Blood Cult - We Are the Cult of the Plains (2010)

Proof that there is always something you haven't heard, even when you fancy that you've actually heard everything, Blood Cult is a band out of Illinois with well over a dozen demos under their belts, a good number of compilations, a few splits, and one previous full-length album, We Who Walk Behind the Rows, which was released half a decade ago. However, this new album, We Are the Cult of the Plains, is only my first exposure to their rather unique formula. You see, Blood Cult is not just the average black metal artist, despite their rather obvious title. They incorporate punk, rock and roll, hillbilly, bluegrass, and even a twang of aggro-surf and country rock into their grim facade. The results are mixed, and by no means do I feel the band has yet perfected its eclectic aural Frankenstein, but they are certainly one of the more intriguing sounds to emerge in a USBM landscape hell starved for fresh ideas.

The songs here are quite varied, and Blood Cult often focuses on one genre more than another, but there are numerous examples where they've adapted the perfect blend of their constituent influences. "Lusi Ceriales" is like a long, jamming grunge piece with some snarled vocals, nigh on endless guitar wailing and a constant, mesmerizing clean guitar that rings off through most of the song's 8+ minutes. "My Forest Home" transforms from raw but melodic necro black metal to some drudging rock and roll with a dark, almost surf line cascading beneath. "Seeds" is another of the band's mixtures of atmospheric black metal, harsh rasping vocals, bluesy shredding and bloodied stream of melody, with glorious, plodding bass lines and more of the band's penchant for just jamming off on the lead guitar (perhaps too long). "Illinoisan Alter" is like line dancing for lunatics, Wild West black country folk that seems the perfect fixin' for a fight, a horrific hoedown, Satanic gunmen at the Golden Dawn, casting curses at one another while the bullets fly. I honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry, it's so entertaining. There are some cool, shorter songs here too like the sludgy, depressive black punk rock & roll of "We Came Back" or the more eerie, 'proper' black metal time warping of "Necromance".

It does feel like the band could use a little more fine tuning. For example, a few of the guitar lines just rattle on and on, with very few interesting variations. Their more metallic riffs are clearly the forte, and when they go off jamming on some of the longer tunes (like "Lusi Ceriales"), you do feel a longing for something more interesting to occur. In fact, the shorter tracks on this album are simply the best you'll hear, even if they're more conventional than fare like "Illinoisan Alter". No problem with the vocals, and I really love the production of the album, which is pretty raw and honest, as if this might have been the first black metal record put out by SSI back in the day, a mix of old Screaming Trees, Descendants, and Burzum.

We Are the Cult of the Plains is quite unique, at least to my ears, and it fascinates me to think of the possibilities of the entire realm of American indie rock, folk, country and punk being manipulated and bastardized into raw black metal. Blood Cult are well ahead of the curve here, and should they ever muster up just the right amount of killer riffing and writing to balance out their obvious wealth of idea, they could become a dominating force here in the US. This is a really good record, and very fun to listen through, but I have the feeling they can do more. And, for the love of all that is unholy, please keep this cover artists, because that is goddamn sweet looking.

Highlights: My Forest Home, We Came Back, Necromance, Cult of the Olains, Never Said Goodbye

Verdict: Win [8.25/10]

http://www.myspace.com/redneckblackmetal

Astel Oscora - Eridan (2010)

The barbed, yet tranquil, alien atmosphere of this album's cover art presents quite a mystery. Clearly from the logo one would guess the band's style at either death or black metal, and true enough it falls somewhere within the latter category. Yet I was actually quite taken aback by the graceful, hugely atmospheric sound this band creates, which slowly grows upon the listener with repeated listens. Astel Oscora are quite good at what they do, though they are playing in a genre that sadly does not get much attention these days, due to the polarizing effect of its top end contenders upon the metal populace.

By this I mean to say that Astel Oscora are a keyboard heavy black metal band whose focus is on the over-arching, picturesque landscape of the composition, in place of brutality or conjuring a pervading sense of evil within their rhythms. There is sorrow, truly, and there is beauty, but you will not find much in the realm of blasphemy, and if anything, this should separate them somewhat from the ministrations of their famous symphonic black metal peers like Dimmu Borgir, Old Man's Child or Cradle of Filth, beloved by some and hated (perhaps unfairly so) because of their easy target status as actual money makers. But I would urge the listener, even if he or she loathes the aforementioned acts, or symphonic black metal in general, to give Astel Oscora more than a passing glance. For this is a band of no obvious complexity, but a subtle sense for the dynamics of song that can both engage and haunt the beholden.

