Music Reviews

Thralldom - A Murderous Magus of the Morphogenetic Grid 7" (Regimental Records, 2002)

Rating: 9/10

Like a stab to the throat, Thralldom's debut 7" tears in, mercilessly rips the flesh and leaves a trail of blood and agony. A Murderous Magus of the Morphogenetic Grid is an all-too-short blast of vile black metal that foreshadows the musical holocaust that a Thralldom full-length would undeniably be. The guitar sound is diseased. The vocals are tortured. The drumming is a relentless battery. Thralldom are completely grating on the ears. Fans of bands like Anateus and Bestial Warlust will find Thralldom to be a worthy addition to their regular listening rotation. To compare Thralldom to such acts is to pigeonhole them, however, as they incorporate elements of Nuclear Death-ish dissonance and foul melody into the putrid mix. For a short EP, A Murderous Magus of the Morphogenetic Grid is actually quite a deep and multifaceted listen that has me eager to hear more from these musical terrorists as I am sure their next effort will absolutely kill. - Al Kikuras

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Pro-Pain - Shreds of Dignity (Spitfire Records, 2002)

Rating: 7/10

Pro-Pain have recorded some great material including the classic Foul Taste of Freedom, The Truth Hurts, as well as a few other albums that are pretty much all worth owning.  With this Metal/Hardcore crossover style I expected something slightly more memorable than this album was but it isn't terrible by any means.  It's worth owning but its not what I think it should have been.

Pro-Pain are one of the most violent and brutal bands to play a crossover style and are well known throughout the country and by now probably the world. This album is nothing breathtaking, or new really. It's still the same old Pro-Pain, good leads, good drumming, angry vocals and as always the lyrics are very political.  For a person just getting into Pro-Pain this is a good disc, for a long time fan its average. I doubt any Pro-Pain will ever be as great as Foul Taste of Freedom was but this is definitely a good album, and a step in the right direction after Act of God, and Round 6.

I think Pro-Pain need to take some time off and stop pumping out albums for a bit and take their time writing some new songs.  When you keep releasing album after album you are bound to lose some of the creative flair you used to have.  Aggressive, heavy, loud and pretty pissed off, you know the drill with Pro-Pain by now..if this type of music doesn't appeal to you don't bother with this. Recommended to new fans of the metal/hardcore crossover style. - Rick

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Rakoth - Planeshift  (Earache, 2002)

Rating: 10/10

This album was originally released on Code666 Records, and since this is the same exact cd here are my thoughts on this cd.  Nothing much has changed, same cd that is still as great as ever, just properly released in America finally.

I had heard of this band through the Code 666 web site many months ago but I never thought I would hear it as I didn't do international ordering, and no US distros had it.  Well I get this to review and I immediately throw this into my cd player and it's perfect all the way through. Whether it's clean vocals, and the flute or fast riffs, growls and fast programmed drums, Rakoth certainly seem to adjust to the style quickly. Described as "Extreme-Fantasy Metal" from the Code 666 web site, that genre classification doesn't do the beauty of this cd justice.  In my opinion it tears down any barriers of the folk genre, the metal genre, and there is even some very well done neo-classical material at times. In an age where many bands claim themselves to be "Artists" (The Kovenant and Therion come to mind) it's very refreshing to see a band actually put something out so innovative, ground-breaking, and awe inspiring, it makes listening to the seemingly endless amount of horrible cds all worth it. I don't know what else to say except just pick this up if you can, you won't regret it. - Rick

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Ram-Zet - Escape (Century Media, 2002)

Rating: 9/10

Ram-Zet left me feeling like I was listening to a schizophrenic songwriter with a hell of a budget.  This disc, which is about 63 minutes long, is a journey through the mind of a schizoid in a little white room. A concept which intrigued me from the get go.  As I read the lyrics I was impressed with the way the story laid out before my eyes.  I'm a big fan of good concept albums and this one hit it right on the nose. But to the music.

