Archive: Columns
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Unearthing More Of The Symphonic Metal Scene
Heavy music has been steadily evolving since its first major appearances, from slow moving doom to blistering fast thrash and onto the most brutal death metal. Somewhere after figuring out corpse paint and freezing cold riffs somebody decided extreme metal could include unexpected elements like string instruments, keyboards, and other orchestral leanings. The symphonic and the extreme collided, and somehow it worked out.
Now some 15 - 20 years later bands are still finding ways to meld together these two styles, but for symphonic black metal junkies the pool of available talent isn’t as wide as with other sub-genres. You’ve likely heard everything from Dimmu Borgir and Old Man’s Child a hundred times over, blazed through the couple of Dragon Lord releases, imported all those Opera IX CDs, and are done working through the Carach Angren back catalog…so what now?
We’ve previously taken a look at a few symphonic black metal acts as well as other heavily atmospheric bands, but there’s still more underground groups worth checking out if you need more orchestral influenced black metal.
Saille
This Belgian outfit is on the verge of releasing second album “Ritu” in January 2013 (reviewed here), which follows the debut “Irreversible Decay” album. The album focuses on different rites of various cultures and mythologies, including a dose of Lovecraftian rituals with songs like “Haunter of the Dark” and “Fhtagn.”
For more info on the album, check out our interview with the band just after the recording process was finished. Get acquainted with Saille’s version of symphonic black metal through songs off both albums, available below.
Sunday Old School: Helmet
Say what you like about the era of Generation X, there was some fantastic music around. We’ve already looked at a few of the bands popular at the time such as Soundgarden, Alice In Chains and Living Colour, and this week we’ll be examining one of the most innovative bands of the era, Helmet. Helmet was formed in early 1989 by guitarist Page Hamilton, shortly after his departure from the New York based noise rock band, Band of Susans. Before long, they attracted the attention of US Marine, Tom Hazelmyer, who was also the founder of Amphetamine Reptile Records, who had previously put out records from the likes of Killdozer and soon signed Helmet to the label. Their first release for Amphetamine Reptile was the seven inch single, "Born Annoying," which was followed the next year by their full length debut, "Strap It On." The album was very well received by listeners and is now regarded as a classic by fans of post-hardcore music, as well as becoming a small influence in metal, as evidenced when Deftones covered the song, "Sinatra" years later. Critics were also very welcoming of the debut, praising its atmospheric approach and distinctive riffs.
A year after the release of, "Strap It On," Helmet signed a new deal with major label, Interscope, who reportedly paid the group one million dollars for their next album. They began recording the album, which was to be entitled, "Meantime" in late 1991 and eventually released it the next summer. The time and (alleged) budget proved to be well worth the effort, as "Meantime" broke the band into the mainstream, peaking at number 68 on the Billboard Charts and becoming their first (and only) Gold Record in the United States, thanks largely to the success of the title track and the song, "Unsung." Once again, they had also put out a record which was adored by many critics, several of which gave the album perfect scores. The success of "Meantime" meant a much bigger increase in tour dates and soon the band found themselves performing in Europe, Asia and South America, as well as their native, United States. The heavy touring schedule, coupled with the new found spotlight brought problems to the band and strengthened internal tensions, eventually leading guitarist Peter Mengede to quit the group, with Rest In Pieces guitarist, Rob Echeverria taking his place. More...
The Rockstar Ramblings: Vince Neil Throws a Punch
At a recent solo show, Vince Neil (Motley Crue) had a fan removed from a show, but not before throwing a punch at him. During the concert (footage below), Vince stopped during the song, “Kick Start My Heart” and is heard shouting at the fan before lunging at him with an old-school uppercut. More...
Unearthing The Malaysian Metal Underground
Malaysia is a country that has really begun to make it's name known in the last few years. It's become a popular holiday destination, it has one of the most stable infrastructures in South East Asia and has become a major investing force in association football (soccer,) with Malaysian entrepeneurs buying into such football teams as Queens Park Rangers and Cardiff City. But what is the music scene like in Malaysia? And more specifically, how is heavy metal treated there? A quick Google search will quickly bring up a BBC article from 2001, in which the Malaysian government declared a crack down on the genre. But there are still metal bands active in the constitutional monarchy, and this week we'll be looking at three of them.