This is especially true of the more mesmerizing tracks like "Cherta Mirozdaniya (Feature of the Universe)", which rolls across a lush cosmic valley of slowly driving melodic chords and simpering synthesizers that use only simple patterns to ensnare. The vocals of Anubis are the fairly standard variety of well-produced black rasp, but they are used well, echoing where needed like a planetary body through the alien night. "Nimfa Kamney (Nymph of Stones)" is another quality track, with more intense drumming and arches of synthesizer that drift across the base of chords like stardust in a vacuum. I was also caught within the clutches of a "Sea of Malice", and the beautiful swelling of the flutes and chords in "Crimson World".

At times, I am reminded of the once great band Mental Home, or perhaps the older work of Nokturnal Mortum when they were far more heavy on the lush, gothic keyboards. But Astel Oscora is topically very different, their focus a mesh of folklore and philosophy, and the great skies across which only the unknown awaits us. There is nothing savage to this particular album, and in no way will it appeal to one whose ONLY ideal of black metal music is that laid upon him by Quorthon or Euronymous. This is more like a laid back cousin to Tidfall, Sirius or Alghazanth. The guitars are decent, but their priority does appear to be a complement to the lush, hazy atmospheres rather than the central instrument of the band. But it all works well in tandem, and this proves the band's ability for seeing the bigger picture. It's not entirely original, but I certainly enjoyed myself when listening, and Eridan is the type of effort which seems to increase in value with each successive exposure. A promising band, in both sadness and majesty.

Highlights: Feature of the Universe, Nymph of Stones, Sea of Malice, Crimson World

Verdict: Win [8/10]

http://www.myspace.com/asteloscora

Asgard - In the Ancient Days (1986)

Noise Records was quite possibly the best European record label in the 80s, helping lay the foundations for bands as incredibly varied and talented as Voivod, Kreator, Celtic Frost, Helloween, Running Wild, Rage and Coroner. But their batting average was not exactly perfect, especially when one considers some of the weak releases of the 90s, closer to the label's implosion. In the 80s, there were very few releases through this label that I did not adore, but the sole full-length of Holland's Asgard was one of them. Formed under the name Angel Dust, they switched their name to Asgard for the Noise debut, most likely due to some conflict with the German band of the same name who played in a similar (though vastly superior) style.

The cover of In the Ancient Days is certainly inviting, with its barbaric and monstrous imagery that rekindles the fire in my loins for the writings of Robert E. Howard, but the music itself is quite lackluster. It's run of the mill, speedier thrash, on the grittier side, but lacking almost any riff that I could distinguish from the horde of other bands excelling in this style. Basically, take the vile speed of Iron Angel and apply the vocals of a band like Hallows Eve (the earlier stuff, and add an accent). What you come up with is the Dutch Asgard. The band is not always playing at full speed though, and when they tone it down a little, they remind me more of the Danish band Witch Cross.

And I actually prefer this side to the band, on tracks like "Hounds of Hell" , and also "Witches Brew" where it picks up from the dull, clean intro and goofy sounding narrative bits. "Screaming Knights" also mixes up a faster and slower tempo, with plenty of riffs, and its one of the better songs on the album, though that is not saying much. As for the rest...all sadly forgettable. "Before the Morning" moves from fast and uninteresting to a wasted descending melody that stands out in the mix as it flashes above a very boring, slower thrash riff, to a half decent solo spike. "High Society" is quite horrible, and though "Possessed by Evil" makes an effort to introduce a warlike marching rhythm and a cool echo to the vocals, you won't remember the actual riffs once the song ends. There's a classic, Spanish guitar instrumental "Granadinas" which makes little sense on the album, and "Metal Tonight" is all atmosphere which once again suffers from a lack of inspiring guitar writing, despite the near wanking of the intro.

It kind of pained me when I first heard this album, because Noise had become synonymous with high quality to me, and as a 12-year old I had to be pretty careful where I spent that paper route money. This was not money well spent, and probably one of the worst releases for the label in the 80s. If you're looking for niche Dutch speed and thrash metal, I'd advise you to skip this and make a b-line for the more aggressive bands bordering on death metal, like Dead Head, or the debut from Pestilence. Everything Asgard tried to pull off here would be done better by German bands like Iron Angel, Vendetta (first album) and Deathrow (Riders of Doom and Raging Steel).

