Tad Morose – Chapter X (2018) – Tad Morose have returned, and this time with an extra dose of prog to their already crunchy brand of power metal. I’m heaing quite a bit of Fate’s Warning and Queensryche here, particularly in the vocals. But that doesn’t mean that a Brainstorm friendly punch isn’t heard halfway around the world either. The record is particulary a mix of theatrics and groove-laden power metal, containing some especially pompous nodes in “Leviathan Rise” only to roll into a mighty earworm with “Liar” even though an accessible chorus is far less than what this song actually offers in regards to composition. The performance this time around is extremely diverse and technical, featuring several great guitar solos along the way – and not all of them quite so fast and furious. You’ll also notice a hint of electronics here and there, which don’t seem to be a hinderance for Judas Priest inspired power-thrasher “Deprived Of Life” which almost takes a Halford-esque approach to the clean vocals which appear throughout the majority of the album. Opener “Apocalypse” does have some harsh backing grunts here and there, but the absence of that style on this record doesn’t prove detrimental and these grunts manage to appear once again in “Slaves To The Dying Sun” and “Turn To Dust.” The disc is plenty heavy and has more than enough substance to go around, making it somewhat challenging to the modern listener. Sure, many of these patterns are nothing new for Tad Morose or any other similar act in the power metal vein, but the fact that Tad Morose are experimenting beyond these limits is something worth mentioning. I’m quite reminded of Nevermore in a few areas, particularly “Vaunt The Cynical” even if the approach isn’t quite as dark-natured as Seattle’s finest were able to put together decades ago. That being said, I really feel that Tad Morose fans will appreciate what I feel is one of their most accomplished albums to date. Chapter X truly requires much more from the listener than what you might expect at first listen, because song structure changes at the drop of a hat and makes for a rather invigorating experience that can be overwhelming at times. The disc can be tough for some listeners to grasp as it doesn’t roll in and out easily, but if you’re willing to give it more than a few listens, I think that most of these tracks will grow on you. While there are still plenty of sing-along choruses here, the band doesn’t feel the need to simply hammer you with them until the end of the disc. In my observation, I feel that Chapter X might be the most focused that Tad Morose have sounded in several years, adding a proper dose of punch, class and technicality that should appeal to old fans just as much as the new. If nothing else, it shows that even ten albums later, these guys are still making worthwhile music in the genre. Definitely give it a listen at the link below, as I think you’ll be quite happy with it.
(14 Tracks, 60:00)
8.8/10
KI Project – Robocalyspe (2018) – After the death of Sagorah, Ki Project formed and I couldn’t be happier. Though largely overlooked, this combination of old school and modern death metal with slight experimental effects was certainly not what I expected and comes off frighteningly vicious with hard-hiting grooves and absolutely fiendish vocals from Iwan Holzer. It sounds like they handed the microphone to one of those black ooze monsters that I was battling in Persona 5 last night (yes, I’m still handling enormous gaming backlog). This inhuman approach feels right at home in the almost Pantera inspired southern death grooves of “Enforced Conformity” which I have a feeling would really jam on the stage. There’s no doubt that this is definitely a type of groove/death and that’s not everyone’s thing, but it certainly sounds a hell of a lot better than the latest Kataklysm abortion, which tried the same thing this year with Meditation, and it seems to me like the meditation didn’t work. But that’s a tale for another time. Even simple cuts like “Shout” work on the level that classic metal did, as the one word chorus hits hard and fast in much the way that I feel Ghost failed with “Rats.” Yet when I hear Holzer belt out “Shout!” I automatically get an urge to pound my fist into the air, and that’s a good thing. With “Rats” I felt like, “Ah, rats. That could have been so much better” whereas here, I’m reminded that “keep it simple, stupid” makes for a much stronger point. I’m almost reminded of Fear Factory’s “Edgecrusher” in it’s pounding simplicity. “Rise” comes off more like traditional death metal, almost sounding like it had just crawled out of a Swedish graveyard before taking a slightly unexpected turn into hardcore territory. Again, it’s still much better than what Kataklysm tried to do, even if it is lacking a bit in the melody department and missing a few solos – but that isn’t what I feel the goal of Robocalypse is. Ki Project hope to come off pummeling with this one, and they do. It pummels from beginning to end, even though it contains a peculiar little chiptune called “Digital Conversion” as a closing note. The cut does seem a bit out of place, but listeners who don’t appreciate the awesomeness of classic chiptune can always skip it. While I’m writing this, I have to mention that “Revolt” is literally thumping the living hell out of my speakers right now, definitely giving anything Slipknot did at their heaviest a run for their money. Robocalypse is the kind of album that I would have handed to the kid back in the early two-thousands who thought that Iowa was one of the heaviest albums they’d ever heard. Don’t get me wrong though, because Iowa was a great Nu-Metal excursion, but it doesn’t have the punch that this one does. While I’m at it, I also need to mention the extremely interesting nature of “Reborn” where vocals make up an atmosphere that throws the track in a league of it’s own. Though Andreas Niederkofler’s guitar nodes seem to get buried in Michael Seeber’s amazingly crushing low-end bass riffs, there at least is attempted some nodes of melody on “Evolution” which shows me that the album only gets better as it goes on, which is much different from the norm. “Burning Fate” closes the album on that note as well, giving drummer Claudio Testini room to blast his kit more than a few times, while in the same sense giving Niederkofler’s guitar leads a couple more chances to be heard, and felt. I wasn’t exactly crazy about Sagorah, but Ki Project is definitely not an act to ignore by any means, especially if you like groovy death metal as much as I do. While certainly modernized, there’s enough of the old clout here to make for a memorable experience and Holzer’s vocals are just icing on the cake for this one. Check it out at the link below.
