Füneral Rain Press Cörps

Genres: Black Metal, Thrash
Label: Prosthetic Records

Thrash, at it’s core, with death and black metal permutations, Breathing the Fire is a tour de force. Melodic bits are surrounded by evil dripping with blood. And I think my neck is going to snap soon.
Chance has always had a really cool sounding voice, and it’s even better this album. His deep growls are creepy like Glen Benton’s, and his higher shrieks are on par with some of the best of Nocturno Culto (they just sound completely different).
The guitar work from Nate and Scott is thrashy as hell, like old Anthrax or Exodus, and the solos are fast and tight. I think it’s better than Beyond the Permafrost, as far as tones go. Bass is the bass with Skeletonwitch, Evan is doing his job right; he keeps everyone moving along and not being too flashy, and is just a fucking perfect bassist. Nice and fast too, reminding me a little of Steve Harris as far as his tones go. And finally, last but not least, the drum throne is occupied by Derrick, and this dude can drum. The backbone of this band is goddamn straight folks, solid like granite and he’s got some really awesome fills on this album.
8 out of 10.

Skeletonwitch on MySpace.

Genre: Black Metal
Label: Independent

A nice and short CD-R, this self-produced demo is really good.
Musically, it’s black metal with some nice deep bass and doomy riffing at times, with mid-paced to fast tempos.
Mostly instrumental, and definitly grim and kvlt, and I’d recommend you check this band if you’re into black metal bands like second-wavers 1349, Carpathian Forest, and Darkthrone.
Simply put, 7.5 out of 10.

Terra Australis on MySpace.

Genres: Goth, Post Punk, Rock
Label: Fiction Records, Elektra Records, Rhino Records

This album was released, originally, three years before I was even born. And still, it doesn’t sound dated. Proof positive that The Cure are a truly timeless band, and would be more than relevent today even if they were no longer active.
Longish songs, none under 4:20, most in the five and six minute plus areas, and all have Robert Smith’s distinctive British voice. It’s also, tone, mood, and lyrically, one of The Cure’s darkest albums, especially in comparison to newer releases like 4:13 Dream or the eponymous disc before that.
In other words, it’s the perfect gothic rock album, full of deep bass, dancy drums, and really cool guitar riffs. One of my personal favorites from The Cure, my favorite tracks are “One Hundred Years”, “The Hanging Garden”, and the title track.
9.5 out of 10 from me.

The Cure’s Official Site.
The Cure on MySpace.

Genres: Gothic Metal, Horror Metal
Label: Prophecy Productions

Branding themselves horror metal, while others call them gothic metal, when I first heard the song “By Our Brotherhood With Seth” I was fucking hooked. Then I read up on them in a couple magazines, and I was an even bigger fan. But alas, I could not find them in the metal section or even the rock section at my local retailer. And then I found them in the punk section. Yeah. The punk section. While the label they are on has put a sticker on the album case that says “Horror Metal” right on it, billing them as Rammstein meets Sisters of Mercy. I don’t fucking understand either. But, whatever.
I agree with said billing, as the music itself is heavy, hard hitting, and simple. Very effective. And affective. Like both Rammstein and Sisters of Mercy. But, it’s also great because it’s completly different too. Nile fans might like the Egyptian references, while Poison Black fans might like the nice gothyness of it. Horror fans might like the werewolves that the band seems to love, as well as finding one’s own burial plot filled with their own body. It’s got something for everyone, and it’s catchy as hell to boot.
The one thing I would have done to this album if I was in The Vision Bleak is tack on about three more songs. It’s really good, but too damn short.
8 out of 10.

Genres: Doom, Sludge
Label: Independent

If you want to score brownie points with this reviewer, have a band name that’s a Simpsons reference. (Points aren’t offered to Fall Out Boy or Mr. Plow, but were given to Evergreen Terrace, Thrillhoes and Dirk Richter’s Ghost.) Mixing antichristian bravado and pagan rhetoric with the skull crushing power of sludge metal, (the swampiest of metals) the lads in Stonecutters present their sophomore album, Christhammer. Right off the bat (well, after the intro), these four Kentuckians bring on some ferocious, groovy doomy sludge metal. And with songs about fucked up vampiric creatures (I, Wurdulak), the anti-heaven (Black Zion), a condemned, with an abundance of good reasons asylum (Waverly, which is about the Waverly Hill Sanatorium… *shudder* Look it up!) and a song ripped straight from a witch’s tome, you know you’re in for a hell of a ride! Make no mistake about it, Stonecutters split the rocks of metal ignorance and enlighten all of those who take the time to enjoy this enchanting entry. On a side note; this album features the best compilation jacket art I have ever bore witness to! (Thanks to the spellbinding art of one W. Dave Pollard.)

Overall, let me just say this: Christhammer is the perfect album to get drunk and play ping-pong to…

8.5/10

Stonecutters On MySpace

Originally posted at E-MetalSpace