Fresh off the success of winning their seat at the Scottish M2TM final (whenever that is going to happen). As a minor challenge to myself, I decided to give the winner of the recent semi-final (Read up on it here) whoever that turned out to be. Luckily and decidedly the Dundee hopefuls Immortal Omen‘s stunning set won the competition, beating off some strong acts in a tight race. Luckily they were the band to win as they are the have the most solid of releases to hand, in this This their debut EP “Mother Of Beasts” from the end of last year a been making quite the buzz in the scene.
This band, a single-guitar 4 piece act makes the most with its given tools. With Frankie taking up both reins of rhythm and lead guitar makes the most of his talents. Carving some giant riffs, with plenty of melody and carefully crafted hooks, that stay right that sweet spot where flashiness would start to hamper the dynamics. What we have here in the guitar is impressive in its subtlety while driving a super melodic-metal vehicle that reliable makes each curve and swing of the rhythm with deliberate ease and a cool passive shuddering thump. It’s in the shade of confidence where you know they can thump harder/faster but choose the smoother path where the solos are plentiful but not congested. Not afraid to go slight off-road either with “Devils poetry” adds a half-thrash texture to the road the before sweeping back on-road for a hill of NWOBHM whack at the end.
In the driver’s seat though, sits the female vocals by singer Eden Noon taking, again, a more laid back approach that is soothing, expressive and croons a soulful smokey flavour that is touchingly gothic in the weave of vague frightful poetry she paints in calm tones. Vocals at times feel almost too understated for their own good, lacking some of the larger range of more fruitful singers have. Only really leaping out the box for some violent shrieks in final track “Serpentine” (the best track on the EP) one of their more pointed highlight from their gigs. Its good to see the vicious bite peppering in other places too of the EP.
Unluckily the bass has possibly been lost in the shuffle of the early swapping of members. Though seeming strong enough at (See track “Entity” for its throb), and is represented if a tad back-grounded in the mix. The drums too, have that vague undertone to them too, with function replacing much of form in its body.
As mighty fine, as this release is, it may come across to some as slightly complacent and a little bit uninspired at points when compared to the flashier/heavier bands on the scene, but why have such exuberance when melody works just as well. With simplicity being this bands guiding light, its clear this EP makes a strong start on a long mountainous path ahead of them and this re-fueling stop it more than enough to get them on their way to success. [7/10]
This review sort of feels like a sequel to my review of Irish crossover influenced thrashers Catastrophe (See Here). With the boys in Catastrophe leaving the project in limbo for the time being. It looks like vocalist James Murphy has taken to develop what feels like a successor project in irreverent grindcore cunts Aborted Earth.
Starting this EP in oddly industrial vein, it’s evident that is something very different from this time from the grindcore you are expecting. Longer track lengths here signal the end of the average blast/sample-repeat-fest of the EP pair “[Grindcore, Allegedly]” and the more deathly “[Grindcore, Actually]” Smelling strongly of a band in the process of maturation, with the will to be taken seriously.
By the second track, it’s clear, there is a statement here, it says “Yes, this is where we are going.” with a very pointed Ministry cover (“Filth Pig”) that takes a Godflesh bent to an already sludgy cut. Industrial programmed drums enhance the mechanical vibe of this record, with occasional points takes dives into e-grind and cyber-grind blasting territory on the faster points, but staying more for the hi-hat “tss” rather than the “dum” bass.
While their guitar does have a cloudy tone and a foggy grimy air to their production. The emphasis here is on the chugging riffs here are closer to Death metal than they have ever reached before. Embracing the additional influence of the cavernous nature of darker edges of industrial fringes.
Vocals here are a standard grind-fare with emphasis on fairly readable growls and satirical biting lyrics, reminding me of Carcass. While later on there are more experiment bites with female clean vocals (coupled with clean male) on the more groove-filled track “Mixed signals” gives added depths to a more standard – possibly the most mainstream track on the EP.
The Electronic-ness of this EP does seem to take center stage and at points, as it seems to slowly take over. To the point of the final title track that gives up the ghost on metal as its a lengthy droning death industrial/dark ambient track that scrapes and wails that is frankly skip-able.
Overall this EP is definitely a solid step into the blinding light of maturity and showing there is definitely more skill and depth to what most would see as another “funny” grindcore act. This might be just the vibe I get here of this EP, but it feels solidly like a “one-off”. If this is the direction they are truly heading then this a strong footing up this particular greasy ladder. However, if this is just an experiment, I would conclude that this has had a successful reaction [7/10]
This band of punker-types from the crap-town of Arbroath, Scotland, has built quite the following since this was released before like me, going into a hiatus for a while. Having now only recently re-emerged just in time for a pandemic to kill off any chance of gigs in the immediate future! So to give this act a pick-me-up, and their well-respected dues. I thought its time I finally got my arse in gear and review is EP I’ve been holding on to since they handed me the disc back in 2017!