(12 Tracks, 43:00)
8/10
Into Eternity – The Sirens (2018) – Something that I did not expect to happen this year was a rebirth of Into Eternity, this time without former frontman and current Iced Earth vocalist (one of my top ten favorite acts of all time, by the way) Stu Block. Although the album is performed immeasurably, I have quite a few issues with it. First of all, in a musical sense The Sirens may very well be one of the most complex and technical excursions that Into Eternity have undergone since their golden era. The record features a large amount of neoclassical influence, which certainly didn’t hurt the band, and it still manages to mix the death metal elements in with the more complex melodies seamlessly. New frontwoman — is a powerful singer and truly fits the band in every way possible, but there’s just one problem (and don’t rip me a new one for this) but I just don’t feel that her harsh vocals are very strong. One of the commenters on a Facebook post for their new single “Fringes Of Psychosis” said that it sounded like she was gargling rocks and I’d have to agree that it is a major turn-off. Though what’s more, is we’re actually shown that on the album that there is a gentleman capable of the meaty, thick growls that we remember in the band and it suddenly makes me wonder why he just didn’t take the reins for that part of the album. Not that there aren’t any great female growlers, because anyone that has followed my work for years will know that I’ve pulled out several and many that rival their male counterparts. She just isn’t one of those vocalists, and it feels like she might be doing more damage to her throat than she realizes with this style – especially since she’s such a damned good clean vocalist. This woman pulls off some amazing lines on the album and that simply can’t be denied, but if I had been a billionaire, I would have paid millions to have the guy in the background handling those vocal sections, which still wouldn’t be a threat to her vocal skill or ability because, as I’ve said – she absolutely kills on this record otherwise. It’s just that when the heavy bass comes in, I would rather hear that thick, meaty growl that I remember from this band. As you might also expect, these harsh vocals aren’t even used that often in the album, which is not an issue for me at all. Again, -last name- is such a great vocalist that more clean is better in this regard, though when I get back to the cut in which I heard those thick, meaty growls I also caught something else – a background clean approach that didn’t sound too awful. In fact, not to bring any negativity towards her performance here, because I’m quite happy with it for the most part – but it makes me wonder why she was hired at all. Clearly, at least from the background, I can tell that there is not only a frighteningly strong harsh vocalist, but one that hits the cleans almost identical to what fans remember. So what happened? Did this man get cold feet? Did he not think that he could hold the reins? Because I think he’s got it, and it would have added that Fate’s Warning “proggy” feel mixed with death metal that myself and fans have always loved. I’m seriously beginning to wonder if this was a label stunt to make metal more diverse, even though it is already more diverse than I’ve ever seen before and forcing things on people doesn’t help things. We have several ass-kicking females of all types in heavy metal music now, many of them household names and those that aren’t should be. I just noticed a few things on this album that maybe I shouldn’t have, and because they’re there, it makes me think that perhaps there was a completely different strategy for this album prior to the arrival of the new frontwoman. Other than that, I don’t really have any issues with the disc. I still consider it rather solid and it’s worthy of a fairly potent score. Instrumentally, I’d give the disc a much higher rating because the vocal elements can in some ways take away from the amount of work that has gone into this beautiful monstrosity. Sirens is the kind of disc that comes off rather notable even if you don’t like female vocals in metal to begin with, (and what’s wrong with you, if you don’t?) even though just judging from the band’s photos it seems like during a label meeting, the question “Hey, what do we do to make these four big, stinky guys who play really convoluted stuff more popular?” popped up and one of the answers was “Why don’t we just put a beautiful young woman in front of them?” which certainly has been working for the label as of right now, judging from modern Arch Enemy and longtime alumni In This Moment. This has always been a fantastic way to market music, and it helps when the added addition to these bands is actually extremely talented, rather than just eye-candy (as has been used in the past by labels and bands innumerous). Though judging from cut “Devoured By Sarcopenia” I still notice once again, another male vocal approach that would have been perfectly fine on the album by itself. Though once again and for the final time, the performance here is definitely not something to shy away from, regardless of the label politics that made it come together. Maybe it’s not what some of the fans wanted (and there are loads of mixed opinions about this new sound, some of them probably much meaner than what I’ve said here) but it certainly shows the band at their best in several years.
