Funeral Rain Press Corps

Ah, Shaytan Productions. You’ve been so patient with me over these past couple of months. You see, I’ve been sitting on this review for about three months now and I’m FINALLY getting around to listening to it. I don’t know why, either. It’s destructive Italian black metal with some English and German lyrics with an Egyptian theme… *whew*

With that being said, there are a lot of other things that I could say about this offering. A LOT of things. But instead, I’ll sum it all up with this simple statement: HOLY FUCKING SHIT THERE’S A LOT OF AWESOME STUFF GOING ON IN THIS EP!!!  …Ok, you’ll probably need more than that to go on, won’t you?

First off, let’s talk about those vocals. Fucking killer! Quintessential black metal vocals that range from typical shrieks to tortured throaty screams! Every bit of which is used very effectively to tell various stories about mummification, purification and the end of the world! The guitar in this is more on the minimal side of things, but is once again, used very effectively. The riffs are tuned way down low, giving us that earth rumbling, “the end is nigh” sort of feeling. During the course of Awaiting The Golden Age, I had to keep checking the sky to make sure that it was really falling or turning blood fucking red! And now, the background meat of this EP: the synths and the like. Whenever there is programming in my black metal, I tend to get a little iffy about it. “Ewww.” I think. But solo honcho Hell-IO-Kabbalus managed to make what should of been a tinny, unattractive offering into a powerhouse of auditory awesome with orchestral stings, xylophones and various strings populating this twenty one minute EP. Somehow, H-I-K made Mantra For The End Of Times feel much longer in the process as well. Not that it really matters though. You’ll probably do like I did and just keep it on repeat for a day or two, looking for and find new things to love about it many times over.

Simply epic. Every note.

Overall: This is one of those releases that you just cannot in good conscience, let people not know about and can’t seem to recommend enough. I implore you good readers (at least, those of you who even kinda like black metal), track down this EP and snatch it up! You won’t regret it!

10/10

Kalki Avatara On MySpace

Genre: Heavy Metal, Thrash Metal
Label: Roadrunner Records

Machine Head. Legends in their own ways, underground underdogs in others. It seems these guys couldn’t really catch a break. But then they released The Blackening, which tore down the doors to the Halls of Metal and MH took their places inside as metal masters, rather than great players who were accidentally left looking through the windows.
The album is thrash as fuck, with traces of Nü, punk, and traditional metal, showing Machine Head’s influences while in itself being influential. As an added bonus in being thrash, the songs are longer, the shortest song being “Beautiful Mourning” clocking at 4:46. Robb’s voice is vitriolic, the riffs as strong as a bulldozer to the head, and still catchy enough that you’re going to be air guitaring to the solos the day after.
The thing that makes this the Special Edition version of the album is that it includes two bonus cover songs (Iron Maiden’s “Hallowed Be Thy Name” and Metallica’s “Battery”) as well as a DVD that has enough stuff on it that it could have been marketed by itself as a stand-alone product. Live stuff, music videos, and the making of The Blackening are all here, adding intense amounts of awesome to an already killer album.
9 out of 10.

Machine Head on Facebook.
Machine Head Official Site.
Machine Head on MySpace.

Genre: Gothic Metal

Label: Dynamic Arts Records

A lot of people like to make a big deal when there are chicks (or even a singular chick) in a band. Why? The female of the species loves metal just as much as the male! So stop making a mountain out of that lil’ ol’ mole hill! With that being said… OMG! A CHICK IS SINGING IN THIS GOTHIC METAL BAND!!! Har, har, he-uck!

Let’s get this one straight out into the open: Yes. There are definite comparisons to be made to everybody’s favorite, over-hyped symphonic (not to mention “meh”-lodic) goth rock punching bags, Nightwish. The melodic, females vocals poorly if intentionally, poorly if attempting to be original, mirror Anette Blyckert’s. There’s also a half-assed attempt at symphonic pushes throughout Amortean. Most of which come off as forced and end up only breaking the flow, which is odd since that’s how this album even starts off. It takes a special kind of fail to fuck that up!

On the plus side, there’s an occasional growl thrown in the mix that breaks up the vocal monotony. Also, on a less rare occasion, there a some sweet hardcore inspired riffs and rhythms that kick this more or less mediocre album up a notch.

Oh and there are a few segments in The Cradle Of Nameless that is totaly and completely something that Disney WILL sue for if they ever heard them! Something akin to Bambi haphazardly wondering around the forest, right before his stumbles upon Thumper. Oddly enough, they’re some of the better composed pieces on the album.

Overall: While Amortean is exactly a good album, this is enough here to salvage to recommend at least one listen. If you dig synthesized orchestras and she/he clean vocals with sparsely scattered hardcore riffs, then Amortean may just be your thing.

5/10

Silentium On MySpace

Silentium Official

Genre: Dark Ambient

Label: Malignant Records

Up next on my round trip into the gates of madness and back to where reality and dementia connect through a leyline of self discovery is Phragments and their 2008 dark ambient and third release, Earth Shall Not Cover Their Blood.

Right off the bat, Phragments separate themselves from the rest of the Malignant Records releases that I’ve heard so far by tossing actually vocal and lyrics into the fray. This intrigues me! Normally ambient artists tend to let the music speak for itself through avant garde channels. Luckily, instead of blathering on about absolutely nothing at all, they spend what little time they do on vocals warning mankind about it’s own atrocities. War. Genocide. Cultural rape. These things chime back at you through industrial distortion, tapping that little guilt button in the back of your mind. Ah. Human feelings forced to respond to the actions of the cruel. It’s one hell of a self-awareness exercise.

As for the actual ambient music, it get the emotions flowing with gusto! From the opening title track to album closer The Return, you feel the weight of the world come slamming down on your shoulders and slowly, but surely you’re crushed under the sheer magnitude of what Phragments brings to town. Metallic  “twangs” and “clanks” can be heard mostly at the beginning of the songs as an attention grabber, then gradually fade into the ether. In the track entitled The Fogs Have Risen, you find yourself greeted by what sounds like a muffled, digital klaxon. It’s like it’s warning you to turn back now if you have doubts about the amazing finale that’s heading your way! I, of course, braved through it and was rewarded with twenty six tons of atmosphere that finished the job… Phragments have a brand new fan.

Overall: I don’t know how many times I can keep falling in love with this genre! Phragments co-owns the dark ambient crown and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

10/10

Phragments On MySpace

Phragments Bandcamp

Genres: Punk, Speed Metal, Thrash
Label: Suffering Jesus Productions

Pistöns bring an album of ten hard hitting, ass kicking, and beer swilling rock songs in the vein of Motörhead and oldschool punk, with some metal riffs thrown in.
A trio if Italians who love to rock out with songs about rocking out, how cool their friends are, and how they are number one, Pistöns is a fucking great listen, and it’s goddamn hard to drive around without cranking the shit out of my car stereo and driving around with my windows down.
Oh, and the speed limit is impossible to obey with this going. They get a 7.5 out of 10.
So if you want to listen to some hard rock that will make you headbang, check out Pistöns. No commercialism, this is a kick to head of rock music.

Pistöns on MySpace.

NOTE: This is an old review, moved here from the Funeral Rain Zine MySpace.