Due to my ongoing guilt about this shitting-ly long delay, I’ve returned to this record frequently as a tried time and time again to get words to page over the years. As a result, this record is one of my most listened to records and has become only slightly diluted in my mind through its repetitions. Despite this and as a testament to their skills I can still find plenty of depth and beauty to this EP, that many others would have surely lost in the same treatment.
The first track “We’re Gonna Crack” track kicks off the EP with a bang and punctuates clearly what this band is in terms of style. In this, a clear brand is set up with the opening banger that rolls into the melodic hardcore vibe with a speedy riff and hook, the quickest record on the album that sets out what this band is about: Melodic hardcore the hard way round, without coping out to the easycore loop-hole that so many bands use today.
Track 2 “Ride Of Your Life” adds a more rock n roll theme to some of the leads, with an off-brand upbeat happiness in the catchy chorus but sung in a melancholic tone, before building speed and tension into a heavy thrashing ending. So there is speed to be utilised when they need it, but most of this record is enjoyably mid-to-slower pace.
Vocals are more in-line with the “tough guy” hardcore style while maintaining a safe distance to still be accessible here. Delivery is distinctly accented and audible to the lyrics, making a sound as can only be generated by tough living in an economically dire area will bring out in you.
“No Respect” marches out into a boisterous stomp while ripping another rock n roll swinging lead. This track is a funny number with biting lyrics about respect, and hateful people’s attitudes. The gang vocals here add an extra level to this musical surround bollocking that is it, as it stomps in its always relevant “Don’t be a dick!” message.
All of these tracks are well crafted, with an excellent feel for dynamics, emotions, and strong hooks that you can’t help but be at least, a little invested. The only downsides here are at points the guitar tone is forgivable weak in places in the mix, with the thrumming bass work filling in more than enough of the slack to hold it all together. The Drumming tone is sharp and quite forward it the mix which gives a strong heartbeat/pulse to this EP, provided by what can only be described as “Hardcore Santa” on the drums.
The final track “Take A Look Outside” is the crowning jewel of the EP, with its rich textures and wave-like structure that as the theme. Like storm waves washing over you, bombarding you with a thick melodic riffs and stomping drums. It encapsulates the feeling of mass media supersaturation and while having a downward-looking depressive build as if the struggle is all-consuming with an uncertain escape path. Flowing into a spacey floating final act that echoes Neurosis with waves of emotive chants signing out this EP’s conclusion.
This is a strong EP, that brings much more to the table than its first impressions suggest. The more you delve into its movements in the many deserved listens, the more there is to discover beneath in this release’s waves. A sonic well-designed piece is here and on show in this heavy slab of granite from the cliffs of hardcore forgotten coast. [7/10]
With everything going on in the metric shitshow/dumpster fire that is the year 2020, it has really brought into sharp focus for me, comparisons with another rougher times. So I thought id take this passage or so, to try and explain my mysterious gap year of 2017 and why during this period my progress suddenly skidded to a violent halt, with this band taking the brunt of my failings.
Back at the end of 2016, things for my blog (when it was still on Tumblr, haha) was just starting to pick up, with fairly regular posts and high motivation, but this was to stumble due to my brain issues. Around that time I was approached to work for an online magazine, The Moshville Times (check them out they are awesome: https://www.moshville.co.uk/), who were impressed with my work on a review of a Skiltron gig some way back (this one) and offered me the chance of working with them. Unfortunately, this didn’t come to be as it seems I was gripped with what can only describe as “inertia” or “stage-fright” as suddenly having a lot more attention on my tiny project/hobby gripped me into a dread of putting words to the page, and I went suddenly silent and unproductive. This coupled with my day-job taking a turn for the worst turned me into an excuse-making mess. Unfortunately, it was this band Ride The Tides that fell in the gaps who gave me this EP to review a little time before my crash. So this review comes with my faithful apologies for the wait.
Forgive my cynicism but a covering the theme music from one the biggest anime of this new golden age of streaming and crunchyroll might be seen as a bit of a cheat. Attack on Titan the series is great work in genre and is well recommended even for the less into Anime, and I give my thumbs up to watching this HERE. On the other hand Epica the symphonic metal band from the Netherlands I have less feelings about, always being just “there”. So this EP was perfect for tying up two loose ends: my lack of Epica in my collection with my love of this brilliant anime
The first thing of note here is the disadvantage of translating the lyrics to English for this release. For the syllabic style of Japanese lends is self to the phrases here, but when it’s put into English it seems like there is too many words to fit into the short time it takes to say the same in Japanese. With some of the vocal lines becoming a bit of a mouthful to manage at points, but the terrific talents of singer Simone Simons tighten in to the gaps nicely.