My only other critique here is with the album cover, and this is a slight nitpick; but why is it completely greyscale? It feels like a graphic artist created this wonderful piece for the band that was probably a bit more colorful in the beginning, but someone in marketing didn’t like it and the artist said, “screw it, let’s just go with greyscale” which the marketing director loved. The graphic artist in question was probably sweating a little bit while chuckling to himself as he saied under his breath, “did that really just happen?” So that’s how we ended up with what I feel is the most drab cover in the band’s history and a side-effect of the digital age. It wouldn’t have been bad if they had done the album in a dark-blue, nothing too bright – just sort of a darker watery feel. Blues would have really helped, with the band’s logo being in a sort of gold, which would offset the deep blues and hopefully some blacks used to keep atmosphere. It would have also been nice if the figures and the ship had color. Not too much color, but a decent comic artist could have done this better justice. Central Scrutinizer and I were looking at the covers for the new Sandman Universe books, and the one cover that he pointed out for being too drab, actually feels less drab than this. There was at least some color to stand out amongst the blues, and it didn’t come off quite as uninvinting to me as this one does. Maybe the label doesn’t think so, but people still judge albums by their covers in some ways and fans that have not heard the band might think twice if they see something that looks like it was thrown to greyscale in Photoshop. Just a horrible, horrible decision.
It is safe to say that Sirens will be the most contentious in the band’s discography and I’m waiting to see what some of the less-forgiving reviewers will have to say about this one. While not quite an approach that I feel was necessary considering what I’d heard in the background alone, I’d still have to recommend the disc and would encourage that on-the-fence fans would at least “try it.” Just give it a listen and make your own judgement before deciding to ignore it altogether. Obviously a lot of work went into this disc, and tracks like “Fukushima” and “Nowhere Near” are proof of that. Into Eternity crafted a rather solid album that should still stand with their best efforts, even if once again – there’s going to be a lot of negative feedback here. There already is, and I think they expect that. Controversy after all, gets fans talking and it sells records based on sheer curiosity. I have a feeling that you’ll be equally curious to the album after reading this review and would ask that you check it out at the link below.
(8 Tracks, 50:00)
7.6/10
Immortal – Northern Chaos Gods (2018) – No sir, I didn’t like it. Immortal just isn’t Immortal without Abbath in my opinion and while I gave it the old college try, I found myself growing rather bored by the whole thing. I’ve read some of the feedback and it sounds to me like some of these people have never heard a black metal album before. The disc doesn’t really offer much in the vein of diversity, preferring the same vanilla black metal approach throughout, that even though comes off as mighty and threatening as we might expect; doesn’t offer anything that I haven’t heard from this genre since the nineties. Demonaz also doesn’t do much for me, because his approach is cookie-cutter for the genre. As you may expect, the gentleman offers a threatening rasp which is a dime a dozen in black metal vocalists. Hell, I even do it with our black metal influenced sections, because it fits and I can’t sound like Abbath. It does sound like Demonaz is having a hell of a time with the band though, and I won’t fault that. As demonic as this might sound to your average puritan, this reviewer can sense a man having a great time jamming with friends, and I’m sure he’ll have a great time playing this stuff live on the stage too. I can’t do the whole “frowny face” thing while I’m listening to this one, because I can clearly see this as a literal “good fucking time” for all involved. Remove all the corpse paint and bullet belts, and Immortal are just a bunch of guys playing the kind of music they fucking love to play and have for several decades now. There are some nice nodes on “Gates To Blashyrkh” however, with nice folk touches adding to the mystical nature of the piece. It’s also worth noting that Immortal are at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to song title ideas, as we actually have a cut here merely named “Grim and Dark” which I’d honestly expect for a black metal parody act. “Where Mountains Rise” sounds like Immortal as I remember them, with an almost anthemic thump that reminds me of Sons Of Northern Darkness, an album that I still prefer a great deal over this one. Not that there’s anything wrong here, Northern Chaos Gods just doesn’t break any new ground. Obviously Demonaz had quite a bit of fun taking the reins and he does a fine job here, but I can’t really recommend this record to anyone other than those who just want to hear what Immortal sounds like without Abbath. If you have Immortal records, this disc sounds exactly like the rest of them and nothing ultimately unique is tried that separates this performance from any other. Perhaps there are a few cleaner notes here and there, but that’s about it. I think “Grim and Dark” really says it all, because that’s what this album basically is. It’s grim, it’s dark and it’s being reviewed on The Grim Tower for being grim and dark. If you like things that sound grim and dark and not out of the ordinary, then you’re going to love it – but for me, I’ve already heard this before, regurgitated a thousand times over by not only Immortal, but thousands of clones the world over. The real question is, are any of those clones actually doing it better than the genuine article? Check out the album out at the link below and see for yourself.
Oh, and by the way – the single “Mighty Ravendark” is definitely the best song here, so if you’ve heard that, then you’ve pretty much heard the best they have to offer.
