This is not music. This is sheer, shit-yourself horror. Remember the first time you watched Hellraiser? Well the first time I put on the new album by Australian death metal giants, Portal, it was a similar experience. There are no listener friendly grooves or hooky rhythms here, this is pure demonic sonic torture.
Normally I'd try and pick out individual tracks to discuss and tell you about. That task is simply impossible with Swarth. It would be something akin to trying to describe the sensation of having rusty nails hammered in to your ears.
What Portal have managed to achieve with this latest release is, at least for me, to help restore faith in what death metal can and should be. This is music for art's sake, not for the sake of shifting records.
If you think you've got the stomach for this album, then definitely pick up a copy, but be warned: this album is most definitely not for the faint of heart.
Album rating: 8/10
For fans of: Horror films, insane asylums and the paintings of Hieronymus Bosch
Best tracks: n/a
Saturday, 5 December 2009
Thursday, 3 December 2009
Citizen X's Top 10 Albums of 2009
It seems about this time of year every man and his dog seems to want to tell the world what his favourite albums of the last twelve months have been and, well, I'm not exception.
So, what follows is, in no order and with brief explanation, my personal Top 10 Albums of 2009.
Mastodon - Crack the Skye
Ok, so maybe there is a little order to the list. This album goes at the top because it is, by far, the best album I had the pleasure of listening to this year. If you haven't heard it yet, I strongly recommend you pick a copy up and give it a spin!
The Atlas Moth - A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky
Chances are, you've never heard of The Atlas Moth and that's a shame. This was one of the best debut albums I've heard in a long time. Go check out the review I posted recently.
Hurt - Goodbye to the Machine
New album from my favourite band, again probably most of you haven't heard of them. A slight move away from the heavier songs off their previous two records, but still an excellent album.
Týr - By the Light of the Northern Star
To me, Týr represent the best in what is fast become an over saturated 'Folk Metal' scene and ...Northern Star is another example of how to perfectly blend traditional folk with traditional metal.
Alice in Chains - Black Gives Way to Blue
Anyone who knows me, knows I'm a huge Alice in Chains fan. They also know my pet hatred of replacement singers. It might come as a surprise then just how much I love this album. From the second I heard the first single, 'A Looking In View', I was convinced they could pull this off and the day the album came out I played it none-stop for a solid twelve hours. Just goes to show what you can do with a bit of respect for what you've done, what you've lost and finding the right person to fill that void.
Paradise Lost - Faith Divides Us, Death Unites Us
A surprising return to form, from one of the UK’s best bands. That the new songs hold up live alongside classics from Gothic and Icon is testament to the quality of this album.
The Dead Weather - Horehound
I've long been a fan of Jack White and his latest side project did not disappoint!
Chimaira - The Infection
A slower, sludgier offering from Chimaira that has divided their fan base, but it's a direction I personally love!
KISS - Sonic Boom
Another band returning to form, the glam legends follow up to the dismal 'Psycho Circus' is a superb album, with plenty of classic sounding KISS songs to get any party started!
Creed - Full Circle
Yeah, ok, I'm going to get a lot of stick for this (I can already imagine the look of disappointment on Pete's face when he reads this.) But you know what? I don't care. I don't care that none of my friends like Creed and I care even less that none of them have even ever bothered to actually listen to them. I love this band and always have done. So, needless to say I was excited to hear they'd got back together. This new album does not disappoint! It seamlessly combines the best aspects of both Creed's earlier heaviness of My Own Prison with the more melodic and radio friendly sounds of Weathered, whilst having hints of Stapp's solo work.
So, there we have it, the 10 sonic highlights of my 2009. I hope you agree with some of my choices, I also hope you disagree with some (after all, life'd be boring if we all liked the same things!) and I sincerely hope there's some albums on here you haven't listened to and that you'll give them a chance before the year's out!
Cheers,
Tom.
So, what follows is, in no order and with brief explanation, my personal Top 10 Albums of 2009.
Mastodon - Crack the Skye
Ok, so maybe there is a little order to the list. This album goes at the top because it is, by far, the best album I had the pleasure of listening to this year. If you haven't heard it yet, I strongly recommend you pick a copy up and give it a spin!
The Atlas Moth - A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky
Chances are, you've never heard of The Atlas Moth and that's a shame. This was one of the best debut albums I've heard in a long time. Go check out the review I posted recently.
Hurt - Goodbye to the Machine
New album from my favourite band, again probably most of you haven't heard of them. A slight move away from the heavier songs off their previous two records, but still an excellent album.
Týr - By the Light of the Northern Star
To me, Týr represent the best in what is fast become an over saturated 'Folk Metal' scene and ...Northern Star is another example of how to perfectly blend traditional folk with traditional metal.
Alice in Chains - Black Gives Way to Blue
Anyone who knows me, knows I'm a huge Alice in Chains fan. They also know my pet hatred of replacement singers. It might come as a surprise then just how much I love this album. From the second I heard the first single, 'A Looking In View', I was convinced they could pull this off and the day the album came out I played it none-stop for a solid twelve hours. Just goes to show what you can do with a bit of respect for what you've done, what you've lost and finding the right person to fill that void.