On the music side: this is fantastically epic as suiting their name; Epica. Given here to the listener here a polished high and mighty brand of power metal, with all the powerful tropes in place. The galloping pace, the extreme high vocals, the guitar solo excellence, and keyboard drenched symphonics, makes for a complete and stunningly epic package.
Wonderful and complexly multi-layered song-writing approach are top notch, but Epica Can only take half of the credit here as its more of a transcription than a reinterpretation of someone else work. The credit really goes to Sound Horzion and composer Rebo for the anime theme music masterwork, that translates fully into metal without too much issue.
This even gives the heaviest Epica has ever sounded with a section of “Wings of freedom” going to into blasting death metal territory for a hot minute. However, the short and ballad-like “If Inside These Walls Was a House” is skip-able. But pulls back into epic in the final track “Crimson Bow and Arrow”. After this point it feels like they are nothing but stretching here, as they have made this EP twice the normal length by giving us the tracks again but karaoke versions. That feels like pointless filler at worse, or at best a small nod to all the additional elements that get a little swamped underneath in the metal.
Despite the negative points I’ve had to say, i have enjoyed this EP for what it is. A fun excursion into that tiny cross-over point where metal meets Anime that resides in me. Worth checking out as this is Epica with the song writing they perhaps deserve behind them. [7/10]
Some of my audience may remember my interview experiment with Tommy Concrete of Tommy Concrete and the Werewolves / ex-The Exploited fame (See it here to remind yourselves). Well as a bonus question at the end I asked if there way anything He would like me to review? And this is the record he suggested: Oceans of Slumber‘s 2018 album “The Banished Heart”. Little did Tommy expect that my reply of “I’ll get Right on that!” actually translated to being a nine-month wait until even truly approach writing about it. But here we are. So whats the skinny?
From my first listen, this albums didn’t exactly grab me, straight-away, at least. The early tracks on this mammoth album felt maddeningly like a lucky dip of usual influences from Opeth and Ne Obliviscaris bag, that we expect when you hear a band described as “Extreme progressive metal”. A heavy blend on of dynamic melody and throbbing heaviness in a sea of technical chuggery and bright solo-lead and keyboard counterpoint. A sound that seem to be slightly on the factory default of a lot of the progressive scene. But what truly makes this “grower” of record stand out in the pack is two elements.
Firstly the vocals: charming and super-soulful crooning from front-woman Cammie Gilbert is a high point on its own, with her passionate and heartfelt voice that cant help but stir the soul with her words. The soul and at points R&B styling tone to her clean singing as not been heard with this depth since the likes of Straight Line Stitch and positively wipes the floor with Jada Smith‘s attempts with her ill-advised Wicked Wisdom. This is backed up by occasional male growling vocals like what Opeth only sadly used to do with. The distinct Mikael Åkerfeels intensity is here, is crossed with some modern direct brutishness, (See track “Etiolation”), and later channelling Bowie‘s baritone.
The second elements that raise the bar for this band is their varied influences, but particularly their slower death-doom influence from Katatonia style riffing, with the sorrowful keys from My Dying Bride‘s table. This makes a for rare treat in the mildew of progressive waves that make most of the scene’s “wall of noise” approach, however they delve into this slightly with an Akercocke edge thundering double-bass throttle. They even add the spice of some black metal and blackgaze to some of these moments while keeping a strong identity within. Combining modern touches of djenting riffage too, that keeps them sounding fresh. Mixed with vocal style, and the catalogue of influences in the instrumentalists and its distinct movements makes the package touch towards the avant-garde side.
The release an extremely enjoyable ride and as you navigate its twists to the formula of the normal progressive metal pack. It is a longer record at over an hour but it doesn’t outstay its welcome like other albums, and engages fully throughout. An impressive journey of a record that I thank Tommy Concrete for point me toward this. [8/10]
So for the second gig of the year, came this, a very special night, because this was the first Semi-final of Scotland’s Metal To The Masses competition. Deciding which bands would take a big step forward closer to representing Scotland at this year’s Bloodstock 2020 festival. A night of top-rate metal was bound to be had here, and based in my home town, I would be a fool to miss it.
First up in the randomly selected running order was Montrose’s meat merchants, Late Landing a rock band with some impressive cuts and polish. A distinct and colourful breed of rockers here, with confidence in character to colour a creative sound that cuts riffs from the likes of Mastodon (with the drum magic to match) meets Clutch in the same bar as the Foo Fighters, on one of the best rock-themed nights.