Highlights: Hounds of Hell, Screaming Knights...okay, not really.

Verdict: Fail [4.5/10]

Indestroy - Senseless Theories EP (1989)

Indestroy's self-titled 1987 debut album is just one of those charming little numbers that claws away at your memory until you concede defeat and offer it the reverence of the ages, placing it upon your 2nd tier thrash pedestal, below the greats, but loftily elevated above and beyond so much of the genre that would follow in the ensuing decades. One of the true highlights of the entire New Renaissance roster, Indestroy was a crude and admittedly low budget recording, but that hasn't stopped it from acquiring a cult immortality status within my record collection. The production only made it that much more endearing...

However, that album would not be the last for the Maryland ragers, who issued the Senseless Theories EP through Restless Records a few years later. The sound here is a little sharper, lacking some of the muddied and laconic feel of the guitar tone on the full-length, but it's also clearer, and the band has not changed its approach to writing simple, effective thrash with fairly catchy chops and the atmosphere conjured by Mark Strassburg's filthy, almost crossover vocal style. One exception might be the slightly more technical embellishments to the guitar riffs. A good example of this would be the Destruction-like passage in the latter half of "Tortured by Fire", or the chorus of "Instant Insanity", but this is more of an exception than the rule.

With a few more tracks tossed on the end, this could have been a full-length itself, and a good one, if not the equal of its predecessor. Most of the songs here summon forth at least a few good riffs, and in some cases, superb riffs. The evil, wiry grooves of "Living in Filth" and the hostile Slayer/Possessed surge of title track "Senseless Theories" both come to mind, but these are not alone. "Instant Insanity" is a frenetic, pacemaker-busting piece with solos flying off the hook and some eerie weight to the chords and effects beyond the 2:00 mark. "Terminal Choice" and "Sam the Butcher" are worthy enough to be in this company, but not the more memorable tracks found here.

There's nothing senseless about this material, though it doesn't quite live up to the more primal and entertaining debut. I wasn't about to run around howling these songs out loud as I once did with "U.S.S.A" or "Dead Girls (Don't Say No)". However, this is far, far better than the band drummer Gus Basilika and vocalist/guitarist Mark Strassburg would later form, the doom oriented Wretched, whose name was all too fitting, though they managed to score a deal with Hellhound regardless. Senseless Theories won't blow your mind, but it's at least quality thrash from a state that produced very few such bands, being known more for its death and doom scenes.

Verdict: Win [7/10]

http://www.myspace.com/indestroy

Hexx - Watery Graves EP (1990)

Continuing the band's evolution, the Watery Graves EP would arrive a few years post-Quest for Sanity, serving as a teaser to their 3rd full-length, Morbid Reality, which would see release through Century Media records in the following year. The difference you'll notice here is that Clint Bower has taken his vocals even further into the reach of extremity, here bordering on death metal and completing the Hexx career transformation from power/speed roots to a communion of death and thrash metal. But this is a shorter EP than its predecessor, with only 3 tracks, 2 of which are remakes of songs from the Under the Spell album, converted into a hostile thrashing force that would suffice alongside the band's newer material.

You'll notice immediately that "Watery Graves" itself is a superior assault than anything on the Quest for Sanity EP, so the band's songwriting ability has caught up here with there. It's a cruel sounding piece, tightly wound with the frenetic leads the band had already mastered, in addition to a slew of fairy complex, aggressive riffs that ensnare the listener quite the chaos of a sinking wreck, as survivors desperately cling to flotilla, fighting against one another for their last breaths in this world. The remake of "Edge of Death" is much more forceful than the original, and I rather like Bower's vocal performance, though I wouldn't call it a worthy replacement for its namesake. The guitars shred with abandon, and the riffing pattern is a good fit for the speed injection. It's also cool that the band would include this, as if to say that they haven't entirely turned their backs on the past. "Under the Spell" also works well enough, seeming like a cover of the original by a band like Sadus or Exodus. The morbid melody of the bridge remains intact, and again, a good idea from the Hexx team.

Overall, the music here is better than Quest for Sanity, but there is only a single new original song, which is also available on the Morbid Reality full-length (and sounds better there). So there is not a lot of intrinsic value here. Had the two Under the Spell tracks been included with the following album as bonus material, then there would be no reason at all to acknowledge this release, but as they're not (at least on my copy), it might be worth a glance if you're A) a massive fan of Hexx in their later, thrash/death years or B) an obsessive completist. Either way, they are not better than the originals, so they serve as little more than a curiosity.