Paradise Lost - Faith Divides Us, Death Unites Us
A surprising return to form, from one of the UK’s best bands. That the new songs hold up live alongside classics from Gothic and Icon is testament to the quality of this album.
The Dead Weather - Horehound
I've long been a fan of Jack White and his latest side project did not disappoint!
Chimaira - The Infection
A slower, sludgier offering from Chimaira that has divided their fan base, but it's a direction I personally love!
KISS - Sonic Boom
Another band returning to form, the glam legends follow up to the dismal 'Psycho Circus' is a superb album, with plenty of classic sounding KISS songs to get any party started!
Creed - Full Circle
Yeah, ok, I'm going to get a lot of stick for this (I can already imagine the look of disappointment on Pete's face when he reads this.) But you know what? I don't care. I don't care that none of my friends like Creed and I care even less that none of them have even ever bothered to actually listen to them. I love this band and always have done. So, needless to say I was excited to hear they'd got back together. This new album does not disappoint! It seamlessly combines the best aspects of both Creed's earlier heaviness of My Own Prison with the more melodic and radio friendly sounds of Weathered, whilst having hints of Stapp's solo work.
So, there we have it, the 10 sonic highlights of my 2009. I hope you agree with some of my choices, I also hope you disagree with some (after all, life'd be boring if we all liked the same things!) and I sincerely hope there's some albums on here you haven't listened to and that you'll give them a chance before the year's out!
Cheers,
Tom.
Gig Review: Taste of Chaos (Killswitch Engage / In Flames) - Manchester Academy - 02/12/09
Well here’s something you certainly don’t see every day: the first band is only half way through it’s set and already the venue is well packed out. I’ll have to admit that, for once, I regret not catching the entirety of the set from Maylene & the Sons of Disaster (7), because from what I did see, these guys sure know how to rock! Bringing a distinctly metal feel to a down-in-the-bayou groove, Maylene sound something akin to Lynyrd Skynyrd, run through a fuzz pedal and turned up to eleven, complete with a tri-attack guitar set-up! Definitely a band to keep an eye on for the future!
Next up with have New York metalcorer’s Every Time I Die (5). Now, I’m not going to lie to you, at this point I was tempted to just go and hang out in the bar. I’ve never really liked anything I’ve heard from ETID but I decided to stick it out and see if they were any better live. They weren’t. Only a small percent of the crowd was really even paying attention and these were mostly 13 year old boys just looking for an excuse to start a circle pit. At one point front man Keith Buckley tells the crowd to “sing along if you know the words”, though exactly how one would sing along to this sort of noise is beyond me. Here’s hoping his new side project with various members from Fall Out Boy and Anthrax produces something slightly less displeasing on the ears.
So after suffering though that, it’s finally time for what I was hoping would be the highlight of the night: In Flames (7). I’m sad to say I was sorely disappointed by them tonight. Don’t get me wrong, they played with their usual clinical precision but there was hardly any interaction with the crowd and a great number of songs were absent from the set (Bullet Ride, Episode 666, Only For the Weak, Trigger to name just a couple.) Nether the less, the crowd greets the band with massive applause and they play enough of their better known tracks to keep most people in the crowd interested. The same group of young lads from Every Time I Die’s set are still starting circle pits, so they’re obviously having fun tonight. And after a somewhat disappointing and far too short set (just 50 minutes) In Flames leave the stage and I can’t help but feel that perhaps they would have been better off on their own headline tour, though they’ll be headlining the upcoming Taste of Chaos dates all across Europe, so maybe the British record buying public are more to blame for the sour taste left in my mouth after this set?
A brief trip to the bar for a drink and a good moan about what was left out of the In Flames set and then it’s back in for tonight’s headliners. The classic ‘Benny Hill’ music airs over the PA (the music that used to play when he was chasing half naked women around. If you don’t know what I’m on about, ask you parents) and it’s a fitting way to start the show, as to rapturous applause, everyone’s favourite clown, Adam D storms on to the stage, resplendent in tuxedo t-shirt (as are the rest of the band) and his trademark headband and cape. I’m going to say something now that might make me unpopular with some of you, but I don’t care: Adam D is an idiot. Simple as, the guy is a moron. He acts like a clown just with less makeup. I’m all for having fun and moving around on stage but this guy lunges around the stage like a spider-monkey on speed. It’s easy to see why the likes of Max Cavalera and Kerry King are so outspoken about his behaviour. That said, Killswitch Engage (7) deliver a perfectly average set, covering all their hits, throwing in a couple of new songs (though I’m sure they know as well as we do that their latest offering was very much sub-par) and even making me leave with a smile as they finish with their rendition of Holy Diver, which drew the biggest crowd reaction of the night and strikes me as a bit sad when the song people are most keen to hear is a cover version.
Overall gig rating: 7/10. Not a bad night’s entertainment, though I really felt that the 3 main bands on the tour did not live up to their billing. Maylene & the Sons of Disaster however were truly a treat to watch and, if for nothing else, tonight was a worth while venture simply to discover this band! You can check them out now on Spotify or their Myspace.
