So the usual rant folks to ensure the safety and security of your local record stores. Head in, say hello and pick up a few copies. Whenever I feel like the compact disc has fallen by the wayside, I try and remind myself that I am paying that $10 for artwork, lyrical content, recording materials, music equipment, hours of practice, hours of recording, mixing, mastering, distribution, etc. I find when I look at it that way, it feels a little better that my funds go towards all that.
You can also feel free to visit your favourite online retailer or another legal source to pick up 1, 2 or the whole lots of them. Cheers!
The aggressive album vacillates between the full-throttled angst and anger that comes with being a teen, such as on the hardest-rocking song on the album, single “Sick of It,” and songs that double as traditional love songs or about one’s relationship with God or Jesus, such as on “Fire and Fury”: “Destiny’s gotta hold on me/I guess I never knew love like love knows me/I need to feel you here with me/I will burn/I will die for you.” It’s to Skillet’s credit that the songs never sound watered down,when it comes to faith, but are universal enough in their appeal to speak to whomever is listening. -Hit Fix
There’s nothing particularly weak about the record, but it sacrifices the band’s singularity in service of a punk sound that, while plenty amped, ultimately feels a bit by the numbers. By foregoing experimentation in favor of a more straight and narrow musical path, In A Warzone feels like the kind of record its members once tried to branch out from. -Consequence of Sound
.jpg)
(Palms - Palms)
At its true core this debut is a sleepy, ponderous journey. Instrumental evolution purposefully occurs at a lumbering pace, and momentum is established as organically as possible. With that being the case, the material is not essentially riveting—though it has many moments where it enshrouds the listener in its warmth.
A wholly interesting—if somewhat creatively unsure—union built out of mutual respect; “Palms” may yet be unable to tap into its full potential, but it plants deep roots for what is hopefully a robust future. -PRP
(August Burns Red - Rescue & Restore)
Similar to what August Burns Red did on Leveler and what Parkway Drive did on Atlas, the band is truly pushing the boundaries of metalcore (it's not even fair to label them that now) on Rescue & Restore. Nearly half of the album consists of fresh material for the band – but more so for the genre – and it's put together ever so brilliantly. The only thing that I wasn't too fond of is that there seemed to be an interlude in nearly every song; some were only 10-second breaks from the heaviness, but others were much longer. For the most part, the interludes worked exceptionally well and didn't take anything away from a particular song, but there were a few instances when it felt like the interludes were only there just to be there so the theme could carry on throughout the album. -Megusta Reviews
They always put on visually spectacular shows... Whether that be with topless geisha dancers like they brought with them for Soundwave a few years back or amazing visual backdrops and light displays, it always enhances the psychedelic drama of the band's music. Listening to the live songs on their own, naturally, does not give you the sense of wonderment that is derived from a Jane’s gig, so I think this album may be better considered as a live retrospective of their career. -The AU Review
But Orphaned Land clearly took to heart the criticisms leveled at their previous album when they went to work on their sixth record, All Is One. Coming only three years after ORwarriOR, All Is One features new guitarist Chen Balbus replacing Matti Svatizky, who had been with the band since the beginning but left last year due to personal reasons. In an interview, vocalist Kobi Farhi said that the fresh blood brought “a surge of motivation and energy” to the band’s creative process. It shows. Among the more noticeable changes are shorter songs, an almost complete absence of growled vocals, and production that feels less crowded and more straightforward in its delivery. The effort to write a leaner, stronger album is evident on every track. -Metal Injection
(Serj Tankian - ORCA)
Nonetheless, this is an interesting and professionally executed work, and far more than just a vanity project for a wealthy and indulgent rockstar. Its style is simple and unpretentious, not groundbreaking by any stretch but certainly the best piece of classical music anyone can remember a rockstar ever writing. The name Serj Tankian may forever be associated with nu-metal but the man has the ability to work in many different fields of music, and anyone who thinks otherwise ought to give this a really good listen. -Ultimate Guitar
Extol not only build in the instrumental section on variant wealth, but also in terms of vocals. From pop to death which range - and what reads on paper like a clumsy attempt to create tension through a wild combination of opposites, sounds simple in kind, ahem, of course. And even if EXTOL is not so surprisingly different, precisely because in recent years this segment has presented many exciting, nevertheless remains the realization that you can make it simple. And good that they now want to again. -Metal Hammer (DE) (*loosely translated from German)
The album’s title track is a bass driven and shows the theme of the album the clearest. This song showcases everything Hawthorne Heights has to offer. In this song they lure the listener in with the bass guitar and immediately trap them with a quick clash of guitars and drums.