Humiliation
First up is Humiliation, a band from the Malaysian capital city of Kuala Lumpur who provide an ear catching take on death metal, being influenced mostly by such British extreme metal pioneers as Benediction and Bolt Thrower. The group was formed in 2009 and spent three months recording their debut EP, "Face The Disaster," which was released in November that year through Nebiula Production. The next year, they were able to record and release their first full length effort, "Dawn Of Warfare," which (including an intro and an outro) contained a total of twelve tracks. Since then, the band has soldiered on, despite losing some members along the way, they have been able to continue writing new material, and released their second full length album, "Seek To Survive" in September of last year. The band has also branced out when it comes to touring, having recently played in such countries as Germany, Poland and Romania.
Humiliation - "Minefields"
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Sunday Old School: Yngwie Malmsteen
Back in 1982, a young musician from Sweden arrived in California with, as he recollects, 'a toothbrush and a guitar.' Mike Varney, who owned the guitar-hero independent label Shrapnel, had heard a demo of his and wanted to foster his talent. Believing Yngwie Malmsteeen to be the next big thing, Mike wasn't far off in his assertion. Of the multiple guitar prodigies he would have on his label, from David Chastain to Tony MacAlpine, Yngwie was the one who would become the larger-than-life superstar. But, the seeds of Yngwie's talent were sown years earlier, in a place far away.
Yngwie's mother Rigmor gave him a guitar on his fifth birthday. His family was the musical sort and his sister Ann Louise played the flute. Malmsteen's true calling came a couple of years later in 1970 when he was watching a TV special on the death of Jimi Hendrix. That guitar legend's playing connected with Yngwie in such a way that he knew that wielding an axe would become his life's destiny. From that day on, Yngwie Malmsteen the guitar shredder was born. More...
The Rockstar Ramblings: Snakes in Paradise
As the holidays approach a look at some packaged DVD/CD sets, new releases on the horizon, and yes, one hard-to-buy-for Christmas recommendation. More...
Unearthing More Of The Genre Blending Underground
Although there may be stagnation in many areas of the heavy music scene, particularly at the most visible and mainstream levels, such is not the case with a swath of metal’s underground sector.
Sure, there are dime a dozen bands that all sound the same and use the exact same breakdown of low growls and clean singing (you know which ones I’m talking about – they like to call themselves “melodic hardcore” or “post-something or other”). There are even plenty of groups that claim they transcend genre or don’t care about sub-genre tags because “music is music” - and this is frequently a warning sign what you are about to hear will suck, hard, and very likely be a copy of something else that was just as lame.
But if you skim off that top layer of bafflingly-popular gunk, there are bands to be found that genuinely ignore borders between styles and let a wide range of genres seep into each other, creating unique and interesting sounds.
In previous Unearthing columns we’ve looked at a few metal bands that blend different genres or ignore metal trends as well as experimental or avant-garde acts, and today we’ll unearth three more outfits in those categories. These are musicians that don’t mind getting some prog in their death metal or some black metal in their electronica, and they’ll even play with mainstream elements while still hitting the extreme notes without skipping a beat.
Blutmond
This Swiss avant-garde outfit has three full-length releases under its belt, with the new album “The Revolution is Dead!” (review coming soon) just dropping last month through Code666 Records. Despite the title’s claim, the metal revolution certainly isn’t dead, as Blutmond plays with just about everything that can be found in the musician’s toolkit: black metal collides with saxophone, female vocals, and even some goth and industrial elements.
As a statement from the band itself recently said, the latest album is “a roller coaster of mindfucked hate songs full of love and lots of lost dreams.” This is a group worth checking out for fans of Oblomov, Furia, or black metal bands that all around don’t give a good goddamn about remaining “trve” or “kvlt.” Four tracks from “The Revolution is Dead!” can be heard through the player below.
Sunday Old School: Anathema
Over the past few months, Sunday Old School has examined British outfit, My Dying Bride and Swedish metal favourites, Katatonia, who, along with Paradise Lost, are known as three of the four bands who helped to pioneer the death/doom genre. This week, we’ll be completing the set by taking a look at Anathema, another band instrumental in launching the sub-genre, but who soon found themselves on an entirely different musical path. Anathema were formed in the English city of Liverpool in 1990, initially under the name of Pagan Angel. They recorded their first demo, "An Iliad of Woes," in November of that year which soon spread around the English music scene and caught the interest of several labels, with the band eventually settling on Peaceville Records following the release of their second demo, "All Faith is Lost." Their first release through Peaceville was an EP named, "The Crestfallen," which earned them enough credibility that they were able to tour with American death metal favourites, Cannibal Corpse. They followed, "The Crestfallen" with their first full length album, "Serenades," which also earned the band significant exposure and featured a music video for the song, "Sweet Tears," which soon gained airplay on MTV. As well as television exposure, the band were soon able to tour throughout Europe and were even scheduled to perform at a festival in Brazil.
