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Venial Sin – Sphere of Morality

Posted in Review with tags , , , , on 23rd November 2012 by -Scorpius-

Venial Sin
Sphere of Morality
Black/Death/Melodic Metal
Infekted Records
Released: 2012

Venial Sin are a four piece extreme metal band from Villa Real in Portugal, they consist of Renato Sousa on Lead Vocals, Predo Matos on Guitar, Vocals and Synths, Paulo Padrao on Bass Guitar and Helder Guedes on Drums. The band aren’t easily categorized but have elements of Death Metal, Black Metal and some more melodic elements, blended with some very dark and atmospheric elements.
Their album, Spheres of Morality which I am reviewing here was released in 2012 via Infekted Records.

Track one is entitled, A New Rose, which starts off with a really interesting riff on the guitars and bass shortly progressed by some really intense guttural vocals and some great rhythmic parts and harmonizing guitar parts, then there’s an acoustic sounding segment with clean vocals and some cymbal work on the drums.
One thing I would like to note about this track is that the drums sound fantastic, they are really full and played flawlessly by drummer Helder. A New Rose is a really good track, it is rhythmic yet melodic which can often be a hard balance to find but the guys at Venial Sin have found it and executed that balance with some style, there are some great atmospheric background sounds on this track which caught my attention and overall this track has a nice contrast between it’s heavy and light elements.

Next up is a track called, Prepared for Battle, the title does not disappoint either! The first thing that strikes me about this track is the guitar tone, they have got that sound just right I feel, there is some great drumming with really interesting rhythms at play on this track, some brilliant blast beats and perfect double bass pedal work on the drums. This is quite a Black Metal sounding track, without sounding clichéd either! I like the use of overlapping duel vocals and the bass guitar really compliments the guitar parts, towards the end of the track softer vocals come in which are intermixed with the familiar guttural vocals and the track starts to take a on a rather ethereal quality to it, especially with its guitar solo!

Novembers Fall is the third offering on this album and it starts with acoustic sounds and some great ambiance, there’s some great guitar picking and a nice chord jangle at the end of the main riff at the beginning before it get’s into a really mournful and depressing feel, the guttural vocals are slow and droning and that’s intermixed once more with the softer vocal, giving this track a very somber feel. One thing I did notice at one point with this track is that the softer vocal does a harmony which is very reminiscent of a vocal phrase that Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant does in Stairway to Heaven, the similarities to it are striking and I don’t know if it was a conscious thought out idea to have that in there or if it was just a natural organic thing that happened. My overall thoughts on this track is that it is very mournful and depressing, great if you want to listen to such a track.

Track four is entitled, Real End and it is definitely the ballad track of this album, it starts off with some electronic keyboards in its intro which is shortly followed by the Bass Guitar, Drums and Soft Vocal and there are some really nice harmonies on this track, I found it to be very contemplative and introspective and it really makes the listener look inside of themselves, as I am sure was the intention of the band with this track, around the 3 minutes mark the heavy vocals comes in and the tempo steps up somewhat.

Vanishing Death is the penultimate track on this album, it has a very fantasy almost computer game feel to this track and I don’t mean that in a negative way, it sounds like it could be part of a soundtrack to one of the Final Fantasy games, there are some interesting guitar and drum parts and a nice overall rhythm. It has a great progression as the song goes on and almost has a battle feel to it, like your about to face a level boss on a computer game. An interesting track indeed!