Next up with have New York metalcorer’s Every Time I Die (5). Now, I’m not going to lie to you, at this point I was tempted to just go and hang out in the bar. I’ve never really liked anything I’ve heard from ETID but I decided to stick it out and see if they were any better live. They weren’t. Only a small percent of the crowd was really even paying attention and these were mostly 13 year old boys just looking for an excuse to start a circle pit. At one point front man Keith Buckley tells the crowd to “sing along if you know the words”, though exactly how one would sing along to this sort of noise is beyond me. Here’s hoping his new side project with various members from Fall Out Boy and Anthrax produces something slightly less displeasing on the ears.
So after suffering though that, it’s finally time for what I was hoping would be the highlight of the night: In Flames (7). I’m sad to say I was sorely disappointed by them tonight. Don’t get me wrong, they played with their usual clinical precision but there was hardly any interaction with the crowd and a great number of songs were absent from the set (Bullet Ride, Episode 666, Only For the Weak, Trigger to name just a couple.) Nether the less, the crowd greets the band with massive applause and they play enough of their better known tracks to keep most people in the crowd interested. The same group of young lads from Every Time I Die’s set are still starting circle pits, so they’re obviously having fun tonight. And after a somewhat disappointing and far too short set (just 50 minutes) In Flames leave the stage and I can’t help but feel that perhaps they would have been better off on their own headline tour, though they’ll be headlining the upcoming Taste of Chaos dates all across Europe, so maybe the British record buying public are more to blame for the sour taste left in my mouth after this set?
A brief trip to the bar for a drink and a good moan about what was left out of the In Flames set and then it’s back in for tonight’s headliners. The classic ‘Benny Hill’ music airs over the PA (the music that used to play when he was chasing half naked women around. If you don’t know what I’m on about, ask you parents) and it’s a fitting way to start the show, as to rapturous applause, everyone’s favourite clown, Adam D storms on to the stage, resplendent in tuxedo t-shirt (as are the rest of the band) and his trademark headband and cape. I’m going to say something now that might make me unpopular with some of you, but I don’t care: Adam D is an idiot. Simple as, the guy is a moron. He acts like a clown just with less makeup. I’m all for having fun and moving around on stage but this guy lunges around the stage like a spider-monkey on speed. It’s easy to see why the likes of Max Cavalera and Kerry King are so outspoken about his behaviour. That said, Killswitch Engage (7) deliver a perfectly average set, covering all their hits, throwing in a couple of new songs (though I’m sure they know as well as we do that their latest offering was very much sub-par) and even making me leave with a smile as they finish with their rendition of Holy Diver, which drew the biggest crowd reaction of the night and strikes me as a bit sad when the song people are most keen to hear is a cover version.
Overall gig rating: 7/10. Not a bad night’s entertainment, though I really felt that the 3 main bands on the tour did not live up to their billing. Maylene & the Sons of Disaster however were truly a treat to watch and, if for nothing else, tonight was a worth while venture simply to discover this band! You can check them out now on Spotify or their Myspace.
Monday, 30 November 2009
Album Review: The Atlas Moth - A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky
Sometimes, the best things happen by accident, and trust me, the best band you’ll ever hear, you haven’t even heard of yet, they probably haven’t even released their first record.
Now, I’m notoriously bad at listening to those free sampler CDs you get with most music magazines for two main reasons i) they’re normally full of stuff you’ve either already heard or don’t want to hear and ii) I generally have other things I’d much rather listen to, old favourites or new records personally recommended to me, so time after time, these sampler CDs go down the bottom of the priority pile, some of them are still collecting dust, completely unheard. So imagine my surprise when, listening to a several month old sampler CD from Terrorizer magazine I stumbled across a band called The Atlas Moth. The track on that CD was the title track from the Chicago lad’s debut album: A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky. What’s more, I was so impressed that I logged straight on to iTunes to buy the album and I can honestly say, it’s rarely been off my stereo since!
A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky may only contain 8 tracks but don’t let that fool you in to thinking this is a short album, running at roughly 50 minutes it’s the same length as Mastodon’s latest 7-track offering Crack the Skye. And that’s not where the similarities between these two modern masterpieces end. Like Mastodon, The Atlas Moth draw their influences from a mixture of southern Sludge and the gods of experimental/prog metal themselves; Neurosis.
It should be no surprise then, that opening track A Night In Venus’ Arms... is a 6 minute sampler of what’s to come, building from soft static fuzz at the opening till it’s crescendo of pounding, feedback laden guitars and harsh screams. Next up is the title track, another 6 minute journey through a mire of heavily distorted guitars and guttural screams. Like those who came before them, The Atlas Moth, despite this being their first album, seem adept at using tempo,peddle effects and mixed vocal styles as a way of telling stories within each song. And that’s one of the things that make this album, for me, an instant classic, the fact that not is just the entire album a journey, but each song has a different story to tell. It should also be said that whilst each song on the album has been finely crafted in to a unique sonic beat down, like A Sun That Never Sets (Neurosis - 2001) or Crack the Skye (Mastodon - 2009), this album is best appreciated in its entirety, and it is an album that deserves to have that time dedicated to it.
The Atlas Moth are currently trekking around the States in support of this album but I’ve spoken to them and they assure me that they’ll be gracing our fair shores here in the UK in 2010 and I, for one, cannot wait!
