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Nevermore – Year of the Voyager DVD (Century Media Records)

David E. Gehlke
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Nevermore – Year of the Voyager DVD (Century Media Records)

In a career spanning nearly 15 years, this is the first proper visual documentation of Nevermore and true to form, it’s top-notch, supremely-performed and captivating across the board. From strictly a format point of view, Year of the Voyager offers very little that is new, but the editing and spread of songs will force one to keep a close eye (and ear) on the proceedings.

The first DVD consists of a full show shot in Germany in October of 2006. With stand-in guitarist Chris Broderick (currently in Megadeth) dueling with Jeff Loomis, there is plenty of technical ecstasy to go around. Loomis handles the bulk of the lead work, as he should, but Broderick proves to be just as nimble during “My Acid Words” and “The River Dragon Has Come.”

Leaning heavily on the Dead Heart In A Dead World platter, a freshly-sober Warrel Dane sounds like the Warrel Dane of 1995, giving tunes like “Inside Four Walls” and “The Heart Collector” and old jaunts like “What Tomorrow Knows/Garden of Grey” and the totally overlooked “Matricide” the vocal precision they needs. Top this off with a far from typical editing job (lots of effects, quick cuts, more effects for the fuck of it) and this live show is a visual of lot of other bands would be wise to follow.

DVD II is a smattering of live performances through the years, from the band’s successful Gigantour run in 2005, to the normal festival rounds including Wacken (where pretty much everyone uses footage from nowadays) and the Metal Mania festival in Poland. Bonus materials include a candid interview with Dane, all eight of the band’s videos (“Believe In Nothing” still remains as one of the best songs of the decade) and footage going all the way back to 2001 for Century Media’s 10th anniversary party.

2008 will go down in the books as the year of the Nevermore solo project, with Dane and Loomis releasing quality, damn near excellent albums, but Year of the Voyager is a nice little segue going into 2009, where a new studio album is expected. And if we’ve come to learn anything from Nevermore, it’s expect the unexpected. Bring it on, fellas.

www.nevermore.tv

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Six Feet Under – Death Rituals (Metal Blade Records)

David E. Gehlke
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Six Feet Under – Death Rituals (Metal Blade Records)

Isn’t it strange how different the career paths of Cannibal Corpse and Six Feet Under are? Seriously, wasn’t Barnes and co. supposed to be the break out, massively commercial death metal band? And wasn’t Cannibal supposed to be stuck in the mud with their unmatched brutality being their only selling point? A good 13 years since the Barnes/Cannibal split, Six Feet Under has been the brunt of many a good joke regarding their studio habits (writing songs on the fly = inexcusable) and Cannibal is more popular than ever. Methinks things didn’t work out the way Barnes wanted them to…

Anyway, Death Rituals is the first SFU album written before entering the studio in five years, so right off the bat it’s better than both 2005’s 13 and last year’sCommandment. Songs like the punchy “Eulogy for the Undead” and “Seed of Filth” are instant groove death metal stalwarts, especially the latter which has some cool gang vocals going on. Even foregoing the usual movie clip in lieu of a message on answering machine for “Shot in the Head” works.

The cover of Motley Crue’s “Bastard” is unnecessary given SFU’s cover song past, but guitarist Steve Swanson proves his worth during the acoustic intro for “Death By Machete” (a total surprise, mind you) and “None Will Escape” which gives the underrated six-stringer a chance to demonstrate his simple, but effective solo abilities.

As for Chris Barnes, he’s turned himself down in the mix, which is a big plus considering how much he overpowered the band’s last three or four albums. Not as discernable as he was during the Warpath days, Barnes still has an instantly recognizable growl that chunks its way across “Into the Crematorium” and “Ten Deadly Plagues.”