Ram-Zet lays out an attack on the darkest parts of your brain with their intense chugging riffs and their electronic sound-scapes, often times verging on an almost The Kovenant feel, before pulling back on you and slowing down to wash you with the clean female vocals and beautiful violin melodies, reminiscent of old Theatre of Tragedy. The lead vocals, which are extreme, actually remind me of a person asphyxiating most of the time, so when they're juxtaposed with the beautiful female vocals, it makes things very schizoid.

Zet's songwriting on the album is really quite phenomenal, but without the musicians around him, the album would not have been as good. The intense drums and the trippy keyboards make a tense backbone for some excellent bass-heavy metal to be ripped through you. The guitars, which actually sometimes seemed simplistic and almost nu-metal, was always balanced off by the melody of the violin, or female vocals, and he even rips out an occasional EXCELLENT solo.

Really this album is a masterpiece of musicianship from Norway.  I urge you to go out and find this album, buy it and experience the insanity that Ram-Zet portrays with such convincing talent. - Jim Bob the Enforcer

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Sear Bliss - Grand Destiny (Red Stream, 2002)

Rating: 8/10

This album took me a few listens to really get, but after that point, I found it well worth the effort.  Sear Bliss is a Hungarian band playing somber, grim, atmospheric Black Metal. For the most part what Sear Bliss are doing has been done before, but they do it well. The one element that Sear Bliss include that is different from anything I've heard in Black Metal before is the use of a brass section. While the concept of trombones and trumpets in Black Metal doesn't sound like a match made in Hell (a match made in Hell being a good thing in this case), it actually works out quite nicely.  The album goes between mid-paced to fast Black Metal and slow somber parts. In the faster parts, the brass adds a triumphant feel, and in the slow parts, it really enriches the somber mood.  Synths and acoustic guitars are used at points as well, but they are used tastefully.  Fear not that you will encounter some slickly produced, keyboard-drenched over-romantic album ala Ladle of Soup or Dino Burger.  The production is at just the right level, clear and clean enough to capture the somber atmosphere of the brass, but still raw enough to capture the feeling of real Black Metal.  I am also fond of the vocals, which are a gargled rasp that remind me of Nargaroth and old Sigh.  This is a good album. It won't change the face of Black Metal, and it hasn't made me rush off to buy all of the band's previous works (this being their 4th full-length), but it has earned repeated listens, and makes me curious to hear how they develop in their next album, which I'm confident I'll pick up. - Abraxas

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Sentenced - The Cold White Light (Century Media, 2002)

Rating: 1/10

It surprises me that a band once as great as Sentenced has fallen to such depths. It surprises me that a band with skills enough to release an album as brilliant as North From Here chooses, instead, to release pap like this. It surprises me even more that metal fans LIKE this tripe.

Sentenced were once a ravenous killing machine. Their second album, North From Here, was a razor-sharp death metal release the likes of which had yet to and perhaps have yet to be heard. How can the band that penned "My Sky is Darker Than Thine" have written "Cross My Heart and Hope to Die," a song that sounds like a cross between U2, shitty Metallica and a big, fat, sloppy pussy? The bio for this album closes stating "Sentenced are a forerunner of the Scandinavian scene and The Cold White Light further exemplifies why they have earned a reputation as The Northernmost Killers." Hardly. This album is so soft that Sentenced would need a push to step forward and plant a slippered foot firmly enough on the ground to kill a fucking ant. The only thing they are a threat to is the legacy of Scandinavia as a source of chillingly heavy music. The Cold White Light is an absolute disgrace. To each member of Sentenced: may you get a festering case of ass rot that eats you from your balls to your brain. At least then you can't release any more flaming turds like The Cold White Light on the music world. - Al Kikuras

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V/A - Sepulchral Feast: A Tribute to Sepultura (Century Media,  2002 - licensed from Black Sun)

Rating: 6/10

Another tribute... at least this time the song selection is good.  Ranging from Beneath the Remains, up to Arise, even Chaos AD. I don't get why Roots songs are on here but I'm VERY picky about my Sepultura, I will only listen to Beneath the Remains, or Schizophrenia really..Songs covered include Antichrist, Warriors of Death, Troops of Doom, Beneath the Remains, Arise, Roots Bloody Roots, and Mass Hypnosis on top of 7 or so others.  As far as standout tracks go, Sacramentum does Antichrist very well, better than the original I thought.  Dimension Zero's take on Troops of Doom is well done, and Defleshed doing Beneath The Remains... that's where this tribute truly shines.  Some of the more lackluster appearances on this include Deathwitch, Lord Belial, Children of Bodom and The Crown.