Expect tasty licks from lead guitarist J Man Moore, a skinny Jason Momoa look-a-like from that advert, with more hair and beef, working hand-in-hand with rhythm guitarist and vocalist (Ben Moore) own wonderful fretwork chemistry to create an odyssey of strutting riffs and swirling wizardry. Borrowing lines and pages from the forgotten “how to rock!” book that I think Houdini Said No (RIP) had been borrowing. A powerful display, backed with awesome thunderous beat and shuffle of drummer impressive battery, that combined Mastodon-ic rumbles, with the swift elegance of a pro-boogie maker. While bassist and quiet man Paul Pirie walked out patterned bass groove of his own, taking a little longer than the rest to find his feet through possibly stage-dread symptom fog, but when he got there he was more than effective with his strums and passion.
The vocals, a gruff yet melodic yarling type provided by Ben added a defined voice to the mix with fine talent but it certainly took a back seat to their cracking guitar and instrumental side of their work. Playing towards their strengths as they blasted a lengthy final number jam-like number with no vocals, but plenty of showmanship and energy. Overall this was a very fun, energetic and professional team on stage that impressed many, setting the night on a high, and quickly became a favourite for my ears. [8/10]
Next up was Wound from Aberdeen, and finally, some Aberdeen-based hardcore I can get behind. This bunch played after much fumbling around in their soundcheck, and gave us the night’s first touches of the extreme, with their mix of messy grindcore and staggered power-violence, that got me hooked straight away. Admittedly it may have been partly my starvation from extreme sounds that pulled me in quicker than expected and lead me to overlook some of their finer points.
Gnarly and filthy-sounding guitar tones courtesy of some ex-Rats of Reality influence from the members of the crust ministers pack added a Krieg blackened tone to their sting. While at the back drummer Elliott, exhausting style whipped out showers of blasts and rained down heavy slams of steel. The Bassist’s thunder is certainly not under-valued here in this pack, with a thick and beefy tone, filling their death metal passages solidly. Vocals here were loud and abrasive, screams and growls that struct the death metal/grindcore norm with strong energy and pronounced lurch towards to core at points.
Getting my vote from their extremity alone as this is the hardest the night was going to slam. The grindcore/power-violence mix was mental and tearing at times, but swung loosely at points that make for a less focused attack than what can be delivered from this style. A slightly less than professional tone was set here regrettably. It was as if they knew they had an upward battle due to their style, but they made up for this in their violence, sheer sonic violence. [7/10]
Below The Neck was next, and did not wait for any introductions (From Paul of Slow Dragon Music and Threshold Sicks) as all the other bands had done and just blasted on into their set with the confident ire of a band motivated to entertain. But was their perverse over-confidence their undoing? Well, I think for a lesser band it would have been, but for this Inverness young team, they slipped into their set like a new pair of reliable Vans shoes.
Going into this show only having heard one song of theirs (below), I was braced for a flop or fall on stage, but this act surprised me the most of all of the bands the night. I think it’s mostly to do with their energy doing the most here to project their vibes forward through their tight blended music. With a style that ranged from tough-guy hardcore, through melodic metalcore, and on through to deathcore in punkish energy that was ever so inviting. This band wrapped the room into an uproar with their passion and collective skills, getting the first real movement from the crowd (apart from my furious headbanging at the last act). Not the most imaginative of styles, but what they had to work with was cleanly polished and professionally managed to make a feel-good set to remember.
A very entertaining band that would fit it greatly in the bill of Slam Dunk or Download‘s bill if Bloodstock journey fails them. The accessible tunes here might at points feel a touch formulaic, yet they felt heavy enough to pass with a metal crowd here. This is definitely a band to watch for that cross-over appeal if nothing else. Fantastic. [7/10]
Dundee own’s rising star, in a very turbulent scene, Immortal Omen played last to a strong home crowd. A band that is inordinately making leaps and bounds and progressing forward that this clear from their very first number. As this was a very slick outfit onstage. From the last time, I’d seen them with slightly a different line-up almost exactly a year before, but this felt like a much more professional team on stage with a bold stance.
The Female-fronted act was spearheaded by singer Eden Noon, who had a smooth and confident flair to her relaxed and talented singing that seem to be a huge step up from her past, echoing confidence from bands with longer histories. Flanking her on one side was the ginger wizard FrankiePirrie whose skill with the guitar has made a leap on its own, while he cranked out some solid ripping riffs and magic solos from his sleeves. Taking the brand into a stance of middle-stream heavy metal toward the realm of something like Kobra and the Lotus earlier period, the tunes perhaps only lacks the tiniest dose of oomph. On the other side was Kev, producing a powerful bass sound adding thick lines as large as he is, who certainly shines in their new track’s bassy intro they debuted to the crowd.
Not the most energetic bunch on stage though, but here they let their well-crafted songs do most of the talking here, getting a strong reaction from their work. Doing so much more than what was necessary to gain the votes of many outsiders to the scene, above and beyond the home advantage they had, they made a more than satisfying set to finish off the night contender bands. [8/10]
Finally, as a great bonus, there was the night’s headliner, (and the band I can’t seem to keep away from), the Bloodstock alumni: Solar Sons. Having successfully navigated the waters to win the 2017 edition of M2TM Scotland it felt like this year they were here to impart knowledge and power to the bands hoping the make the grade. Giving us another strong lesson on how to rock!