(8 Tracks, 42:00)
7/10
Hoth – Astral Necromancy (2018) – The first time I heard Hoth, I wrote them off. I mean, it’s obvious that their logo is a tie-fighter and the moniker represents the origin point for The Empire Strikes Back, but Star Wars is a pretty sore subject for a lot of people right now, so let’s not even bring that up. Though what I’m getting here is a rather intriguing black metal album that explores traditional folk elements as well as other bells and whistles, moving itself past whatever in the hell they were attempting last time around. “Vegeance” was pretty straight-forward with it’s black metal elements, the vocals highly understandable in the mix and on a much better level than most of our albums (that’s my fault, by the way). “The Living Dreams Of A Dead God” seems to add more thrash elements to the mix, though doubles with what I’d consider a melodeath feel in the chorus. Not too bad. “Passage Into Entropy” sounds like Ghost may have had something to do with it, or perhaps Blue Oyster Cult. There’s a slight prog rock feel to it, which I feel gets better when the solos that even Immortal’s new album lacked manage to pepper up the performance a myriad more than some of the progenitors responsible for this genre. And hell, Immortal doesn’t even use a drum machine. So a guy and a drum machine can make a better album than Immortal, it would seem. Then, if the psychedelic elements weren’t enough, the whole thing goes “gloomy church organ” right before it ends, adding even more spice to an already pleasant performance. As we get into “Journey Into The Eternal Winter” I’m reminded of Battlelore a bit, or perhaps just Lord Of The Rings in general as the folk-inspired male clean vocal chorus comes into play.
If there’s anything that I can say about this album, it is that Astral Necromancy is filled to the brim with blast beats and clean melodies, in addition to more than just a few solo moments. Though it is obvious that a drum machine/programmed drums are utilized here, that doesn’t take away my enjoyment of the album and it’s rather grandiose take on black metal. Although many of the tracks here offered little new, I did manage to find a few noticeable pieces here and there that make Hoth a band worth keeping my eyes on. I know for sure that he’ll never deviate completely from the black metal approach that inspired the band to begin with, but it’s also quite obvious that he wants to do a hell of a lot more with it than it’s pioneers. Not as much as Dimmu Borgir obviously, who have gone out of their way to make something that I do not hate, though am still very mixed about; but a sound that feels like it has achieved more within the black metal spectrum than do many other bands in this particular genre. Give it a listen over at the link and let me know what you think!
(11 Tracks, 50:00)
7.8/10
Bullet For My Valentine – Gravity (2018) – If you can’t already tell by the obvious, non-threatening imagery on the cover, these already common-place alt-metallers have gone even more alternative with this self-described “contemporary” record. Now, this is usually the step that several underground metal acts took in order to become more famous in the mainstream, most notably – insert band name here when I remember it – who managed to become overnight millionaires with this strategy. Not that Bullet For My Valentine really needed the money, as I’m sure these guys are doing just fine for the rock stars that they are, by most standards. Unfirtunately, the record to me seems a bit whiny and even fans are commenting on the similarity to Linkin Park that they’re hearing this time around. Not that there aren’t any heavy tracks to be found, but the one heavy node in particular “Don’t Need You Anymore” is just that – one heavy node. Stripping all of the heavy guitars and harsh vocals, it is very easy for me to tell you that you’re listening to a boy band. I’m not just saying that either, as I grew up in the nineties and was in fact an avid watcher of TRL on MTV. So yes, I’m quite familiar with The Bakcstreet Boys, Nsync, 98 Degrees and that gamut. I also know more of their lyrics than necessary and Max Martin’s lyrics will stay forever implanted in my cranium, unfortunately. The record is actually an electronic-psuedo metal affair that feels more like a slightly heavier version of modern Fallout Boy. Do you like Fallout Boy? Then you’ll like Bullet For My Valentine this time around too. Remember Scream, Aim, Fire? Well, those days are long over. It seems that the frontman was going through a lot of relationship issues and that this record was therapy in dealing with a toxic person than it was anything else. But if that’s not enough reason for you to avoid it, it also includes “The Millennial Whoa” which I first learned about from YouTuber Thoughty2. The song “Not Dead Yet” is filled with the “whoa” to the point of insanity. As we move further in, I have to mention that “The Very Last Time” nearly throws this shit into the “girlfriend metal” category. Honestly folks, once was enough for Gravity and I’d actually rather listen to modern Fallout Boy or Imagine Dragons than this. Can you believe that “Piece of Me” also features “The Millennial Whoa” as well? I’m sure that I can find this paint by numbers pop approach in several other areas of the album, but I just can’t do this crap again. Please avoid this album, and listen to the artists that inspired it instead. You know, I hear there’s a new The Black Queen album coming out and that’s about as far into the sappy stuff as I’m going right now. Of course, I hope that disc is extra sappy and extra passionate. This one though, is just not my thing. Bullet For My Valentine jumped the megalodon this time around, to hell with the shark. If you’d like to hear this train wreck for yourself, then please check out the link below.