Verdict: Indifference [5/10]

Hexx - Quest for Sanity EP (1988)

By the late 80s, the popularity of US metal had clearly shifted away from the early speed and power metal that had only just gotten its roots into the soil, and towards the now dominant genre of thrash metal. Bands like Metallica and Megadeth were headed towards the status of platinum artists, if not already there, and the hottest touring tickets in town, along with peers like Anthrax, Testament, Exodus, Slayer and Suicidal Tendencies. For many bands hanging at the fringe, it was time to put up or shut up if they were to ride this new wave of excitement. Some of the more traditional metal bands simply dissembled and reformed under new projects, but others took a swing towards the more violent sound.

Hexx was in the latter category. Having released two glorious albums of melodic, high powered heavy/speed metal (No Escape through Shrapnel and the excellent Under the Spell through both Shrapnel and Roadrunner), it was time to season a little extremity into the band's broth. After parting ways with vocalist Dan Bryant, Clint Bower (who would later go on to play in more extreme acts Abscess, The Ravenous, and Eatmyfuk) took over the vocals, using a harsh crossover style which fell somewhere in between Sadus and The Accüsed, with an occasional shriek thrown in for good measure. Musically, they morphed into a hyper violent, filthy fist of thrash and speed metal, letting off plenty of steam but keeping the ability to drop a melodic solo at a moment's whim. Sadly, this Hexx is neither as memorable or as fun to listen to as their earlier incarnation.

No, there are no "Hell Riders" on this album, and what you end up with is a slab of pure Bay Area speed/thrash that lacks the force and aggression of a Dark Angel or the immortal propensity for evil hooks that launched the titanic careers of Slayer and Metallica. The band sounds more in line with a Sadus or Holy Terror, only lacking the bass wanking of the former and the ability of the latter to pattern intensely memorable riffing into their songs. It speaks reams when the one thing that stands out in your song is the solo section, but alas, that is what Hexx has come to. Almost all the five songs here fail to sink into the memory, with the possible exception of the creepy closer "Sardonicus", telling a cool tale of terror with some low-shifted vocals and a decent slew of riffing, though barely rising above the average din of its surroundings. "Racial Slaughter" at least maintains a sickening, busy pace. Others are not successful. "Mirror of the Past" sounds like a half-assed butchery of Destruction's "Mad Butcher", and I'd be damned if I could ever remember a single lick of "Twice as Bright" or "Fields of Death", though the latter has a nice, frenzied lead section.

I can understand why a band like Hexx might feel the need to re-confirm its identity, but the Quest for Sanity lacks all of the allure that drew me into Under the Spell, a killer album loaded with hooks and arguably one of the best and most overlooked articles in all of US speed/power history. This thrash phase would certainly not have the legs to carry them past the competition, and I almost feel like it soils the earlier half of their career. This material is hardly terrible, and competently performed, but neither is it impressive by any shape or means.

Verdict: Indifference [5.5/10] (living in the dreams of dead men)

Atrophy - Violent by Nature (1990)

Atrophy's 1988 debut Socialized Hate was a solid, energetic affair strong on both riffs and vitality, but it was unable to force any wider ripples among a public consciousness for the thrash metal genre that was only then teething upon the 'big 4' US thrash bands (Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax) with barely any room left in their attention spans for the exploding scenes out of Germany and the Bay Area, much less the rest of the world. A few other bands would slip through, like Testament, Annihilator, or the Teutonic trio of Kreator, Sodom and Destruction, and garner a reasonable level of success, but so many bright and talented upstarts would be hung out to dry. Atrophy but one of them...

However, the Arizona thrashers were able to cobble together not one, but two impressive LPs chock full of thick, semi-technical riffs, memorable structures and the glazed, almost constipated furor of Brian Zimmerman's vocals (I mean that as a compliment). Violent by Nature is actually a dash more memorable than Socialized Hate. It may lack some of its predecessor's overall focus on speed and intensity, but the songs are extremely well balanced, with bigger sounding bass and memorable chorus vocals. Armed with an iffy (though memorable) Paul Stottler cover image, who you may recognize from his numerous covers for fellow Arizona thrash squad Sacred Reich or his work in tattoos, Violent by Nature arrived just before the thrash wave broke in 1991-92 and was swept back out to sea. Sadly, it was hung up on some oil-stained reef, void of the attention it probably deserved.