With all the top-notch metal bands on the night, they felt a little superfluous and redundant to end the night on, with perhaps a little outshine by the impressive work of all the bands before. Playing up to their normal standard of “fucking excellent” as they put on their normal high-quality set. Giving us a heavy-blues n roll set of bangers that adds all of their prog leanings and the loud acid sting of a desert rock scorpion. Massively entertaining and charismatic they are cool kings of the stage, but it felt that the night was truly owned by the competition bands. [8/10]
Winning the vote and the night was the rocking band Immortal Omen who got a huge roar from the room on the announcement and well deserved the eruption of the crowd and the votes they collected. As a little wager in my head, I decided that I will review a release of the winner so look out for my review of “Mother Of Beasts” available here.
Apologies for the lengthy delay in getting this out, Covid-19 has skull-fucked me in the motivation box.
Bands: From Sorrow To Serenity, The Weight of Atlas, Bearers, Grievance, Centrilia, Catalysis, Bitterwood, Bad Milk
With my security pass from work still attached to me, I arrived at the biggest gig of the year (so far), massively late despite my best haste. Brought to us on this, the most romantic of days of the year, was an epic night of metal and hardcore at the old faithful Church of Dundee. Unfortunately, I did miss last year’s Springfest 2019, by this bunch dubbing themselves Pink Emo Promotions, so I did feel a little out of my depth entering this, this time around, a gig with the feeling more on the hardcore side of metal. But as I say “If it’s heavy, I’m there!”
As I only caught the very final track of Bad Milk‘s set; this may come off as brief as a summary as what I heard. What was on stage was guitar & drum duo much alike to Melted Messiah, but instead of rough and ready, black metal meets stoner rock of MM, this band mixed their own bizarre fusion together. This time, mixing fast speedy punk riffs in clean garage rock tones, with complex drumming and harsh vocals at the back from the drummer. Taking quite the cues for hardcore in their delivery and speed of the music made for an interesting sonic experience, which I would like to dub “garage-violence”. They have a good level of skill for an opening act, and more personality in their uniqueness than most, in a character that they will no doubt make some great splashes later. [7/10]
The next band up was Bitterwood from Aberdeen, a closely associated band with AHC (Aberdeen Hardcore) scene with bands such as Lashing Out, where they take more of their musical cues in style from. Playing that kind of thick metallic hardcore that is big on beatdowns, crowd killing fuckheadery, and dressing like chavs. What an empty combination. Especially the crowd killing, that shite can fuck the fuck off! As for the music side of the tracks, they played the typical tough guy Throwdown spiel of relentless breakdown after breakdown malaise that was only separated by upbeat 2-step sections, and obnoxious sound clips between the songs. As you can tell I’m not a massive fan of this new breed of downtempo hardcore, but for what they produced, it was certainly more interesting than most. With enough shake-ups to the formula to stave off the yawns, and it was, as a bonus, fucking heavy! [7/10]
Catalysis was next to play, the first show of the year for them, and also the first to show off their new line up. The addition of Big Kev playing bass, freeing up hands of vocalist Colin who seemed much freer on stage and much more mobile if a little lost. But improved much in bite to his screaming. Inspiring a more confident sound overall that is dripping in more and more in death metal juice! This set showing off a preview of what’s to come with their debut album “Connection Lost” that is due very soon this year (Watch this space). A thunderous act that splashed us in their groove metal passages, ripping leads, and swishing harsh drumming. Dundee’s top metal act entertained and thrilled here once again. [8/10]
The next band Centrilia, were unstoppable with their huge sound! Creamy bass-lines, rabid technical flare on the drums, unholy heavy breaks, and sequencer accentuated breakdowns. Taking a progressive edge to their sharp riffs, this was the point that more and more djent started to creep into the night, but this mattered little here as their infectious bounce and throb worked wonders here. It’s a good sign when my earplugs fly out my ears within the first couple of tracks, in my exertions to headbanging to their majestic thunder. Screams from vocalist Gavin Marshall had that added weight of an existential crisis on stage with his pained shrieks. This was a band that has made leaps and bound since the last time I saw this Glasgow based act back at Hordes 7, and that progression was on show here in a glittering and crushing set. [8/10]