The Title track of this album, Sphere of Morality is the final track on this album, which I found to be quite an odd but not unwelcome position on the album itself. This track starts with a Death Metal feel to it and has some nice choppy rhythmic parts and it is quite a technical track, I like the duel layered heavy vocals and the drumming once again is top notch, there is some very impressive double bass pedal work which really shows off the drummers skill.
There is more synth in the background of this track and at approximately 2 minutes 20 seconds into this track all the instruments stop playing and the listener is momentarily left with just synth before they kick back in again, I get a feel of finalisation and that the album has come full circle with this track and perhaps that is why the band decided to place the title track at the end of the album, the track then ends with some synth that slowly fades away and your left with the sounds of a Portuguese night, with crickets and various nightlife painting a picture of a late summers night.
On the CD there are two final tracks labelled, Part I and Part II although they share the same track as the previous song, Sphere of Morality. It’s hard to define which is Part I and Part II to be honest, the fire sounds give way to some electronic keyboard and some synth which is shortly joined by some reverbed flute sounds, which soon takes over the track, it’s a very ambient sound and I would also go further to classify it as electronic easy listening.
My personal opinion here is that the band should of left out this electronic part and ended the album with the sounds of the night and the fire, for me that would have been a far more satisfying end to the album.

To Summarise, Sphere of Morality is not that bad of an album if you want to sit and listen to something that’s going to transport you to another place or another way of thinking, if your expecting track after track of heaviness and brutality then you will be sorely disappointed, yes there are times when there is heaviness but I wouldn’t personally call it a brutal heaviness, more of a doom metal kind of heaviness to me but that however is just my opinion.
What I will say though and in no way am I being negative or derogatory here, I think this album would make a great soundtrack to a video game, a fantasy based game such as Final Fantasy X as a lot of the ideas really reminded me of the soundtrack to that game, I really think the band should approach some games developers as if they can get their album used as a soundtrack, if not in part to a game I really think they would make a lot of money with it!

I do not wish to make the entirety of my summary of this album to be a pitch to have this made into a video game soundtrack however, so here are a few more of my thoughts.

This album has the potential to span and cross various musical genres in my opinion and a great potential to win a lot of fans who may not usually listen to this type of music, I found it to be very accessible and I am sure new listeners will too. If you have never heard this album I would recommend it to you all, take a listen to it just once to see if it is your cup of tea as it may well be or it may not be but still take the time to give it a try as I did, I don’t think any listener would be sorely disappointed with it at all but I do think the listener would have to be in a certain mood or frame of mind to make this album a regular listen. For me it would be an album that I would put on now and again to perhaps lift my mood or have it playing in the background. All in all a pretty good effort by Venial Sin and I think the band will progress nicely and their next release will have a natural and well deserved progression.

3/5

~Scorpius~

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Masachist – Scorned

Posted in Review with tags , , , , , on 27th October 2012 by -Scorpius-

Masachist
Scorned
Released: 2011
Death Metal
Released via Selfmadegod Records

Masachist are a 5 piece death metal band from Poland and have an impressive array of members from some very notable bands, On vocals they have Pig a.k.a Wojciech Wąsowicz from Decapitated, on bass is Heinrich from Polish Black Metal band Vesania, On drums Daray who is an ex Vader drummer, Aro can be found on Rhythm guitar and founding member Thrufel is the Lead Guitarist.

All in all an impressive line up and expectations of a quality album is high. The Album itself is entitled Scorned and it’s promised to be, “40 minutes of your agony, 9 songs about your demise”.

The first track, Drilling Your Nerves powers in with a nice rhythmic piece on guitars and drums which is quickly followed by a thundering vocal that screams brutality through and through. Various influences are immediately evident and I would like to desist from comparisons with other notable polish bands, Behemoth being the main one as the similarities are stark which is to be somewhat expected with the close links to the band. The track itself is an exciting mix of death metal pounding and a surprising almost black metal feel to it, which is a nice blend of influence and musicianship, the rhythm of this track is by far its defining quality and it pounds you into musical submission!

The Second offering is entitled, The Process of Elimination and straight away I am caught by the blast beats and double bass pedal work on the drums, the guitar playing is blisteringly fast and choppy and the vocals lend an almost ethereal quality to the music, if you like a mosh and a head-bang then this track is most definitely for you. I am struck by the interesting contrasts throughout the track with rhythm and melodic brutality, if such a term exists! It does now!