The potentially ill-titled "Puppies and Friends" blazes its trail immediately, with some action packed, frenzied that carries through the gang shouts to the extremely cool descending hyper-breakdown around 1:30. The band's popping bass and dense, compact guitar tone (like Exhorder's second album, but better) create a very percussive feel, across which the leads blaze, though they're not highly interesting as far as their own internal composition. "Violent by Nature" opens with busy beat and some further winding, thrash grooves that meter out their complexity through a muted bombast, and Zimmerman enforcing his throat with some variance and emotion, and gang shouts galore into the chorus. "In Their Eyes" is a slower piece, perhaps Atrophy's interpretation of the 'non-ballad', fully loaded with melodic hooks and a powerful, meaningful climax. Do it for the children! "Too Late to Change" features a sweet acoustic intro that blooms into a lead reminiscent of Testament, and a killer thrashing break after 3:30. I also love the bass in this piece.

"Slipped Through the Cracks" is another poignant piece about the failures of the US education system in all the glories of its competitive castigation, with some mosh heavy rhythms akin to Sacred Reich or S.O.D., while "Forgotten But Not Gone" features not only a sweet song title but a series of arching melodic, gladiatorial riffs with a Megadeth-like groove packed into the verse. "Process of Elimination" further sears the band's quality guitarchitecture into your brain, a nigh endless onslaught of sick headbanging riffs that pick up to a frenetic brutality reminiscent of the debut album, only tempered in the more sublime melodies of the vocals in the bridge. "Right to Die" contains one of the best riffs on the entire album (behind the verse), with a very natural flow that makes it impossible to forget, and "Things Change" makes great use of its backing gang shouts, crumbsucking vocals and pummeling bounce rhythms.

As you can see, just about every song here is good, regardless of whether or not we find the very 80s subject matter of the lyrics to be relevant to our lives today (hint: it is, we just may not think so much about these particular topics). For many, this is another undiscovered gem of the 'Golden Decade' for thrash metal, well worth shelling out the coin to acquire. In fact, buy them both. It may be a product of the same well of utter brilliance that produced a Master of Puppets, Rust in Peace, or Reign in Blood, but it's a damn good thrash metal record which holds up 20 years later, as fresh and crunchy as the day it was laid to tape and delivered through a pre-suck Roadrunner Records.

Highlights: Puppies and Friends, In Their Eyes, Forgotten But Not Gone, Right to Die

Verdict: Win [8.5/10] (the simple definitions of this world)

http://www.myspace.com/atrophyoriginal

Cruciamentum - Convocation of Crawling Chaos [DEMO] (2009)

Lately we've heard all manner of wretched, old school death metal resurfacing across the face of today's trend-heavy society, but I cannot say that this is an unwelcome shift in progress. Maybe its the fact that a whole new generation of metal fans are beginning to 'get it', or maybe it's just a cyclic byproduct of our cold and uncaring universe, but bands from all over like Decrepitaph, Innumerable Forms, Denial, Obliteration and Vasaeleth are starting to forge the way for the hideous rebirth of late 80s/early 90s sonic atrocity, often coupled with the benefit of today's denser production possibilities.

Cruciamentum is actually one of the best bands I've heard in this movement, a British act with members from another, similar styled (and better known) group called Grave Miasma. Tempering the morbid hostility of the eldest Incantation albums with the occasional war stomp of a Bolt Thrower or the sub-thrash outbreak of Consuming Impulse era Pestilence, their Convocation of Crawling Chaos demo is a true pleasure to experience, and it will only cost you 18 minutes of your life. Well, it's possible the cost might be higher, as the sound these men produce is so hopeless and deadening that existence beyond its playtime might be called to question. Vocalist D.L. is a mixed breed of Martin van Drunen, Karl Willets and Craig Pillard, and the ichor of his intonations blends like another instrument to the band's highly grim and subterranean atmospheres. The riffs here are extremely base and cavernous, but the band have a strong sense for songwriting elements, like breaking for atmosphere or rolling into a chug riff with HUGE bass at exactly the right moment, so their crude efforts do not evoke any semblance of ennui.

