With nothing more to show than a reputation as a good live band, Chicago’s Dead to Fall have veered off the metalcore path with a tongue-and-cheek album ragging on the scene they have been bottom-feeders of for the last decade. This is the catch – Dead to Fall realizing the metalcore jig is up and it’s time to try something new and for once, it works for the most part, although like any other blasted metalcore album, the results may vary.

Opener “The IQ Test” is blatant salvo directed towards the formulaic nature of the metalcore scene, complete with a would-be songwriting instruction manual and goofy shout-alongs. “The Future” is a swift, aggro thrasher that almost gets ruined by a beatdown at the halfway mark, “Major Rajor” chalks in as a pretty stock ‘core thrasher, with its only redeeming quality being John Hunt’s vocal approach, while the more experimental “Loch Ness” is territory Dead to Fall should hit up more often.

While it’s refreshing to see a band branch out and try new things, Are You Serious? is going to face a long, uphill battle if its going to win any prior detractors. In these parts, this album cut through most of the chaff, Dead to Fall showing they don’t take themselves too seriously and might have a chance at prolonging their career in the wake of what has been a literal abandonment of fresh, relevant ideas in the American metal scene.

 www.myspace.com/deadtofall

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Clearly one of the more left-field and adventurous albums to feature standard female vocals, Delusions from To-Mera is a bit too much on the experimental side, the band unable to recreate the sterling dynamics from its excellent Transcendental debut.

Led by the ethereal vocals of Julie Kiss (ex Without Face; resident hottie), To-Mera’s full-fisted, almost avant-garde approach is certainly not without merit; it just fails to resonate after repeated listens.

Opener “The Lie” is a sure-fire indicator of where things are going, complete with hokey synths that cancel out some well-sung chorus arrangements and hard-nosed riffing. The off-time churn of “The Glory Of A New Day” shows initial promise with a variety of jumbled, down-tuned riffing, as does the more reflective “A Sorrow To Kill,” but these tunes are the only moments that stuck out in this frazzled ball of prog metal, symphonic metal, and avant-garde metal.

You’d have to commend To-Mera for their forward-thinking approach. No one with a female vocal in their right mind would attempt such daring music, but the jist of the matter is that Delusions fails to carry any weight. These songs, in their technical and expansive approach just don’t stick and without that safety net of dynamics, all the notes and time changes in the world don’t mean a thing.

 www.to-mera.com

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Limited to only 2,000 copies, The White is an EP featuring various ditties Agalloch has recorded the past three years. ‘Tis a cool thing because their latest few length, Ashes Against The Grain one was one 2006’s shining moments, a picture-perfect collage of atmospheric dark metal, augmented by Agalloch’s penchant for dreary and horrid acoustic guitar work and leader John Haughm’s attention to detail. One would have to be remiss to say Agalloch could do no wrong and The White is a justification of that claim.

Relying mostly on those gorgeous acoustic guitars (lots of strumming, dark chords), The White starts off with the strains of children singing on a playground, only to segue into one of their somber acoustic intros. No vocals, just a lot of groundwork laid with delicate hands. The brief, but harmonious “Birch Black” would be a wonderful interlude on an Agalloch full-length, while “Birch White” introduces some of Haughm’s morose vocals; the only song to feature any type of vocal work. “Sowilo Rune” is a marvelous keep-sake of ambient folk, as is closer “Summerisle Reprise.”

Now having the benefit of a major cult following in the underground, Agalloch can do whatever it pleases. This is not the first EP for this Northwestern US crew, staying with the trend of keeping their name out there before the next full-length monster arrives. When that time comes, no one will know (Haughm is a notorious recluse), but be sure that it will embark on a journey through the darkened enclaves of Haughm’s mind that will easily outdo a lot of folk and atmospheric metal coming from Europe and the States.

