Friday Night Mayhem at ROAR, 08/02/2013

I found out about this gig the day before it took place. It was a fun Friday night, enhanced by a good crowd turnout.

I haven’t seen Stellitius since SummerFest 2012, so I was looking forward to seeing them again. The set began with a touch of theatricality; recorded growls in a language I couldn’t distinguish played over the PA. The experience of the band was evident by their tight performance and ability to keep going despite glitches – a string snapped on the bassist/vocalist’s guitar, which left the band without bass and vocals for two songs.  Both guitarists played solos, each showing technicality combined with a composed stage presence. I enjoyed the dynamic basslines coming from the powerful vocalist. The audience enjoyed the headbang-inducing grooves, with one young woman getting especially into the music and air-drumming enthusiastically throughout the first half of the set. At the end of the set, the vocalist announced that Stellitius will be releasing an album in the first half of the year, which I look forward to.

Barring their Rock The River 2011/2012 performance, I have struggled to fully enjoy a Marching Dead set. Not because of any lack of polish – they are technically brilliant – but because of the strange atmosphere induced during their sets. By strange atmosphere I mean a vocalist who gives off a conceited air, which can alienate some audience members. This time, I think that the vocalist/bassist (usually vocalist/guitarist) got the balance between stage presence and full-blown ego right this time. I enjoyed Marching Dead’s set, particularly their original number Demon Song, their cover of Black Sabbath’s Heaven And Hell and their cover of Judas Priest’s Painkiller. Vocalist Igor Crous managed the falsetto on the latter admirably, putting his own stamp on the song with a King Diamondlike sound. Both the covers I mentioned were excellent because of the way the band put their own spin on the songs while still staying true to the originals.

I hope that the gig circuit will see a little more of Stellitius in the future, and that Marching Dead will continue to be as enjoyable as they were that night.

Ahab - The Giant review

The Giant is a continuation of German doom band Ahab’s nautical theme. This release is a concept album based on The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, the sole novel of Edgar Allan Poe. The music is somewhat faster and more progressive in parts, but retains its crushing funeral doom core.

The album begins with soft guitar riffs, which are then joined by sparing drums. The laments of the echoing clean vocals are beautiful. The song then goes into heavy territory, with sea beast growls. Clean vocals appear once more; the two vocal styles have more equal balance on this album than on earlier material. The reverb-laiden guitar solo has a melancholy beauty. Like its predecessor, Further South, Aeons Elaspse also begins with quiet guitar riffs. Whispers and growls join a guitar riff which sounds like a whale call. A quiet interlude comes after the heaviness, with a Spanish guitar like lead riff. The quiet riffs create images of seascapes in my mind. The clean, chant like vocals on this track and others show Daniel Droste’s vocal versatility. His clean vocals are emotional yet poised, and are the saving grace of the meandering, sometimes-boring track Antarctica the Polymorphess (the latter was the only notable low point of the album for me).

Amid the great guitar riffs and solos, the drums have a chance to feature prominently in the songs Aeons Elapse (a guitar fade gives way to the slow drumbeats) and Deliverance (Shouting at the Dead) (on which the drums sound like a funeral march), and Fathoms Deep Below (slow, pounding drums add significantly to the heaviness of the track).

The guitar work and song structures have a more progressive feel on this album. More solos feature, as well as more changes in song dynamics. The guitars echo with laments, create harmonies and weave like mist over the sea (on Fathoms Deep Below). A lot of the riffs had a post-metal feel to them. The acoustic guitar features prominently, contributing in such a way as to meld well with the lumbering behemoths of the heavy parts.

While some of the riffs were not as memorable as some of the earlier material, The Giant is still a great slab of funeral doom.

Personnel: Daniel Droste – guitar, vocals, keyboards

                   Christian Hector – guitar

                   Stephan Wandernorth – bass

                  Cornulius Althammer – drums

Web presence: www.ahab-doom.de

                          www.myspace.com/ahabdoom

                          www.facebook.com/AhabDoom

 

Sigh - In Somniphobia review

Sigh are a Japanese avant-garde black metal band. In Somniphobia is one of the most intriguing metal releases I’ve heard this year.