Straight and Narrow Path is the third track on the album and it has a dredging, guttural feel to it. Which is then intersected by a middle 8 which gives way to a chorus effect on the guitar, this track is one that you can turn loud and annoy the neighbours with as the bass is punishing and the drums only increase the intensity that is equally matched by the guitars and vocals, an interesting track indeed.

Track 4, Manifesto starts off incredibly brutal and then has a brief melodic guitar part which quickly gives way to yet more unrelenting brutality, this track would induce a brain aneurism if you turned it up loud enough! That’s how unrelenting and punishing it is, if you like your music to punish your senses then this track certainly does that.

Next up is a track called, Higher Authority which to me is a blend of old school death metal and sliding guitar chords, the vocals really chop this track up and the blast beats on the drums really give an added element. There are some very interesting chords in this track and this track really gives you an idea of how good these musicians really are, the skill level is incredibly high and the track really gives the listener a taste of what these guys are all about.

Opposing Normality is track 5 and it starts off with a distorted organ sound and some interesting distorted/reverbed vocal effects, this soon ends and the guitars, bass and drums usher in a very old school style riff. Mid way through the song the brutality relents for a moment and then it smacks its way back in.

Track 7 is entitled Liberation and wow, this track is by far the fastest on the album, the double bass pedal and blast beats are nothing short of incredible, quarter way through the track is slows down marginally and gives the listener a mix of rhythm and interesting chord progressions, the track then speeds up to 1000mph again and the listener is left absolutely dazed!

Liberation II is the eighth track it is entirely with distorted sounds although this time it’s a mix of distorted vox/choral, it’s a momentary departure from the overall theme of the album, call it a auditory break.

Finally we have track 9, Inner Void. Which starts off with a very slow droning old school death metal feel to it, very cool! This track at the beginning almost reminds me of Celtic Frost but that is soon replaced by yet more old school idea’s, there are clearly many influences in this track and I feel this may well be a nice jumping point to where Masachist can launch their next album.

My overall thoughts on this album is that it is a very well thought out album, there are many influences and ideas going on within it and each member clearly brings aspects from their other bands to this one. If you think Masachist is merely a side project or plaything for these musicians then you would be sorely mistaken, it is very much it’s own entity and creation and the quality of musicianship is clear.

The production of this album is perfect, I cannot fault it, every sound is as I believe it should be and the overall mix is just right.

If I were to sum this album up in one word, which is incredibly easy to do in fact that word would be, unrelenting.

Each track pummels the listener into an auditory submission of sorts and they are perfectly placed lending an added quality to the next.

I am incredibly impressed by this album and the name of the band says it all, Masachist You have to have some masochistic tendencies to allow yourself such an assault on your senses, and I love it!

5/5

~Scorpius~

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Depraved Plague – Systemic

Posted in Review with tags , , , on 25th August 2012 by -Scorpius-

Depraved Plague
Systemic
Death Metal
Released: 2012
Self Released

Depraved Plague are a four piece death metal band who formed in January of 2010 and they hail from Cambridge. Fronted by Mark Taylor on Vocals, Chris on guitar, Emma on the bass and Michael on drums. Their influences are bands such as Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, Morbid Angel and Goretted and it clearly shows in their new debut album, Systemic.

The first track on the album is entitled Chokehold, which starts with a nice two chord guitar part and a military march like drum rhythm which then gives way to an incredibly brutal blast beat and ferocious vocals and ripping guitars. This track really does hit you full force in the face and in a way lets you know who’s the boss. The track then slows down a bit towards the middle but by no means does the brutality let up, straight away it is clear this track is very Cannibal Corpse inspired and Depraved Plague would fit very well as a supporting band on one of their tours.

Asphyxiate is the second track and straight away it comes in with pounding blast beats and a very meaty sounding guitar, the vocals follow shortly after with an intensely guttural feel to them. This track is very old school death metal in its feel and I see it partly as a homage to what has gone before but in an updated sense, a very clever and well put together track indeed! In the middle of the track at approximately one minute and forty seconds there a nice little break which I can imagine would get people doing a circle of death mosh or something. This track is incredibly brutal and barely lets up its unrelenting pace, if you want to get some anger out of your system then this track is ideal to do that with, perfect headbanging material.