You know the drill with tributes.  It's a few good songs, a few average, and a lot of lousy bands covering lame songs. If you are a huge Sepultura can you could find some value in this cd as it almost serves as a best of since most of the covers are close to the original songs.  For anyone not into Sepultura at all this would be a bad purchase.  Don't let my indecisive score turn you off from this, its not bad for a tribute and like I said, it might be a good purchase for a big fan of Sepultura.  Some of the bad songs on this just hold this tribute back.- Rick

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Serpent Eclipse - The Seven Desires & Wolves' Blood (Void Sector, 2001)

Rating: 6/10

A message to Serpent Eclipse: Guys, please fire your keyboardist. This is really good stuff for the most part, but the keyboards just really fuck it up far more often than they should be allowed to. Sometimes, the keys are all right, but far too often they range towards simply cheesy. Fake violins and harpsichords don't sound cool, at least not when Serpent Eclipse use them. It's really a shame. The vocals and the production are both actually quite enjoyable, sounding raw and hateful, and at points reminding me of the ugly grandeur of Gorgoroth and Dodheimsgard.  But just as I'm starting to really get into the music, almost invariably, there'll come some really cheesy sounding keyboards. AGH! The band uses a drum machine, and this actually gives the album a certain appeal at points, recalling some Gorgoroth, and maybe Averse Sefira's first album.  But there are also points, where the band picked the wrong sounds for the drum machine, making it sound more like club music than Black Metal. Aborym have pulled this off well.  Serpent Eclipse does not. Oh, and the Serpent Eclipse logo is pretty typical too.  Normally, this would be a forgiveable trait, but it just adds to the air of regularity about the band. This album had some good things going for it, but ultimately winds up being pretty average. - Abraxas

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Severe Torture/Blood Red Throne - A Taste for Butchery (Hammerheart, 2002)

Rating: 8/10

Here we have a split disc from two brutal death metal bands of different veins, but with the same poisoned blood coursing through them (lookit that, a pun in a death metal review!!). Severe Torture are of the ultra-guttural school, ala Sanatorium, Brodequin and Suffocation. Super-deep vocals, lots of crunch, very technical yet barbaric. Where Severe Torture's music conjures up images of gore and murder, Blood Red Throne's sound brings forth demons and sacrifice. The two complement each other well.

I appreciated Blood Red Throne's 2001 release, Monument of Death, but it was a relatively unmemorable affair. The EP that makes up their half, entitled A Taste For Blood, is a collection of tracks from their demo, a compilation album, the aforementioned Monument of Death and one new song, the ripping "Cryptic Death." Countered with the Severe Torture EP, Butchery of the Soul, the Blood Red Throne material doesn't get to be at all redundant.

A Taste For Butchery is not a release that calls for an in-depth analyzation or song-by-song breakdown. If you like the first track from each band, chances are you like the rest. No surprises, no curve balls, nothing remotely innovative... just good solid death metal from two competent bands. It's like a good steak. You won't be surprised, but damn, will you be satisfied. - Al Kikuras

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Sins of Omission - Flesh On Your Bones (Black Sun Records, 2001)

Rating: 6/10

Sins of Omission released an amazing cd called "The Creation" several years back and I found it to be more intense and violent than almost any other release out of the Swedish Death Metal scene. It had melody, intensity, heaviness, very good vocals and some of the most creative riffs in the genre. I came into this album expecting The Creation Part 2 and this was just not it.

As this is a promo, its hard to tell if there have been any lineup changes as the cardboard sleeves really don't tell you anything apart from song titles. Something big must have happened to this band because this does not sound like the same band who released "The Creation".  Gone are the tortured high shrieks and they have been replaced by Hardcore screams, some clean singing and I believe I detect some power metal-esque falsetto.  It is one thing to change your vocal styles, I normally wouldn't have such a major problem with it as long as the music is good...but this is really where the album fails.  "The Creation" had some amazing dual guitar parts..lets be honest, what Swedish album doesn't have that? Oh...this one. To be brutally honest this isn't Swedish Death Metal, its Heavy Metal with Hardcore vocals.  For you audiophiles the production is clear at least.