If you don’t own this album, well... you should. For me, it’s one of the best albums released this year, perhaps second only to the aforementioned Crack the Skye. The album is available from iTunes or from the bands store: http://www.theatlasmoth.bigcartel.com/
Album rating: 9/10
For fans of: Neurosis, Mastodon,
Best tracks: A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky , Jump Room to Orion
Now, I’m notoriously bad at listening to those free sampler CDs you get with most music magazines for two main reasons i) they’re normally full of stuff you’ve either already heard or don’t want to hear and ii) I generally have other things I’d much rather listen to, old favourites or new records personally recommended to me, so time after time, these sampler CDs go down the bottom of the priority pile, some of them are still collecting dust, completely unheard. So imagine my surprise when, listening to a several month old sampler CD from Terrorizer magazine I stumbled across a band called The Atlas Moth. The track on that CD was the title track from the Chicago lad’s debut album: A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky. What’s more, I was so impressed that I logged straight on to iTunes to buy the album and I can honestly say, it’s rarely been off my stereo since!
A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky may only contain 8 tracks but don’t let that fool you in to thinking this is a short album, running at roughly 50 minutes it’s the same length as Mastodon’s latest 7-track offering Crack the Skye. And that’s not where the similarities between these two modern masterpieces end. Like Mastodon, The Atlas Moth draw their influences from a mixture of southern Sludge and the gods of experimental/prog metal themselves; Neurosis.
It should be no surprise then, that opening track A Night In Venus’ Arms... is a 6 minute sampler of what’s to come, building from soft static fuzz at the opening till it’s crescendo of pounding, feedback laden guitars and harsh screams. Next up is the title track, another 6 minute journey through a mire of heavily distorted guitars and guttural screams. Like those who came before them, The Atlas Moth, despite this being their first album, seem adept at using tempo,peddle effects and mixed vocal styles as a way of telling stories within each song. And that’s one of the things that make this album, for me, an instant classic, the fact that not is just the entire album a journey, but each song has a different story to tell. It should also be said that whilst each song on the album has been finely crafted in to a unique sonic beat down, like A Sun That Never Sets (Neurosis - 2001) or Crack the Skye (Mastodon - 2009), this album is best appreciated in its entirety, and it is an album that deserves to have that time dedicated to it.
The Atlas Moth are currently trekking around the States in support of this album but I’ve spoken to them and they assure me that they’ll be gracing our fair shores here in the UK in 2010 and I, for one, cannot wait!
If you don’t own this album, well... you should. For me, it’s one of the best albums released this year, perhaps second only to the aforementioned Crack the Skye. The album is available from iTunes or from the bands store: http://www.theatlasmoth.bigcartel.com/
Album rating: 9/10
For fans of: Neurosis, Mastodon,
Best tracks: A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky , Jump Room to Orion
Thursday, 26 November 2009
Gig Review: Five Finger Death Punch / Shadows Fall - Manchester Academy - 26/11/09
It’s 2:55 and I text Pete to ask what time we’ll be heading up to Manchester to interview/watch Shadows Fall and Five Finger Death Punch. 3:30 he says. That’d be fine were it not for the fact that I’ve not long crawled out of bed and still need a shower (breakfast at this point, it would seem, will not be an option.) So, a brief panic and a lot of rushing later it’s off to Manchester and for me this’ll be the first gig at the new Academy since it was finished (I was there a few years ago to see Within Temptation, but it was still mostly a building site back then.)
So roll on half 7 and we head from the pub over the road to the venue only to find we’ve not been put on the guest list! Well a quick phone call to the Death Punch tour manager sorts that out. Sadly, due to all this faffing around we miss the opening band, MagnaCult.
Next up are Rise to Remain. Now, I’m not going to rant too much about these lot, I’m going to save that for a separate article you’ll see from me in the next few days. Let’s just say that I thought these guys really, really sucked. And that was before Pete informed me the lead singer is Bruce Dickinson’s son. Yeah, I’m sure I could get gigs at Download, Sonisphere and supporting 5FDP if my dad was in Iron Maiden. But like I said, more on that later.
So after the annoyance of having to stand through half an hour of possibly the worst Metalcore band to have ever graced Manchester, the light’s fall and it’s time for Shadows Fall. The Path to Imminent Ruin hits the speakers and SF hit the stage to follow it up with My Demise, which is, as Brian told us earlier “a 7 minute intro to everything you’re going to hear over the next hour.” The crowd seems fairly muted at first and Shadows seem to get a rather understated response, surely pointing to the fact that the majority of people here tonight are here to see 5FDP. Personally, I think this is a shame as Shadows Fall are, for me, one of the best bands of the last 10 years. The lack lustre attitude from the crowd doesn’t last long and by the third song in they’re starting to wake up and really get in to this. Brian does a good job of interacting with the crowd, getting down from the stage to sing on the barrier and crowd surfing as per usual. Tonights set sees a good mix between songs from the new album and enough old classics to keep everyone happy. What Drives the Weak is dedicated “to the ladies" and is followed by a tribute to Dimebag in the form of the band playing the intro to A New Level. Brian demands to see the “biggest circle pit the venue has ever seen” and during Public Execution, that’s exactly what he gets. By this point pretty much everyone in the room is getting in to the groove of things and having a great time. The set ends with The Light That Blinds and Shadows Fall have once again proven why they are one of the best live Melodic Thrash bands out there.