The White is an absolute gem, thus furthering the notion that Agalloch are the undisputed masters of dark metal.

http://www.myspace.com/agalloch/

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

For anyone in search of a good read and some of the most honest and bare-bones insight on the 80’s metal underground, check out Tom G. Warrior’s Are You Morbid? – Into the Pandemonium of Celtic Frost. Said book is a regular read in the Gehlke Metal Compound and when taken into context of the subject at hand, it adds some much-needed color and foresight.

As 98% of you should know, Hellhammer was the precursor to Celtic Frost, the band borne out of Warrior’s young and frenzied mind with the intent of creating the most extreme and raw metal on the planet. In 1983, this was the most extreme shit on the block, with raging, primal guitars, and a punkish exuberance that wasn’t matched until thrash hit a few years later. Indeed, Demon Entrailsis one of the foundations of today’s extreme metal scene.

The songs themselves are audible considering they are in demo form, Hellhammer banging out fist-pounding numbers like “Messiah,” “Buried and Forgotten” and “Triumph of Death.”

Other choice cuts include “Maniac,” in its tempo-shifting glory, the ode to the Greek prince of death – “Eurynomous” and “Bloody Pussies,” a song that would never have made the Celtic Frost cut, poor title and all.

In his youth and inexperience, Warrior sounds determined to push Hellhammer to the edge (a fact he would later acknowledge as the reason for the band’s demise), but here, the band’s out-of-control rage is hard to be topped, especially when the pummeling “The Third of the Storms” hits.

A two-disc set consisting of the Satanic Rites and Death Fiend and Triumph of Death demos, Demon Entrails is a marvelous time capsule and glance back to the past into one of the metal’s most revered personalities. Production is quite primitive and the band occasionally falls out of synch with each other, but that’s how metal was – unrefined and without the guise of Pro-Tools in which to hide.

Many already hold the band’s only official release, 1984’s Apocalyptic Raidsdemo in high regard, so the demand and need for Demon Entrails is there. Do yourself a favor and check out the book and this album – it will soothe and bewilder the metal soul.

 www.myspace.com/hellhammerband

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

The second part in Maiden’s “Story Of” series, the Live After Death DVD not only features the live concert in which bears its name, it also contains a 60-minute documentary detailing the recording of the Powerslave album and the massive world tour that ensued. Now finally on DVD after years of bootlegging, this two-disc set is literally spews some cool odds and sods from Maiden’s glory years.

Shot live at the Long Beach Arena during a four night run from March 14th to the 18th of 1985, the Live After Death DVD shows the band at its arguable peak, although demonstrating obvious strain from a grueling tour schedule. This fact is none more evident in singer Bruce Dickinson, who struggles throughout the set to hit the soaring high notes in “Aces High,” “The Trooper,” and “Flight of Icarus.”

Set highlights include the epic-of-all-epics “Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” a true testament of Maiden’s live prowess that still resonates as one of metal’s all-time classic songs. “Powerslave,” the ever-versatile “Revelations,” and the fun “Run to the Hills” and “Running Free” are spot-on, and given some extra energy courtesy of Steve Harris’ basslines. Of particular note is how fluent the guitar duo of Adrian Smith and Dave Murray are, who practically wrote the book on twin guitar interplay and shine throughout this set.

The documentary portion is the real treat, with all five members (Dickinson, Harris, Murray, Smith, and McBrain) telling their side of the Powerslavecomplete with stories of in-fighting (Bruce once secretly taped a Harris vs. McBrain squabble), McBrain’s quick dive in a swimming pool during a scorching set in Sacramento, producer Martin Birch’s propensity to get silly when drunk, and getting cabin fever in a bus criss-crossing the USA. It’s all here and then some.