Next up is a track called, Endless Torment, which starts off quite sedately and almost has a black metal feel to it. There are some interesting harmonies here and it really paints a picture in the mind, however this does not last for long as the brutally smashes its way onto the track, yet again this has a bit of a Cannibal Corpse feel to it but not in so much of a way where it feels like it’s trying to copy it; ideas are certainly borrowed such as the rhythm and some similar chords progressions but that’s where the similarity ends.

If the last track was inspired by Cannibal Corpse the undoubtedly this next track, Degradation, is inspired by Deicide and old school Morbid Angel. The track itself feels old school yet with a modern and exciting twist, its a short and sharp shock to the system and leaves the listener wanting more.

Your Final Execution is the fifth track and it is quite a different track to all the others and yet it doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb. It’s more of a momentary departure. The rhythmic patterns are completely different and a whole host of other ideas are going on, it works really well and is perfect for a nice slow head bang in places. This track really does show off the skill of the musicians in Depraved Plague, it is clear they have honed their skills and they use them like a sharpened samurai sword or a sniper riffle to assassinate all that opposes it, it is unrelenting yet in a way melodic, a very interesting mix indeed!

The sixth track is entitled Human Revulsion and unfortunately I think this is the weakest track on the album, that’s not to say it’s not a good track because it is, I just feel it is not as strong in its conviction and purpose as the other tracks. Having said that there are some interesting rhythmic progressions and some really choppy guitar riffs.

Track seven, Decayed From Birth… This track is absolutely immense and I wish there was an accurate word to use to describe it, brutal and unrelenting barely even scratches the surface in trying to convey how this track sounds, there is a really interesting meatiness to the guitars that would make many a guitarist proud to even come close to attaining a guitar tone that thick and meaty. There’s also a nice little bass break on this track that adds a little something extra without compromising the overall integrity.

Carnal Rage is the eighth track and it really is a hard one to describe, imagine if you were to get a rabid pit bull and merge it with a dragon, then you can begin to understand the mix of brutality, heaviness and an epicness that this track has. This track could easily be used for a post apocalyptic or zombie like movie to give it that added edge.

The final track is entitled Rapture in Death and yet again it is quite an epic track, I do feel this can be a starting point for Depraved Plague‘s next album. I would advise them to carry on with this idea and to keep the epic almost movie soundtrack kind of style they have going on with the riffs in this track. It is a nice mix of brutality and clarity at the same time, a very impressive track indeed!

My final thoughts on this album are very positive, there is a nice progression that goes on with this album and that can often be a hard thing to do, to go from point A all the way to point Z and giving a well defined idea and picture of what the album is all about. There are many, many brutal elements in this album as well as a creeping epicness on the last two tracks, if Depraved Plague continue this progression and sense of epic wonder in their next album then I can easily guarantee they will have a very popular record on their hands which I feel will cross over the usually musical boundaries and sense of genre. Yes it is Death Metal but it can attract fans from other genres and truly bring a united sense of being, brotherhood and downright brutality to all who listen to it!

Depraved Plague are definitely a band to watch out for!

5/5

~Scorpius~

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This or the Apocalypse – Dead Years

Posted in Review with tags , , , , on 25th August 2012 by -Scorpius-

This or the Apocalypse
Dead Years
Released 24th September
Melodic Hardcore
Released via Lifeforce Records

This or the Apocalypse are a 5 piece metal/melodic hardcore band from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA and it is often thought of as Amish country but it apparently has a big city feel to it and a thriving arts and music scene. Fronted by Rick Armellino, This or the Apocalypse quote themselves on their Facebook page as being, “A band that exhibits the patience and dedication to step outside the box to create something both heavy and unique. Their craft of song is intelligent, scathing, honest and even uplifting”.