Shadows Fall’s gear gets carted off the stage and the backdrop gets changed and for the next 20 minutes or so, most of the 1,800 fans in the building are chanting the name of tonight’s headliners. A brief intro with sound clips of George Bush stating that “war is the answer” is followed by Five Finger Death Punch storming on to the stage and blasting straight in to Burn It Down from the new album. On a side note, if you weren’t aware of the extensive range of 5FDP merch that’s available, the band do a pretty good job of being a walking advertisement, with all but one of them sporting their own various t-shirts and jerseys. Salvation is up next and Zoltan doesn’t seem quite with it tonight, though I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise seeing as he’s been ill lately (to the point where the band had to cancel some of their European dates earlier this month.) The band head off stage for a minute and when Ivan comes back it’s to a Five Finger Death Punch chant from pretty much the entire crowd, he soaks up the adoration and thanks tour mates Shadows Fall before the rest of the band join him on stage and we’re treated to Way of the Fist and the new single Hard To See before Ivan divides the crowd in two and White Knuckles sees a massive wall of death. Another interlude and they’re back with Never Enough and Ivan offers to shake the hand of anyone who’ll crowd surf to the front, mayhem ensues as many fans rush forward to take up his offer. Meet the Monster is cut short when a crowd surfing fan appears to get dropped by security and seriously injures themselves. Ivan stops the song and goes over to check on the fan and refuses to resume the song till the fan is taken care of. I’ve got to say, this act of kindness and concern has earned the singer, and band, even more respect than I already held for them. After finishing the song and giving a rendition of their latest cover, Bad Company’s track Bad Company the band take a final break and come back on for their encore, The Bleeding, which is my personal favourite 5FDP track (a feeling apparently shared by most others in attendance) and a great way to end the night.
Gig rating: 8/10. All in all it was an excellent gig, with both headliners living up to their reputations for fierce and impassioned live shows and I think it’s safe to say all in attendance had a great time (well, except for the dude who ate concrete.) If you’ve missed Five Finger Death Punch this time, you’ll be able to catch them at 2010’s Download Festival.
So roll on half 7 and we head from the pub over the road to the venue only to find we’ve not been put on the guest list! Well a quick phone call to the Death Punch tour manager sorts that out. Sadly, due to all this faffing around we miss the opening band, MagnaCult.
Next up are Rise to Remain. Now, I’m not going to rant too much about these lot, I’m going to save that for a separate article you’ll see from me in the next few days. Let’s just say that I thought these guys really, really sucked. And that was before Pete informed me the lead singer is Bruce Dickinson’s son. Yeah, I’m sure I could get gigs at Download, Sonisphere and supporting 5FDP if my dad was in Iron Maiden. But like I said, more on that later.
So after the annoyance of having to stand through half an hour of possibly the worst Metalcore band to have ever graced Manchester, the light’s fall and it’s time for Shadows Fall. The Path to Imminent Ruin hits the speakers and SF hit the stage to follow it up with My Demise, which is, as Brian told us earlier “a 7 minute intro to everything you’re going to hear over the next hour.” The crowd seems fairly muted at first and Shadows seem to get a rather understated response, surely pointing to the fact that the majority of people here tonight are here to see 5FDP. Personally, I think this is a shame as Shadows Fall are, for me, one of the best bands of the last 10 years. The lack lustre attitude from the crowd doesn’t last long and by the third song in they’re starting to wake up and really get in to this. Brian does a good job of interacting with the crowd, getting down from the stage to sing on the barrier and crowd surfing as per usual. Tonights set sees a good mix between songs from the new album and enough old classics to keep everyone happy. What Drives the Weak is dedicated “to the ladies" and is followed by a tribute to Dimebag in the form of the band playing the intro to A New Level. Brian demands to see the “biggest circle pit the venue has ever seen” and during Public Execution, that’s exactly what he gets. By this point pretty much everyone in the room is getting in to the groove of things and having a great time. The set ends with The Light That Blinds and Shadows Fall have once again proven why they are one of the best live Melodic Thrash bands out there.
Shadows Fall’s gear gets carted off the stage and the backdrop gets changed and for the next 20 minutes or so, most of the 1,800 fans in the building are chanting the name of tonight’s headliners. A brief intro with sound clips of George Bush stating that “war is the answer” is followed by Five Finger Death Punch storming on to the stage and blasting straight in to Burn It Down from the new album. On a side note, if you weren’t aware of the extensive range of 5FDP merch that’s available, the band do a pretty good job of being a walking advertisement, with all but one of them sporting their own various t-shirts and jerseys. Salvation is up next and Zoltan doesn’t seem quite with it tonight, though I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise seeing as he’s been ill lately (to the point where the band had to cancel some of their European dates earlier this month.) The band head off stage for a minute and when Ivan comes back it’s to a Five Finger Death Punch chant from pretty much the entire crowd, he soaks up the adoration and thanks tour mates Shadows Fall before the rest of the band join him on stage and we’re treated to Way of the Fist and the new single Hard To See before Ivan divides the crowd in two and White Knuckles sees a massive wall of death. Another interlude and they’re back with Never Enough and Ivan offers to shake the hand of anyone who’ll crowd surf to the front, mayhem ensues as many fans rush forward to take up his offer. Meet the Monster is cut short when a crowd surfing fan appears to get dropped by security and seriously injures themselves. Ivan stops the song and goes over to check on the fan and refuses to resume the song till the fan is taken care of. I’ve got to say, this act of kindness and concern has earned the singer, and band, even more respect than I already held for them. After finishing the song and giving a rendition of their latest cover, Bad Company’s track Bad Company the band take a final break and come back on for their encore, The Bleeding, which is my personal favourite 5FDP track (a feeling apparently shared by most others in attendance) and a great way to end the night.