(11 Tracks, 43:00)
3/10
Sathanas – At The Left Hand Of Satan (2018) – Though raw in nature, there’s definite grit to this one and I love that. These guys play a mixture of black and thrash, with a deep emphasis on the black metal elements, though not enough to overshadow several thundering classic heavy metal moments that just sort of breathe more life into what I thought was going to be a pretty run of the mill mixture of black and thrash. I found myself digging the grooves quite a bit, in addition to the razor sharp rasps and old school satanic edge that these guys embody. You just don’t hear that anymore and it’s good to have that “classic devil edge.” Another great thing here is the solos, which you won’t catch much at first, but they really start to deliver further on in the record and that’s worth the price of admission for me. Sathanas aren’t something we haven’t heard before, but there’s enough here to catch my attention and to raise my own horns in the air. My only complaint here is that sometimes the guitars will get completely buried underneath the thick mounds of bass and the drumkit, but that’s a minor nitpick and shouldn’t affect your listening, especially if you like your records raw and natural, without all the studio tricks. Check it out at the link below.
(8 Tracks, 32:00)
7/10
Between the Buried and Me – Automata II (2018) – I skipped the first part of this recording, because although it was rather technical and had some unique progressive areas, it felt really run of the mill as far as this sort of avant-tech proggy core style is concerned. In other words, BTBAM, The Faceless and several other acts in the genre are doing this sort of thing and I feel that it may be wearing it’s welcome out a bit with older heads like me, even though the kids seem to drool over it. That’s fine though, they have their likes and I’m quite glad that they’re still enjoying metal in any format. This one however, caught my attention because of the attention to detail insofar as classic prog and even a little bit of Mr. Bungle. Though the Mr. Bungle flavored carny jazz portion of “Voice Of Trespass” is quite sparse on the album, at least it shows a side to the band that they haven’t yet offered, especially considering how much that they have since Alaska and Colors. I was also noticing this with the latest Dog Fashion Disco release (a band that still manages to put out records consistently and not disappoint, by the way) where the work of Mike Patton and various others certainly could have been conceived as an influence. Not a bad one either, as there’s no one out there that quite made music as weird as Mike Patton during his heyday and we have him to thank for many of the structures utilized on today’s albums. Unlike the first part of this album, Automata II also features far less of the harsh vocal presence, showcasing what I’ve always felt was a wonderful clean offering. But what’s more, is the notion that if you enjoyed the latest Spock’s Beard recording Noise Floor (and you should, as it’s a glorified love letter to the glory days of prog rock) then you might want to pick this one up too. Why? Because BTBAM decided to modernize the formula with modern elements of extreme and technical metal to create what I might consider the quintessential modern progressive metal album. In other words, if BTBAM are trying to take the crown from Dream Theater, than this is the way to go. Not that Labrie and the boys were never heavy, but they were never quite this heavy. I mean, for a mere thirty-three minutes of playing time and just four tracks altogether, this is quite an offering. And I know what you’re saying. “I’m an old fan of progressive rock/metal and I just can’t get into this screaming shit.” I understand completely, but you have to look at the record on a compositional level and not so much as an angry man shouting. BTBAM began as a rather extreme band that couldn’t quite be pigeon-holed into core regardless of the fact that they were birthed right in the thick of the core movement and took what feels like forever to come out of their shell. As of right now, this record nearly comes twenty years into the thick of their career and it’s utterly amazing as to how far they’ve gone. Automata II is in fact so memorable, that you don’t even have to listen to it’s sister to get the full experience. You can if you’d like, but it’s not ultimately necssary to enjoy the performance presented. I do have one minor complaint here though, and that would be the failure to include an instrumental version of the album, just so that fans can get a greater appreciation of the bells and whistles that intertwine with what I’d state as outstanding compsotional work, making for an album that I’d be a fool not to recommend. If opener “The Proverbial Bellow” doesn’t catch your attention, than you might need to see the doctor and have your ears checked. And once again, that’s just the opener. With nearly two decades of music under their belts, I find that these guys haven’t yet disappointed me and that’s gotta be a good sign. I can only wonder as to where they will be heading with the next one. Give it a listen at the link below.