Their new album, Dead Years starts with a track called Hell Praiser which begins with a lo-fi up and down scale on the guitar and a chopping bass, the lo-fi effect is then dropped and the vocals scream their way in along with the rest of the band with the same up and down scale riff on guitars.

The vocals on this first track are surprisingly gritty and in some places quite death metal sounding and to be honest are the only point of merit on this track.

Track two is entitled, Power Hawk and it instantly sounds like an Enter Shikari song, and there are a few electronic sounding elements as well as some Djent style riffage on the guitars as well as some stuttered vocal effects. The track doesn’t immediately impress but it is clear that it would be quite a mainstream and radio friendly type of track on some radio stations.

The third track on the album, In Wolves, starts off with some quite pleasant rhythm on the drums and guitar and then more Djent style riffage comes in, next up is a very clichéd piece of “clean” style singing that you will hear on 1000’s of records from across the world which is cut up with the familiar attempt at screaming vocals. There is also a standard breakdown that seems the popular thing to do these days, which I personally find very boring and predictable.

Americans, the title of the fourth track on this album, starts with a reasonably pleasant clean picking guitar riff, along with what sound like a very reverberated piano. A standard hardcore/djent vocal comes in and the track turns into a very boring and bland attempt at mixing heavy elements with the more softened melodic feel, this is a very poor and ill thought out attempt at making an “anthem” style of track in my opinion.

Track five, Hate The One’s You Love starts with dare I say it a mix of The Killers style of riffs and the increasingly boring and familiar djent stop start guitar which is then followed by some incredibly clichéd and boring ideas, the track then slowly morphs into a sort of Enter Shikari style song with a few almost death metal style vocals thrown in which then blends into a melodic dreamlike state and then back into the djent style with what a surprise! A breakdown! Bland and predictable is all I can say about this track and it warrants no further comment.

Interestingly track six, You Own No One But You, is a marked improvement on all the previous tracks and actually starts with a pretty edgy riff which sounds quite interesting, the vocals however I find are very uninspiring and predictable until about the 1 minute 20 second mark where the song gradually takes on a more death metal feel, which I like! But alas, yet another breakdown comes in and then some very clichéd clean teen pop style lyrics, it’s an interesting mix of styles and it does work to a point however I do wish there was more of the death metal style ideas in this song and then maybe it would make a half decent track.

Track seven,  A Damn Moment, is so boring it barely even needs a description! If you were to smash together a track by the Killers and Enter Shikari then this would be the result and a piss poor result at that!

Gaunt and Fierce is the eighth track on the album and it sounds reasonably pleasant as it starts, this is the kind of track that would feel very at home on Kerrang Radio and many other similar radio stations aimed at selling boring and uninspiring tripe to teenagers, needless to say this track is incredibly commercial and clichéd and no doubt many teenagers who may be getting into metal etc. will like this track, I can imagine it playing on their stereo systems night and day, however it will stay silent on mine. The track is entitled Gaunt and Fierce, the resulting musical mess is anything but.

The penultimate track is entitled, Kill Em’ With Guidance and isn’t actually that bad of a track if you like the sound of lift music while you are working, all joking aside however the track is better than the vast bulk of this album and is half listenable apart from an inevitable breakdown in the middle of the track.

The final track, Hard Branch to Snap, is by far the most clichéd track on this album and is quite obviously inspired by early Enter Shikari and the Djent style. It tries really hard to be fast, heavy and brutal in its style and unfortunately it is a great failure in that attempt. This is by far the most disappointing track on the entire album but I know for a fact there will be hordes of young teenagers who lap this up and actually think it is “Brootal” as they put it.

To summarise, I was not a fan of this album, Dead Years, and I can easily say I will not becoming a fan of This or the Apocalypse. To me this is yet another example of a band that is selling out into a trend of bland and uninspiring tripe, this type of music is ten a penny and if you turn onto any mainstream station that plays “metal” then this is the kind of thing that you will hear. The Album reeks of a poor attempt to copy Enter Shikari and I say a poor attempt as Enter Shikari are an ok band and this band have made attempted to make a carbon copy of their style, mixed in with a bit of The Killers (who I hate with a passion).