Gig rating: 8/10. All in all it was an excellent gig, with both headliners living up to their reputations for fierce and impassioned live shows and I think it’s safe to say all in attendance had a great time (well, except for the dude who ate concrete.) If you’ve missed Five Finger Death Punch this time, you’ll be able to catch them at 2010’s Download Festival.
Saturday, 21 November 2009
Interview: The Black Dahlia Murder
I recently got to do my first e-mail interview, with The Black Dahlia Murder, you can read it below. For more reviews and interviews you can check out The Metalheadz Website.
1. You're new album, Deflorate, came out in September, how would you say it's been received by critics? And more importantly, the fans?
The reviews have been pretty good. I’d say this is probably our best reviewed album so far. The fans seem to like it too. They keep requesting “I Will Return” and “Denounced, Disgraced” at the shows. I am happy that they like the record.
2. How would you say this album differs from your past releases?
I think it’s the result of more completely developed ideas… I think we are older and wiser as writers, and its shows. The songs are catchy, but also demand repeated listens to hear all of the little intricacies that are involved, the technical bits, so to speak. I think its also the most varied album we’ve written, each song has more of its own identity than ever before. “Growth” and “variety” are words that can scare long time fans, but I assure you when playing as fast as we tend to do, you really have to pay attention to dynamics to make an album worth listening to all the way through.
3. This is your first album with new guitarist Ryan Knight, what do you feel he brought to the the writing/recording process for the new album?
I think a lot of the enthusiasm came from our personnel change... Ryan Knight brought a lot of energy and positivity into the band that was lacking with John’s departure… we were really excited to get Ryan on our album and see what he was capable of… he definitely exceeded our expectations on all fronts. He even felt confident enough in spite of the tight schedule to contribute the bulk of two songs for the album, which turned out absolutely killer.
4. This is your 4th album with Metalblade and your first to break in to the top 50 on the Billboard 200, your previous two albums placing 118th and 43th, does it mean a lot to you to see that sort of commercial progress with each album?
Its not important to me but it’s been cool as far as measuring our success… it means we are reaching a lot more people with every year, and that all of our hard work touring has not been in vain.
5. The cover of the new album has some pretty interesting art, can you tell us more about it?
It was influenced by a dream I had… was a really intense nightmare. The bright look of the piece is inspired by “Powerslave” and the awesome art of the early to mid nineties old school death metal releases… right down to the choice of a yellow logo for the cover. I wanted to do something different from “Nocturnal” that would give it a strong identity of it’s own and also do something that would stand out on the shelves when stacked next to a hundred other metal cds. I am happy with the cover, it came out awesome.
6. You're currently touring in support of Deflorate with Skeletonwitch and Toxic Holocaust, how's the tour going? What're your plans after this tour finishes?
The tour was awesome. I like and respect the bands. Its extra fun to be on a tour where you can have a lot of pride in the package that you’ve assembled. I think it was a good mix of different aspects of the underground metal scene.
7. You'll be touring the UK as part of the Bonecrusher Fest in February. Are you looking forward to that tour? Seven Bands for £14 seems like a bargain for the fans!
Yeah that’s the idea, to have a really kick ass varied lineup and expose the kids to some new bands they may not have had the pleasure of hearing. I really like a lot of the bands on the bill so I am personally very excited.
8. How do you find playing to UK and European crowds, compared to American crowds?
I think the vibe is generally the same worldwide. People come to a show to have fun, and we try to encourage that.
9. What does the future hold for The Black Dahlia Murder?
More tours and more albums as long as you’ll have us.
1. You're new album, Deflorate, came out in September, how would you say it's been received by critics? And more importantly, the fans?
The reviews have been pretty good. I’d say this is probably our best reviewed album so far. The fans seem to like it too. They keep requesting “I Will Return” and “Denounced, Disgraced” at the shows. I am happy that they like the record.
2. How would you say this album differs from your past releases?
I think it’s the result of more completely developed ideas… I think we are older and wiser as writers, and its shows. The songs are catchy, but also demand repeated listens to hear all of the little intricacies that are involved, the technical bits, so to speak. I think its also the most varied album we’ve written, each song has more of its own identity than ever before. “Growth” and “variety” are words that can scare long time fans, but I assure you when playing as fast as we tend to do, you really have to pay attention to dynamics to make an album worth listening to all the way through.
3. This is your first album with new guitarist Ryan Knight, what do you feel he brought to the the writing/recording process for the new album?
I think a lot of the enthusiasm came from our personnel change... Ryan Knight brought a lot of energy and positivity into the band that was lacking with John’s departure… we were really excited to get Ryan on our album and see what he was capable of… he definitely exceeded our expectations on all fronts. He even felt confident enough in spite of the tight schedule to contribute the bulk of two songs for the album, which turned out absolutely killer.