Originally, we had Death Rituals pegged as a 7/10, but the album (and band) has won back an old fan. Perhaps the best SFU since their Haunted debut,Death Rituals proves that when Barnes and boys actually put thought and effort into their music, they can be a death metal force to be reckoned with. It’s going to be hard to look past their lowly output this decade, but Death Rituals is more than tolerable – it’s quite good.

www.myspace.com/sixfeetunder

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Beneath the Massacre – Dystopia (Prosthetic Records)

David E. Gehlke
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Beneath the Massacre – Dystopia (Prosthetic Records)

Deathcore is still getting a fair amount of air time, which means that its time is almost up and thank Sweet Jesus for that. While we’re at it, it’s probably important to pick up on the bands that might actually have a chance of sustaining a long career. Three albums into their career, the jury is no longer out on Montreal’s Beneath the Massacre – these Canucks are going to be hanging around for a while.

Falling somewhere between the over-the-top guitar bombast of All Shall Perish and the sheer brutality of Whitechapel, Beneath the Massacre manage to keepDystopia engaging through its first half thanks largely in part of guitarist Christopher Bradley’s swift guitar work. Bradley rarely riffs, instead opting to push forward with manic scale runs and the occasional beatdown lurch, which is far and away the weakest part of the band’s sound.

There are throttling moments in the beatdown vein, however, like in “No Future” and the tornado-like “The Wasteland.” The band works best when justgoing for it, like on opener “Condemned” or “Our Common Grave.” Problem is, we’ve heard everything Beneath the Massacre can offer come “Never More,” which comes in at track #9, perhaps giving headway a few songs could have been trimmed off Dystopia.

In spite of the almost deafening sensory and sonic overload, Beneath the Massacre is the cream of the deathcore crop, which frankly, isn’t saying a whole lot. Sad thing is, 10 years ago, this would be pure technical death metal. Today, it has to run up against the throng of like-minded bands who couldn’t put together a song if you diagrammed it for them. Dystopia is better than that garbage, for sure.

www.myspace.com/beneaththemassacre

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Arch Enemy – Tyrants of the Rising Sun – Live In Japan DVD (Century Media Records)

David E. Gehlke
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Arch Enemy – Tyrants of the Rising Sun – Live In Japan DVD (Century Media Records)

The first territory to embrace post-Carcass Michael Amott and Arch Enemy, it is only fitting our neighbors in the land of the rising sun get the live concert DVD treatment from the Swedes. Professionally shot in front a packed house in Tokyo, Tyrants of the Rising Sun is a strong complement to the band’s 2006 Live Apocalypse DVD.

Since vocalist Angela Gossow joined the AE fold in 2002, the band (rounded out by guitarist Chris Amott, bassist Sharlee D’Angelo and drummer Daniel Erlandsson) have gradually found their comfort zone within the melodic death metal style. Naturally, there have been some bumps along the way, namely half of 2003’s iffy Anthems of Rebellion and the over-polished Doomsday Machine, but AE has righted the ship with last year’s excellent Rise of the Tyrant.

Gossow is a charismatic figure onstage, which wasn’t always the case a few years ago. Now fully capable of keeping her wind and growl, Gossow lets it rip on “Ravenous” and some Johan Liiva-era tunes “Dark Insanity” and “Silverwing.”

Having Chris Amott back in the band after a two-year departure seems to have given the band a new lease on life, as his fluent, well-executed solos are often the staple of many a AE tune, like “The Day You Died” and “Night Falls Fast.” Other set highlights include “Enemy Within,” “Vultures” and “Burning Angel.”

A special features section includes a documentary of the band’s 2008 spring tour of Japan with interviews with all five members and candid shots of the devoted Japanese throng. Recent promo videos for “Revolution Begins” and “I Will Live Again” are also included.

Still very much a polarizing figure in the underground circuit, Arch Enemy is one of the handful of melodic death metal bands worth giving a damn about. And while some may be unable to look past Gossow’s persona and sometimes too-gleamy nature of the band’s albums, the jist of the matter is Arch Enemy is immensely popular for a good reason. And the Japanese were on to them first.

www.myspace.com/archenemy

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Suspyre – When Time Fades… (Sensory)

David E. Gehlke
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Suspyre – When Time Fades… (Sensory)

The type album that can really make one sour on progressive metal,When Time Fades…, the third offering from New Jersey progsters Suspyre is as vanilla as they come, made all the more tepid by the fact that this is prog metal, which means everything is overblown and overshot.