Besides the prominent saxophone (which varies from seductive to jazzy), a host of other instruments join the usual metal instrument contigent of guitars, bass and drums: an Indian instrument called a Sarangi, Indian percussion, bongos, violins, piano, accordion and what sounded like a tuba.

Purgatorium begins the album on a thrashy note. Black metal rasps sit happily alongside trilling keyboards and NWOBHM-style guitars. A lovely piano and violin interlude balances the fast pace of the song. Other guitar highlights are the great solo and harmonies.

Bongos and clap beats are included in The Transfiguration Fear Lucid Nightmares. The former adds a great rhythm to the chorus. The clean female vocals mix well with the black metal rasps, with the latter’s being low in the mix adding a good contrast to the clean vocals without overpowering them. The saxophone makes its first appearance, and fits in harmoniously with the other instruments. The traditional metal instruments are also low in the mix, which prevents this song from sounding unwieldy. One of the biggest strengths of In Somniphobia is the songwriting and mixing. Despite the myriad musical elements, the songs on this album sound cohesive, and the mix amply accommodates all the instruments; all having breathing space.

In contrast to most of the songs’ high energy, mellow interludes or codas of odd effects are included. Lucid Nightmare begins with ‘spacey’ effects, while L’Excommunication a Minuit, Far Beneath The In-Between and Amongst the Phantoms of Abandoned Tumbrils end with a bunch of effects which transport one into a strange dream. The latter song is one of the most ‘metal-sounding’ tracks on an album which stretches the boundaries of what can be considered ‘metal’. Phantoms is a black metal-esque number with harmonised guitars and medieval trumpets. A reverb-laden guitar solo reminded me of the legendary guitarist-singer-songwriter Carlos Santana, one of the first artists that inspired my love of guitar-driven music. The closing track Equale (a. Prelude, b. Fugato, c. Coda) opens with Santana like riffs.

NWOBHM-style guitars and harmonised riffs appear frequently on the album. These traditional metal elements give a more down-to-earth feel to the often-trippy, grand compositions on In Somniphobia. Although choirs and classical instruments have often been mixed with heavy metal, they don’t sound clichéd at any point, and add atmosphere to the tracks. Lovely layered violins and a trippy piano part feature on Far Beneath the In-Between. The piano part ends on a baroque, echoing note. Delicate piano and lamenting guitars combine on Fall to the Thrall. Also-delicate harp parts add contrast to the faster parts of Equale.

In Somniphobia is a multilayered and grand body of work that is one of the most interesting directions taken in within the realms of heavy metal. Grandiosity without heading into ostentatious territory is this album’s highlight.

Personnel: Mirai Kawashima – vocals, keyboards

                Dr. Mikannibal – saxophone, vocals

                Shinichi Ishikawa – guitar

                Satoshi Ishikawa – guitar

               Junichi Harashima - drums

Web presence: http://candlelightrecordsusa.bandcamp.com/album/in-  somniphobia

www.myspace.com/sighjapan

Sindulgence - Recollections review

I clearly remember the first time I saw Sindulgence live. It was my first metal gig at the infamous Cape Town venue ROAR; the gig was organised by members of Sindulgence under the banner ‘Fresh Blood’.  I remember being quite impressed by the band; they had a distinct approach to death metal. Numerous Sindulgence gigs later, and I am still impressed. The debut album (which also comes with a DVD) from this hardworking band has left me impressed as well.

Room 302 is a mysterious opening track. It begins with cheerful piano and violin, which then take on ominous undertones. It then flows into the pounding intro of Swindle, with its earworm riffs. Bassist/vocalist Byron Dinwoodie has a unique growl that contrasts with the guttural growls of vocalist Muller Van Niekerk, who also switches to black metal rasps from time to time. Dinwoodie produces clear clean vocals as well; having three different vocal styles could potentially sound schizophrenic, but here it works very well and adds interest to this track and others. Dinwoodie’s clean vocals shine particularly on Silly Dream and Pale Gardens.

