know its a bleak, harsh, punishing experience; a black hole of nihilist torment that you never know quite what to expect is coming next, and yet its exhilirating. And their live show was of the same calibre, completely mesmerising. Attila Csihar, the legendary voice of De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, has returned to the fold, and he is the focus of their live show. Tonight, he appears through the crowd, dressed like a bishop but with a head mask that could only really be described as a cross between an elephant and a fly; a bug eyed horrific specimen which ironically matches the demonic 'Satan with a sore throat' vocals he somehow produces. Its unholy, its inhuman, and yet he holds the entire crowd in the palm of his hand, only removing the mask for a thoroughly violent rendition of Anti, the closing track for the gig and the new album. I left the gig completely bemused, confused to whether I'd enjoyed myself and to be honest, drunk on the atmosphere generated. Looking back, its definitely the most unique gig I may ever attend, and one of the best of my year so far.

To cause some debate...

So I thought I'd kick off a debate on this blog, if anyone ever visits of course, but I'm wanting to find out any ideas for the albums of the year so far? Can be any type of metal, but metal only please, I'd like this as a genuine debate. I feel that we've already had some beauties since January kicked off, and my first front runners are the new Mars Volta (The Bedlam in Goliath) and The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull from drone titans Earth. My vote goes for Earth though, after seeing them in Stereo, Glasgow just the other week was an awesome experience. Its a mesmerising experience, and listening to the album is the same. Dylan Carlson and his troop have crafted a wonderful album that has moved far from the drone roots but yet retains the simplistic, cyclical riffing and hypnotic drumming that keeps you hooked. Instrumental music is all about landscapes, what it makes you feel without the influence of lyrical content. Earth create, for me, the feel of an American desert plain, stretching out into the distance as far as you could see, sun high in a clear sky. It is music for your soul, for the times you need something for you to imprint your self on while contemplating. Now, any other takers?!

First album recommendations

I might as well start off this thing with some recent album finds that any metal fans would be interested in. Obviously these will depend on your particular tastes in metal, be it progressive, death, black, doom or whatever, but I'm pretty open minded so I have some good finds out there for anyone who may have missed them. On the progressive/power metal side, look out for Andromeda Unchained by Danish band Anubis Gate. They have crafted an excellent album, full of heavy riffs, epic choruses, great progressive sections and the kinda spacy ethereal sounds you'd expect from a power metal band whose album is a concept about other galaxies! Fantastic. Moving toward the darker side of music, my recent favourite finds in the death metal world are Slovakian band Wayd's 2001 album Barriers, and Gojira's From Mars to Sirius. Now the latter is obviously much more well known and reviewed, but I got a burst of Ocean Planet on my iPod the other day while walking into uni, and it hit me again just how head cavingly heavy it is. I mean people say heavy is speed, heavy is technicality, but I'll tell you, nothing can beat that opening riff. When you are lulled in by that soothing whale song then get hit over the head with what feels like the ocean, thats the future of death metal, right there. The rest of From Mars... is as heavy as this, and with riffing like this, you gotta own it. As for the former, it was a random find after getting an email about a supersale at Grindethic where loads of records were down to £1.99. The term 'experimental death metal' sucked me in, and it was worth it. I'm guessing its quite unknown, as I'd never heard of them before and not seen any reviews for their newer releases, but if I'm wrong, sucks to me and I need to work on my underground credentials! But its a definite recommendation for anyone who enjoys a blast of technical death from Eastern Europe. Final album to get a hold of is This is Gun City by Sanzen. Sanzen are a British metallic hardcore band, shot through with rock and roll influences that give it an angular riffing brilliance. Throw in touches of Botch and Refused and you've got the makings of a fine album. They have a great t-shirt and cd offer on at their record label, In at the Deep End, check it out...

First Post

Well, how to start... I decided to start this blog to get out there with my love of metal music. I was inspired by a blog i became an avid visitor to, www.invisibleoranges.com, i'd recommend it. The author is a music reviewer, and as you do, you read thinking, oh I could do that! But thats not wat I intend, I just want to help spread the awesome world of metal to anyone who is interested. I'll add postings about new albums I get and recommend, music stories that may cause interest and other issues that hopefully we can get some good debate going on. I encourage any comments, recommendations for albums for myself to get a hold of, and any debate we can have. But please, no stupid posts for the sake of it, and i welcome criticisms but not without reason or decent argument. happy reading!