This or the Apocalypse do however have a sizeable fan base and no doubt it is made up of adoring teenage fans who absolutely love their music, however they will grow out of it and they will move on to bigger and better things, their music taste will develop and grow and they will begin finding out styles that express their attitude to life. I suppose this is the crux of my argument, this music is for the current teenage population, so if you are from the age of 12-16 and your into the hardcore and djent style of music then this band is most likely for you, if you like your music to sound like a 1000 other sell out carbon copy bands then yet again this band is for you… However, if you have a well-defined musical palette and you know your stuff then you will steer clear of this absolute tripe at all cost!

This or the Apocalypse?

In all honestly I’d prefer the Apocalypse!

0/5

~Scorpius~

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Eviscerate Carnage – The Art of Pathology

Posted in Review with tags , , , , , , , , on 2nd August 2012 by -Scorpius-

Eviscerate Carnage

The Art of Pathology

Death Metal

Release Date – TBC

Abyssus Records

Eviscerate Carnage is a 4 man death metal project that was created by Merciless Terror Front man, Dale Lindsell, they formed in October of 2012 and feature Dale Lindsell on Vocals and he is joined by his fellow band member Dan Oldcorn from Merciless Terror on Bass, also Tom Clark and Richard Grindon join the melee to complete the line up.

The Art of Pathology is Eviscerate Carnage’s first E.P recorded at Stuck On A Name Studios in Nottingham and is promised to be a showcase of what’s to come from this gore filled project, the songs are based on what the world would be like through a psychotic killers eyes and the lyrics explicitly describe acts of brutal murder, anatomical dissection, re animating the dead and of course a bit of cannibalism!

I have reliably been informed that a full length album has already been written and will be released sometime in 2013.

The E.P itself starts with a track called Deathwork, which comes in with a bit of ambient atmospheric noise to paint a picture in your mind, when listening to it you almost feel as if you were tied up in some psycho killers basement ready to be brutally tortured and murdered, as soon as the atmospheric sounds started it finishes and gives way to some extremely brutal music, the vocals scream their way in with a startlingly long scream.

The track is reasonably brutal and is very easy to have a head bang to and absolutely perfect to get some anger out whilst listening to it, there are some very nice tempo changes and some interesting guitar riffs, the drums are nice and tight and the bass fills in nicely whilst all the while front man Dale Lindsell is laying down some intense vocals.

Medical Murder is the second track on the E.P and it starts with a nice guitar riff and drums, which soon gives way to a marching like rhythm, this track is possibly even more brutal than the first track when it really kicks in, this is definitely a track that you would get in the mosh pit for, very aggressive and it has a brutality that essentially grabs you by the throat and screams in your face!

Track three is the title track of this E.P, The Art Of Pathology and it starts with some clean guitar and bass and then a vocal sample which talks about, “making an incision at the base of the skull and cutting away the flesh to expose the skull and using the bone saw to cut into the skull”, the sound of a drill whirls in and then the track comes blasting in with a very nice guitar riff, blast beats on the drums, thundering bass and once again incredibly brutal vocals.

Anaerobic Decomposition of Organic Matter, which is a bit of a mouthful when trying to say it is the fourth track on this E.P and undoubtedly the heaviest and best track in my opinion, it starts with some really nice double bass pedal work on the drums and a great piece of guitar and bass work. I can imagine that this is the track that everyone has a mosh to most when Eviscerate Carnage play live, this track really shows off the technical skill of the band in my opinion. Half way through the track a really nice death metal guitar solo rips in and it really compliments the track as it goes on, lending some nice higher up harmony to the rhythm guitar.