(4 Tracks, 33:00)
8.8/10
Human Pollution – Ort (2018) – We have a rough industrial effort here from Human Pollution, who mix slight elements of death metal along with pounding and slightly gothic bits of black, reminding me just a little bit of The Kovenant’s S.E.T.I. although not as memorable. The problem with this one for me, is that it could really be something with a slightly better production value. There are more than a few killer nodes on the disc, and I understand that the days of music aren’t quite what they were and bands just don’t have the kind of budgets that they used to, but I feel there is so much potential here that a good production value could really make this thing soar. As a matter of fact, I think that if the band does get noticed and is given a budget for a better production value, they should just remix this album and pick up the bottom end. Much of the musical performance seems to be in the background with the vocals soaring high above it, to the point where the music is outright drowned out in most instances. The programmed drums aren’t helping either, even though “Wish Death” contains a rather killer chorus moment and some notable experimentation, particularly during the portion when the harsh vocals pop up in the background later. As the disc goes on, the formula seems to place itself somewhere between Korn and Marilyn Manson, with “Poorest Rich Man”, “Divorced With Children” (could this be MGTOW influenced?) and “Kingdumb” all continuing in the same sullen nature. The lyrics for “Kingdumb” are a bit cringe too, but I totally get the idea there. Of course, then we have the slightly more aggressive “No Life Matters” which definitely has quite a bit of promise and brings with it a chorus that reminds me a little of Sentenced’s “Excuse Me While I Kill Myself” although with a little more sarcasm, which I enjoy. The mixture of harsh vocal and Korn influence is an odd fit, but it strangely works. “Here But Gone” continues the sorrow, but “Cuntroll” really catches my attention as it seems to dip into The Kovenant and Deathstars for a change. Once again, this is a rather strong album and I just think that it suffers from the production value. Judging from my experience with this kind of thing, I think that in a different time, Human Pollution could be the next big thing. There are plenty of radio friendly cuts here like “New Sun” but mixed directly in with slightly rougher and rather depressive territory which might appeal to other types of music fans. Nothing here is black or death metal, but elements (at least in a vocal sense) are utilized here and there in a way that won’t feel oppressive to the casual listener. In all honesty, one of the many billionaires in this country needs to hand Human Pollution one of their million dollar notes, if they make such a thing. I’ve heard rumors, but am not quite sure if the “one million dollar bank note” actually exists. But if it does, it would be just what these guys need to go into a professional studio in order to get the very best production that money can buy. That would make this record really pop, and there’s so much potential here. Instead of hearing them write new songs with a higher production value, this record has so many pieces that are literally begging for a crisper, clearer sound. Toppingthe performance off with a heavy hitter like “Born To Be Hated” shows that they have more to offer than you might expect from first glance and I truly found something noteworthy here. It just needs more ears and can hopefully get a nice, crisp revamp. Even so, what is available right now is nothing to scoff at for industrial rock and metal fans. This might be just what you need to hear if you weren’t happy with the latest Manson, Deathstars or Korn offerings. Check it out at the link below.
(11 Tracks, 48:00)
7.6/10
Wailin Storms – Sick City (2017) – Gentlemen, if you’re reading this review right now, then I apologize for it’s late arrival. I just noticed that there were approximately twenty-five records from last year that had slipped my mind and this was one of them. Thankfully, it’s a good performance that needed proper promotion. Like sludge mixed in with melodic indie rock and a little bit of classic punk, there’s something about these guys that just doesn’t equal out to other bands that I’ve heard. Are you a fan of Beastmilk, — or Killing Joke? Then you’re going to love what is being done here. The record still manages to come off like Killing Joke at their most doomy, but let me as you this – when do we get that kind of sound? Even Killing Joke seems to have went back into their electronic era for Pylon (which was a blast, don’t get me wrong – even the bonus cuts were fantastic) but if you’re looking for a slightly dirtier edge, then Wailin Storms have you covered. If opener “Hurricane Trash Wave” doesn’t do it for you, and even after “Irene Garza” you’re not feeling it, then maybe you need to check out the slower, groovy nature of “Night of Long Nights” which even has a sort of gothic vibe. You’ll never see it coming either, which just goes to prove how much potential these guys have. But not to be some great indie act, because Wailin Storms is so much more than that. Wailin Storms should have been the next big thing a few years back, and I blame the state of modern music journalism as one of the many reasons that they aren’t. I mean, as much as I like Ghost, I would rather hear about newer bands like this instead of an act that I’m quite familiar with. Even fans of the Misfits can get into this, which means that people who dug the last Doyle might also want to give it a try. Furthermore, when I listen to a song like this, I wonder why it couldn’t have been used on a television program. There are dozens of programs on Netflix and Hulu these days, and I just see a jam like this working perfectly in the background of some edgy action drama. I seriously think that these directions/producers need to stop picking musicians out of a hat, and start actually asking people in the music industry what would go best with their programs. Wailin Storms is a staticy mess of doom, sludge, noise and indie rock with a classic punk frontline to top it all off. There are just so many people that would dig these guys, but I just don’t think the promotion level is anywhere even close to where it should be. In any case, if you enjoyed what you’ve read so far, then you’ll probably want to pick up this album as well as the previous one. There’s just no doubt in my mind that Wailin Storms have talent and could really be something – if someone cared enough to give them that chance. This is what I consider real music, after all. Check it out at the link below.