The "Intromantical Scream" is but a choir being near muted below the rush of dark ambient turmoil, before the drum fill heralds the Bolt Thrower-like crushing of "Deathless Ascension", bass so thick it is rattling off like machine-gun fire from the cockpit of a tank, all the while the steady verse riffs giving you the impression of sinking through a tarpit to an underworld of phantoms being butchered by oblivion. At around 1:00 the track takes a brief, thrashing spin which reminds of Pestilence, and later slows to a floe of sparse, death/doom chords while D.L.'s vocals resonate off the top. "Convocation of Crawling Chaos" picks the pace back up to chugging, hellish warfare, with a riff not unlike something you might find on the first two Obituary albums. The final track "Rotten Flesh Crucifix" is re-inserted and extended from the band's earlier, single track demo of the same, with a style much like the others but a little more melody by way of some primal, obscure 90s Swedish band, and a great synthesizer swell near the climax.

In a way, Cruciamentum are old hat, but the best kind of old hat, the one that everyone stares at as you head out for your morning coffee. Totally repressive, evil atmosphere that evinces no stray light, no hope and no future. If you were swallowed by an Elder God, and slowly waiting to be digested throughout eternity, tendrils writhing and stinging your flesh with bowel acids, this is the music you'd probably hear somewhere deep within your consciousness. No rewards will be given for innovation, although like many of these new creatures, the production is simply massive in a way that few of the older recordings could muster. What more can I add? Cthulhu F'tangh! IÄ! IÄ! IÄ Cthulhu!

Verdict: Win [8.5/10]

http://www.myspace.com/cruciamentumuk

Sybreed - The Pulse of Awakening (2010)

On paper, Sybreed seems like a rather uphill struggle. At least in today's narrow minded metal climate zone, where the unwashed masses are quite content to cage themselves into limited scopes of taste where simple and acceptable choices from the 'master list of cool bands' are the means of survival. Certainly, electronic/groove metal bands have seen some success through the years, especially Fear Factory, but this is a style that most would rather spit upon and cast out than support and evolve. Enter the third album of Swiss Sybreed, who perform a far more complex range of chugging grooves, harsh vocals, polyrhythmic math metal and European EBM/new wave electro elements that provide a more accessible grasp to those who can't stomach the sheer caustic elasticity of a band like Meshuggah. This unit reminds me more of a Danish act like Mnemic or Raunchy, though with the added complications of the excess electronic backbone. But they've got the same penchant for writing modern grooves that sink in, emotional clean pop vocals, and so forth.

The Pulse of Awakening is their 3rd album since forming in 2003, and to be fair, it's a slightly more challenging effort than you'd expect from most of the bands crossing these styles over. For one, they've got a real drummer, Kevin Choiral, as equally capable as many death or black metal drummers, and this provides a more organic (though highly polished) connection to the listener than the average industrial metal act. I'm not a huge fan of the guitars, as I feel they rarely stand out of their own, used primarily as a bludgeoning, percussive force to anchor down the glistening synthesizers, but there are a few riffs that stand out, like the bouncing groove below the verse of "Nomenklature" or the broken, eerie manipulations of "Electronegative". They serve their purpose in general, but be warned that if you loathe excessive chugging over the pulse of a synth, you're probably going to hate this album and this band.

The album is also a beast, at over an hour long, with 12 tracks, and its quite a lot to take in one sitting. You begin to feel like many of them run on together and become less distinct of their own merits. Of course, if you're looking for a non-stop, cyber-metal paradise to engage you for 63 minutes straight, Sybreed has your number. I prefer to actually listen to a few tracks, in spurts, so I can take in everything that's going on. Because if The Pulse of Awakening is anything, it's busy. Some of the tracks I took to included "In the Cold Light", which is basically an EBM track like you'd hear from Apoptygma Berserk, Covenant or ...And One, only with the heavier guitars added near the close. "Doomsday Party" is like Fear Factory for the dance floor, and your mileage will determine whether that sounds like a nightmare or an invitation to bring the spiked punch, but it's catchy enough that I felt the urge to listen repeatedly. "Love Like Blood" gave the impression of some hyper-metalized version of Duran Duran's "All She Wants", and for the more aggressive fare I enjoyed "Killjoy" and "Meridian A.D.", both of which have some labryinthine grooves and great chorus vocals. "From Zero to Nothing" is quite ambitious, over 19 minutes long from its actual core song to the resonant, ambient drifting that drags on and on.