I am impressed with Zero, but one thing that didn’t impress me was the quality of the recordings. The album sounds like you are listening to it through small speakers. The cymbals and vocals sound a little overwhelming if you have the volume turned up. -New Noise Magazine
What begins with scorching, melodic twin leads, a mead-induced flurry of double-kick drumming, and the meatiest, most malevolent vocals this side of Valhalla? If you answered "The ninth studio outing from Swedish melodic death metal legends Amon Amarth" then you are correct and can drink from the chalice. Bolder and more bottom heavy than 2011's Surtur Rising, Deceiver of the Gods retains the band's penchant for crafting unyielding blasts of Viking brutality, but tempers each beating with the kind of melodic artistry that can only stem from 15 years spent in the trenches. Those artful melodies imbue much of the album with a toasty patina of NWOBH and power metal, especially on standout cuts like "Father of the Wolf," "Under Siege," the aforementioned opening title cut, and the epic closer "Warriors of the North," all of which sound like deadlier Norse spins on the better cuts from Iron Maiden's Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. It's not all just Manowar sans clean vocals though, as evidenced by the absolutely pulverizing "Blood Eagle" and the propulsive Priest-meets-Venom gallop of "Coming of the Tide," two tracks that announce (with great authority) that Amon Amarth have lost none of the cunning or vivacity that made them such a dominant force in the early days of the new millennium. If anything, Deceiver of the Gods suggests that Amon Amarth may just now be hitting their stride, as it's an undeniably well-honed set, yet the band manage to flex their muscles well outside of the Draconian stylistic confines of the genre by remaining, like a true Viking horde, prickly, primal, and unstable. -All Music
On 'Leave A Message...,' an interlude track consisting of a staged phone-call to Attila frontman Fronz regarding their new album, 'About That Life,' we hear a label executive saying “You said you were gonna mellow out on this record, and all you’re doing is getting more offensive, I can’t f***ing believe it dude.” Put simply, this sums up the entire record. Attila have never been in this industry for any reason other than partying hard, and having a damn good time, and it shows on their latest release. -Kill Your Stereo
(Sister Sin - Dance of the Wicked) [Reissue]
The times are not changing too much as their cover of The ROLLING STONES “Paint It Black”, is not a real nail biter, and I prefer other renditions by RAGE, W.A.S.P., and GLEN TIPTON.
Now and forever these metal hearts of cold steel will beat 24/7, never running low, championing the fight, sounding the alarm. Fans of HESSLER, CRUCIFIED BARBARA, L7, GIRLSCHOOL, ROCK GODESS, the late great WENDY O' WILLLIAMS, and of course DORO herself, will all enjoy the head over heels headbanging' anthems. Just accept that these hostile bold hearts are in it for life, and it is all systems go. -Metal Temple
(Mouth of the Architect - Dawning)
While the album keeps a thick layer of dark sludge about it, its tone is noticeably brighter; the pieces seem much more driven by clear melody than sheer force alone, a trend that carries over from The Violence Beneath. (I mean, is it possible to cover Peter Gabriel in any other way?) Even in the dripping depths of tracks like "How This Will End" it's possible to find some clarity; heck, "It Swarms" and "Patterns" even border on anthemic. All this adds up towards making the album viscerally moving on an unnaturally effective level. Dawning doesn't just take hold of your emotions; it guns down their car, throws them onto the pavement, and fully throttles them into submission. Trying to resit the inevitable undulation only means it will drag you down harder--and at that point, you'll be begging for it. It's a really effective album, is what I'm getting at. -Scene Point Blank
(Queensrÿche - Queensrÿche)
One thing I find puzzling is the album’s running time. For one thing, a 35-minute record comes off as pretty weak for a band that testified in court about how much unused material they were sitting on. But more importantly, it’s the songs themselves that seem too short—like the band got so obsessed with trimming the fat that they cut out some meat by mistake. Some tracks open with a cool riff or theme that gets tossed by the wayside before it even registers. It does lend a certain urgency to the music, but some of these songs feel like they need more time to unfold. Also, the orchestration on the two ballads are a bit overblown, like Queensrÿche was trying to get onto the Hunger Games soundtrack or something. A minor grievance, all considered.
Queensrÿche, the album, ultimately falls somewhere between the melodic metal of Ëmpire and the futuristic weirdness of Rage för Order, with no trace of the worthless yacht-rock that Tate enjoyed so much. With the simple removal of a lead singer, Queensrÿche has risen from its comatose state and immediately began kicking ass like Steven Seagal in Hard to Kill. Queensryche is the sound of a band wiping the slate clean and starting over, with a promise to do it rïght this time. -Angry Metal Guy
(We As Human - We As Human)
If there is one word to describe We As Human, that word would be "safe." While clearly aiming for the hard rock market of bands like Red and (of course) Skillet, We As Human hit all the right notes while simultaneously never venturing out of the genre's norms. It's hard to imagine any fan of the genre being disappointed in this release, simply because it is clearly calculated to appeal to what listeners are already expecting. There's big guitars, bombastic vocals, and melodies that soar when expected and then mellow exactly when they should. The only moment where the band truly takes a risk is in the lyrics of the final track, "I Stand." After an album full of generically vague lyrics, I was pleased to hear the band directly reference Jesus and even make a point about the problem of abortion. Sadly, that one moment is the exception among an album that is, lyrically and musically, far too conservative. -Jesus Freak Hideout
No comments:
Post a Comment