The next band on was Grievance, and it was a set of mild sadness as this is their final and farewell gig, as the band is are parting ways, especially the vocalist Dylan Flood, but it would seem that their drummer jumped ship early and was strangely absent. Replaced this time with programmed drums via a laptop. The drummer in the machine did give them the tightest drum-sound they have had so it was expertly programmed from this, a very spontaneous feeling set. I must admit, that in the past I’ve kind of given them a hard time and unfairly dismissed them as “kids stuff”, but its funny how you can appreciate somethings more once it’s gone. Their brand of deathcore was nothing functionally mould-breaking, mixing the sound from Suicide Silence to Bring me the Horizon through Chelsea Grin, (much like a lot of their contemporaries do). But it was the passion was there clear in abundance, and this was all on show on the night here. They got the largest and most intense crowd of the night as they embraced the end of a clear focal point of a social scene, while they frantically showered us in their leftover free t-shirts. It’s a shame that they, unfortunately, took the majority of crowd with them when they finished. (This is why its best to not pay bands until the end of the show!) But finish the certainly did, on a high and passion-filled note, leaving a gaping hole in the local scene R.I.P. [8/10]
The messy and chaotic Bearers were next, and they brought (in the same font as Grievance), a confused sounding blend to the table. Mixed unevenly, they poured in elements of hardcore and mathcore to their djent influenced metalcore sound. As messy as the singer’s bloodstained face and shirt onstage get up, the vocalist came across as their main selling point as his unpredictable movements, and talented harsh screaming voice did much to make up for their lacklustre riffs and patterns. Relying perhaps too heavily on that djent edge that more and more bands seem to fly to whenever in need of an artificial heaviness boost. Feeling a little like they just chuck in a Meshuggah riff once or twice a song to pump things up a bit. It was all executed well enough to avoid looking forced or contrived but they didn’t quite scratch that special itch I thought they would from there “on paper” studio sound. A satisfactory set, but with something definitely missing [7/10]
This was when I first notice that djent-fatigue setting in and was definitely present in my brain, call it “djent-mentia” if you will. However, it was up to The Weight of Atlas, who fired up next, to hopefully end this slump. This band injected a healthy dose of post-hardcore into their sound with the use of melodic clean vocals and screams, more fluid melodic lead-breaks, and softer punky moments. But alarm bells started ringing for me when I noticed that drummer was playing with a click-track, and before I knew it I was listening to another hyper generic djent-fest for the most part. They did show a lot more character in their softer brushes, but for the most part, it felt like stalling for time until the next jumpy djent section to return, which was always just around the corner. [7/10]
On to this fest’s headliner and the main event, From Sorrow To Serenity were finally up to close the night’s music. Now during my “gap year” of 2017, I got the chance to see this act in another setting, with a bigger lighting budget, and they raised the roof for me much more than expected for yet another djent-based act. But that was another time, and djent was somewhat more a novel then. Sadly this time around, they didn’t quite connect as well as they did. There was something off, they were a man down, with Joseph Fryer of Aspire and Seek Solace In Ruin filling in for the absent screamer Gaz. The temp. Joseph was a good vocalist whose presence was there and commanding enough to fit in, he was just lacking in some of the confidence or prowess that comes with being a permanent member. They have been much more engaging than this, but think I was feeling wiped out by all the same vibes from the last few djent-fest acts. This band was yet another falling heavily onto that djent backbone, making for an enjoyable heavy set that would have done a lot more for me on perhaps another night. [7/10]
Therion was a band I was aware of, but not too knowledgeable about, which left me with a nagging gap in my collection and mind. That was until I acquired this nice set as a Christmas gift, which looks like a great package to tick a few boxes at once. For those just as ignorant as I was: Therion is a Swedish metal act that has a long and side-winding career. Starting off in the middle of the Swedish death metal boom of the early 1990s, before evolving slowing into a symphonic direction of their present-day sound. A career with is own share of highs and lows, but in this collection on 6 discs, covers, for the most part, their death metal era, Starting with the Debut “Of Darkness…” to their fourth album “Lepaca Kliffoth” then jumping ahead into their live double-disc “Live in Midgard”. With this slightly cash-grabby collection being divided as such its only fair I take each album in turn.
Disc one contains 1991’s “Of Darkness…”, their first full-length album, despite this be a first, its marks as the band states, the end of an era, as they drew a line here from the demo material and style presented here. This is their purest release in this collection. A straight-faced Death metal album from start to finish with very little deviance from the Swedish norm. A thundering album that is furious, fast, and heavy throughout. Savagely grim and unforgiving even with its host of melodic hooking riffs and frantic beastly bashing blasts. This album is a top-shelf example in great old school death metal and is worth the salt on its own [8/10].