I really tried to give this disc a chance after my initial listen, occasionally there would be a riff I thought would lead to a good part but sadly the part was over before it even began and it just kept disappointing me repeatedly.  Another thing note worthy here...their Slayer cover wasn't even done that well. They attempted to do "Angel of Death" and somehow they screwed that up. The vocals ARE better than Tom Araya, I will say that right now, but they are not good enough to make me listen to that song ever again.  Musically it just doesn't sound as fast or precise as some other covers I've heard of this song.

Maybe its just me and I am extremely jaded by my love for "The Creation", and you the reader might love this disc. I'm not going to say to avoid this CD because I don't feel its truly terrible on its own. Compared to their debut? Yeah I think it sucks. Basically if you heard The Creation first I don't think this is for you. I thought Swansong was disappointing but this has taken over the spot of "Worst letdown ever" in my CD collection. - Rick

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Skepticism - The Process of Farmakon (Red Stream, 2002)

Abraxas’ review:
Rating: 9/10

Finally, after a long wait, Skepticism has returned. This release features only two tracks, which are special versions of songs that will be on their forthcoming full-length, Farmakon. For those unfamiliar, Skepticism is the epitome of slow, somber, crushingly heavy doom.  They are literally the band for who the phrase Funeral Doom was first invented. Despite their heaviness, prior to this release, I never would have described Skepticism as brutal in their slowness, but rather as mournful and depressive.  On this release however, a feeling of hatred and malevolence is readily apparent. At first this was somewhat of a deterrent for me, as I had never looked to Skepticism for this sort of emotion before.  However, after a little adjustment on my part, I was able to recognize the two tracks for the masterpieces that they are. This is still the Skepticism that I know and love, only a more hateful version. If I had to make a point of comparison to past works, I would say it reminds me of a combination of the darkness of the Ethere mcd, and the slow but certain development of the Aes mcd.  Anyhow, if you're a fan of Skepticism or slow, morose doom metal, this is essential.

Big Juan’s Review:
Rating: 4/10

The first thing I took note of when receiving this disc was the unexpectedly bright colored layout.  For a band who have been playing depressing funeral doom for the past few years, this looked more like a pop record. I usually don't expect much from Red Stream releases when it comes to layout, but this was a very original design that got me somewhat hyped on the record. Unfortunately the actual music contained within could barely hold my attention. This is a two song EP teaser for their next full length.  Truly Skepticism's music isn't something you'd put on in the morning to wake up and get out of bed, but they've typically been very capable songwriters. This time around we have two songs which are at least seven minutes long each, but with little substance. After five subsequent listens I could barely find anything interesting to hold on to. Track 1 is a bit saturated in synth, while the second track just seems to never really take shape. Perhaps these are throwaway tracks. I'm not sure, but if you're looking for this record check the used bin at Vintage Vinyl in Jersey as that's where I sold my copy!

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Skinlab - ReVolting Room (Century Media, 2002)

Rating: 1/10

The worst way to introduce yourself to someone is to say, "Hi, I'm [insert name here], I'm much cooler than everyone else that has the same name, they just bastardized my name."  The worst way to make this reviewer like Skinlab was to put in the bio, and I quote, "San Fransisco's SKINLAB helped pioneer a sound incorporating extraordinarily heavy, down-tuned guitars, an unquestionably sincere vocal deliver and percussion that ranges from pummelling to groovy.  This sound has since been corrupted, assuming the bastard shape of nu-metal that has plagued modern rock for several years." Alright. You fucking idiots.  To say this, means that you're saying you're shitty nu-metal.  Not only that, but I read their bio online, and it says they formed in 1997. If I remember correctly Korn, Rage Against the Machine and Tool all came out in the EARLY 90s. That's right, not the LATE 90s.  There's about a 5 year difference between Skinlab and early Nu-Metal.  You bastards just copied them like EVERYONE else did.