(7 Tracks, 33:00)
8.5/10
Dreadnaught – A Wake In Sacred Waves (2017) – Another band that was sent to me last year, Dreadnaught are really something. At first, it might sound like they’re a folk influenced atmosphere act with a female vocalist, which is nice – but there’s more to the package than what meets the ear. As the guitar rolls in melodic leads, we are then greeted with unexpectedly sharp scowls (that don’t dissuade from the atmosphere of the original performance, by the way) which are later joined by a myrias of changes in tempo and style, all culminating together for a little over seventeen minutes of playing time, which is a tour-de-force in most instances. Few bands ever open an album like this, but Between The Buried and Me did with “The Proverbial Bellow” on the latest output Automata II, so maybe this practice might become a regular thing for bands. It is true that many people in the industry will only listen to the first two or three songs from an album before making a decision on whether to promote or sign the band anyway (and this is due to an influx of band submissions) so why not go at them with all you’ve got right from the get-go. As the performance continues, we get a litle bit of Agalloch influence as well as some proggy sections that roll right into soft soundscape. Dreadnaught give listeners a chance to breathe before all of the heavy stuff comes into place, which is quite rare in retrospect. But one might also say that the band are quite mellow to begin with, which is certainly not a terrible thing to have in an act as several musicians that I’m confronted with these days tend to play their instruments as fast as fucking possible and want to produce an album that could be equalized to a punch in the mouth. It’s good to hear something that I feel comes off emotionally powerful, and only throws a punch at the listener when it’s appropriate. That level of restraint turns into a band that can do so much more as further evidenced in closer “A Drifitng Reign.” As a matter of fact, I havent heard this great a mixture of extreme metal and proggy atmosphere since the early days of Opeth and Agalloch. There’s definitely something to be explored on A Wake In Sacred Waves and if you overlooked it last year due to the slew of releases by more publicized acts, then you might want to get your hands on it. Dreadnaught are horrifyingly beautiful, in a way that feels like an outpouring of the human soul. Why this act wasn’t on the front cover of Decibel, I’ll never know – but let me not get into yet another skirmish with Mudrian over that. Be sure to give the disc a listen at the link below.
(4 Tracks, 51:00)
9/10
Archemoron – Year Of The Harvester (2018) – I’m not sure if you’ve been keeping up with the latest news, but Greece recently experienced a series of wildfires that left several dead or injured, and many villages demolished in the area. Since Greece is the homeland for this spectacular black metal act, on behalf of The Grim Tower I express my condolences towards the region. We hope you’re doing alright, gentlemen!
Now let’s get to the album. Obviously, it’s rather long and one of the longest releases that I’ve covered in quite a while. Coming in at two discs of playtime, the album features nearly and hour and a half of music. “Somewhere Beyond North” begins the journey with light folk influence and a level of atmosphere that later becomes much heavier with guitar, snarling vocals and what I would consider to be some rather great guitar solos. After the heavy stuff stops, it rolls right back into atmosphere and features some water drips. Then it throws back into black metal, though in what I’d consider to be the more triumphant folk approach that almost seems royal in some instances. This anthemic nature seems right out of Immortal, until it litters with blast beats and transforms into something else right before one final guitar solo. Because why not? “Kokytos” sounds a bit different, opting for a much heavier and less traditional approach. You can definitely hear classic black metal in the vocal approach, but there are quite a bit of non-traditional elements here as the piece seems to mediate between what I would consider a more modernized thrash riff and melody lines that encroach on melodeath. It definitely hits hard though, which is what I feel the purpose here is – as well as another great guitar solo or two. “Sisyphean Argos” comes next, with yet another change in tempo. Now this is what I’m talking about. An album where not every song sounds the same in 2018? Who would’ve thunk it? Just kidding. In any case, I love that classic heavy metal (note: not classic black metal) influence in the form of a solo opener. That goes back to The Scorpions, in all actuality. As we go through the chugs, we’ll eventually roll into another solo performance which certainly channels The Scorpions. That’s a rock solo if I’ve ever heard one, and it more than fits in this genre. I mean, sure – we can be grim, dark and evil all that we want, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t throw in a few nods to metal’s more colorful beginnings. Added together, they fit like a puzzle and only further build upon the Norwegian black metal formula which is now nearing it’s twenty year mark. More, if we count Venom and the UK’s proto-black scene. Yet, this is once again why I appreciate the fantastic fretwork of dual shredders Meliktiis and Typhonas, who at the end of this track perform one of the best solos I’ve ever heard on a black metal album. They nearly shred for three minutes and the song cuts off, but I’m not even upset about that cutoff because the performance is just so memorable. And to do in in a black metal song, that’s even more intriguing to me. This is the kind of shredding that you might expect on an AOR or power metal cut and I couldn’t be more impressed to see it performed on a black metal album. To me, that’s just wild. Continuing on, we have “Nebula Divina” which again offers a completely different kind of performance. You’ll notice how strong the riffs are here, not to mention the thunder roaring from the kit – the real firepower bellowing forth from this track. Frontman Aristomenes actually tries some vocal theatrics on this one, which also features another killer solo effort. “Mother Sea” lumbers in as the last cut on this first disc and it brings a slower, more morose tone that fronts with an almost ritualistic level of vocal performance in addition to more great guitar solo work. The solos here aren’t quite as expected, but feel like a necessary portion that makes the piece even greater.
