America’s reigning kings of brutality, Cannibal Corpse, will unleash their twelfth studio offering this March via Metal Blade Records. Aptly titled Torture, the follow-up to 2009′s Evisceration Plague offers up 12 tracks of maniacally precise, soul-searing death metal. Torture was again produced by Hate Eternal‘s Erik Rutan at his own Mana Recording Studio in St. Petersburg, Florida as well as Sonic Ranch in Tornillo, Texas, and features the maniacal cover art by longtime Cannibal Corpse artist, Vincent Locke.
While Torture marks the latest progression in the band’s sound, it also witnesses a return to what drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz accurately terms “the frenzied attack of Butchered At Birth (1991) or Tomb Of The Mutilated (1992),” infusing the band’s advanced musicianship with the raw savagery that haunted their earlier releases, and in the process conceiving the definitive Cannibal Corpse record. Adds bassist Alex Webster on the outcome of the record: “We’re extremely happy with how Torture turned out. Erik Rutan did an amazing job with the production, and the songwriting and performances may be our strongest yet. We can’t wait until our fans get to hear the whole thing!”
Witness the gutting sounds of “Demented Aggression,” the band’s first single, as well as studio footage, at the official Cannibal Corpse landing page, at THIS LOCATION.
Torture Tracklisting:
01. Demented Aggression
02. Sarcophagic Frenzy
03. Scourge of Iron
04. Encased in Concrete
05. As Deep As the Knife Will Go
06. Intestinal Crank
07. Followed Home Then Killed
08. The Strangulation Chair
09. Caged…Contorted
10. Crucifier Avenged
11. Rabid
12. Torn Through
As a precursor to the release, Cannibal Corpse will perform a special one-off show at the Culture Room in West Palm Beach, Florida on January 22nd then head to the seas to take part in this year’s edition of the 70,000 Tons Of Metal Cruise. The band will get a short break before a near month-long march through Europe on the Full Of Hate 2012 tour with labelmates Behemoth.
Torture will be released in North America on March 13, 2012.
Cannibal Corpse:
Alex Webster – Bass
Paul Mazurkiewicz – Drums
Rob Barrett – Guitar
Patrick O’Brien – Guitar
George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher – Vocals
Posted in News on January 11th, 2012 by General Blaspheme
A long overdue split release, Sri Lanka’s psychotic auditory terrorists and the legionaries of the 666th battalion of the Raavan cult have congregated to create, manifest and aid world spiritual warfare. Released on limited edition vinyl by Dunkelheit Produktionen in December 2011, the seven deranged and trance inducing hymns of tantric mantras – collectively known as Astral Mantras of Dyslexia – are now being released by Dunkelheit on Digipak CD on February 25th with different artwork and a huge booklet!
Included are not only the infamous Stoned Guru Ramblings by Plecto Aliquem Capite and “Buddhang Saranang” by Funeral In Heaven recorded as a tribute to an ancient Sri Lankan cult, the album also contains the byproduct bastard progeny “Crestfallen: Immolating Shakthi” purged into existence by fusing ancestral possessions inherited by both projects. Astral Mantras of Dyslexia is 50 minutes of ominous Sri Lankan ritualistic auditory therapy for mentally deranged ancient worshipers of astral energy. Limited edition hooded sweatshirts featuring the album’s artwork are currently available at Dunkelheit Produktionen’s webstore.
Posted in Reviews on January 2nd, 2012 by General Blaspheme
Genres: Death Metal, Thrash Label: Independent
This CD arrived in my mailbox rather unexpected, but I was somewhat excited to check it out. Mexican death metal is usually pretty good, and when mixed with thrash, it’s even better. Hellsing prove this theory, and have become my second favorite band from Mexico.
The overall sound is a very clean thrash, in the vein of newer Trivium, Avenged Sevenfold, or Bullet For My Valentine, but don’t let that discourage you. I know some metalheads would cringe at those comparisons, but when faced with the excellent growls of Jose Luis your idea should change. These guys are the real deal, holding up a ‘true’ metal (whatever that means) flag for the world to unite under.
Opening track “The Rival” opens up with a simple, thrashy intro but quickly turns into a very fistpumping death metal track that strongly reminds me of Canadian thrashers Titans Eve and Trivium, with a bit of 3 Inches of Blood and Cannibal Corpse. Some really awesome solos are in this song, so get your air guitar ready.
The second track, the title track to the EP, is a short song, not even a full minute long. It’s a nice quiet instrumental that leads you into “The Dark Side of the Moon”, a NWOBHM/thrash riff infested slow piece. Iron Maiden meets Entombed? Something like that. Again, solos. These guys know how to do them right; little mini songs that help the main song out. Great stuff.
Bonus track “Razor” is a faster, more evil-sounding vocal track with a fucking killer solo section at 1:28 that doesn’t let up until 2:48, where it goes into the main riff. This thing gallops along like Maiden but just slays with it’s shredding thrashtastic guitar work. Definitely my favorite song on the EP.
The second bonus track, and last song, “The Final Hour” starts off HUGE, reminding me of thrash infected gothic metal. Don’t let that trick you though, as Jose comes in and throws down a vocal that turns this song into a totally melodic Swedeath homage to bands like Dark Tranquillity, In Flames, and Soilwork. Second favorite track on the EP for sure.