Which leads me to the album. Like I said, crappy nu-metal.  The screamy, but not 'too extreme' vocals.  The shitty groove-core guitar, tuned to D to make them 'just a little heavier' and to make their simple chordy riffs that much easier to play (when you're tuned that low and you're doing interesting when it makes it easier, you need to die). Heavy drums, too bad the rest of the music is there to make you suffer through it. The vocals are whiny, the clean vocals are worse.  The lyrics are teen angsty and "nu-metally."

I think whoever signed these guys should be fired. And I think that I should've given Onward a higher score than these guys, because at least Onward can play their fucking instruments. - Jim Bob the Enforcer

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Solefald - Pills Against the Ageless Ills (Century Media, 2002)

Rating: 5.5/10

I don't quite know what to make of this album. I had Solefald's first album, the Linear Scaffold, and enjoyed it quite a bit. It was an enjoyably quirky extreme metal album that wasn't exactly black metal, but wasn't trying to be. 

I never got around to picking up the band's 2nd album. Now I hear Pills Against the Ageless Ills. Some "development" has occurred since their first album, but I can't state in good confidence that I think this has been a good thing.  I think any review you read of this album is going to use the adjective "weird" at least once.  It doesn't have a style that's easily definable (not a bad or a good thing, it just is.)  I guess the ballpark term to use, if one needs to be applied, would be avant-garde metal. Except this music doesn't seem particularly ahead of it's time. The band alternately calls the sound "red music with black edges" and "radical designer rock n' roll", both of which are adequate terms if you've heard the music, but still don't tell you much if you haven't.  If you'd never heard the band, I'd describe the sound as fairly commercial black-tinged extreme metal (that's very little like COF or Dimmu Borgir) with lots of odd quirks thrown in. Clean vocals are used fairly regularly on this album, which isn't really a plus in my book, as I've certainly heard them done better.  Besides that, there are some spoken vocals, which remind me of Marilyn Manson (bleh), and some shrieks which are fairly enjoyable to my ears. Ultimately, I don't think I'll be listening to this album much.  As far as experimental blackish metal goes, I'd MUCH rather listen to Korovakill or Sigh's more recent material. But I think Solefald seem like they know exactly what they were trying to do with this album.  Perhaps someone else will appreciate the realization of this vision more than I do. - Abraxas

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Teeth of Lions Rule the Divine - s/t (Southern Lord, 2002)

Rating: 5/10

This project seemed a bit self-indulgent to me when I first heard about it.  A bunch of "doom legends" getting trashed and heading into the studio to record three long tracks to be release on the guitarist's own label? You make the call. With members of Cathedral, Khanate, Burning Witch, Sunn 0)), Thorr's Hammer and Iron Monkey in the mix I was expecting something a bit more substantional, but this is really just three tracks of rather predictable doom metal. For diehards only! - Big Juan

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Thorazine - Geneticide (Deathgasm, 2001)

Rating: 8/10

It’s nice to hear something new from a Canadian band other than Kataklysm or Cryptopsy. Deathgasm was very smart to release this cd, I can see this band making it big in the underground scene.  They play a style of Death/Grind with some fast parts and tons of slams.

Slam riffs are nothing new, neither is the Death/Grind style but what's new is the way that Thorazine play this style.  Hyper-blasting when they aren't slamming, very good mid range vocals, loud high vocals.  While I have been getting away from the moshy style of DM more lately, these guys are really talented. Throwing in soft parts with growls is kind of weird and you might think it won't work but it actually sounds really well done.

The production is somewhat quiet on this and the guitar is a bit thin sounding to my ears..but the production isn't as important when the music is as good as this. It doesn't have to sound perfect, and this is a great start, hopefully the next cd will be heavier however don't pass this album up. If you are bored with the other Canadian acts give these guys a shot, I don't think you will be disappointed. - Rick

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Throes of Dawn - Binding of the Spirit (Mercenary Musik, 2002)

Rating: 7/10

It's been a while since I've heard really good symphonic black metal, and I didn't expect to hear it on this group of reviews. But I was pleasantly surprised when I listened to Throes of Dawn.  In the vein of Arcturus, Emperor and Covenant before them, Throes of Dawn puts together a surprisingly mature album.