The final track of the album is entitled Pneumatically Battered, which certainly lends to a lot of mental imagery through the title alone and the mental imagery doesn’t stop at the title either as the track begins another vocal piece which sounds like it was taken from a 1950’s documentary or public information film about serial killers.

it dryly comes in saying, “There are no typical murderers, some plan their crimes meticulously while others kill on impulse”

That then gives way to a piece of static like you’d get on an old TV when the signals gone, the guitar, bass and drums then come in followed by the vocals, the track itself is very brutal and once again another one to mosh and/or head bang to, whatever takes your fancy!

It is wall to wall extremity with this track, it doesn’t let up and it keeps pounding you into submission, pneumatically battering you in fact as the title says, it’s a very nice track to end the E.P and leaves the listener on a high.

My final thoughts on Eviscerate Carnage’s E.P, The Art Of Pathology is that it is a very well thought out and put together piece, each track lends something to the other and the production sounds to be of a reasonably high level, it is clear that all the musicians involved are skilled and competent in their respective instruments. The Vocal sample adds a little something extra to the E.P and it is quite atmospheric and it easily paints a picture in your mind.

There are clearly influences from bands such as Carcass, Exhumed and there’s even a flavour of Aborted in there too.

All in all this is an interesting and enjoyable E.P to listen to and I am certain the band put on exciting live performances that really get the crowd going, having seen two of the members previously play with their band Merciless Terror I know they have the energy, enthusiasm, drive and passion to make this project something special. I would recommend that you go and see this band play live if possible, buy their upcoming album which is due to be released in 2013

YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!

5/5

 

~Scorpius~

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Necroriser – Suicide

Posted in Review with tags , , , , , on 11th July 2012 by -Scorpius-

Necroriser
Suicide
Released – 2011
Thrash/Death Metal
Self Released

Necroriser are a 3 piece Thrash/Death Metal band who originally come from Brazil, however they now reside in London. They formed in 2010 when frontman/bassist of the Band, Vermeyo and Mighell on Guitar teamed together from their previous band. Then in late 2010 they find their third and final member, Ruben,
on drums and the band have steadily been gigging around the UK ever since.

Necroriser have gigged with bands such as Abgott, Primitive Graven Image and Warbringer, among many others!

Their 2011 E.P Suicide opens with a track called, Horror, which starts with a fading in piece of drumming, which is clearly very skilled. Then a meaty and very thrash metal guitar chops it’s way into the track, which gets you headbanging straight away, next up are the vocals which can only be described as brutal but with a startling clarity to it. The pace of this first track is unrelenting, then it slows down towards the middle of the song and then the rythym changes to a very pleasing gallopping riff which then gives way for a blistering old school thrash metal solo. As the track continues it sucks you further and further into it’s unrelenting brutality, it grabs you by the throat and say’s, “we are f*cking Necroriser”.

A very pleasing first track to say the least!

Track two is the title track for the E.P, Suicide, which instantly rips its way in with a blistering ferocity, the drums, guitar and bass are instantly thrashing away and is very reminiscant of some Old School Death Metal bands. The vocals then come in unusually half way through the song which nicely blends its way from a brutal old school death metal riff into a more well known thrash metal sound.

The third track on this E.P is called, Cleanse, which I think starts off with quite a standard death/thrash metal style riff, however that soon gives way to a really nice riff where the drums perfectly compliment it with some double bass pedal work, it is clear Necroriser are a bunch of skilled Musicians with this track. Towards the middle of the track it slows its pace down and is very reminiscant of early Sepultura, a guitar solo then kicks in which sounds awesome! The vocals are truely brutal and lend a sharp edge to the overall sound.

The final track is called, Pain, unfortunately this is my least favourite track on the E.P, it is still brutal and gives the listener a smack in the face and sounds very old school death metal, the riffs are nice and choppy, the double bass work on the drums are very well done and the vocals keep lending that brutal sharpness to the music.

My overall thoughts about this E.P are very positive and to be honest I am struggling to find any faults.

The production on this cd has been done to a high level and it doesn’t sound amatuer in any way, even though the band mixed and produced this E.P themselves, on this I applaud them.