Maiden has always had a way of doing things right and in comparison to other DVD’s that have hit the market of late, that certain air of quality abounds onLive After Death. This part of the story is great, but the real fun should begin when the band delves into the Somewhere in Time/Seventh Son era, a point in time that nearly broke the band apart, setting them up for their gradual downfall in the dreaded 90’s. What a story, up the Irons…

 www.ironmaiden.com

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)

Live, Biomechanical may be notoriously hit and miss, but on record they’ve never been known to under-perform. Cannibalised continues in that vein, this time offering up much more of a challenging, furious listening experience than on previous outings. Sound-wise, main-man John K, has upped the ante on all fronts and gone for a steep wall of sound approach, filling almost every possible corner with a sheer, sometimes impenetrable covering of noise. Basically you’re thinking along the lines of Strapping Young Lad to get an idea just how thick he’s managed to make this sound. While still retaining the shrieking, ball shrinking vocals and orchestral swirls of before Cannibalisedcertainly comes across as much harder and solid sounding.

The title track is a hulking behemoth, high-pitched vocals squealing out at you from under huge, caterpillar tread tracks of riffs and red hot machine gun, spit soloing. The SYL comparisons unmistakable in both the throttling texture of the music and in John K’s vocals, which also show a love for Judas Priest. “Slow The Poison” shifts from full on destruction riffing to a full tilt thrash approach with once again powerful vocals, while “Breathing Silence” takes a few hints from Pantera. The full, ferocious sound which fills the room throws out continuous, big, schizo, twisting, turning riffs and songs that it’s easy to get bowled over by and occasionally lost in. Ultimately crushing on occasion though you can’t help but feel they may have taken on a little too much. It’s rare however and more often than not they’re up to the challenge.

Throughout Cannibalised is a painstakingly put together piece of work that shows true dedication and certainly more than just a little talent. The SYL comparisons do dog it a little, but they drift off as it progresses. The cinematic orchestral and haunting choral elements call to mind Cradle Of Filth circaDamnation And A Day or Dimmu Borgir, especially on “Consumed.” An epic combination of terrifyingly scattered spoken word vocals cut through with well timed bursts of keyboards/strings and confounding, building drums. It’s like being chased blindly through the dark rooms of a haunted house, something evil quickly gaining up on you. Culminating with a full force tornado at the end of “Violent Descent,” things close on a suitably disturbing and abrupt note. You want non-stop face-peeling metal action, you’re not going to get much better than this.

 www.biomechanical.co.uk

Sheesh, it really was 10 years ago when Stuck Mojo were all over the place on WCW Wrestling? My God, where does the time go? Their Rising album was their arguable peak, the album that allowed the band to have some very minor crossover appeal, becoming Century Media’s biggest selling artist in the late 90’s. It would all come to a gradual crawl, as tensions between singer Bonz and guitarist/songwriter Rich Ward came to a head, resulting in the band’s breakup in the early part of this decade.

Ever the determined one, Ward has brought back Stuck Mojo with a new singer (Lord Nelson) and a new, but not very new album with Southern Born Killers. Said album has been completed for well over two years and has already made the rounds on those pesky download sites, so leave it up to Napalm Records to pick up the ball and put this out.

By all accounts, Stuck Mojo is still rap metal. Lord Nelson’s dirty rhymes flow quite well on “I’m American” and the very politically charted “Open Season” which is aimed at the terrorism problem both at home and abroad. In fact, it is Mojo’s political stance that carries this album – Ward and co. pull no punches and aren’t afraid to point the finger (see also the sampled “For the Cause of Allah”).

Those thick grooves are still present, Ward, a master of a Southern-fried Pantera barbecue doles out some pretty swift riffs in “The Sky Is Falling” and the ironic “Metal Is Dead.” Hats off to Ward for some well-placed clean vox as well in “The Sky Is Falling” and “I’m American.”

Stuck Mojo may never reach their popularity of the late 90’s, but Southern Born Killers is a rather up-and-tumble batch of down-home groove metal without any annoying street traits and hip-hop credo. For even better glimpse as to what Stuck Mojo is going for, check out the video for “Open Season” – it’s unabashed attack on extreme Islam takes chances few bands would, and for that, Stuck Mojo’s presence in the metal scene is justified.

 www.myspace.com/stuckmojo

(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)