The sub-genre hasn’t received a shot in the arm since the Symphony X (the band Suspyre apes consistently) broke through earlier this decade. Chalk this up to the preponderance of like-sounding bands and the fact that none of these bands could write themselves out of a wet paper bag. When Time Fades… is frontloaded with idea after idea, none of which seem to stick and when compounded with some hokey moments on “Siren” (cue saxophone solo) and the bland ballad “Fallen Stars,” it’s hard to lock in and get behind this thing.

There are scattered moments of interest, namely the angular crunch of “Maniac Main Point Check” and dazzling keyboard flurry of “Apparitions,” but those moments are few and far between. The vocals of Clay Barton are competent, but don’t have the tenacity of a Russell Allen or charm of a Nils K. Rue (Pagan’s Mind), so that often forces the music (a composite of most Symphony X tunes) to try to pick up the slack and it’s just not working

It’s a tough crowd, this progressive metal throng and Suspyre face an uphill climb in an increasingly smaller space. There was once a time when it seemed this sort of thing could stand on its own two feet, but as usual, the sound-a-likes jumped in and ruined the whole thing, Suspyre included.

www.myspace.com/suspyre

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Samothrace – Life’s Trade (20 Buck Spin)

David E. Gehlke
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Samothrace – Life’s Trade (20 Buck Spin)

Some lightbulb had to have gone off in the collective brain of Samothrace, as this might be the first legitimate combo of sludgy, c-r-a-w-l-i-n-g to a s-t-a-n-d-s-t-i-l-l doom that is so melodically competent, it makes the snail’s pace of the Life’s Trade all the more worth it.

Funeral doom this is not, but instead a concoction of the atmospheric haze we’ve come to adore from Isis and Pelican, all immersed in suffocating shell of bleak emotion. And it’s not like we haven’t seen bleakness across the board (hello classic My Dying Bride), it’s just that Samothrace are one of the fewbands that consistently whittle down one’s spirit with the slightest of touch. It’s sorta reassuring, to be frank.

Consisting of only four songs, Life’s Trade is laborious, but stays on top of things with swirling, dreary melodies that are akin to what early Gothenburg death metal was doing. Soft, subtle leads rain down on opener “La Llorana,” only after a steady diet of Bryan Spinks’ muddled vocals.

That Isis/Pelican cross-reference is there on “Awkward Hearts,” a minimal, sparse slow jam that would never gets out of first gear and that’s fine – let’s take it slow and let those melodies (we’re going to overdo this) work their way in. Its successor, “Cacophony” is a bit more brutish, but has that wide open space that keeps the guitars of Spinks and Renata Castagna out in the open and closer “Cruel Awake” rounds out the album in a smoldering pit of ash.

So good is Life’s Trade, that we didn’t make the stupid little name-connection between former Emperor guitarist Samoth and an actual race. Yeah, pretty easy way out, but when an album is as good, as convincing, as digestible asLife’s Trade, all that little shit doesn’t matter – only the awesome jams.

www.myspace.com/samothraceproject

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Total Fucking Destruction – Peace, Love, and Total Fucking Destruction (Enucleation Records)

David E. Gehlke
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0
Total Fucking Destruction – Peace, Love, and Total Fucking Destruction (Enucleation Records)

Grind doesn’t have a great deal of actual characters, save for Napalm Death’s Barney Greenway and the man and band in question, Rich Hoak and Total Fucking Destruction. Hoak, already a grind veteran by way of his work with the newly-reformed Brutal Truth, has kept TFD as his main project, regularly popping out albums along with a fresh political bent worth following.Peace, Love, and Total Fucking Destruction follows suit, with a surprisingly strong production job (this is grind we’re talking about) and some speedy, fun songs.

At 24 songs, Peace, Love, and Total Fucking Destruction goes by fast and really, that’s what grind should do. Hoak’s punky vocals mixed with his constant blasting makes for a frenzied sonic template, one that doesn’t stray too far outside of its comfort roots in songs like “Grindcore Salesman,” “Anyone But Me” and “Youth Apocalypse Right Now.”