Despite the rapidly growing fan base and success, vocalist Darren White decided to leave the band in 1995. Rather than searching for a new singer, guitarist Vincent Cavanagh took over the spot behind the microphone, and later that year, Anathema released their second studio album, "The Silent Enigma," which marked Cavanagh’s debut recording with the band, after he had made his live debut as the group’s frontman when they had toured with countrymen, Cathedral. They followed, "The Silent Enigma" a year later with their third full length, "Eternity," which received near universal acclaim. The album was notable for moving away from the doom metal sound and more towards alternative rock, with some psychedelic and gothic influences also present. More...
The Rockstar Ramblings: Friday Old School
This week a look at new videos from Ugly Kid Joe, Chris Holmes (W.A.S.P.), Izzy Stradlin (ex-Guns N’ Roses), and Great White; for those keeping a timeline at home, Ugly Kid Joe would be considered the “new” band of this group. More...
Unearthing The Brazilian Crossover Underground
Back in the eighties, many old school metalheads got their first dose of Brazilian music when those first two classic Sepultura albums came out, along with releases from Overdose and Vulcano. Over in Brazil, though, those bands were a small handful of many in an already vibrant scene. Tape traders started getting wind of this scene and began looking towards other Brazilian bands, which led to great interest in two albums on Roadrunner from another classic act by the name of Ratos de Porao. "Brasil" and the crossover milestone "Anarkophobia" on Roadrunner made us dig a little deeper into the thrashcore scene of this country.
Crossover and extreme metal have thirty years strong down in the tropic of capricorn. RDP and fellow countrymen Lobotomia could hold their own against any stateside crossover band. And when you dig into Brazil's punk/metal history, it is overwhelming to see that their scene - which dates back to the days of Venom, Discharge and the Sex Pistols - continues to be huge and fractured into several subgenres just like our own. A few years before Ratos de Porao came on the scene, Restos de Nada were possibly the first recognized punk band. As can be expected, they hailed from the southeastern region of Sao Paolo - whose urban setting gave rise to their songs of social decay. More...
Sunday Old School: Kix
Kix were popular in the glam scene, yet under the radar band that had minor success in the eighties. In fact, they were around before the second round of glam acts (SEE: Poison, Warrant, etc…) and many feel had their stage show stolen by these bands. Regardless, their sleazy style of music (which was never really glam) and their great live shows this was always a “band’s band” and didn’t reach the commercial success of others (SEE: Poison, Warrant, etc…). More...
The Rockstar Ramblings: Video Marathon
This week a real treat with (lucky) seven new videos featuring girls with cranium accessories, vampires, F-bombs, and of course, sass.
Ten's video for their single “Gunrunning” is from their new anticipated studio album entitled 'Heresy And Creed.' I can dig the black and white and the groovy sound (dig and groovy in the same sentence – yes, I’m high right now), but not so sure about the Michael Jackson style marching jacket. Also, the awkward lean into the guitar player makes me feel weird down there…
Pit Stories: '50s Prom Night
We scour the heavy metal and hard rock landscape to get Pit Stories from musicians across the globe, and today we have an interesting look at an "un-pit" of sorts when the crowd experiences genre confusion. Oregon based "melodic wondercore" act Whispers of Wonder shares the following story:
Whispers Of Wonder was paying live at a local venue here in Portland called the Hawthorne. We were the second to last band on the bill. Now the kind of music we play isn't necessarily as brutal as the local scene is comfortable with, and sometimes fans aren't quite sure how to act in the crowd. Now before we had hit the stage there was a big empty pit with 3 hardcore dancers in it, but once we got started something unfolded unlike anything we have ever seen at a show of our genre.
People weren't moshing. It wasn't a violent mosh fest. It was a dance pit. The best way to describe it is prom night in the 1950's, though the soundtrack wasn't exactly as upbeat. And they kept it going throughout our whole set. All of a sudden an entire crowd of people looked like some scene out of an episode of The Peanuts. It was definitely a night to remember.
Whispers of Wonder will release the new EP "The First Year" this coming November 27th, 2012 and pre-orders are available at this location. You can also check out the band's music via Facebook here.