The next album “Beyond Sanctorum” from 1992, they solidly keep up the momentum of the first, but with a difference. From here they change key, and bring in greater swings in tempo, crashing in despairing spades of doom metal riffs and melodic dark passages, taking the sound into death-doom territory the most part. The keyboards and symphonic effects make their first appearances here, most predominantly in the track “The Way” eleven-minutes before jumping back to speed death metal for the final 2 tracks. “Beyond Sanctorum” is a land-mark in Therion‘s path that showed them their destiny of being so much more than another death metal act, and singled them out for something greater, a brilliant if slower burn of a record [7/10]
In “Symphony Masses: Ho Drakon Ho Megas” the band takes their biggest leap yet. Always on the move, this 1993 album sees them, as the name suggests, jump into a full-blown symphonic mode, but not only that, they lean deeply into progressive death area here, with technical riffing and experimental effects on their vocals, and atmospheric production. This so far is their most varied record in this set, with a bigger emphasis on the groove to guitars and a huge amount keyboard wizardly, while still staying superbly heavy yet hooky and melodic. With lots happening the album seems over too soon, but it so damn majestic it’s hard to complain about probably the best disc so far. [8/10]
The final studio album disc is probably the one with their most recognisable cover art, but the least pronounceable title is 1995’s “Lepaca Kliffoth” album. An album with a hard act to follow, but they achieve much here. With this incarnation they keep the symphonic elements dialled up high through the keys, and the progressive riffing still is present but it feels this is where most of the heaviness leaves them. As the tracks here a gentler with a stronger standing in Gothic and traditional heavy metal waters. Setting the course for the next decade of material. The avant-garde metal stylistic approach here does keep the excitement level high, with lots of interesting touches but it feels slightly like some of the bruising spirit of their past gets drenched into their gothic and at times operatic touches (see the “The Beauty in Black” single). It is a solid record with enough curves to be far from boring, but the slouch feels like it has begun. [6/10]
The final 2 discs, sees us leave the studio with the band and see them execute a live show of their material through the autumn and winter of 2002. This outdoor appearance is Therion at their most symphonic and indeed most accessible with them bringing in a six-piece choir on stage (with Sarah Jezebel Deva of Cradle of Filth fame as a lead soprano) and playing through a more gothic and melodic operatic set. However, they do throw in a few death metal cuts that spruce things up a bit including “Symphony of the Dead” from “Beyond..” album and “The Return” from the debut, before going back to a softer numbers, such a the cover of an Accept track and then an Abba song further on to mixed applause.
The live discs are good, including a dynamic sound that presents many more tracks from the other albums of their discography that are not on the other discs. So this does encourage more exploration while retaining a grip on their early material too, its a great addition to this nice set. [7/10]
Overall the bundle is a good set for anyone looking to get a solid dose of Therion into their ears, and this 5+ hours stint is more than enough to satisfy any craving for this interesting band. Certainly bringing more than what meets the eye in its very bog-standard packaging design that misses out on showing you some of their great cover art. There is a bit of a slope on the heavy scale; going from first to last the material gets lighter, but the bonus extra demo tracks peppered in are a good supplement for those craving additional bites of the earlier albums extremity. [7/10]
Dog Tired is one of Scotland’s most enduring and entertaining underground metal acts in the scene with quite the history. So as a tribute to their longevity and impact I thought I’d do a retrospective of their works starting from their humble beginnings in the shit town of Penicuik. I Planned on zeroing into their very first recording, the self-titled demo from 2006 but I was unable to find it, so my journey must start here at their debut album “Dead Head Rebel” released in 2011.
This album traces the origin of some of their prime features, namely the riffs! Mad-eyed axe-man Luke James is a menacing riff-writer and this is clear from the first rolling bars on opener “Hell and Back Again” as they rush in with a far beyond driven Pantera vibe, complete with wild shrieks and whistles, adding a grimy edge. They know this is what their brand of groove metal is all about, monster riffs! As announced by vocalists Chris Thompson opening shouts in his intimating yell, before cutting into gruff and gritty growls and screams, a man that has clearly already found his voice. The tone and his style are one of their most consistent features here and through their later material, hampered only a little here by the production. Here a little too grey fuzzed and cloudy in the mix, that could of help bring out a lot more personality to his longer screams and slower passages.
The bass, played by Barry Buchanan when it shines through the production is strong and thickly toned, with the all essential groove intact. When it does see the light of day, such as the opening and solo movements in “Drag It Through the Swamp” it is stylish and strongly played in a distinct rattle. Its a pity it feels mostly drowned out in the monstrous guitar fuzz and kind of merges into blobs of searing riff excess.
The production here does lead to the biggest issues in this album, just like in Keith “Feets” Blaikie‘s drums. His tremendous drumming work, and rapid fills, again seem to get swamping in the resonant noise of this release. Meshing together into a foggy dew of distortion. It seems to have effected this member the worst, with there also being an annoying squeak in the double kicks at times, as if someone has taped a mouse to the bass pedal.
In the song-writing and performance department, this is a strong debut with some great tunes that are not without its flaws, namely the production letting them down the most here, with I feel a lot of promising moments being missed out on. As well as some of the tracks touch being too long, with most tracks on the uncomfortable side of 5 or 6 minutes. But for the style they play here, this is probably their most groove metal focused release, with only a minuscule influence from thrash here. Such quaint times.