The biggest complaint I have is the keyboards. It's not that they're poorly played, or even poorly arranged. It's that they're incredibly loud.  They tend to nearly drown out the guitars most of the time.  Not like ...and Oceans drowns out their guitar, but it's just that it's too loud in the mix. The only time that this isn't really a problem is during the very convincing and Opeth-like acoustic break downs. These are very classy and SUPER well produced.

The vocals are some of the most vicious vocals that I've heard since Garm. In fact, they really remind me of the old Arcturus vocals. Very grim, very cold, very dark and they eat at your soul, just like good black metal vocals should.  The vocalist also has a talent for some (very sparse, but good) clean vocals.  They sound nearly like chanting and help darken the mood of the album.

My other worry is that I have not seen the lyrics. Though the songs are very well put together and consistent, the song titles worry me.  The Last Rainbow Warrior and On Broken Wings of Despair both strike me as kind of cheesy and not really well thought out. However, considering how grim and cold the vocals are, you can't really tell anyway.

Bravo, Throes of Dawn, this is a pretty impressive album. - Jim Bob the Enforcer

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Thunderstone - S/T (Nuclear Blast, 2002)

Rating: 7/10

When you think of Finland, I think it's time to start thinking about guitar geek power metal. With Sonata Arctica and Stratovarius in the forefront, and Kotipelto's excellent solo album (see review) it was bound to happen, the Finnish scene is growing.

Thunderstone offers up a very convincing first offering, with soaring (but not annoying) tenor vocals, dueling guitar/keyboard solos and pounding drums.  This modern power metal sound really not getting old for me, and every time I hear it I'm amused. Finland is known for their notoriously shy people, who like to drink, smoke and not talk to anyone. But they aren't known for being humanists who are in love with the world.  Thunderstone, it seems, is.  In the footsteps of those before them, in the scene, they're using their music as a political and social statement rather than singing about swords.

Sometimes they get a little cheesy, and the album is not as fast as the other new wave of Finnish power metal bands. This does not mean the album is covered with ballads though, in fact there is only one ballad on it and it's even listenable (while most of the other Finnish bands have some pretty cheesy Poison-sounding ballads).

Honestly, this is a well put-together album that lives up to the scene very well. It's well worth your buck. - Jim Bob the Enforcer

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Vader - Revelations (Metal Blade, 2002)

Rating: 8.5/10

Vader's Litany was hailed by many (myself included) as the Reign in Blood of death metal. The band sounded hungry as they never had before and the album was a relentless slab that was intense from the first moment to the last. It is short because it needs to be, like Reign in Blood, any longer and it would have lost some of its effectiveness. I didn't know quite what to expect with Revelations. The album before Litany, Black to the Blind, incorporated old-metal elements into the songwriting. Things were catchy but still very death metal. Revelations comes off as a good blend between the two. The huge production of Litany is here, but the overall tempo of the album is no where near the level of their last release. Revelations is not as catchy as Black to the Blind, but the songwriting is no less strong. Track two, "The Nomad" features some of the finest riffs these boys have ever written, whereas tracks three and four, "Wolftribe" and "Whisper," reach Litany-level speeds. Those that thought Litany was too one-dimensional will be pleased with the diverse temps and arrangements on Revelations. Folks like me that loved the album won't be disappointed with Revelations as there is still enough hyperspeed on here to satisfy. In all, this is a very well-balanced effort that finds Vader sounding like the veterans they are. - Al Kikuras

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Without Face - Deep Inside (Dark Symphonies, 2002)

Rating: 2/10

I've never liked a Dark Symphonies release, and I don't see that changing in the near future.  You know what to expect.  A predictable goth/metal hybrid with a male vocalist (there's a female voice too fo course) who clearly has no testicles. They get one extra point for making me believe they were going to do something interesting with the opening riff. - Big Juan

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Wizard- Head Of The Deceiver (SPV Records, 2001) 

Rating: 8/10

With a CD cover painting of a Conan-like character holding a severed head and song tiles such as "Defenders of Metal" and "True Metal", I thought I was in for a low-budget Manowar copy. Wizard proved me wrong, shredding through ten songs of eighties era German speed metal. I could easily see them alongside the likes of Helloween, Running Wild, Grave Digger, and Kreator in 1985.  From the break-neck double bass drum and rhythm guitar, the occasional Maidenish guitar harmonies, to the awkward lyrics sung in broken English, it's all here.