Unearthing The Norwegian Metal Underground
Every week we dig deep into the metal scene and unearth three acts that are unsigned or simply less well known than many other bands. Today we look at a mecca for metal in general and black metal in particular: Norway.
The country has taken on a sort of mythical level of significance for underground enthusiasts, where one imagines a tribunal of grim metal masters passing judgment on what is and is not trve black metal, but despite that impression the country houses a variety of musicians that cover the musical spectrum and frequently cross genre lines. While anyone familiar with the scene will likely be well acquainted with the likes of Emperor or Mayhem, there are still plenty of unknown hard rock and metal bands hidden there to discover.
Beyond the Morninglight
Breaking ranks with the sound that has put Norway onto the extreme metal map, Beyond the Morninglight is a gloomy and atmospheric rock and roll act that drops the harsh vocals and many of the heavier elements. What it lacks in brutality it makes up for in an infectious version of metal-influenced rock that gets stuck in the head.
The band has two full-length releases now, a self-titled debut and the newly released “Liberation” album, which takes an even darker turn. You can stream both of the full Beyond the Morninglight releases through Misantrof ANTI-Records, or you can check out two songs, one from each album, in the clips below.
“By Midnight We Rock”
Beyond The Morninglight - By Midnight We Rock by HeavyHardMetalmania More...
Sunday Old School: Benediction
We’ve seen before how Britain played a major part in the development of grindcore by producing such bands as Extreme Noise Terror and Bolt Thrower amongst others, but what about death metal? While the United States arguably produced the most well known death metal bands, the U.K. had some high quality contributions of their own. Everyone knows Scouse noise merchants, Carcass of course, but there’s another band that certainly deserves a mention when talking about the best in British extreme metal, namely, Benediction. Benediction was formed in the city of Birmingham, arguably the birthplace of heavy metal music, in 1989 by bassist, Paul Adams, along with vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway and guitarists Darren Brookes and Peter Rew. They recorded their first demo, "The Dreams You Dread" the same year and quickly garnered interest from German label, Nuclear Blast Records, signing a deal with them soon after. Only a year after they formed, Benediction released their debut full length album, "Subconscious Terror" in 1990, which gained favourable reviews in the metal media and impressed many of their contemporaries, so much so that Napalm Death invited Greenway to join them as their new vocalist, replacing the recently departed, Lee Dorrian, who had left to form the doom metal band, Cathedral.
Now in need of a new frontman, the group turned to fellow Brummie, Dave Ingram to take over behind the microphone. Following live shows with Bolt Thrower and Nocturnus (an American death metal band notable for fusing keyboards with their death metal sound,) the band recorded and released their sophomore album, "The Grand Leveller," in 1991. The record received an even better reception than their debut and helped spread their name in the international death metal scene. Despite the acclaim, Adams decided to leave the band after a tour with Dismember, leaving Brookes to perform bass duties as well as guitars on their next record, an EP entitled, "Dark is the Season." Eventually, they were able to find a new bass player in Cerebral Fix member, Frank Healy, who joined just in time to perform with their band during their first visit to Israel, before making his Benediction recording debut on the group’s third album, "Transcend the Rubicon." More...
Rockstar Ramblings: Gas Mask Gary
Canadian hard rockers Diemonds have released a new music video for the single "Get The Fuck Outta Here" from the album 'The Bad Pack', released on October 2nd through Underground Operations. Fans of horror movies and hard rock will enjoy this mini production. More...
Unearthing The West Country Metal Underground Pt.3
Every week in Unearthing the Metal Underground, we take a look at three quality bands that haven't gotten as much exposure yet as they should. This week we’ll be taking another look at three metal bands from the West Country (the South West of England,) all with their own take on the genre.
Flayed Disciple
Formed in Taunton, the county town of Somerset in 2008, the awesomely named, Flayed Disciple have been performing their own brand of brutal thrash metal ever since. They released their first record, an EP entitled, "Drawn Viscera" the next year, earning almost instant acclaim in the local metal scene and going on to perform with the likes of South Western thrash legends, Onslaught and New Wave of British Heavy Metal heroes, Diamond Head. In late 2011 they signed a deal with Grindscene Records, which led to the release of their debut full length album, "Death Hammer," which was also given away with copies of the May edition of Terrorizer magazine. The group has been able to perform at a number of festivals over the years, including the ever growing Bloodstock Open Air and will soon be embarking on a trip to India where they will perform a handful of shows along with a slot on the Indian Metal Festival, the very first heavy metal festival in the country, which will be headlined by French death metal outfit, Gojira.