As a delicate, deadly alternative to Fear Factory or other bands that have sampled these waters, Sybreed excels. In fact they are quite likely the best band out their doing this, at least until you delve into a more pure, industrial/metal crossover terrain. If your mind is open to the band's mix of treacherous chugging, and Ben's almost MPD fusion of snarls, hoarse angst-ridden poetry and clean vocals that give To/Die/For a run for their money, give this record a try. The biggest complaint I might have is that there is simply so much to absorb that it may work against the band, but if its value you seek, then it is value you will find here.

Highlights: Meridian A.D., Nomenklature, In the Cold Light, Doomsday Party, Love Like Blood

Verdict: Win [7.75/10] (kinetic figures all around)

http://www.sybreed.com/

Raise Hell - City of the Damned (2006)

A phantom train zips across a doomed city line, and the fourth album from Raise Hell arrives, some four years after Wicked Is My Game. Some of this delay was likely due to a pair of lineup changes, and the acquisition of a new label after the deal with Nuclear Blast expired. Soon after the band released Wicked is My Game, Jonas Nilsson made the decision to hire a vocalist so he could focus solely on his guitar work. Honestly, you wouldn't notice, since the studio guitars here are hardly more complex, so it must have been a live gig decision. The new vocalist is Jimmy Fjällendahl, and while I don't enjoy his vocals nearly as much as Nilsson, he's at least got the right type of approach, a caustic snarl that fits in well with the spooky horror show thrash that the band have continued here from the past two albums. The other change is Joakim Kulo joining the band to replace Torstein Wickberg, who departed in 2004.

City of the Damned is actually a better album than Wicked is My Game, but it takes a few tracks to get revved up. "Devils Station" does not exactly excite through the thrash riffing, but it gives the listener a chance to adapt to Fjällendahl's snarls. The atmospheric break around 3:30 features a minimal, resonant guitar melody that sounds cool over the writhing rhythm beneath and the marching drums, helping set up the title track "City of the Damned", which is a slower, groove laden thrash hymn with a better, forward momentum, although it too lacks in riffs that would have taken more than 60 seconds to compose, and the bluesy guitar twang does little for me. I enjoyed the percussion used in the intro to "Like Clowns We Crawl", and Fjällendahl puts a nice swagger to his vocals here that almost matches the charisma of Nilsson on prior records. The riffs are in general predictable but fun, though when the band picks up to a "Holy Wars" like faster rhythm and the leads breakout, it's truly a pleasure. "Reaper's Calling" has some mid paced thrash grooves, a Grave Digger-like chorus, and some nice harmony around the lead.

The rest of the album is mixed in quality, but thankfully, nothing dips below average. "Open Your Mind" and "Ghost I Carry" did little for me, but the melodic vocal climax and the haunted house thrash break after 3:00 in the latter was worth hearing. "My Shadow" and "I" both have a solid array of faster riffs, and "To the Gallows" has a few excellent, charging moments where Jimmy's vocals echo out across the rhythm section. The last track "Rising" is probably the most notable on the album, for both the creepy keyboards that manifest the perfect, cheap horror atmosphere, and the slow, thrashing rhythm weaves in and out of a verse passage with expressive vocals, and clean guitars, before another melodic chorus which yet again delves briefly into a power metal feel.

Though are very few head-spinning riffs to be found in this City of the Damned, and the lyrics are somewhat bland (like the last album), but the songs are reasonably well written and you're unlikely to find yourself bored by its contents. I did miss Nilsson's vocals here, yet his replacement is worthy enough to carry the torch, and by this point he'd already been with the band for years. Like Wicked Is My Game, the production is clear and present, and in particular some fine work was done with the vocals to give them some depth, catering to the thrash and thrust with echoes and other effects. Almost completely gone are the crushing, raunchy tones of Not Dead Yet, and all of the band's previous black metal influences, save for the fact the vocalist is rasping. In fact, Holy Target and City of the Damned sound like two entirely different bands. This is far more controlled than other Swedish black/thrash hybrids, and the band's pure rock influence continues to grow through the hooks and bluesy touches that flourish throughout this material. This album might not be one for the books, but I can hear no indicator that Raise Hell are giving it any less than their best effort, and maturing as songwriters, even if this particular batch was not as enticing as what they summoned forth on the first two records.

Highlights: City of the Damned, Like Clowns We Crawl, Rising

Verdict: Win [7.75/10] (without words they talk)

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