As we reach the second disc, we’re greeted with the familiar folk-influence featured on “Conquering East and West.” As a dead-ringer for Immortal, this one also features a touch of eighties heyday era riffing that only beefs the song further. It’s like these guys know just what to add into a rather worn approach these days for black metal, which ultimately results in something unique and far different than what we’re used to. I certainly didn’t expect the synths either, which might not be everyone’s thing and are a bit hard to hear, but they’re used seldom and provide a worthy bit of atmosphere before yet another breathtaking solo effort.This one seems to take from Iron Maiden, which is definitely an influence that I can get behind. Think to yourself, “When else do you hear this kind of thing in black metal?” Following that, we have “Clash Of Denial” which contains some rather thunderous leads right in the middle of a blasting storm on the kit. Aristomenes decorates the situation wonderfully, much better than Demonaz did this year. Aristomenes really seems to put power and passion in his vocals, so that they sound like they’re coming from the heart and soul, rather than just harsh rasps or snarls because they go with the music. There’s a lot to be said in a memorable vocal performance and this is yet another place where Archemoron shines. Oddly there’s almost a bit of early Amon Amarth that be gleamed from this piece as well, in addition to yet another fantastic guitar solo. As I mentioned, there are two shredders in this band and they certainly more than earn their keep due to what I’d consider to be some rather intricate and fascinating guitar solos. Moving on, we have “Crawling Plague” which turns the tempo down do an even further level than “Mother Sea.” The song is mostly soundscape, which allows for Aristomenes performance to be given a further spotlight, though it is admittedly not my favorite cut on the album. I think the fact that it has what I’d consider to be yet another wonderous solo moment is it’s saving grace, but this might be just one instance where the band bit off a bit more than they could chew. The song feels like an afterthought, which seems a problem. Then we have “Nothing” which almost frightens me into thinking that they’re going to try for an even less-threatening approach than the last, but that’s not the case. Instead, they alternate bewteen crushing black metal bits and light acoustics before unexpectly rolling into progressive territory. The band are definitely experimenting a bit more on this one, which certainly isn’t a bad thing, though I’m beginning to think that they’re running out of steam. I’m also wondering what happened to the solo moment here, as it is a bit oblong and doesn’t really catch me until a little further on before it is devoured in the drumming. Now we have the very last song in this extremely lengthy performance, “Those Of The Suffering.” It begins much like “sisyphean Agos” with powerful lead melodies that open moments of strong vocal ritualism. A piece that feels extremely down tempo, it has an energetic frontline due to it’s collection of guitar solos in between Aristomenes vocal sections. Unfortunately, drummer G.T. Didn’t have much to work with on this one, but that’s alright because he’s done more than enough with the past few tracks let alone the flawless first CD of this set. The piece mostly switches between vocals and solo for quite a bit until it ends with a folkish acoustic node that completes the album. In the end, I’d say it is rather solid, though not as effective as what came before.
I have to end this observation with a few issues that I noticed later on in the performance. First of all, the first seven cuts are all very strong and go together quite well. But “Crawling Plague” and “Nothing” feel like they belong as B-Sides to the performance and don’t truly fit. They could have ended the performance with “Those of The Suffering” and it would have been their only sub-par moment, but instead of utilizing a “less is more” rhetoric, they decided to give us ten minutes scattered between two cuts that we don’t really need. In spite of all that, the performance is monumental and I think most people will agree that the band hits extremely hard and fast on the very first disc. It’s only about forty-one minutes and when coupled with “Conquering East and West”, “Clash Of Denial” and “Those Of The Suffering” we have a seventy-one minute performance. Yeah, I know what you’re saying – that would all fit on one disc. And yes, it would. I would have also given it a ten. Right there, we have what I’d consider to be one of the best black metal performances that I’ve heard in recent memory. As for “Crawling Plague” and “Nothing” well… They would have made fine bonus tracks for Bandcamp supporters. Harsh, but that’s part of my job. Honestly though, I can’t find too much at fault with this performance because there’s so much to offer within that seventy-one minutes I described, that it goes far over the expectations that I would have ever had for this kind of music. To say that Archemoron are a great band, is an understatement. They’re an incredible band that continues to exceed my expectations by a wide margin. So even if they did go a little bit overboard with this one, there’s more than enough here for me to recommend them. There was more than enough in just the first track, to be honest – but it just kept getting better and better, until we hit the peak where it simply gets no better. Without a doubt, even considering my nitpicks with the album, I still have to consider Year Of The Harvester as one of my top black metal albums of the year, if not the very best black metal album of the year. It is very difficult to give this album a perfect score because of the unnecessary later excursions, but I will be certainly giving it pretty damn close. Please check out this masterpiece in the genre today at the link below, you will be glad you did.
(10 Tracks, 82:00)
9.8/10