4. This is your 4th album with Metalblade and your first to break in to the top 50 on the Billboard 200, your previous two albums placing 118th and 43th, does it mean a lot to you to see that sort of commercial progress with each album?
Its not important to me but it’s been cool as far as measuring our success… it means we are reaching a lot more people with every year, and that all of our hard work touring has not been in vain.
5. The cover of the new album has some pretty interesting art, can you tell us more about it?
It was influenced by a dream I had… was a really intense nightmare. The bright look of the piece is inspired by “Powerslave” and the awesome art of the early to mid nineties old school death metal releases… right down to the choice of a yellow logo for the cover. I wanted to do something different from “Nocturnal” that would give it a strong identity of it’s own and also do something that would stand out on the shelves when stacked next to a hundred other metal cds. I am happy with the cover, it came out awesome.
6. You're currently touring in support of Deflorate with Skeletonwitch and Toxic Holocaust, how's the tour going? What're your plans after this tour finishes?
The tour was awesome. I like and respect the bands. Its extra fun to be on a tour where you can have a lot of pride in the package that you’ve assembled. I think it was a good mix of different aspects of the underground metal scene.
7. You'll be touring the UK as part of the Bonecrusher Fest in February. Are you looking forward to that tour? Seven Bands for £14 seems like a bargain for the fans!
Yeah that’s the idea, to have a really kick ass varied lineup and expose the kids to some new bands they may not have had the pleasure of hearing. I really like a lot of the bands on the bill so I am personally very excited.
8. How do you find playing to UK and European crowds, compared to American crowds?
I think the vibe is generally the same worldwide. People come to a show to have fun, and we try to encourage that.
9. What does the future hold for The Black Dahlia Murder?
More tours and more albums as long as you’ll have us.
Tuesday, 10 November 2009
Gig Review: Shinedown – Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall - 10/11/09
Tonight was always going to be an interesting night. There are few gigs I really look forward to, but this was most defiantly one of them. The usual pre-gig ritual was attended to (me and Suuze, down the pub for a few beers) followed by a trek down to the Wolves Wulfrun Hall, a venue I’ve been to many a time before, to see a band I used to love and have seen a couple of times and a band I’ve loved for a while and until now not had the privilege of seeing live. I must apologise to the opening band, as we arrived half way through the set and didn’t bother watching them (though from the bar they sounded OK.)
Shinedown are a band that have done all the groundwork and are finally getting the pay off. This is their second time touring the UK. The last time they played the Midlands was at the Barfly, a gig that attracted just over 100 people. So it’s safe to say that tonight’s sell-out performance will see them play to one of the largest indoor crowds they’ve had this side of the pond.
But first, the evening starts in earnest with the main support, as SOiL hit the stage. And what a disappointing start it is. Few people in the sold-out venue seem to know SOiL’s new material, half the people here remember the amazing quality Ryan McCombs voice used to bring to the songs but most people are just here to see Shinedown. As much as AJ Cavalier might try and mimic and match McCombs vocals, the new songs simply don’t hold up live and the old songs seems like lacklustre, unimpressive cover versions. It’s no secret that my biggest pet peeve is bands who replace their lead singers after they’ve broken through and this current incarnation of SOiL does nothing to alleviate those feelings. Tonight’s poor rendition of the classic Halo does well to sum up how far this band have fallen, a song that with McCombs at the helm would have had the entire venue bouncing tonight gets a half-arsed response from an otherwise disinterested crowd. How very disappointing.
All of a sudden things get a bit odd. We’re all used to having fairly dodgy music played between bands but when Beyoncé hits the PA, it confuses every single person in the room. Either something has gone very wrong at the sound desk or something is about to go very right. After 3 minutes of sonic torture, the lights drop and the crowd goes wild. Now, it has to be said that this is the first sold-out gig in Wolverhampton that I’ve been to in quite a long time, so when I say the crowd went wild, it really was something special. Shinedown hit the stage and start things off with a fierce rendition of the title track from their new album: The Sound of Madness. This really does well to set the tone for the hour and a half that is to come.
It has to be said, at this point, that tonight is a night of great irony. Until tonight, the best performance I’ve ever seen from any band was at the first Download Festival in 2003, when SOiL (the original line-up) absolutely decimated the Scuzz stage. That was a performance of raw brilliance and emotion that drew an uninhibited response from the crowd. Tonight, a night when the current incarnation of SOiL fails to impress, Shinedown perform with as much gusto and emotion as that SOiL performance 6 years ago.
A few songs in and Shinedown play one of my personal favourits, .45 , and it’s easy to tell the people who have only recently jumped on the bandwagon but for the rest of us this is a beautiful and heart wrenching rendition of an emotional song. It’s not hard to see why Shinedown manage to sell out arenas back in the U.S. with their mixture of hard rock anthems and acoustic ballads, their catchy chorus’s combined with pounding rhythms make for honest, yet crowd friendly tunes. It feels like it’s the fans who’ve flocked to the band, mostly due to the heavy airplay of the new album, that’ll propel the band to the heights of stardom this side of the pond, but it’s the long time fans, the ones who know the words to every song and have done since Leave A Whisper, that’ll keep the band there.