Each track is an unrelenting blend of Thrash/Death metal and it pummels you into submission, it’s very old school and it is clear that the musicians are very skilled at what they do.

Necroriser are a very tight and well honed outfit, every member plays their instrument superbly and they all fit very well together, each one lending a boosted brutality to the other. If you are an old school thrash/death metal fan then this band is most definately for you, if your into bands such as Sepultura, Slayer or Carcass then you have found your new favourite band in Necroriser, Go out and see this band play live, buy their cd’s and support them as this is a band that truely deserves that support.

I have tried to keep the similarities to old school Sepultura out of this review up until this point, Necroriser are in a very similar vein as the aforementioned band, if you love old school Sepultura then you will love Necroriser, as they are keeping the spirit alive for this style of music, this is a band who I can see are not going to soften their style, they are not going to sell out, they simply will be…

NECRORISER!

5/5

-Scorpius-

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Gloomlurker – Realm Of Swallowed Souls

Posted in Review with tags , , , on 4th July 2012 by -Scorpius-

Gloomlurker
Realm of Swallowed Souls
Released – June 2012
Deathened Doom Metal
Self Released 

Gloomlurker are a 5 piece Death/Doom Metal band from Grimsby, who formed in January 2012 and despite only having been formed less than 7 months ago they have impressively played with some great bands such as, Sarah Jezebel Deva, Severed Heaven and Infernal Creation.

Their E.P Realm of Swallowed Souls starts of with a track called, Bungalow of horrors, which initially kicks off with a death metal feel to it but as it progresses through the song it becomes more doom metal.

As the track continues it becomes quite repetitive and predictable and it doesn’t really blow you away with any kind of stunning guitar work, it is quite apparent that the band are far more doom metal orientated than the aforementioned death metal.

The second track, Scarlet Whispers, starts off with a standard open chorded jangle on the guitar which is pleasant enough to listen to and then the drums kick in, after that the song is in full doom metal drone with yet more unimpressive and repetitive guitar, bass, drum and vocal work.

Track three which is titled, Mask of Fortitude, is a drastic improvement on the first two tracks of the E.P!

It starts with a rather meaty, chunky guitar riff reminiscent of a lot of death metal bands and then it kicks into the song with yet again more doom metal styled riffage, it is a track that you could happily have on when working but I wouldn’t put it on if your expecting something heavy to mosh to.

Next up is the track, Crypt Crooks, which like track two on the E.P starts off with a pleasant open chorded guitar jangle and then as with the second track the drums kick in and the doom metal drone starts once again. The track itself I find very repetitive and I wouldn’t really want to listen to it on a regular basis.

The last track on the E.P is a cover of Nirvana’s song, Breed, wow!

What a drastic change and for me an improvement, this song you can actually get into and the band cover it pretty well. The vocals on this track are split into two, one clean and the other the familiar scream, the clean vocal is out of tune and doesn’t really work, however on the plus side the scream vocal on this track sounds great! If the track was all with the scream vocal I would much prefer it, this is by far the best track on the E.P in my opinion.

My overall thoughts on this E.P are, the mix itself isn’t quite right as I find the bass gets lost and the vocals are too deep in the mix, if the vocals were brought out more and had a clearer if not louder definition that would improve things drastically.

If you are a fan of death metal then this E.P is not for you, I don’t quite understand why the band have termed themselves as Death/Doom as they are far more doom than death, yes there are very fleeting instances of death metal but the overall speed and skill for that just isn’t there.

Considering the band have only been going 7 months this is a fair effort on their part and I applaud them on that, there is plenty more time to develop their sound and ideas for this band, personally I think they should drop the death metal label and just stick with being a doom metal band.

If you are into doom metal then you would be into Gloomlurker, I however am not a massive doom metal fan so this E.P isn’t really for me.

Overall the band have made a good effort and it does show but I do believe there is a lot of room for improvement and development.

2/5

– Scorpius –

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