If you’re into deaththrash, check out Hellsing MX. These guys are really good at what they are doing, and deserve at least a look at.
7.5 out of 10.
Posted in Reviews on December 31st, 2011 by General Blaspheme
Genres: Depressive Black Metal, Progressive Black Metal, Progressive Metal Label: Hypnotic Dirge Records
Ekove Efrits presents a strange listen, one that is somewhat hard to get through without rewinding it once in awhile to catch something that caught your ear. The core is based around black metal, with a depressive lean, but it’s so progressive in ways that it’s hard to call it black metal at all in some sections.
Strings and keys play a huge part in the overall sound, with a slightly longer song structure averaging just over six minutes. Slower paces and spoken words, whispers, and immense atmosphere really help drag you into the music. I wouldn’t recommend playing this at your next party, unless you were planning a Jim Jones tribute.
Fans of Nine Inch Nails (especially The Fragile), Kraftwerk, Opeth, Morgul, and HDR’s other releases should not miss out on this one. It’s really good.
7 out of 10.
Posted in Interviews on December 29th, 2011 by General Blaspheme
Here’s another ancient interview, dragged from the depths of obscurity (and my hard drive) from the Funeral Rain Zine/MySpace ages. This was originally published on June 30, 2009.
For people who have never heard Sirenia, how would you describe the sound of the band?
I would say Sirenia’s style is Gothic Metal or Symphonic Metal, but maybe people think otherwise. I never listen to music and say “this band’s style is that one, that other band’s got this other style”. Does it matter the style when the music is good?
What of the lyrical themes? Are there any themes that seem to repeat, or are they more of a story or concept?
Morten composed the tracks from the album as he’s always done with all Sirenia albums, so the stories behind each song are only known by him and he never reveals his inspirations. He prefers each person to give the meaning they want. So I could give you my opinion, but I don’t want it to be like a statement of the real meaning, so I’ll keep it to myself. :P
You are in a band that has a strong history, even before it’s current inception. You are in a position that requires you to follow in the footsteps of three other frontwomen, who each have their own fans. Do you find this daunting at all?
From the beginning I knew it wouldn’t be easy, because the band’s got former singers and some people prefer them over me, but I don’t find it annoying, cos it’s usual. Each person has their taste and some think they like more former singers, but I’m not Fabienne, Henriette or Monika, we all have our own unique style. My singing being different from theirs doesn’t mean I’m better or worse, just I’m different. I’m just trying to give my best, so my band is happy with me and the choice they made when they selected me, and so people can like my work and be happy with it.
You yourself have a strong history in music, singing ever since you were 15. Could you give us a quick rundown of your music career?
I found I wanted to be a singer when I was about 12, but I just sang at home. I played my favourite singers of the moment’s songs and tried to imitate them, and that’s how I began with music. At 15 I told my mum I wanted to be a singer, and I got enlisted to a musical school, but for personal reasons I had to leave after just one year. Then sometime later I sang every year in my home town in a show they made to get funds for Alzheimer’s disease. I’ve also participated in contests, both nationally and internationally. In 2007 I was in the first Spanish edition of X Factor, and I was booted off the fifth. When I was out of the show I worked with some musicians from Granada, but the project didn’t work out because they wanted pop and I wanted Gothic Metal. Just after I left this project, I got the chance to be Sirenia’s new vocalist.
How was recording the new album for you? Did you have time to get to know the band before recording, or were you pretty much thrust into the role?
The album’s recording was real fun. In the studio there were just Morten and I, and we had so much fun during the recording process. It was easier than I thought it would be. At first I was slightly worried because it was the first time I was in a studio to record something so important as a Sirenia album, but just as the music started it was easy. Morten’s music gives so many things so I just had to let myself go into what I was listening.
When we began recording I already knew the band members, because in the second audition they were all there. Also, before the album’s recording we had a couple of shows.
The first single from the new album, entitled “The Path to Decay” has a great video, directed by Patric Ullaeus. How was working with Patric for you and the band?
Working with Patric was really great for us, he’s a charming person and very professional. Also, Patric’s been on the industry for so long and he’s worked with many big bands, so he’s got a lot of experience in this. So for a band like us it was great to work with someone like him because he understands our vision of things. Even before seeing the results of the video shooting we knew we would be happy with the final result.
Other than the kinds of music you perform, what do you listen to? Are there any particular bands you’d like to namedrop as favorites or influences?
Since I began singing, I listen to all kind of music styles, I don’t like to concentrate in just one style. Listening to all this, I get the chance to learn things that I wouldn’t if I just listened to just one of them. There are a lot of bands and vocalists that I like, so I can’t start saying which ones or we would never end!
I’ve read that you happen to love videogames. What kind of consoles do you prefer, and what’s your favorite game at the moment, and your favorite game of all time?
I love videogames, but lately I don’t have time to play, but for long travels I usually take my PSP so I can get distracted. At the moment I like a lot of games, but my most favorite videogame from years ago is Final Fantasy 7.
I’ve also read that you’re a fan of The Lord of the Rings, the books and films. What else is on your reading/watching list?
Yes, I am a big fan of The Lord Of The Rings. Before the movies were shot I already had read the books a couple of times. I love everything that’s written by Tolkien, even I can’t remember exactly how many times I’ve read each book or seen every movie. I like to read all kind of stuff, but I love fantasy books, with fiction, action, etc…