Despite these flaws, an album like this, is a great stepping stone, to get that first full record out of the way and feel out what works and what doesn’t. As drummer Keith Blaikie when I asked “what they learned from the experience?”, he said:
It was our first album, so [we] started to learn about song placement and the general feel of how an album should be set out, We learned to practice a lot before recording, to ensure you’re not wasting time in the studio with mistakes. Learned that we were definitely heading in a heavier direction! [We] Confirmed with ourselves that we like to record drums, bass, and a scratch guitar at one time, so it has a very together feel of a band playing live. We started to understand how important little additions can be, like background guitars with held notes. It all adds to the listening experience We’ve also learned to add a lot more mid, the album is waaay too treble orientated, Which is a less easy listen.
I can see here, where some of the flaws might originate from, now, as this was recorded live on Edinburgh now lost Studio 24‘s dance floor, with Matt Justice (Man of the Hour / The Exploited) at the helm. A great producer, but this back then he didn’t quite have the setup he quite needed for this act. Perhaps. However, this album is definitely not a bad album, but just not as good as it could have been. Check it out, none the less. [6/10]
With the dying days of 2019 drawing in and the end of the decade very soon upon us, another last-minute gig came available for me to check out before the years close. I didn’t think I could fit any more in, but once again here I was about to enter another busy show at Church Dundee, for another frequently seen band making their 5th appearance in 2019, Solar Sons, however, this being the launch gig for their fourth album “Subliminal Criminal” it was hard to refuse covering them once last time.
Much like the at Kurokuma gig, unfortunately, trio Indica caught the short end of the stick with me once again, as I ended up miscalculating the train times for this and arrived quite a bit late into their set. From what I heard from the stoner metal bunch on stage, this was highly capable music that combined desert dope-man grooves and blues, with elements of Tool. Progressive alternative metal riffs and off-kilter drumming merged seamlessly into the thick and heavy bass-powered trenches of stoner rock, and acid guitar solos. Vocals came off as less important in the tough atmosphere of weed-smoke jams, while holding their own in the sparsity of their use. Rounding off a good set with more of a fuzzier number, the succeeded in opening the night with a bang and a blunt. Good times. [7/10]
Going into this gig, I had an inkling that Sapien was going to be the heaviest band of the night, and that was confirmed with first few bars of their sludgy riffs. Coming across much like the bastard offspring of Conan and Yob with the riffs of the former and the mental outlook of the later. A gnarly twisted sounding came forth in heavy bursts and riff in slow-rolling and teeth grinding waves.
Pounding sludge riffs that fused in a deep doom metal pacing and at points hardcore atmospherics. An extremely tight act on stage the band was flawless in their execution of riff after riff of menacing toils in exacerbation and anguish, while also not afraid of punching in faster sections too to make for a dynamic presence. Vocals here were kinds of secondary to the instrumental side of the music, while having their own unique bite.
This a very strong set that I think opened a few people’s minds into the world of stoner and sludge metal, giving a fine example of just now enjoyable the darker and slower side of the metal fringes can be. Fan-bloody-tastic! [8/10]
Onward to the Solar Sons: the band this night was all about, and the album they were launching this night. Their 3rd full-length album in 4-ish years, “Subliminal Criminal” a very productive pace for a band with such an intricate sound and method. This power-trio staple of the Dundee & Scottish scene has built quite the reputation for excellence. And this night was no off-day for this hard-working bunch.
Rolling out the tunes, they got straight to work in delivering us their trademark sound mashing old school bluesy metal, with progressive rock versatility, and stoner metal reefer, wrapped in a confident skin of rock n roll. Beautifully smooth, and deeply satisfying. Which made for an easy atmosphere as they shot into their first numbers, but then things seem to heat up due to some skilful crowd wrangling by persons unknown that brought the masses closer to the action.
With large strides, the guitar work producer from Danny echoed and wailed out organic and passionate acid rock leads that poured out the fire, and ripped searing licks. While on the other side of the stage his brother-in-arms Rory funked-out smoothly and tendered out grooves-aplenty, with the thrumming pulse of the proto-metal sound. All tied and primed neatly together with Pete‘s percussive and complex drumming style, giving thrilling volleys of well-measured yet frantic, snare and cymbal work that fused in his own touches with clockwork precision.
This was Solar Sons, doing what they do best, giving us all another lesson on how to transfix an audience with pure charismatic music that pulls you in with ease, as they played their way through “Subliminal Criminal” in full to an enthusiastic crowd. Even their more chilled-out and longer tunes had enough going on inside that their buzz rattled even the stiffer members of the crowd. Finishing off on fan favourite “Defence mechanism” from their last album the ended the night on a high, with another epic night down and in the bag. [8/10]
Metal Mole Reviews 