Swindle gives the first taste of the contrasting guitar work which appears on this album. The higher notes of the leads weave deftly between the heavy rhythm parts. Guitarists Ryan Eberlin switch between lead and rhythm on the album; both do very well in either role, since the lead and rhythm parts are top quality on each song. There are brilliant solos and riffs throughout, with the tracks Thorns, The March Hare, Silly Dream, Wine Of the Gods and Pale Gardens being guitar highlights for me.

Michael Snyman does a superb job behind the drum kit, with his drum work that easily switches between pounding heaviness and delicate, softer passages. The drum work is varied and intricate, taking on everything from the onslaught of Thorns to the jazz like opening fills on Silly Dream. I daresay that in years to come, Snyman could become one of Cape Town’s prominent metal drummers.

The DVD that comes with the album is an often-funny account of the process of making Recollections. It gives a very good idea of what it’s like to be in Sindulgence. It would be interesting to get to know more South African metal bands through behind-the-scenes documentaries.

The production is more what I would expect from a live album, as opposed to a studio one. The band did intend to have a live feel, so this is a minor gripe, and it doesn’t take away from an album that is, in my opinion, one of the best African metal releases this year.

Recollections is a distinctive and progressive take on death metal, with interesting songwriting and lyrics. Their incorporation of different musical styles is cohesive, and they switch deftly between worlds of reality and fantasy.

Personnel: Muller Van Niekerk – vocals

                Byron Dinwoodie – bass and vocals

                Ryan Eberlin – guitars

                Rodney Dosson – guitars

                Michael Snyman – drums

Web presence:

http://www.reverbnation.com/sindulgence https://twitter.com/#!/SindulgenceBand http://www.myspace.com/sindulgenceband

The Ocean Doesn't Want Me - As the dust settles review

This mysterious post-metal/sludge/doom album is the second full-length from Pretoria band The Ocean Doesn’t Want Me. It is a concept album, with each song being about one of seven characters attending a funeral of the deceased – a friend, a husband, a father, an adulterer, and acquaintance and his origin. It was fun to try and figure out which song was about each character.

The Ocean Doesn’t Want Me (TODWM) creates melancholy, epic soundscapes. The multilayered passages contrast well with the sparse parts. The latter give the impression of vast, empty spaces.

It feels like all the sound effects are relevant, and none stray into pretentious territory. The effects on opener Roots Point The Way has an oceanic feel. Most of the album reminds me of the coast, making the coastal town where I live the perfect setting to listen to this album. I imagine the funeral taking place in a small coastal town where everyone knows everyone, yet some secrets remain hidden. The instruments and effects combine with the lyrics to tell the story of the funeral very well; I always enjoy albums that tell a story well and create pictures of it in my mind.

Album highlights for me were Roots point the way, This castle stands alone, Property line and Until our mouths are filled with earth. None of the tracks are fillers though, and all make important contributions to the album overall. The lyrics are mysterious poetry that makes one think about their meanings. It’s mostly unclear which song is about each character, which will make discovering who is who more rewarding.

As the dust settles is a stellar body of work from a professional outfit. I thoroughly enjoyed getting lost in the vast soundscapes and the narratives of this album.

Personnel: Robin - Drums and synths

                 Beastie – Bass and vocals

                 CF – Guitars and vocals

Web presence: http://theoceandoesntwantme.com/

                       www.facebook.com/TheOceanDoesntWantMe

                       www.last.fm/music/The+Ocean+Doesn’t+Want+Me

                       www.theoceandoesntwantme.tumblr.com

                      

Grave - Endless Procession of Souls review

 Artist: Grave

 Album: Endless Procession of Souls

Website: https://www.facebook.com/GraveOfficial?ref=ts

Grave hail from Sweden, which is known for the Gothenburg death metal sound. In Endless Procession of Souls, Grave has released an album with a production unusual for Swedish death metal. It has a raw, slightly muffled production. The raw sound doesn’t mean the album is poorly produced; instead, it gives the album character and grit, and has a timeless feel to it. (Warning: I could not resist using many graveyard/death-related similes and imagery in this review.)