All performances on the CD are excellent.  Drummer, Snoppi, plays with incredible speed, throwing in exceptional fills that demand to be air drummed to.  Bass player, Volker Leson, jumps out of the mix frequently with some growling and heavy bottom. Michael Maas thrashes accordingly, mixing up the speed with catchy riffs.  Singer, Sven D'anna, while no Eric Adams, suits the band well and his high falsettos and accented English while belting out lines like, "we play more metal than the most people can take," are cool and fun. I think fun is what Wizard is about, and what is missing from a lot of metal today. Wizard delivers monster anthems at breakneck speed that are just, well, er, fun. - John Gee Warrior

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Xasthur - A Gate Through Bloodstained Mirrors (Profane Productions, 2002)

Rating: 9/10

Holy shit!!! After a somewhat typical keyboard intro, the album opens up into an incredible Black Fucking Metal nightmare. If I had to try to describe the vocals I'd suggest you try to imagine what noise the wind might make as it ripped the flesh off of your bones. The music sounds beautiful, evil, and depressive, taking obvious influences from Burzum, Mutiilation, Graveland, and Abyssic Hate.  This album is certainly not without its flaws.  While the raw production suits the work well, the recording quality is distracting at points, such as when the drums distort, or when there is an unexplainable clicking noise over the recording.  Besides this, the album drags on occasion.  But these faults are easily forgiveable.  This music has a feeling contained in it that so much black metal is severely lacking. Xasthur is one person, hailing from California. This album is Xasthur's first work, and is limited to 150 copies, which I believe are all sold. Still, do whatever you have to do to get your hands on this. Yes the work is flawed, but as a flawed work, it is still better than many albums that are actually quite good. I'm sure you're going to hear a lot more about this band in the future. - Abraxas

Xasthur/Acid Enema - split cdr (Self Released)

Rating (Xasthur): 10/10
Rating (Acid Enema): 5/10

Xasthur may be one of the brightest new hopes for Black Metal. This split contains only a few tracks by Xasthur, but it is worth every penny for them.  Xasthur is depressive black metal in the style of Burzum and Mutiilation.  For more info see the review of their full length. This split is limited to 100 copies, so if you see it, get it for the Xasthur. As for Acid Enema, well, they need work.  It is not that they are without hope, but at this point they are rather average, bordering on bad.  They are raw and hateful, and that's a plus, but they really need to work on sculpting their songs more.  Some bands, like Judas Iscariot and Burzum, make repetition work wonderfully. This is sadly not the case for Acid Enema. Add to this the use of a really stupid sample from the movie "Falling Down", and you have a not-so-great piece of work.  There were points where the music was alright, but even at these points, it wasn't that impressive. Perhaps it's the fact that this music was put right next to Xasthur.  And if Acid Enema come out with something in the future, I might check it out to see whether they'd worked out some of the rough edges, as it seems like their attitude is in the right place. But as far as this split cdr goes, I think I'll generally just turn it off after the Xasthur. - Abraxas

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Zao - Parade of Chaos (Solid State, 2002)

Rating: 6/10

Zao is Militant Christian Hardcore.  Would someone explain to me how you end up Militant Christian Hardcore?

They're pretty good at it though.  The vocals are actually akin to Darkthrone but the music is very punk influenced.  But, like others, I'm having more and more trouble figuring out where to draw the line between Hardcore and Metal these days.

The album is an onslaught of hardcore style chording, screaming and some pretty intense emotion, and like most hardcore it gets boring after a while. There just isn't enough to keep the album rolling, in my mind.  If there were more riffing and less chording, this album would probably be genius. But alas, there isn't.

The lyrics are hard to read, so I didn't bother (shows you how much interest I really had in finding out what they said) but from what I did make out, "death has no respect for virtue."

Tell me, please, how does one end up Militant Christian Hardcore??? - Jim Bob the Enforcer

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