The real catch with this album is the production, which runs in direct contrast to the low-fi, DIY production jobs that usually flood the grind market. Hoak’s drums are big, with plenty of low-end to supplement his blast-beats. Not sure if more grind bands will follow suit, but this is one of the more listenable albums of this ilk to come about lately.

Considering the timing of this release and the recent presidential race, Hoak and TFD certainly have something to stand on and Peace, Love, and Total Fucking Destruction, in spite of working within the very limited confines of grind, is worth your ever-so short attention span. These guys make 24 songs sound like a drop in the bucket.

www.myspace.com/totalfuckingdestruction

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Hirax – Thrash and Destroy DVD (Selfmadegod Records)

David E. Gehlke
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0
Hirax – Thrash and Destroy DVD (Selfmadegod Records)

One of the few bands that were still plugging thrash before the current revitalization, Los Angeles-based Hirax are rightfully reaping the rewards of this second wave. While they never cracked the upper-tier of thrash, Katon De Pena and co. have garnered a primarily-European following, one that is on full display for Thrash and Destroy.

Shot during the 2007 installment of the Keep It True Festival in Germany, the band runs through 18 shards of thrash to an adoring gymnasium where the festival was held. Professionally shot and recorded with clear audio (given the surroundings), Thrash and Destroy also features a complimentary audio CD recorded during the Metal Forces Night on the same festival run.

De Pena’s vocals are certainly an acquired taste and at times, he overwhelms the music, which is at best marginally good. What De Pena lacks in vocal ability, he makes up for in stage presence. Commanding and stalking the stage, De Pena even goes as far as to stop “Hostile Territory” in mid-song to halt crowd fighting. The frontman remained down front and in the face of the crowd-surfacing throng, which no doubt enjoyed the face-to-face contact.

The one-speed tempo of Hirax’s music is well-worn for the live arena, as punishing songs like “Blind Faith,” the classic “Bombs of Death” and “El Diablo Negro” are certainly mosh-worthy, which is probably what the band intended from the onset.

Old-school thrash, when performed with a certain element of zest, passion, and zeal, is hard to fuck up and Hirax are without question, one of the forerunners of the style. De Pena himself is veritable thrash sage, a true champion of the scene, thus, making Hirax all the more relevant in a time where being relevant in thrash is more about cashing in than being true to oneself.

www.myspace.com/hirax

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Dead Shape Figure – The Grand Karoshi (Season of Mist Records)

David E. Gehlke
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0
Dead Shape Figure – The Grand Karoshi (Season of Mist Records)

Recalling a time when Hatesphere was actually writing melodic, knife-in-the-throat thrash (i.e. Bloodred Hatred), Finland’s Dead Shape Figure eschew the trappings of new/old-school thrash for the razor-sharp thrash approach resembling that of a less streamlined Carnal Forge and the band we first mentioned, Hatesphere.

Riffs, riffs, and riffs abound here, and they’re mostly good ones – the ones that take Euro metal and add an American sensibility that allows for a good balance to be struck. The Grand Karoshi is a quick study – like most good thrash – and it gets in and gets out pretty quickly, as the raging “Lesser the Man” parlays some cool melodic twists, as does “Bend the Weak,” where a deadly opening sequence literally paints the floor with all of these retro thrash pansies.

If there was a knock towards Dead Shape Figure and The Grand Karoshi, it’s that on the variety side of things, they’re a bit lacking, which is understandable given the relative notion that you have to have tunnel vision in order to play thrash. Still, the shout-alongs during “Remington Lucifer” are stellar (are they referring to the shaver?) and “Blithering Icon” is the type of high-velocity number that propelled early Darkane into the thick of the underground, so there’s plenty to go around.

If you want to look at this way, thrash is going to keep these two sides running: the retro side, which will hopefully burn out in the coming year and this side, the frenetic, slightly melodic and much more exciting brand. Dead Shape Figure would be best advised to stay on the route of the latter and continue to unleash frenzied thrash as this. Good stuff.

www.myspace.com/deadshapefigure

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

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