The distorted, grim riff of Intro – Dystopia sets the scene perfectly for the rest of the album. Amongst Marble and the Dead continues the grim atmosphere, gloom-laden guitars. The pace switches between thrashy and almost funereal. The vocalist sounds like he was resurrected from the grave; his voice has a desiccated and decayed sound to it. These vocals suit an album that kept me mentally wandering around a misty, forgotten graveyard filled with the sadness of hundreds while I listened.

Irresistible grooves abound – I found it very hard to keep still during this album; some part of me was always moving, either a foot or my head. Disembodied Steps, Passion of the Weak and Encountering the Divine are examples of the groovy goodness. In contrast to the grooves are slower passages which give the listener a breather, and add variety to the songs.

Besides the vocals, the guitars also contribute significantly to the graveyard atmosphere. The bubbling sounds they produce most of the time remind me of thick, primordial tar pits, the graveyards of many hapless animals. At other times, there are solos which sound like chants, solos which scream and then end on droning notes and ones which sound like the moans of lost souls. Winds of Chains goes big on the spookiness, with wind and clinking chains effects in the intro. The droning riffs on Encountering the Divine are full of despair.

The fast drum parts are uncompromising and come down upon the listener in a downpour of acid rain. The slower parts are well controlled. The drums gallop on Plague of Nations and Epos. The latter two tracks also feature standout bass guitar work – Plague of Nations has one of the most sinister (if not the most sinister) bass lines I’ve ever heard, while the bass solo on Epos is saturated with foreboding. Epos ties the beginning and end of the album together very well, with a similar riff to Intro – Dystopia. The former has a clear feeling of finality and despair; Intro was the funeral bell, and Epos is the final spade of dirt on the coffin.

Before I heard Endless Procession of Souls, I hadn’t heard any of Grave’s material before. I am very much encouraged to seek out more of their discography; hopefully their other work matches the high calibre of this album, which I feel is one of 2012’s most impressive death metal releases.

Bloodbeast - Bloodlust review

Upon my first listen of Bloodlust, the debut album from Pretoria death/groove metal band Bloodbeast, I felt like I was listening to the aural equivalent of being slowly squashed beneath a rock. This is a good thing in my book! Bloodbeast is a young band made up of South African metal veterans. The lineup includes members from the well-regarded bands Architecture of Agression, Bile of Man, as well as Fuck the Corpses.

Visceral Birth, a track made up of only strange sounds, begins Bloodlust. Out For Blood then arrives to squash the listener into pulp. Both the chorus and the clean riffs are earworms. The vocals sound menacing, yet they are intelligible, which is something I don't hear often. Sinister bass and crunchy rhythm guitar riffs add to the might of this track. Headbang-inducing grooves appear in parts of Merciless. A blistering solo features in this track. The lead guitar work on this album strikes a balance between simplicity and musical embellishment, as well as having a no-nonsense sensibility about it. On the war-themed Sadeye SNAFU, the guitar solo adds to the unstable atmosphere. As on Butcher for pleasure, the solos are clean, which helps to balance out the heaviness of the other insturments. The solo on Fuck or die also adds to the atmosphere of the song, with its haunting tone.

I found the latter song to be the most visceral and disturbing track on the album. If a band can create a song that makes me feel an almost tangible emotion, even if that emotion is negative, then I consider the song to be good. Fuck or die is about rape, and written from the rapist's point of view. This chilling content made me want to hide inside for the rest of the year. The music video for this song opens with a terrible statistic - that a female born in South Africa is more likely to be raped than learn to read. The great riffs and aforementioned haunting guitar solo add to the song's quality.

'Old school' is a good description for the sound of Bloodlust. The production reminds me of bands such as Death and Obituary. The crunchy, pressing sound fits perfectly on the album, and adds to the songs without sounding muffled. Bloodbeast bring the groove to most of the album; I can imagine that these songs would induce a good deal of headbanging when played live. Bloodlust is a thoroughly enjoyable concrete slab of brutal death metal, a subgenre which can stray into unpleasantness if a band tries to be 'brutal' for the sake of it. Bloodbeast avoid this, and strikes a great balance between melody and brutality.