Flayed Disciple - "Ejaculate While Killing"
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Sunday Old School: King's X
The time was 1979 and the place was Evangel College in Missouri. Jerry Gaskill, enrolled in the institute for a degree in Biblical studies, met Doug (dUg) Pinnick there. Jerry was from New Jersey and Doug came down from Chicago to work with a project that Greg Volz from Petra had assembled. DUg was from a religious, Baptist background himself and had been involved in several bands in Illinois along with promoting the Christian music scene in Florida. (It was during this time in Florida that one of dUg's friends got into a car wreck, collected a settlement and bought dUg his first 'official' bass guitar). When the Petra project folded, band member Phil Keaggy invited the both of them to join his new band. More...
The Rockstar Ramblings: Swedish Invasion
Anyone looking for rock and roll highlighted by sleazy guitars, big choruses, and tattoos are well aware (and have been for some time) of the scene in Sweden. Veteran, new, and reformed bands continue to put out new music as well as some entertaining videos. This week we look at three of these videos.
Swedish rockers SISTER SIN have released a music video for "End Of The Line", the first single from the band's upcoming album 'Now And Forever.' Filmed at an old nuclear reactor testing facility in Stockholm, Sweden, SISTER SIN is clearly in a mood for kicking ass.
I realize this is at a nuclear reactor site, but the video begins with an Asylum feel, or at least some sort of mental institution. Liv Jagrell is not happy, also not hungry. She is ripped, sweaty, and working out inside a small cement cell. Outside (of the alleged mental institution) there are explosions. Not Macy’s type fireworks: bombs going off, signaling Armageddon. Inside, Liv does pull-ups. The video continues with more explosions and then push-ups. Liv is preparing for war. After her “Prison Work Out” she approaches her stash of guns. Hey, what type of mental facility is this? So maybe this is just her own personal bunker, a place where she can get away from that crazy outside world and get in a good workout. Also, a great place to stash her guns…
Sweden's KILLER BEE are back with a refreshed line-up and a new album called 'Hell & Back.' The band has released their first official music video from the album, for the single "Step Into My World.” This is not to be confused with the comic relief track “My World” from Guns N’ Roses ‘Use Your Illusion II’, no, this is serious.
The video displays depressing clips of poverty, rioting, and begging. A quick break from the documentary shows the band. I enjoy the abundance of jean jackets and the use of a globe as “the world on fire”, also good use of the fist pump. The video (depressing documentary) continues with more world hunger, missile crisis, etc… very somber video, I think I’m going to go listen to “My World” and cheer myself up…
TOXICROSE, a brand new band out of Sweden featuring GEMINI FIVE and LIPSTIXX 'N' BULLETZ members, have released a music video for the track "A Song For The Weak.” The song is taken from the band's upcoming debut EP, soon to be released by City Of Lights/Rock It Up Records.
The video begins very formal – an introduction to the band. My personal opinion is that the broken glass is unnecessary, but then again, that’s just me. This is pretty much what is coming out of Sweden these days: lots of guitars, lots of hair, lots of leather, and lots of chains. There is definitely s glam inspiration, but more in a Hanoi Rocks way, versus late eighties Sunset Strip. The songs are bluesy enough to hide the pop grooves and choruses. It’s glam with an edge…
Pit Stories: Don't Mosh In Leather
If you're tired of all the election coverage and need something amusing to break up the non-stop political material, we've got a new Pit Story this week, courtesy of J.R. from New York act Slam One Down. He had this story to share of a Hellyeah pit having unexpected consequences for the band:
One night Roach and I went to promote our new demo CD at a Hellyeah concert. Roach left me with the CDs to go and mosh. Funny thing was that it was winter and Roach still had his leather jacket on while he was moshing. He looked like such an idiot with that leather jacket on. Plus you all know how sweaty it gets inside a mosh pit, and he had that leather jacket soaked in sweat.
A few days later we took a roadtrip to another gig that we were playing and there was this awful smell in the car on the way up. Yep it was the jacket! It smelled so bad and I think he threw it out that night.
Slam One Down is out now with new album "Who Really Wants To Live Forever," and you can check out tracks from the release at the band's official website or Facebook profile. Be sure to check back in again next Tuesday as we share more mosh pit stories from metal bands.
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