A brief interlude is followed by a piano/vocals only rendition of Call Me, a chance to showcase one of the slower, more moving tracks from the new album. Brent Smith is the consummate front man, controlling the crowd like a veteran and after a brief speech to get the entire capacity crowd revved up it’s on with the remainder of the set. The Crow & The Butterfly is the last song before another brief break and the band are back for the encore. Few songs will ever evoke such a personal, emotional response from me as Second Chance and to see it played live was an awesome thing. After giving heartfelt thanks to the sold out crowd the band plows in to a rendition of the first track of the new album, Devour, to finish the night and with that, we’re done.
Tonight, Shinedown have managed to make an excellent set, made of a majority of new songs to keep the majority interested, whilst throwing in enough classics to keep the old fans happy. I can honestly say this is best live set I’ve ever seen from a band, and as a veteran of literally 100’s of gigs, that’s saying a lot. This is a band who’ve come so far in the last year and will be going even further in years to come, mark my words on that!
Gig rating? That’s an easy 10/10 (and don’t expect to see that rating again for a very long time!) If you missed Shinedown on this tour then you’ve truly missed out on one of the best bands of the decade, make sure you catch them the next time they come around!
Shinedown are a band that have done all the groundwork and are finally getting the pay off. This is their second time touring the UK. The last time they played the Midlands was at the Barfly, a gig that attracted just over 100 people. So it’s safe to say that tonight’s sell-out performance will see them play to one of the largest indoor crowds they’ve had this side of the pond.
But first, the evening starts in earnest with the main support, as SOiL hit the stage. And what a disappointing start it is. Few people in the sold-out venue seem to know SOiL’s new material, half the people here remember the amazing quality Ryan McCombs voice used to bring to the songs but most people are just here to see Shinedown. As much as AJ Cavalier might try and mimic and match McCombs vocals, the new songs simply don’t hold up live and the old songs seems like lacklustre, unimpressive cover versions. It’s no secret that my biggest pet peeve is bands who replace their lead singers after they’ve broken through and this current incarnation of SOiL does nothing to alleviate those feelings. Tonight’s poor rendition of the classic Halo does well to sum up how far this band have fallen, a song that with McCombs at the helm would have had the entire venue bouncing tonight gets a half-arsed response from an otherwise disinterested crowd. How very disappointing.
All of a sudden things get a bit odd. We’re all used to having fairly dodgy music played between bands but when Beyoncé hits the PA, it confuses every single person in the room. Either something has gone very wrong at the sound desk or something is about to go very right. After 3 minutes of sonic torture, the lights drop and the crowd goes wild. Now, it has to be said that this is the first sold-out gig in Wolverhampton that I’ve been to in quite a long time, so when I say the crowd went wild, it really was something special. Shinedown hit the stage and start things off with a fierce rendition of the title track from their new album: The Sound of Madness. This really does well to set the tone for the hour and a half that is to come.
It has to be said, at this point, that tonight is a night of great irony. Until tonight, the best performance I’ve ever seen from any band was at the first Download Festival in 2003, when SOiL (the original line-up) absolutely decimated the Scuzz stage. That was a performance of raw brilliance and emotion that drew an uninhibited response from the crowd. Tonight, a night when the current incarnation of SOiL fails to impress, Shinedown perform with as much gusto and emotion as that SOiL performance 6 years ago.
A few songs in and Shinedown play one of my personal favourits, .45 , and it’s easy to tell the people who have only recently jumped on the bandwagon but for the rest of us this is a beautiful and heart wrenching rendition of an emotional song. It’s not hard to see why Shinedown manage to sell out arenas back in the U.S. with their mixture of hard rock anthems and acoustic ballads, their catchy chorus’s combined with pounding rhythms make for honest, yet crowd friendly tunes. It feels like it’s the fans who’ve flocked to the band, mostly due to the heavy airplay of the new album, that’ll propel the band to the heights of stardom this side of the pond, but it’s the long time fans, the ones who know the words to every song and have done since Leave A Whisper, that’ll keep the band there.
A brief interlude is followed by a piano/vocals only rendition of Call Me, a chance to showcase one of the slower, more moving tracks from the new album. Brent Smith is the consummate front man, controlling the crowd like a veteran and after a brief speech to get the entire capacity crowd revved up it’s on with the remainder of the set. The Crow & The Butterfly is the last song before another brief break and the band are back for the encore. Few songs will ever evoke such a personal, emotional response from me as Second Chance and to see it played live was an awesome thing. After giving heartfelt thanks to the sold out crowd the band plows in to a rendition of the first track of the new album, Devour, to finish the night and with that, we’re done.
Tonight, Shinedown have managed to make an excellent set, made of a majority of new songs to keep the majority interested, whilst throwing in enough classics to keep the old fans happy. I can honestly say this is best live set I’ve ever seen from a band, and as a veteran of literally 100’s of gigs, that’s saying a lot. This is a band who’ve come so far in the last year and will be going even further in years to come, mark my words on that!
Gig rating? That’s an easy 10/10 (and don’t expect to see that rating again for a very long time!) If you missed Shinedown on this tour then you’ve truly missed out on one of the best bands of the decade, make sure you catch them the next time they come around!
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